#this is the only level

[thisdastampdoesnotexist]

[videogamepolls]

Requested by anon

[animalcollectiveporn]

[lyramakesgames]

Are You Gaming Son?

This past week, I tried out some indie games on itch.io and I want to highlight two different platformer games, each with their own twists.

The first game I played was, "This is the Only Level," a platformer that used the same platforming layout, but changed its rules throughout each part of the "only level."

The second game I played was, "Cool Dudes Entropic Door-Porium," a platformer that had the character move through doors and moving doors to achieve a walk to the exit.

At first glance, the mechanics seem similar as they are both platformers. However, "This is the Only Level," went above and beyond through its interesting use of level completion using odd mechanics. The most notable one for me was the level that requested the player to refresh.

At first I was confused. Does it mean I should restart my life in the game?

So I moved to restart my character's life and gained a death toll.

It didn't work.

Despite this, I repeatedly tried this method and got nowhere. After several attempts, I found another solution.

Refresh the page.

Best case scenario, I move on. Worse case scenario, I have to go back to part one and begin the climb again. I pressed the button and resumed my game.

End of level opened up perfectly.

With these puzzles solved through a good amount of trial and error, I eventually found the end of the game. Overall, a pretty great experience and a wonderful puzzle platformer. So I booted up "Cool Dudes Entropic Door-Porium," excited for another puzzle platformer.

I wish I could say the game brought me a fraction of the same joy as "This is the Only Level."

Despite both games being puzzle platformers using the keyboard to move, the enjoyment was lackluster in "Cool Dudes Entropic Door-Porium." The good mood I felt from the last game I played was immediately dampened when I reached the last level. A simple level that includes moving a door onto a section on a higher platform.

At first, the door missed the mark. Nothing too terrible, so I tried again from a bit closer.

And again.

And again.

I don't know how many times I tried to move the door onto the ledge, but I could feel the weight of my partner's gaze as they watched me fail time and time again.

At that point, I had witnessed my partner's playing of "Injection Deflection," a game where you walk around in a top-down style through a maze while attacking and avoiding zombies chasing you down. My partner lost easily and tried one more time before accepting defeat and moving on.

Now, I have seen many a Twitch stream in my day, so I was aware of how the mechanics of fighting and movement worked out well. However, watching gameplay in front of me was quite a different experience.

The urge to take over the controls as I am right in arms reach. The restraint against arguing for my partner to try again. Burdened with the knowledge of seeing the mechanics work up close knowing I might achieve more in the game.

Yet here I was. Powerless against the game's level design or my own ineptitude of jumping.

Here is the level I was stuck on. A level I went back to in order to take a photo for posterity's sake. A photo that made me pause for a moment. And in that moment, I decided to try something I hadn't done before.

I went into a door while holding the door in the photo.

...the frustration and annoyance I felt after finally beating this game cannot be expressed in words.

So I guess I'll end this with a GIF.

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[flash-game-tournament]

Propaganda+ Links:

Poptropica:

Granted, Poptropica has now been shifted to html5, and isn’t fully dead, but the original game was a key part of my childhood and had clever puzzles and interesting stories

TIOOL:https://armorgames.com/play/4309/this-is-the-only-level

It’s a little elephant and it’s a classic!

[lady-raziel]

I have to hand it to Donald Trump, I didn’t think the sequel to the 1932 Great Emu War would be a trade war against the penguin nation but he truly continues to be an innovator in the stupidity industry

[noodles-and-tea]

Our hextech dream….

[vanguardlcgend]

post 4: video game lab

for today, i got to play several different games and even watch someone play a game. i played 6 games in total, but will only be mentioning 3 for the sake of this post.

the first game i played was called this is the only level. basically, i had to control an elephant and find a way to get to the other side using different mechanics. it had only one stage, but the mechanics differed every time, which allowed for an interesting run. i also watched my seatmate josh play it, and we had a similar experience in which we got stuck on the same mechanic (time to refresh). in hindsight, i should have reloaded the page which would have granted me entry to the pipe on the right, but i was afraid that it would reset my progress.

though, watching someone else play it was really interesting, too. it granted me a look into my partner's thinking process, how he rarely hesitated and how quickly he picked things up and adapted. there was a zero-gravity mechanic for one stage (he had advanced farther than me in terms of playthrough), and my partner picked up on that pretty fast, quickly trying to find out how to get to the pipe. i think if i had managed to get to that same mechanic, i wouldn't have picked up on it as fast.

for the second game, i played flappy fish, which was a nod to the game flappy bird. i do like how the seaweed obstacle was uneven, so it would be harder to pass through it. i never got to the point where i had to avoid the enemy fish, but it was fun to play regardless.

for my last game, i got to try out don't shit your pants, which is a game where you have to literally not shit your pants. basically, you need to type in commands, such as 'go to the toilet' and 'take off your pants' in order for the guy to not shit his pants. though, when i typed in 'shit in the toilet', there was apparently no toilet? that was pretty funny, and i ended up having him shit on the floor.

the games were all really fun, but i noticed that between don't shit your pants and this is the only level, both games utilized one stage with one end result, but offered different mechanics, which made the games fun.

[heyimben]

Video Game Lab

This week in the video game lab, I played three games: This Is The Only Level, You Will Die, and Osteotic Bypass. Each game gave me a different experience, and I noticed that watching someone else play felt different from actually playing the game myself.

First, I played This Is The Only Level. The level stays the same, but the rules change each time. This keeps the game fresh because I have to adjust my thinking with every round. It was a fun challenge as I had to quickly adapt to the new rules.

Then, I played You Will Die. In this game, I had to shoot zombies and try to survive as long as I could. The gameplay is simple, but the tension builds as I fight to stay alive. I focused on surviving and upgrading my weapons, which helped keep the game exciting, even though it could get repetitive at times.

After that, I played Osteotic Bypass. In this game, I had to adjust a bone so it could fit through a door without losing too much of it. The goal was to keep the bone intact, and it required careful thinking and precision. It felt more like solving a puzzle compared to the other games.

Looking at This Is The Only Level and You Will Die, I saw that both focus on challenges but in different ways. This Is The Only Level changes the game mechanics, making me think in new ways each time. You Will Die, however, gets harder the longer I survive, pushing me to improve my skills.

Watching my partner Nikki play This Is The Only Level gave me the chance to focus on how the game was designed. I could see how the mechanics changed and kept things fresh. But when I played, I had to react quickly, which made it harder to notice these changes. This made me realize that watching and playing are two very different experiences.

In the end, playing these games taught me a lot about game design. Watching others play helps me see the small details, but playing the game gives me a better sense of the challenge. Both experiences are important, and I’m looking forward to learning more from both.

[wishfulsketching]

I hope they danced in the bar as young adults, not stressing over the revolution, just living it up

[annabelle--cane]

her pronouns are HE/HIM

[laptoparmageddon]

Kill them with kindness?

WRONG

VIDEO FROM 2010 DEATH BLAST!!!!

[miraofhearts2point0]

Isha following Jinx to protect her during a suicide mission where Jinx to tries to get her away for "ruining" her plan.....where have i seen this before?

[stemmmm]

the scene people keep screaming about from chapter 5 of theseus' guide

[kibermonakh]

sooooo triple-S team (Starscream-Soundwave-Shockwave) being the High Guard means that they are far older than Megatron and probably worked with Primes directly… just like Sentinel... And before carrying out his betrayal, he could have tried to rizz them (and fail miserably) so that they would more likely to continue working for him...

[egophiliac]

So.... what are your thoughts on Ace's UM, if you haven't been asked this already?

sneaky magic for the sneakiest boy

no but really, I think it fits him really well! I had thought his UM would probably involve something kinda sleight-of-handy or pickpockety! and I looooved that it made such a nice loop-around back to episode 1. ❤️ I was. kind of half-expecting him to just run out and punch Riddle in the nose again. but instead this time 'twas he who offed the queen's head! it was great! and he did it while stone-cold terrified out of his mind! because Ace is the only remotely normal or well-adjusted person at NRC and therefore the only one who is like "we're going to literally die, this is super effed up". but he did it anyway!!!! I AM SO PROUD