I fell asleep while playing this and I still beat it but the deco is amazing tho

feels like the exact contrasting statement to the song used, an overwhelming burst of joy and life. liked this one a ton even if the gameplay leaves quite a bit to be desired

i think kiinoe's creating style really shines best here . the way it uses shaders and very vibrant colors in an extremely visually pleasing way (which is something very hard to do imo) to create an amazing atmosphere . i really think this level does all things right with kiinoe's style, especially in it's length, i believe to pull off something like this as well as you can it really does need to be considerably long, the level is around 5 mins in length however it couldve gone for even longer if it wanted to honestly, i really really like this level but i havent actually spoken abt it until now. ,,,, but yeah i really fw this Its peeeeaaak

I've had trouble putting into words why I like Nubivagant so much since it came out almost a year ago. I guess it's worth noting that Kiinoe and I are IRL friends and I've directly witnessed her entire creative evolution of the last three years. I'm not sure if I would like her levels as much if that weren't the case, especially some of her older stuff, but Nubivagant in particular is obviously beautiful in a way that I hope is apparent to anyone who does as much as watch a video of it a single time. The concept of a "slow burn level" is often nebulously thrown around among more indie GD critics, but this is one of two levels I would argue exemplify the term so well any further discussion of such levels would stand in their shadow. The other is Death by Zeptrus/Alexxhey, a level that actually reaches the same heights as Nubivagant at times, but falls a bit short in my opinion. This is the part I had trouble vocalizing all this time: Nubivagant is RAW AS FUCK.

There's a Twitter account I'm pretty sure everyone is familiar with at this point dedicated to posting raw GD levels. There's two main issues that caused me to finally unfollow and mute it not too long ago: the posts are limited to rated levels, and the admins equate bizarre old levels to being raw just as much as newer shit that just uses the lightning object a lot. Like many words (soulless, polished, energetic, etc) "raw" has gone largely without definition because no one can agree on what it means. Personally, taking "raw" as a desirable quality, I would take it to describe a level that takes no restraint in its execution. This might not even always result in a better product, I would argue that if often doesn't, but it's never anything less than admirable.

Nubivagant bleeds rawness; most of the effects are made from rapidly scintillating particle objects, even when they look far messier than something like gradient triggers or discrete backgrounds would to accomplish similar effects. By that token, even with a shorter runtime and arguably worse song than Death, Nubivagant offers a far more explosive and earned climax than I feel any other level manages to. I thought the gameplay was just okay personally, maybe even being the thing that kept this from being higher in my favorite levels, but the awkward balancing towards the ship part only elevates the stress for me. In general I would say Kiinoe is one of very few creators who managed to really harness 2.2 in a way that felt natural; going from 2.1's animated objects to particles and shaders just felt right in a way that made me wish a similar evolution took place with my favorite 2.1 creators on the same turn. Creators like her are very few nowadays, and I wholeheartedly encourage anyone who likes this kind of level to give it a shot!!

9 ---> 10 as of 22/07/2025
i think i fully get what this level wants to achieve and it does it perfectly. like a mind space of pure bliss before its yr time to leave .. going thru all of it to being welcomed by something unknown, u dont know what it is, u dont know where yr gonna end up, u dont even know if yr gonna experience it or if there's anything beyond at all. u just know yr leaving all behind .. and its the best liberation.