Posted in: Electric Shocktopus | May 15, 2015 | No Comments

Wait, what?  I changed up the format slightly (very slightly) for this week’s Feel Bad Friday — recording two different levels.  Because, well, you’ll see why.

The first is Binary, by A Random Player:

Click to watch this week’s FBF

This is a level where Random MADE A CLOCK.  That’s right.  In-game, using just missiles, switches, and platforms, Random managed to create a clock that ticks, counting all the way up to 128.

The clock itself is in binary (with each switch representing one bit… on-or-off), and they get flipped in just the right order to count up in binary.  There is even a display down at the bottom that shows off the state of each switch in *literal* zeroes and ones.  This is not only a clock, but a clock-display!  Wow.  You need to check this out, it is incredible.

The level it’s in, though, is humorously (kinda) impossible.  Your progress is tied to the clock, and according to Random’s calculations, if you didn’t mess up, it would take at least three hours to complete the level.  So.  Yeah.  I’m going to file that under ‘impossible.’

Which is why I also tried out another (quite possibly possible) level this week: Winter Wind, also by A Random Player.  This takes the ideas of missiles + switches = cool clocks, and makes it a core part of the level.

Click here to watch this week’s FBF

Instead of ticking up a binary clock, those missiles and switches in the upper left control an ever-changing electric field.  That – and the rest of the design of the level – makes it all quite difficult.  I have to say, though, it was an incredibly fun level to beat.  Sometimes in levels, I spend 90% of my time trying to beat one super-challenging part… which can get a bit frustrating.  But in this one, each part was quite hard, but roughly equally so.  And I could choose to complete them in any order I wanted.  So if I got tired of trying to approach the level one way, I could change strategies and try something else.  Also, there wasn’t a clear path in the level from start to finish, so it was quite a puzzle just trying to figure out which way to go around different obstacles.

You can check out the code for both of these levels here, if you, too, love rad clocks.

Random: well done.  Thank you for sharing these two levels!

-Andy

Posted in: Electric Shocktopus | May 11, 2015 | No Comments

Another level this (last) week for Feel Bad Friday: No Time to Waste by A Random Player.  Recorded on Friday, but posted a bit late here in the blog — so, hey, what better way to spend your Monday afternoon than watching me struggle through a level?  Being productive?  Ha!

Click to watch on YouTube

…let me just say, there was some irony involved in the title of this level.  If you want to play it yourself, go grab the code here.

Thanks for sharing this level with us, Random!

-Andy

Posted in: Velocity Raptor | May 1, 2015 | No Comments

This week’s Feel Bad Friday takes us back to simpler (space)times.

That’s right, I’m playing a level from Velocity Raptor.  And not just *any* level, mind you.  I’m playing: Super-Duper Trick-Filled Level by exfret.  He made this level about a year-and-a-half ago – and I’d barely made any progress in it.  Until today.

You can watch the video of me playing the level, or go grab the level code to go play it yourself… if you dare.

Click to watch the video on YouTube

It took me… a while… to beat the level.  I edited the ~40 minute video down into a sprightly 15 minutes for your viewing pleasure.  I died dozens of times.  But I finally learned what exfret liked so much about the bottom of the level.  Wow.  That blew my mind.  Well done exfret – and thanks for sharing the level with us!

-Andy