: Code 42 can be tough, but it's more frustrating than anything - having to
: trudge back to fill up on O2 and shields all the time. In terms of
: difficulty it can't hold a candle to Schmackle. Even John Sumner has
: trouble vidding Schmackle, and it was one of the last levels to fall to me
: on TC. But how do you define what makes a level impossibly awful? Lutfisk
: is different, but it's certainly not that difficult - it just takes a
: somewhat different approach to what we're used to. It's inovative and it's
: fun once you get used to it. I like it when mapmakers come up with
: something different - Lutfisk certainly fits the bill. Dances with Drones
: is one of the most challenging levels I've ever played, but does that make
: it awful? It's well-constructed and fun to play - once you finaly get
: those chips placed and can save your game! To me an awful level is one
: that's poorly constructed - that has obvious mapmaking errors, suicide
: traps and areas that are playable only if you know in advance where to go.
: Which reminds me, I need to replay Lost Lands to see if it's really been
: fixed.
I don't think Code 42 is awful because it's hard, because yeah, Shmackle and Parathymeter are both a lot harder but are both very, very cool. I think Code 42 is awful mostly from a mapmaking perspective rather than a gameplay perspective.
1. There is no central location. I am of the opinion that in a vacuum level especially there needs to be a central, or easily and readily accessible area that has O2, shields, and a save. In Code 42, there's only two rechargers, I believe; one is in a rather remote area that you can access early, but when you're going to some of the more remote areas you really have to play it safe (and all those Cyborgs and exploding drones make that veeeeeery hard). The other one is in an area that you'll never return to, and the pattern buffer is in a very distant dead-end.
2. You can get stuck.
3. The level flows awfully poorly. Between areas like that giant elevator room in the middle, to rooms full of liquid and cyborgs, or mazes of dark rooms with enemies around every corner (when you have to conserve your health), and a mess of dead-ended hallways that have Mystics and drones to waste your time and precioius O2 killing.
4. Cyborgs in narrow hallways. There's a Cyborg at the bottom of a lift in one area whose explosion you CANNOT escape, and another one at the top of a different lift under the same conditions.
As for Lutefisk, I don't know how you can put up with all of those damn blue Troopers on TC. It's dark, you move slowly, and four or five Troopers that shoot guided grenades at you in an open room? How do you survive the opening drop? Unless they don't turn blue on TC (I haven't tried Rubicon on TC).
