Jazz Jackrabbit 2 Online

I’ve only properly played through the first three so far, but I am very impressed, especially by level 2 which I thought really captured the spirit of the original HH98 levels and built upon it, using the 20 years of JCS history that followed.

Penguinvasion is a nice, simple level that serves to introduce a lot of HH18 mechanics (gem collection, gift boxes, enemies…) in a safe context without a lot of fanfare. All these things are easy enough to understand that the player is largely left to figure them out on their own without lengthy text signs or other explanations, which is a wise decision. The graphics are never too elaborate but definitely serve to define several different kinds of environments within the level—branch climbing, caves, even a hotel—each of which remembers to have a distinct sort of layout. Besides the trigger crate hunt at the end, nothing is ever going to be especially memorable about this level, but that’s because it has a different job to do: to be a relaxing introduction. At this it succeeds perfectly.

Tipplenborough is a rarity in any game, JJ2 included, being a level with a primarily vertical orientation. Certainly you spend a lot of time in horizontal areas, but the goal is always to find a way up, at least until a point toward the end where you have to fall down for a while before you can start going up again… that part is confusing and could be better signaled. The level looks very big and impressive and must have taken quite some time to construct, especially considering the amount of exploration that’s possible to do across the various paths. A speedy player could easily see only a fraction of this map in a single playthrough. On the other hand, the different paths all seem fairly similar in their gameplay, not deviating much from normal JJ2 fare… and there aren’t a whole lot of gems, and even the episode’s distinctive giftbox mechanic falls by the wayside here… and it’s weird having normal fire dragons right after the first level’s ice dragons… so Tipplenborough feels almost more of a standalone affair than part of the broader episode. It’s hardly objectionable as a refutation of HH98’s level design style while using the same tileset, but the ambition of the hugeness doesn’t seem 100% born out in the moment-to-moment.

Cold Paw further demonstrates the hazards of coordinating the finer details of different levels in an episode being made by different people… the little walking penguin robots are feeling quite overused by now, but the ice bats that this level introduces (and should therefore highlight) hardly seem to appear at all. But gift boxes return in full force, and the level does manage some other level-specific focuses as well, mostly springs and pepper spray. There are a couple moments here that don’t seem quite prepared for Lori’s reduced jumping powers, and the red poles as barriers never quite clicked for me as a layout concept, but this isn’t a bad level, just a kind of punishing one. After two dark ice cave levels in a row, we’re about due for something in the open air…

Under the Weather is a strong contender for the level people remember from HH18, with its heavy focus on gimmicky gameplay. The freezing temperature mechanic that hurts you when you stay outside for too long is too omnipresent to ignore and becomes a serious threat toward the end of the level as shelter becomes more sparse. The tiny jumping snowman enemies are this level’s other big threat, frequently placed where you can least afford to pay attention to them because you need to get back inside before it gets too cold. If anything they may be a little too fast, but it’s interesting to see HH18 bringing out tougher enemies, forcing you to remember your stronger weapons. The same cannot be said of the ice golem boss battle, unfortunately, who is probably perfectly interesting but always goes down in seconds. This level is also smart enough to not have the entirety of its layout revolve around the temperature mechanic, so there are a couple of fun cave areas that are also high on the gimmicky end and yet manage not to overstay their welcome. The level is fairly short and linear because it needs to be, but it’s definitely a great example of thinking about what sorts of things video games can do to evoke the deadlier side of winter.

Breaking Out unfortunately feels out of place in a pack that’s otherwise gradually increasing its complexity and scriptedness. There’s a definite difficulty to the gameplay here, as enemies shoot lots of bullets at you (even the ice bullets are nicely positioned near spikes or jumping snowmen), but not a whole lot of interest value. You bust into jails, grab coins, go to the coin warp, and then do all the exact same things again. It’s also unclear why things aren’t scripted more than they are… the prisoners are static tiles instead of animated, the “keycards” are just trigger crates, and the coins are just coins. Things get more interesting at the end with the boss battle (and its utterly unnecessary cutscene moments), which has an elaborate set of moves not common among JJ2 bosses, but unfortunately again it’s just a quick bullet sponge and the attacks can probably be ignored unless you specifically want to watch how cool they are.

Toyed Badlands is pretty interesting as a very exploration-heavy map that trusts you to eventually figure out the right way to go as you gradually hit more trigger crates. This would quickly fail in a level with only one kind of eyecandy, but fortunately that’s not the case here, and there are several distinct areas (including some buildings with actual labels) that make it much easier to tell at a glance where you are and remember where there’ve been lock blocks before. Little details like rotating lollipops or spiky Lego bricks add a lot to the atmosphere. The ice skull guys from the previous level are back but this time are much less dangerous, which is kind of a weird progression… all that’s newish on the enemy front is ice-colored versions of Tuf Turtles and Doggy Doggs, and even those are familiar from HH17. Sometimes the map is more cramped than it needs to be, which doesn’t 100% facilitate exploration, and there’s never really a standout moment, but this is still some good fun.

Pikitia Ara feels in some undefinable way like an overgrown JJ1 level, and has a lot of good old-fashioned platforming and spelunking and enemy dispatching. There are two fun new foes on display in this final level, both of them quite tough, but the player’s arsenal has evolved to the point that they feel totally fair and correctly placed. Spike bolls get a lot of really good use here. There’s an unfortunate moment of sequence breaking available to anyone willing to shoot a checkpoint with electroblaster, but everything else seems to work as intended and it’s a nice challenge (but never too challenging) that doesn’t do much out of the ordinary but doesn’t make any mistakes. It is a bit of a weird choice for the final stretch of this episode, though, wearing its winter holiday theme only very loosely.

Frigid Fortress leans heavily on traditional approaches to forbidding atmosphere but with a definite wintery flavor, a solid decision. The first boss gets around the shoot-the-cyberdemon-until-it-dies issue that other bosses in HH18 had by having invincibility frames of its own, encouraging strategic (read: high-damage) attacks mixed with a lot of dodging. The second boss has a difficult job to do because the number of hearts players could be fighting it with is potentially highly variable, but arrive at what I think is a good solution by exhibiting a range of different attacks that are interesting but never unfair, so if you don’t have the hearts to just sink bullets into it forever (and it’s got quite a lot of health), dodging is a realistic option. The dialogue and plot twist between fights are hardly novel but you wouldn’t expect them to be for a holiday pack anyway. Everything here is satisfactory for a video game boss experience.

I know I’m over half a year late with this review but I only recently came across this sequel. So, I’m glad to see you guys put in the effort to bash out a another mod, hopefully it’s better, right?

LEVEL 01 – Penguin Invasion:

Good Points:

- Compared to last year, Holiday Hare 2018 has a FAR easier opening map. For one thing, It’s not filled with cheap enemy placements, buggy mechanics and horrible checkpoint placements. The extra health mechanic is a great idea and makes you have extra HP as your run continues. Neat touch and finally gives the gems some usage!

- DAMN That’s a gorgeous opening song! I love it!

Bad Points:

- The springs inside the wooden boxes near the big beige gate for some reason disappear which means you can be trapped very easily. [Seems to be fixed after I re-added the mod?]

LEVEL 02 – Tipplenborough:

Good Points:

- Technically not a plus for this map but the extra health boost mechanic DOES carry over fore every level. Good idea. :)

- The music is quite cheery and upbeat. I like it. :)

Bad Points:

- Due to the new health mechanic, carrots are surprisingly hard to come by here which is a problem even on easy. Most of my damage is because of the robot penguins being in awkward spots to hit and the fact their shots bounce.

- Some parts of the map are hard to tell when it should be in the background and the foreground. Some trees can be landed on that look more in the foreground whereas other trees are clearly in the background can also be landed on, this is a little confusing.

- The building in the cave couldn’t be destroyed for the longest time but after like 3-4 attempts it all of a sudden allows me to break down the door? That’s rather buggy…

- The new ghost summoning enemy is quite a pain to deal with, especially since the small ghosts he spawns can move at lightning speeds.

LEVEL 03 – Cold Paw:

Good Points:

- The music is fine but nothing to write home about.

Bad Points:

- Way. Too. Dark. Seriously I can’t see what I am doing half the time.

- The hands that come out of the ground to swipe at you really aren’t easy to tell where they are again due to how dark the level is. This is Jazz 2, Not DooM 2.

LEVEL 04 – Under The Weather:

Good Points:

- The freezing mechanic sure is original and a nice touch to get you to keep pushing on rather than dawdle about.

Bad Points:

- The speed at which the heat gauge decreases is a little harsh if you prefer to stay alive (like on Turbo).

- The bouncy snowman enemies really don’t help with the already wonky enemy designs.

- Music really isn’t this level’s strongest point. Fairly bland.

LEVEL 05 – Breaking Out:

Good Points:

- This is very much a fun map to play. Some enemies are annoying sure but WOW is this a breath of fresh air! If you want a GOOD map in this set, this one so far wins

- The cute small story here is quite adorable. :)

- Great soundtrack to go along with a great stage!

Bad Points:

- Ended with an access violation… GG.

- The miniboss at the end dies rather easily to the toaster…

LEVEL 06 – Toyed Badlands:

Good Points:

- None.

Bad Points:

- Extremely confusing layout!

- The song isn’t bad nor good. Just neutral. :l

LEVEL 07 – Pikitia Ara:

Good Points:

- Nothing.

Bad Points:

- HORRENDOUS map design. I got lost very easily.

- The song for this map really is bland and dull.

- From what I can tell, this map straight up lacks an exit. Good map design.

LEVEL 08 – Frigid Fortress:

Good Points:

- The final boss was fun to defeat and I do love the vortex-y background effect. Neat touch!

Bad Points:

- Unless bosses gain more health on higher difficulties, the final boss goes down fairly easily with a healthy dose of seekers and bouncers aimed straight up.

So the overall review:

I can see that you guys wanted to be more relaxed in your approach with HH’18 and I can see why, not every map pack needs to top the previous. My biggest issue here was how it was presented. This did feel rushed. The levels aren’t super well designed (level 7 comes to mind) and I did struggle quite often, even on easy difficulty. Whilst not as hard as HH’17 in some spots, HH’18 really needs polishing. Maybe add in a few more ammo types earlier on? Bouncers only started appearing by level 5, which is over half-way. Another thing I didn’t understand was, why was the music files separate? Without them the game is just mute.

Do I recommend it? Personally I recommend HH’17 over this and I blammed that one fairly harshly as well. If you want a good christmas map-pack I again recommend HH’98. It’s still better to run through.

3/10