A Level-By-Level Look At Your Favorite Games

[gunswordfist]

so anyway, i'll do metal slug 3 next.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I love how you immediately just played into exactly what I said about you being a joke poster. That's why it's so easy for me to not have to take you seriously, anymore.

[gunswordfist]

it's not as funny as you throwing a hissy fit and refusing to continue the greatest video game tournament unless talon stopped talking about how you said you preferred sonic adventure over the classic games. now that was a good laugh.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I love how you just contradicted what you previously said just a single post ago. Sometimes I wonder if you even realize how stupid you make yourself sound. Than in and of itself cannot be topped when it comes to comedic value.

[Foggle]

Good job, Talon! I don't hate the Water Temple either, but I don't think I can say I legitimately like it. I really hate Jabu Jabu's Belly, though. It's one of the biggest brick walls for me in a game that I otherwise love; either I want to stop playing as soon as I get to it, or I don't feel like continuing after I beat it. I know it's supposed to look gross, but it's pretty off-putting to me - I have a strong stomach when it comes to typical video game gore, but for some reason the idea of being inside someone else's body just makes me feel queasy. I also think it's a pain to navigate properly, though of course that gets a lot easier on each subsequent playthrough. Laugh all you want, but that level just has this weird effect on me mentally that I can't recall ever experiencing in any other game.

I don't agree that Mushroom Hill goes on for too long, and would mostly like to stay out of any Sonic arguments, but doesn't Green Hill only last like 4 minutes total between all acts even without speedrunning? It may be divided into more stages, but it's definitely a lot shorter than Mushroom Hill in terms of actual play time.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I know it's supposed to look gross, but it's pretty off-putting to me - I have a strong stomach when it comes to typical video game gore, but for some reason the idea of being inside someone else's body just makes me feel queasy.

So the I take it that you weren't a fan of Mission 8 on DMC 3 or the end of Act 2 on GOW 2, then?

[Foggle]

I actually didn't have a problem with the one from DMC3, I think mostly because it's so short and the fact that Dante just randomly gets eaten by a giant flying whale after jumping off the tower for no reason never fails to make me laugh. If it went on for longer and was more difficult, I think I'd feel the same way I do about Jabu Jabu's Belly.

I haven't played Gears 2 since it came out and I honestly don't remember that level from it.

There was also a similar bit from Paper Mario IIRC, but the pleasant cartoon graphics made it perfectly fine for me.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

That Gears of War level is the one where you're swallowed by a giant worm and have to navigate its body and chainsaw the arteries attached to all 3 of its hearts to kill it. Graphically, it's way more visceral than anything in Jabu Jabu's Belly or that DMC 3 level.

For the record, though, I actually liked JJB. The low-res graphics of the N64 made it easy for me to "stomach" (pun fully intended ) the environment, and I actually found the puzzles to be pretty straightforward. That said, I definitely have to say that the Spirit Temple was hands down my favorite in the entire game.

[Rynnec]

Speaking of Jabu Jabu's Belly...

[talonmalon333]

If someone called the Spirit Temple the best Zelda dungeon of all time, I wouldn't see any problem with it.

[Spark Of Spirit]

S3&K

Angel Island Zone (10/10) - My favorite opening level in any Sonic game. Great music, breezy, and just enough to do to avoid repetition. The cinematic touches with the mid-boss and the burning forest as well as the bomb rum near the end and Robotnik in the waterfall are nice touches, too.

Hydrocity Zone (10/10) - There are people who hate this level. They are crazy. For a water level, it's remarkably fast, the gimmicks are fun, and the top path keeps you out of almost all the water if you're good enough. It also contains the best music track in the series and the boss is awesome.

Marble Garden Zone (8/10) - Slower, more platform-ish and mazey, but I enjoy about everything. Except the spinner segments. Those were pretty tedious. That boss, though. REALLY clever.

Carnival Night Zone (7/10)- Act one is really cool. Bright, bouncy, fun music, and the mid-boss is actually pretty good. Act 2 is not very, good though. For one, it's WAY too long, there are too many things trying to slow you down (even the boss), and the level just goes on much too long.

Icecap Zone (10/10) - Fast, cool, and blue. Classic Sonic in a nutshell.

Launch Base Zone (9/10) - Funky. I like all the different paths around the stage including Knuckles having a completely different second act to Sonic and Tails. Knuckles story inclusions in this level are great, as is the final boss. This was a good capper to the Sonic 3 half, and a good bridge into the next half.

Mushroom Hill Zone (10/10) - What the doctor said.

Flying Battery Zone (10/10) - This level is so fast, so fun, and so creative. I never get tired of it.

Sandopolis Zone (6/10) - This is the Carnival Night of the S&K half. Act 1 is clever, speedy, has a lot of exploration and ends with a fairly good mid-boss. Act 2 is the worst level in the entire game whether playing as Sonic, Tails, or Knuckles (Knuckles' version is even worse, if that's possible) lasting much too long and featuring gimmicks made purely to waste your time. Then there's a boss that takes forever after each hit to get hit again. Because, why not waste more time? Oh yeah, it's also my least favorite music track over the whole game.

Lava Reef Zone (11/10) - Best level layout, best music, best atmosphere, and best ideas in the entire franchise, in my opinion. There's nothing about this zone I don't think is great, starting with crumbling caverns after a plummet and ending with the best boss battle in the game. Lava Reef Zone is the best Sonic level ever.

Hidden Palace Zone (N/A) - It's a fun break from the action, but it isn't really a level.

Sky Sanctuary Zone (10/10) - More of an intermission level, but boy is it a good one. Good on Generations for recognizing it and technically giving it an act 2 in the process. A great theme of speeding up a crumbling spire, some creative usage of enemies, all culminating in a dynamic battle against Mecha Sonic and leaping into the Death Egg.

Death Egg Zone (9/10) - My favorite final stage in any Sonic game. It only loses a point for getting a little old by the end of act 2 and having an annoying Robotnik battle. That said, that music really pumps you up, the gravity switching is great, and so is just about everything else in this level.

Doomsday Zone (10/10) - This is about the only Super Sonic final battle I've ever liked in the series. I really wish they would follow Colors' example and stop doing them now.

[talonmalon333]

Marble Garden Zone (8/10) - That boss, though. REALLY clever.

While true, I do think it left solo Tails a bit cheated, as well as Knuckles. Did he even get a Marble Garden boss fight?

Carnival Night Zone (7/10)- Act one is really cool. Bright, bouncy, fun music, and the mid-boss is actually pretty good. Act 2 is not very, good though. For one, it's WAY too long, there are too many things trying to slow you down (even the boss), and the level just goes on much too long.

I love the atmosphere of this level, but I do think Act 2 didn't really add much. The Act 2s for most levels typically have something new that wasn't in their preceding Acts. With Carnival Night Zone Act 2, all I can remembering being different was the water portions (which weren't that fun), and the dreaded barrel of death which nobody liked. Helped to make the level feel a bit too long if you ask me.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Marble Garden Zone (8/10) - That boss, though. REALLY clever.

While true, I do think it left solo Tails a bit cheated, as well as Knuckles. Did he even get a Marble Garden boss fight?

Knuckles has a completely original boss. I actually think Tails solo should have gotten that same boss. It's difficult to hit the normal boss as Tails as it is.

Carnival Night Zone (7/10)- Act one is really cool. Bright, bouncy, fun music, and the mid-boss is actually pretty good. Act 2 is not very, good though. For one, it's WAY too long, there are too many things trying to slow you down (even the boss), and the level just goes on much too long.

I love the atmosphere of this level, but I do think Act 2 didn't really add much. The Act 2s for most levels typically have something new that wasn't in their preceding Acts. With Carnival Night Zone Act 2, all I can remembering being different was the water portions (which weren't that fun), and the dreaded barrel of death which nobody liked. Helped to make the level feel a bit too long if you ask me.

All Act 2 added were things to make the level slower. You know what's weird? Every level except Marble Garden in 3 has water. None of the levels in S&K have any. I think they could have slipped at least a little in there instead of Carnival Night. It really wasn't needed.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Contra NES

Stage 1 (Jungle) [10/10] - The iconic first level everyone recognizes from this game. If you're good enough at timing you can avoid falling in the water, not to mention the forest run at the end with all the platforms is good obstacle course gameplay. I don't even need to mention the boss, which is iconic as can be.

Stage 2 (Base 1) [8.5/10] - The Controls and flicker can get a bit sticky here, but the TPS gameplay on an 8-bit system is really inventive and much less confusing than the arcade counterpart. Also, the boss is pretty tricky.

Stage 3 (Waterfall) [10/10] - Platforming vertically up a waterfall. How awesome is that? This makes the level quite difficult and leads to a lot of planning before jumping. Enemy placement is really tough, too. Also, that boss? Another classic.

Stage 4 (Base 2) [8.5/10] - This level is a little less visually confusing than the first, but a bit harder as a consequence. The boss is essentially a remix of the first one, only more hectic. I still think these base levels are a nice pace breaker from the rest of the game.

Stage 5 (Snow Field) [10/10] - Another iconic level, the snow fields are surprisingly dangerous with a lot of tricky enemy placements and platforming. Also, the bosses are quite devious. Yes, I said bosses, plural. This is the first Contra game to attempt multiple bosses in a row, and this is the first level to do it.

Stage 6 (Energy Zone) [9/10] - This level is rock hard and really creative, but it can sometimes be overly daunting. Some of the enemy placement is absolutely brutal, too. But I have beaten this level without getting hit, so it isn't cheap. It's just really demanding to a fault and can be aggravating. That's why it loses a point with me. That boss is classic Contra, though.

Stage 7 (Hangar) [10/10] - So much platforming. So many obstacles. This is my jam. This stage requires a lot of careful planning and maneuvering, and less rushing forward. The only fault is that the boss is kind of weak and unneeded seeing as how the challenge in this stage is in the platforming. It doesn't affect the level either way, but it's sort of a letdown after the greatness of the rest of the level.

Stage 8 (Alien's Lair) [8/10] - Probably my least favorite level, if only because it's so straightforward. No real creative level design or enemies (this is something Contra 3 and 4 did really well for their last levels) and a boss that is more annoying than hard. But still, it's a solid capper to a classic of a game.

Still a classic.

[gunswordfist]

i did not know that about 3 and water in almost level.

all i remember about marble garden's boss is having to pick up sonic again and again. probably the 3rd worst main boss in the game.