Jazz Jackrabbit 2 Online

It’s been a while since I’ve written a normal review. This will be a short one.

Introduction

Two members of OLC have made a collaboration level using IC-Jungrock1. This was totally unexpected to me, so let’s see if the level is good..

Layout

This is a pretty small Battle level (with the size of 120×64) but it feels a lot bigger because there are different areas. The level has an interesting design, with lots of narrow passages. There are also some dead ends (like in the corners) but they are probably placed for tactical purposes. And there are also some pits (some people would say ZOMGPITS now) but these pits are very clear and well-placed.

Gameplay and flow

The level is pretty open at places (like at the top right) but like I said there are also some narrow passages. There are a lot of vines and a copter (that’s needed to get something, read more about that later) So the player is forced to jump a lot. There are not a lot of springs, but there are a lot of one ways. The green spring at 104,47 might mislead the player because you cannot use it but it’s still there. The flow is still good. There are some small platforms but you can just run over them without falling down.

Eye candy and theme

The tileset used is a bit underused (because I have used it and maybe 1 or 2 other people) but I think this is the 2nd finished level on J2O that uses this tileset. And this level has the best eye candy EVAR (with this set) It’s how Jungrock is supposed to be. The background is also really good.

Placement of stuff

The ammo placement is good. There are only 3 types of ammo: gun9 ammo, Bouncer ammo and RF ammo. So no Toaster, Seeker, Gun8, Freezer and TNT. There are 4 carrots, and they’re well-placed (one of them is in a dead end at the top) The level has a lot of food, which is also interesting but you need it to get the Seek PU (yes, a Seek PU) You need to get the Seek PU with sugar rush (correct me if I’m wrong) The delay is 90 seconds so only few people will get it.. There are three other Power-Ups. A Blaster Power-Up (delay 30 seconds, with initial delay), a RF Power-Up (delay 45 seconds, with initial delay) and a Bouncer Power-Up (delay 45 seconds, also with initial delay) So if this level gets played in an event no-one would have a PU until 30 seconds are over. There are also some fast fires, and they also have an initial delay and a delay of 30 seconds.

Further comments

This level looks like it’s built for events, and I can see that this level will be a lot of fun during the next JDC season. As a single level it’s really good, and I’d like to see more Battle levels like this. There were not enough good Battle levels last year, so hopefully there will be more good Battle levels like this one. I give this level an 8.4 and a download recommendation.