Jazz Jackrabbit 2 Online

“Hall of Legends” is a battle level made by PurpleJazz with the tileset BoredSet Cold. I played this several times and now I finally found some time to review it!

First of all, compliments on how you use all area’s really well and make them useful to visit. Thanks to the variety in shapes of platforms you mixed the gameplay up – some parts are really fast paced while others aren’t that much. I know how hard it is to fill up the whole level, the corners etc, without making it feel generic. You did this really well and were able to spread all important things like carrots and PU’s well.

The eyecandy in this level is definitely good. I especially like the background and the variety of it. The dark background definitely adds to the atmosphere, which overall is really good, by the way. Also, you used probably the whole tileset in useful ways. I really liked how you used the treetops in the upper right corner.

I really like the variety in gameplay. Some places are really fast paced, horizontal and open, (RF’s and Gun 8 will do great there), while other area’s are quite vertical and other ammo, like bouncers and seekers, will be really helpful. The ammo is well spread and you won’t have much trouble to find the ammo you like. 4 PU’s here and 3 carrots, spread through the whole level and all helpful in their own way. Also, the Seeker PU and one +1 are in pit-area’s, which makes them risky to get. I usually don’t like pits that much, but they are here with a reason and avoiding them shouldn’t be too hard.

Also, all passages/platforms are built kind of around the tube in the middle. This is great, since this makes player movement a bit more predictable. This might sound weird, but it’s really helpful when you play games with a few players, like duels.

Definitely download this, since this will play really well with any ammount of players.

After reading Rag’s mini-review in the contest results, I couldn’t help but download this right away. After a quick game, I’m ready for my review.

Gameplay: Clean
After playing this for five minutes, I couldn’t help but notice that this level actually is fairly small. Though it measures 120×58, it feels denser than the numbers may suggest. This may be because of the large open airspace. The level consists of platforms connected through caves or water.

The control points are both placed on the left half of the level, while most of the ammo and carrots are placed far from the CPs. In fact, the only PU in the level, good ol’ Seeker PU, is hidden far away from the battlefield in an underwater tunnel. This setting makes the player choose between defending a CP with little or no ammo or going out there to get some protection, leaving base unguarded. Controlling the lower base isn’t exactly hard, since the use of Seekers when down in the water makes for a perfect defence. You can hardly be hit down there, and once the player decided to run for a spree of Seekers, the CP is easily recovered. The upper base, however, placed the player with his back to the wall, cornered and outnumbers against the possibility to be killed from below or from the right. Bouncers will easily kill a target at a large distance.

Healing shouldn’t be a problem in this map, in which three carrots are scattered across the caves. Only one is near the CPs, though, so the defence will have a hard time on this match, whereas the offence can hit and run and easily heal.

Atmosphere: Amazing
Pearl-Shell Shore uses a tileset that is somewhat overused, but at the same time, totally unseen. Quickz utilizes the tileset’s beach tiles to the fullest extend of it’s possibilities, and it surely shows. The level has a serene beach-feeling painted all over it. Among the sand, one can find a few rocks and even bits of the rocky grass tiles. The background is oddly two-toned in pink and yellow, yet strangely doesn’t seem bad at all. A quiet lake sits comfortably in the background, surrounded by a few mountains.

The beach tiles and the shallow water make for a comfy feel for the whole level. The music only adds up to the Relaxation-bar. Some may say that it’s bad for the gameplay, but I find a relaxing game more worthy than a rushy game. Points to YOU, Quickz!

Eventing: lame Quite good
The level contains a wide array of ammo and a Seeker PU. The PU is harder to get, but it surely does make your team the winning one. The use of bouncers can be fully utilized with the upper CP, which will surely come in handy.

The carrots are nicely spread out over the map, with only one being near the CPs, which are, by the way, very nicely placed as well.

Springs are placed all over, for easier access to the platforms. The only spring I didn’t like was the rightmost green spring, which kind of killed the flow because you will always bump in the ceiling when running into it.

There is little more for me to say on the event front. Nothing too special here, but it all works properly.

Overall: It works
This level is very fun to play and certainly put a smile on my face. The well-chosen winner for Rag’s DOM contest stands before you.

Download Recommendation: NOW
I didn’t say no, I said NOW!

Score: 8.4 8.9
This level deserves a way above average score, and with respect should it be called the best Domination level so far.

Nice

I think this is a good battle pack without errors.
Thx you

[Review changed to quick review. – cooba]

Spaz18, name one reason why you shouldn’t be able to see IP addresses. They aren’t some secret private information, you know.

About the program, the only useful thing is the ability to see IP addresses. Since viewing the player list is not an implemented feature, I see no reason why I should use this program instead of JazzTool or some GIP script online.

Useful utility, but should we be able to see the IP addresses? I guess these would be useful when we get “Error connecting to list servers…”
You should also make it show which servers are Plus only.
Why does 1.23 show up as 1.21?

As the only different feature is that the IP addresses are shown, we already have JazzTool to show the GIP.
But still, good work at making this.

I get a connection time out. I have the latest version of Java.

Also, maybe you should tell us why to download this. What makes it better than the online GIP viewer?

I really enjoyed this episode. It’s short, and simple, but it features good level design and it’s fun overall.

The train levels are obviously inspried by the level Devan Express, which blurredd made several years ago. This isn’t such a bad thing, because that was a very good level. The levels here are different enough, anyway, since the train featured is quite a lot taller.

I thought the third level in the pack was lazy, though. It’s just a large empty space with wind, an airboard, and a whole lot of float lizards. Gameplay-wise this level was actually not all that bad, since it posed an interesting challenge, but in terms of level design it’s pretty bad. Luckily, this level is very short and didn’t detract too much from my overall opinion of the episode.

I’m giving this a 7.5. I would have given it an 8, but the laziness of the third level is a bit of a downside.

There is a lot of creativity in this level pack. A lot of ideas are featured here which I have never seen before, and the whole concept itself is something new.

I was impressed with the use of events in this episode, particularly to do with the custom boss, and also the puzzle level at the end. The author here shows a sophisticated understanding of JCS, and despite its flaws, this episode is a definite indicator that the person who created it has real talent.

However, the episode is far from perfect. Overall, the levels felt rushed and in some cases unfinished. The lack of pickups of any sort is particularly obvious: there isn’t even any ammo. Enemies are minimal, but that’s not as big of a problem since the levels still pose a challenge.

The tileset that most of the levels use is creative, but ugly. I liked the idea of a level made entirely of computer code or whatever, but the scenery is far too repetitive after the first level. I would have liked to see more variation.

Story-wise, the episode is interesting, but ends in a strange way, with no real resolution to the plot. I thought this was a bit too abrupt.

I’m giving this a download recommendation because of the creativity featured here, but a score of 4 because I honestly feel that a better attempt could have been made with the episode.

I look forward to seeing what you release in the future, but I suggest that you send it out to people for testing and feedback before uploading, and focus on making the levels more dynamic.

PT over rates things D=.
I’d say it’s worth a 6.5, not a 9.4!
Ah, what the hell…
Still a very good level.

Wow. This was a nice level to play. Crimiclown’s Devil’s March level [perhaps it should be marsh, instead of march? Oh well. They both work.] is a DOM level, with pits, points, and position. Good eye candy used in manageable amounts. A nice, serene audio song. Not to say that it’s completely without a blemish, but there are few indeed of those. With a working and well-used tileset, this area delivers the goods and more. But allow me to elaborate…

STRUCTURE

The structure was solid. No dead ends, no ill-placed items, no stupid little traps. As I went through and played it, I couldn’t help but notice how remarkably unsloppy the level was. Each event belonged. Every tile seemed to belong.

The tileset picked was a good one, too. Omen Woods: Swamps is a unique and quite usable tileset, and clearly it has been used well here. Masking is good, no real anomalous mistakes here.

GRADE: great

EYECANDY

This level has some nice eye candy. From ghoulish gargoyles randomly littered, to dark caves and open plains, to a misty, fluidic miasma of purple goo at the bottom, DM contains notable detailing. I would have maybe appreciated a little more eyecandy in layers 5-7, but the netting of leaves adds a wee bit of flavor back there. The occasional canopy of fall-thru leaves is nice. The on-and-off addin of a flower here and a tuft of grass there lends March a certain natural “outdoors” feeling. Good work!

GRADE: nice

COLORS

The red and purple background only serves to help the level, as it gives it a scary sort of feel. When combined with the teal-greenish shade of the terrain, and the dark blue cave walls, the tileset and level carry a powerful punch. It works in the level’s favor that everything fits so well. Not to say that it’s 100% perfect. No, it has its shortcomings, which I will elaborate on in one of the next couple sections of my review. But for now, colors are good, and that makes me happy.

GRADE: great

BUGGAGE/SIZE

Buggage was not something I could find in the map. This obviously means that our Crimi has done a good number on weeding out bugs. This definitely increases my approval of it.

Size, however, was not entirely perfect. While it wasn’t extremely small, I felt it could have been just a wee bit larger. Don’t confuse me, it was almost perfectly scaled. It was certainly high enough. And actually the size was pretty close to what I felt it needed. My bigger beef is that 2 out of 3 control points were towards the right of the screen. The other was in the middle. Why? There could have maybe been a point or two over leftwards. There was surely room for that. But they weren’t right next to each other, which is good to hear.

GRADE: great

USABILITY/LIKABILITY

This level is for sure an attention grabber. With its brusque naturey theme, its minimal buggage and practibility, Devil’s March is a very well-to-do stage. Perfect for a level pack, or even just by itself [as it is here]. It has some noticable ideas.

I liked how the warp wasn’t a central part of the level [like soo many designers make it…], or easy to find [which even more designers make them]. The reward was a worthwile one, although it could in theory be possible to just sit in there and camp all day long :(. But hey! It was nice.

GRADE: sweet

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE

Well, now we come to problems and there don’t seem to be any major ones. That is why this section is not called “problems”, but “things I didn’t like”. The right-handed control points weren’t very outstanding. No singleplayer start position, although this is only a downside if you actually test levels out in singleplayer. The low number of points is also sad.
There’s not much for me to harp on in this place, but there are plenty of good things to say as well.

GRADE: nice

MUSIC

I liked how the music fit the level so well. Most people would think that a creepy song would befit this level, but really this is just not the case. A watery, boggy song fits just as neatly as does a scary one, if not even better. Great work on the audio selection, and also not using annoying ambient sounds.
Ambient sounds can be tricky to use. Use exactly the right ones, and your level can become alive in a completely new sense. Use them wrong, and the level can seem totally ridiculous. You chose not to risk using bad ones, and did not put them in. While it certainly would have been nice to have some of them, having none is better than having awful-sounding ones. At the peril of sounding like a busted record, sweet job!

GRADE: cool

STRAIGHT TALK 2 DA READERS

To say it again, this level is a wonderfully designed one. From the nice eyecandy, to the good structure, to the appropriate music, to even the few blemishes, this level fails to fail. A refreshing reprieve to other areas of its own kin, Devil’s March by Crimiclown is a very enjoyable level. Download this very instant, before I call the Exterminator!

DL REC: well, duh….

YES!!!

RATING:

9.4

Well, lets see….

Gameplay

The first level starts with rectangle shaped area’s connected with vines. If you jump down from those vines or walk to the left end of the level you fall down and get warped in a dark place where you can only fall and nothing rests you than to press JJK. When you survived the vines you will find yourself in a dilemma with crates, If you don’t watch out destroying one, you can get yourself locked up and then you will have to cheat again to survive. Sooner than you would expect, this level has been finished. Then you go to the second level. You have to just jump yourself up for one minute and then that level is also over. In the third level you get a parachute which is actually a hover board. I never knew parachutes can get you higher. In this level you just have to avoid or destory some flying lizards for a few moments and then you reach the end of the level. In the last level you face a boss while still on your ‘parachute’ in a level that gives you no (dis)advantages, so just a platform where you walk on actually, but there is no need for walking anyway, as you are on your ‘parachute’. Please fix the bugs in the first level. The first level is probably the best of these four. That its the best says something about this pack, as there are still mistakes in it. Next time test your levels better before you upload them.

Eyecandy

In the first level I got confused because of the ‘railroad track’ thats in the foreground. It took me half a minute to orientate and find out where I was standing on aswell as where I could stand on. The railroad track is on the foreground, which wouldn’t be that bad if you still placed tiles in layer four which would let you stand on the railroad track, now you can just hang on and go through it. The second level is ok, but I think it’s too dark and I would have rather seen some more light in this level. I will not review the eyecandy of the third and fourth level as these levels feature too little of it.

Originalty

Having levels on a railroad track is quite original, but you should have executed it way better. In the first level there is supposed to be a train, but I don’t really see it, you should have made it more clearly. Also the story is too weak. You should at least have made a bit of text at the beginning of the first level. Also the main bad guy is Devan Shell again. I consider this one of the weaker single player packs starring Devan as a bad guy as you don’t even get to see him or his plan. This story needs improvement, more confrontation with the main character and more excitement.

Gameplay: 4
Eyecandy: 5.2 (5+)
Originality: 4.8 (5-)

Final Grade: 4.7

Why in the world do you review unfinished levels this high? I mean, seriously, even EvilMikes finished SP levels got rated LESS, and generally only Utilities get rated more. I really agree with Valco here. The levels might be good and such but they’re unfinished mostly. This is why I rate it a 7. Don’t care about the name someones got ;).
Either way, I do enjoy these levels that for sure and also no attack towards Kejero here. It is just I totally disagree with how people are rating this pack 10s without it even being remotely close to being finished. Then just don’t rate it at all.

[Rating (7.0) clearance. Does a pack become worse when it’s released as unfinished? Also, the pack as a whole may be incomplete, but the levels that are available here aren’t. – cooba]

Maybe Someone could make a Quiz program written in C or C++ ..

This was a very cool little set of levels. The first is a tad annoying, because some crates can trap you and force you to die without much warning. But after a few frustrating tries, its a cool level. The eyecandy is very good, and this continues throughout all the levels. The second level takes some imagination because everything falls at exactly the same speed, which looks a bit funny, but it works well. The ending of this level is very cool. It took a bit longer than I expected, and thought maybe I was doing something wrong at first, and the when I did get the end text at first, I fell back to the start, which also prevented the game from sending me to the next level. However, if you listen to the text through the level, and make sure that you fall onto a box when you get the end text, you will get to the finish. The third level is based on an interesting concept, and works well since you can’t shoot and fly upwards at the same time. However, the enemies are practically invincible because float lizards which fall will respawn as flying lizards if they get too far from Jazz, which can be a bit frustrating. The last level is a boss level, and is very cool because you are on an airboard. The music is also a cool bonus. I would definitely suggest downloading.

It seems our own Danny Z has made more UT levels. Time for me to drop the axe.

Gameplay: Not bad
Unlike the real Gauntlet, this level is symmetrical. The level is divided in three pieces; Red Base, Blue Base and what I like to call “The Big Plus”. The bases have three possible entrances, a warp and an escape-warp. One of the ways in is a huge opening in the front. Easy, hit and run. The other two are tubes that lead to the back of the flag, which allows for a quick grab but a less quick getaway. Hence the warp, which will teleport you to the beginning of the lower tube. The lower tube also carries a carrot, for easy healing when being attack on the way back to base.

The middle section consists of a lot of ammo, two powerups and tubes that go up an down all around. You kind of have two options, left or right, and exactly in the middle (by the Full NRG) up or down or wherever your heart desires. Hence the ‘Plus’.

The level is fairly small, but big enough for a duel or maybe a 2vs2. More would be possible, but it’s get crowded.

There’s also this little thing I wanted to point out. At the bottom of the level, there’s a (tilebugged) piece of metal sticking out. This seems intentional, since the other side has it too, but it kinda disrupts the flow. It’s better than not having anything there, but maybe use a spring to get over it from the other side or something. Or those annoying float ups.

Atmosphere: Not bad either
It seems Danny Z has combined two of my favourite ‘metallic’ tilesets and made it a nice level. The level is a bit bare, but somehow it all seems right. Not a lot of eyecandy, but a very nice style of not using it… or something… I dunno, go check.

Music is again from the original level, if I’m not mistaken. It suits the original very well, but here it kind of adds something that this level doesn’t need. Too much suspense, I think.

Eventing: Average
Not very much original, but it all does the trick. Bouncer PU, Toaster PU, full NRG in the middle and two carrots… That’s a total of three carrots, maybe a bit too much for such a small level. Furthermore, this level has somewhat useless Gun9 ammo all over the bottom. Except for where you find them, you can use them for a quick shot from behind one of those bent steel bars I’ve spoken of earlier. Then again, avoiding them is easier than blinking.

Overall: Not at all bad
This level is fun for a quick duel or something and really nice to add to the UT remakes we’ve seen before. Keep them coming, Z.

Download Recommentdation: Yes
This level is worth the downloadcif you’re in for old UT memories or an unsettled fight with a fellow Jazzer.

Score: 7.5

EDIT:

I almost forgot to tell, when I pasted this level into my JJ2 folder, it turned out there was already a level named ‘gauntlet.j2l’ in there. Try putting your nametag in front of your levelnames, like dzgauntlet.j2l. Just a hint.

After playing this level online for a bit, I enjoyed the gameplay, albiet it has a very conventional layout that reminds you of several popular levels. The layout is built three linear levels of height. The highest level contains a Full NRG carrot placed above some tubes, which can be shot all the way to the bottom of the level. (JE inspired somewhat?) A useful but quite well known and predictable tactic. However, there are two +1 carrots as a possible back up plan for campers at the Full NRG unlike in JE though, but a smart player could shoot the carrot down and control all three at once.

The middle level is a straight path from base to base, with several holes that can be ran accross or fallen into the go to the bottom height level. Luckily this level does not have an RF PU, else I feel there would be too much chaos on a linear path such as this. However, while there are many ways to the base there’s only one direct way of escaping after capturing the flag; a warp situated in the corner by each, in which an enemy defender will probably be camping the warp target which is very near the base, ready to finish off a weakened player who has taken the flag.

The bottom level contains the two power ups, Bouncer and Toaster. This spot is argueably the safest in the level, and so flag carriers will probably want to hang around here until it’s safe to go RTS. There are two tubes on either sides containing the +1 carrots, and the tube in the middle can be taken for easy access to the Full NRG. Alternatively, a flag carrier could call out a team mate to shoot the carrot down and be ready to catch the carrot when it falls.

Moving on to the looks department. The level uses a tileset which combines some tiles from both 7th Lava Fall and Desolation (ironically, two very similar tilesets), in which this level uses fairly well. I’d have prefered it if this level took a bigger advantage over using tiles from two sets though; and put the two together with more dignity and creativity. It does have that nice UT vibe to it though, probably realised by the music choice.

Who would I recommend this level to? Here, you will not find anything here that would make it worth playing over other levels, which is why I’m not giving it a Download recommendation, however this is a really decent level which both hardcore and casual JJ2 players alike will enjoy. I’d honestly not be suprised if this becomes popular someday. Myself, I prefer levels that take a more innovative/genius approach to their design.

Really easy to learn and very fun to play! I hope to play some fun 3v3s here

Need to download…

[Rating (1.2) clearance. Sorry to break it for you, but you do need to download files before you can play them. – cooba]

Cool :D Thank you

[Review changed to quick review. – cooba]