I do not appreciate this level

in his monumental 2021-22 run deffy's defining trait was sheer consistency. from CA exempt, which was roughly where I clued myself in, through riot, air supply, & metal test, through well rested, and out the other side with new light, his hallmark was always a basic framework of a style - plainer structures where you could see the scaffolding, an inclination for minimalist air deco & open space, pared-down color palettes - from which he could effortlessly branch off into a variety of themes and flavors. it was a textbook example of how to construct a formula you could rapidly develop from without trapping yourself in a corner. no surprise to anybody how he became one of the most beloved creators of the new decade

...which is why I've always found the rapturous reception to specifically this one baffling. this is basically 3-4 of his levels stitched together into one Cinematic Experience. certainly nothing to scoff at, but unfortunately the community at large has got a crippling addiction for Cinematic Experiences, one that has more clearly reared its ugly head with the recent gauntlet contests - EPIC! climaxes and INTENSE! buildups and obvious oomphs in energy are the only thing that consistently turns heads this side of 2020. it's precisely the presence of those elements within well rested, and more importantly, the absence of those elements elsewhere in his other releases, that's always tipped me off. and not to say the cinematic elements don't contribute some essence to the whole thing, but I'd be hard pressed to say they're anything truly groundbreaking in how they're implemented or how they synthesize with the surrounding elements. and if you ask me, the actual compositions (structure designs, the flourishes of fauna, the artifact objects, overall thematics, etc.) aren't particularly far above anything else in his discography. even polar equals pushed the whole XL cinematic-sensibilities thing, but, like, it didn't have that CRAZY! aspect ratio shift! or something like that. so, y'know. whatever

the kind of hysteria surrounding the level didn't help either. we're in a community full of people that have sterilized their capacity for genuine and interesting criticism (or, alternatively, are too dense to intuit the difference between criticism and hate); when something is declared as "god tier" it usually remains there without any real scrutiny. if somebody with the stature of Viprin opens the hype cycle for this thing with "this is literally the best thing ever created, if this doesn't work for you you might just be dead inside", you might find more success screaming into your pillow than you ever will posting any sort of critique. and then the feedback loop ensues like it normally does. like it always has

it's telling that new light is another helping of the same floral vision (and in my opinion, with a markedly closer attention to detail), and has never come close to reaching this thing's critical heights

PS I don't even dislike this level it's mostly fine to good

Probably one of the most boring levels I've ever played. Many parts, ESPECIALLY the ending, just drag out for no reason, mostly in terms of the visuals. The deco as a whole is extremely basic. Most of the blocks have very basic designs and little to no details, all throughout the level. Though each part is decorated differently, some styles go on for WAY longer than they should, causing them to wear out their welcome. I have no clue why this level is epic.

I don't have much else to say about this level, it's just not interesting and highly overrated. At least the gameplay isn't the worst thing in the world.

I know this is a very cold take, but I really do feel WELL RESTED is one of the best levels ever made, and one I just could not find any flaws in.

You know how some songs have an awkward introduction? The song would do some weird out-of-place notes before dunking into the actual song, and I love when songs do this. However, it's really hard to replicate the sensation these musical moments bring into GD levels since you also need to accompany it with visuals and gameplay. WELL RESTED pulls this off exceptionally well, and with a song with a longer awkward intro too. I would say the first 25 seconds of the level is one of my favorite parts. It feels like WELL RESTED is still booting up, as the level and the song wind up into existence together. The song only has funky drums and distorted voice samples, and the part of the level has simple but funky gameplay, a loading screen-like background, and structures and colors that move and pop in beat with the song. After one blue orb, you fall a bit more than anticipated...

...you hit the ground, there's a flash of light, and you are in a new scene. It looks and feels heavenly. You're in this otherworldly garden, on this big pearly white marble structure over some gorgeous waters looking out towards a magnificent blue abyss. The flora has this great shine to it and is adorned with beautiful patterns. After the dark and somewhat muted introduction, this change of scene hit me like a truck. Neither of these two parts are my favorite primarily because of what they are individually, but because of how one leads into another AND this is the first thing WELL RESTED hits you with. The song starts with one really long synth chord with a few occasional notes in beat with player inputs. There is one sequence where the player does three inputs back-to-back. Each time, the player rises up a bit more than normal thanks to some levitating pads. WELL RESTED utilizes these all throughout the level. Not only do these airborne pads make the gameplay more varied, it also helps the player's movements visually synchronize with the song as well, and these both make the utilization of these pads feel satisfying every time.

The song and the level start to speed up. Some bass and vocals kick in, and the player is doing inputs more often. Then, the song shifts into its normal groove and 2x speed. Most parts of the level from here on out work because of similar reasons to each other, though each part still looks unique from its surrounding sections. All of the colors work great with each other. All of the structures work with simple patterns and designs that never feel lacking because of what each of these level elements are paired with. It's all a great blend of heavenly and futuristic. The floral decor this level has strikes a great balance between natural and artificial while having a sleek, modernistic look. The level spends most of its time with a really well-made gradient background (really impressive for being done in 2.1 before the advent of the gradient trigger) that is just as pleasing to look at as the vivid gradient of a clear blue sky and some rising particles that resemble stars. It's a very simple background, but it's invigorating in the same way as the actual sky it is trying to emulate. Another thing WELL RESTED does that keeps the level feeling lively and eventful, aside from its visuals, is the fact that the camera is almost always moving. With the exception of certain sections, the usage of bordered gamemodes in WELL RESTED is very short compared to that of the unbordered gamemodes. Bordered gamemodes hold the camera in place for too long for WELL RESTED. You're always going up and down and fast and slow and this way of making gameplay gives the level so much more energy than it would have otherwise.

After a space-like segment, you fall once again, but this time the level cuts to black and fades back in. The level is really slow now, the structures are dark with rainbow outlines, there is a purple twilight sky with some drifting stars. Non-English runes are printed on the sky as the lyrics of the song are read at the top of the screen. This part already gives goosebumps because it's a moment for you to brace yourself for what comes next. All the level elements fall away, some art displays on screen, and then it happens.

Okay, before I talk about that one part of the level, I need to address the elephant in the room first. There are these black borders on both sides of the screen for everything up until this point. It's one of those things where upon booting up the level, the player notices them, thinks it's an odd choice, and then immediately adapts as they focus on trying to play the level. It does make the level up until this point seem a bit more cinematic having it at 4:3, but it's what the level decides to do with these borders that make their usage truly special.

The borders disappear off-screen, there is a flash of light, and the level and song reach their climaxes. The sky is full of shooting stars. The dark structures and the rainbows stand out firmly and beautifully. You aren't just in space now, you are dashing among the stars. They twinkle and shine on your command. You are a god now. You are WELL RESTED for the ascension. All the while the song is going through a divine synth passage and the pre-chorus repeats, but even louder with more energy. This is one of my favorite parts in any GD level ever. It would still be one of my favorites if it were standalone, but it is this buildup and release that is truly unlike anything I've ever felt in my 11 years of playing GD. After this level, the level comfortably works itself down from this insane soaring high with the intro reappearing in a glitchy, distorted way as you're being spoken to in this smooth, yet also glitchy and distorted spoken word passage.

The level continues to work itself down smoothly with more heavenly futuristic garden landscapes like what we saw before the climax. The borders start closing back in and the level returns to 4:3. The level eventually restabilizes on a scene very similar to what we first saw, with pearly white architecture, perfectly lush greenery, the water flowing, and the sky's blue abyss. More and more elements of the song start dropping out, and the gameplay corresponds by getting simpler and less involved. The level reaches a final elevation, inputs are very spaced out, Sarah Bonito gives us one final spoken word passage, and the credits appear accordingly with the final remaining beats of the song. Once the final beat passes, the credits fade away. This is what the end looks like: a garden with the greenest grasses and bushes, a fountain with the clearest water, architecture of the gods, and only the sounds of birds chirping and the water running. It's a very simple way to end the level consider the highs this level spends a lot of its time in, but after 7 minutes of action and some very high nerves, it's so deeply satisfying.

The one main point I have been hinting at throughout this entire review is this: The level and the song go hand-in-hand. In fact, they go hands-in-hands with both hands, that's how well WELL RESTED represents its song. No other level could use this song like how cometface did, and a level with this design, theme, and execution could never work with any other song. The gameplay (which admittedly I didn't talk a whole lot about in this review) is perfect, I have no complaints, there are no choke points or bugs, and it is always fun to play and extra satisfying since you move in tandem with the song. If you want to get more into playing XXL+ levels, WELL RESTED is a must-do. It's only medium demon as well, so you don't have to be too skilled to give it a shot.

This used to be my favorite level in the game, and is still in my top 3. Watching this level for the first time was a truly ethereal experience.

The entire level shows beauty in simplicity, having very aesthetically pleasing, cometface styled blocks and decorations making up the level. The journey the first part of the level sends you through does an incredible job at its role as the rising action.

The standout part of the level, of course, is the shift near the middle. It's almost indescribable unless you've watched it, but the triumphant and wonderful emotions that this transition and subsequent part invoke are actually incredible.

The parts afterwards just continue the great design elements from the first parts, capping off with an ending sequence that's actually longer than some extreme demons! (kowareta, CITRA, Cobwebs, etc) The Rest (WELL RESTED!!!) at the end is a very fitting conclusion to the level, and one that never has me bored, somehow.

Overall, incredible level, and besides a COUPLE flaws in the gameplay, I really can't fault it at all. This is a perfect level.

This has aura. So enlightened. So demure. One of my favourites. I cannot fault it much. I likes it a lot.

WELL RESTED has an amazing output for the community and the impact it generated once it was out.

Maybe not all extravagant levels consider this aspect at the time of release but once you play this overdefo's work you may understand why, and it's really simple: "progression".

It submerges you into a 7- minute journey with simple yet detailed structures and a colorful and diverse pallette overall.
Gameplay is incredibly sightreadable for most of the parts, although being insanely long but pretty much balanced.

A love letter for the game, for sure.