dusk marlin
It's been long enough, but now that I have a lot of extra time on my hands, I can get started on this level.
I'm currently thinking of a ripcord level, as I see that right now, there isn't one for chapter 1. I've gotten started with this little starting area, but now I'm thinking about what to put above it. Floating islands seem cool, but I also think that a fast-paced flight (using recyclers) seems cool as well.
blazing juniper
Nice, we can really use a ripcord level 
dusk marlin
I've got a draft of the level down, here's a video:
I'm mainly concerned about how ideal the swoops are and if design of the floating islands is too detailed, but other than that I feel this is a good first draft
blazing juniper
Very nice, thanks for the preview 
hearty patrol
I've got a draft of the level down, here's a video:
yeah, this looks cool! i don't see any problems, but i'd have to play it i think to know. let us know when you publish a build for review. 😄
dusk marlin
Sorry for the month-long wait from the last message, but I've finally gotten around to uploading the level: https://levelhead.io/+xc9m8zp
I haven't done any significant changes since the video due to most of the past month being me worrying about the bloated battery in my laptop, but now that it's fixed I can continue work on this level.
blazing juniper
Very nice 
hearty patrol
nice! small detail, but i'm not a big fan of the top of the goal going off the top of the screen. i was actually able to get max dunk, but i worried it was going to kill me. i figured you might have run out of space to be able to make all of the dots visible though. probably okay either way.
bug pieces and GR-17 were all nicely hidden but not too easy or too difficult to find. nice use of jems to lead the player through the level. having to kill all of the enemies is a nice extra challenge to get the final bug piece, but i worry it might frustrate some players that they'll likely have to backtrack to get that. also not a big deal though. it's easy enough of a level to replay it for that.
i did notice you can cheese your way around this section, which seems like the most difficult part of the level. i kind of like it because i'm not a fan of precision ripcord movement, but i wasn't sure if it was intentional or not.
also minor point, but maybe unlock the camera eyeswitch if you move back down below the level of the checkpoint? i'm not exactly sure how you have it setup. it does unlock if you fall down, but it would be nice for it to unlock if you go up to the checkpoint and then notice the secret area to the right as i did.
so overall, not really many issues with it. pretty nice straight forward level. nice aesthetics and easy to read.
blazing juniper
@dusk marlin Will you make more changes or should we mark the level ready for testing?
dusk marlin
I've went ahead with a few changes, which you can see here in this version: https://levelhead.io/+hgq9358
I've swapped the place of the goal and final bug piece, as well as moved the eye switch for the precision room to unlock sooner when going backwards.
Also, yes, the cheese around the precision room is intentional as a speed route/way to skip the part in exchange for being a secret that's not the easiest to find.
I guess with these changes and this short feedback, I am ready for this level to be marked for testing.
blazing juniper
Very good, thank you
blazing juniper
This level is ready for testing then, right? @karmic thistle asked for an easy level to test
hearty patrol
am i the only one that struggles with getting past these spikes? i don't know how to conserve more jets to get over it.
blazing juniper
That looks harder than I remember
hearty patrol
yeah, probably good to have someone else test it out. i'm interested in particular if others have trouble with that spot.
blazing juniper
You can save fuel by jumping high on the left before jetting
hearty patrol
cheesing it is way easier lol
i'm trying to jump as high as possible and not getting it
it feels pretty tight
karmic thistle
This level is ready for testing then, right? <@749967578000261231> asked for an ...
🦈
hearty patrol
getting past the spikes right after that is about as tricky. to me, it's like a weird extra precise moment in a level that's really easy otherwise and the fact that there's an easy skip around it also undermines that section.
blazing juniper
Yeah, but it potentially teaches you how to conserve fuel... if you find out the trick
So a little indication would be great at this point, I think
hearty patrol
or maybe i'm just getting really rusty with this game
karmic thistle
just started it and i think i wasnt supposed to get the Blue jem without ripcord 
wait its on the opposite side of the room
well, felt cooler my way
hearty patrol
i always got it by coyote jumping before getting ripcord. 😄
hearty patrol
hmm... maybe this swoop at the end can be moved? he's off the screen most of the time unless you actually go to the goal. i actually went all the way back down through the level looking for an enemy i thought i missed and came back up and finally noticed him there.
karmic thistle
so great level! love the open nature and looks of it.
i agree with tim that the middle part is tideous, but not overtly, specially cause it's the only main hard part of the level.
my main issue is the collectibles, i didnt find gr-17 and got 3/4 of the bug pieces.
the level looks to have lots of hidden places like fallthrough platforms kn the sides of stuff and fog below platforms, which wouldnt be a big deal if the first bug Piece wasnt hidden like that which made me think more of them would be.
also, im not a big fan on the final piece, not because its behind the enemy gate so you have to kill everything, but because it doesnt actually tell you anywhere that you have to do so.
i avoidec basically all swoopadoops just to realize i needed to kill all for the final bug Piece.
maybe add something to say that you need to kill them for a reward
oooh wait its called rip the sky because its the RIPcord oooooh 
hearty patrol
yeah, i agree with those points. i think maybe it would be better not to have the gate, but just have the bug bit hidden instead.
i also think the jems on the sides of the level that cheese around the spiketron area should maybe be removed. at least the ones on the right side seem a little too out of the way as i don't think there's a way to cheese around that side and it means someone trying to collect all the jems needs to go up on the left, around, and down the right and back up again. it's just a bit too much for a couple of jems imo.
i didn't really have a big problem with jem/bug bit placement otherwise though.
blazing juniper
What's the status here? Waiting for a revision?
hearty patrol
yes. @dusk marlin can you let us know if you're able to address the feedback above any time soon? we're hoping to have all levels finished up by the 20th!
dusk marlin
I had made a revision a while back, but I forgot to put it here, so anyways, here's the new level: https://levelhead.io/+p30mfks
I've made a few small changes in this revision that address the concerns in this thread, most notably I've changed the final bug piece to be a hidden area underneath a platform (like how GR-17 is hidden). I've also slightly nerfed the middle section by removing 1 spiketron, added some more enemies around the third bug piece to differentiate it from the second, and added some jems on the side of the initial launch.
hearty patrol
looks great! i like all of the changes. didn't notice anything else that needs tweaking. shoe is under 30 seconds and 100%ing the level takes less than a few minutes.
i think we can call this one done.
blazing juniper
Then let's do that
tender sun
:white_check_mark: Fr75s - Rip The Sky
karmic thistle
bru
karmic thistle
the name
blazing juniper
Discord is wrong
tender sun
ah, I see the problem now, I just had to reload discord