Review of hollow sun

by
, 2025-04-02, 20:52:51, Level ID: 110567144
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says...

Starting this off by stating that this is criminally underrated, as far as experimental levels go this is one of my favorite, i will forever appreciate levels that radiate with passion like this one does. Nothing here feels rushed, and the level constantly throws new ideas at you, making it really enjoyable to watch. I also need to comment on the song choice, LLAAPPSSEE is my favorite NG artist, and the song used in this level is one of their best works.

The first part is very sync based, the orbs chaining one after the other to represent the bass is a very neat idea. The first few percentage already lay down a lot of the color work that is done throughout the level, lots of pulses and hue changes, many varying saturation... The entire part feels very washed out, i think of it as a relic of the past. The foreground is a very bright yellow and different assets clash with each-other in a very neat manner. The dark blue background plays an important role, its simple, effective, and serves as a way to keep things readable. The very strong flashes starting at ~6% almost completely drown out the level in the previously mentioned bright yellow, i really like the executions of these pulses as they feel very powerful yet dont impair the readability of the level. The added streetlights are a really neat detail and the background becomes more detailed to match the song picking up in intensity. The wiggling outlines matching the very surreal looking sawblades help the part feel more "alive". A side effect of the background being made with shaders is that whenever you pass a size portal, you can see reflections matching the colors withing the background. This detail is very likely unintentional but it caught my eye and i figured it was worth mentioning. The sort of branch-like structures slowly taking over the level is a very awesome way to slowly transition into the next part while adding another layer of depth.

For the second section, the song picks up in intensity even more, the pulses become more harsh and the structuring is pretty much entirely made out of spike towers, making the part feel very "hostile". The star assets add a sense of verticality to the level that i appreciate a lot. While in this part, you are near the stars, previously, you were on the ground, indicated by the streetlights. The level doesnt give up its color scheme, but deviates from it slightly, adding color shaders to make really strong pulses that for a few instants completely deviate from the initial yellow and blue that was established in the previous part. Worth noting that the background uses a different shader effect. I wish the branches from the previous parts were more developed here. They only appear for a few seconds in clutters and i think that's a missed opportunity. But other than that the speed changes, the nature of the gameplay, and all the previously mentioned details make this part have really good song representation.

The break part is the most surreal looking one, it heavily focuses on sawblades and the level's established color scheme. There isn't much to say here, i appreciate the contrast with the very chaotic structuring and gameplay tropes clashing with the very calming section of the song. Some of the orb effects are worth pointing out too.

The section right before the drop is beautiful, it has so much anticipation and works so well with the song. The gameplay is simple yet effective, the background & structures serves as a preview for what's about to come with the drop, it just looks like it has so much energy built up, it makes the drop feel way more impactful. I like it when creators add assets around the icon, in this case, the particles orbiting the cube work really well.

The drop of this song is nothing short of amazing and this level does it justice, i really like spinning backgrounds and this one is no exception. The level gives up the yellow and blue color scheme to fully focus on yellow / orange, this really makes you feel like you are close to the sun, which the level is themed around. The structuring is yet again simple, which does wonders for this section as it is fast paced, and bright, which would have made it difficult to read of the deco was convoluted. Throughout this entire part you will find different "pillars" scattered in places that i also find very neat. Every asset in this part feels purposeful and fits in very nicely with the rest. The hue shift this section takes on in some places help the part not feel boring as it is quite long. This level has a trope of making some parts have progression within themselves, which is a really awesome detail. The long dash orb holds really stand out for me as i feel like they fit the song perfectly. The robot section picks up in pace and complexifies the structuring while still keeping the gameplay style the same, once again some very awesome progression. Long repeated jumps are another example of song representation done right, they perfectly encapsulate the song in my eyes. Around 75% the song reaches peak intensity and in some sections the level is completely drowned out by it's own pulses, a very daring trope to add to your level that i think was more than justified considering what LLAAPPSSEE has put forward with this song. As you float away you hit one final dash orb that transports you into the final section.

The last part honestly caught me off guard on first watch as it's a perfect follow-up to the part before. It's so pleasing to look at and the colors are amazing. The lighting ties everything together perfectly and matches the song. Details such as the trees are really well made and i really like the streelights making a comeback. For the last few percentages, the level gets darker, the gameplay snappier, you finally land back on the ground, and you float away one last time.

One of my favorite levels to come out from this update. Very inspirational.

OVERALL10/10
GAMEPLAY7/10
VISUALS10/10
DIFFICULTY70/100
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