Considering it's 6 stars the gameplay is more than satisfactory to me. It's also way easier than 6 star but I digress.
I have no idea how any of this was made. I went into the editor and 1. It's incomprehensible 2. The particle use is next level -- so many effects here I thought were borderline impossible to replicate but they literally just consist of either particle spam or warp abuse. Insane
The main concern i have is the same as Planispheres where that it couldve been longer (progression is impacted it feels a bit rushed). The gameplay in Eta Carnis, while very good for how minimal it has to be, could be much better considering Planispheres is a level. Although Planispheres is way more base so it's not too comparable. Other than that it's just nitpicks
As everyone else is mentioning, this level is primarily a visual experience. And to be clear, the visuals look very good. The playing experience does leave something to be desired, though. The first 25% or so plays decently well (barring the lag I got even on LDM because my gaming laptop's fursona is a potato), but the gameplay started to fall off in quality after that; some sections felt a bit empty, others felt maybe a bit slower than they should've been, and others were just really long cutscenes. Again, the visuals were very good; it's just that the gameplay generally felt kinda bland.
The best looking level in the game or at least Top 5, where is the gameplay though
this is so obviously made for the sole pursuit of spectacle that I'm not even diametrically opposed to this shit anymore. hell yes id like to get a slop mcsundae with my hype moments and aura
This level looks absolutely insane but I feel like it probably would have been more memorable overall as a straight-up Auto level since it feels like there's exponentially more emphasis put on the visuals compared to the gameplay. The 20-second long cutscene smack-dab in the middle of the level in particular kinda kills the level's entire momentum in the second half. It just leaves the playing experience really dry since there really isn't anything super memorable about playing it over just watching a showcase of it on YouTube where you can actually appreciate the visuals way more
You need to do better, I almost thought this was a Geometry Dash level for a second
pretty conflicted on how to score this one. of course if you have eyes and have seen my profile picture you'll know this level really appeals to me specifically, but even beyond that it sits alongside aperture as one of very few levels in its style i actually like visually. most levels in this style i'll be dubbing "stylized realism" struggle to look half decent even in comparison to other levels, let alone in the context of art outside geometry dash, but i think the visual style is where eta carnis excels the most.
like most other levels in its style though, after talking about the visuals, there is always a but, and that but is always the playing experience. the gameplay is ostensibly 2* (perhaps 3* in today's climate) were it decorated differently, split between two 20-second cutscenes, and it really kills any tension the level tries to create. it makes the playing experience completely forgettable and rids this level of any staying power it might've had. of course, those who merely watched a showcase may argue otherwise, but in my mind watching a nexus upload is a far cry from experiencing it yourself.
i'm reminded of an ancient video by gd colon titled "What NOT to put in your custom level," and one of the things he lists is to avoid random auto parts. what colon failed to realize is that playing levels is a dated concept: we all just watch completions of it on youtube, and when watching a video every part may as well be auto.
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sorry about this gang