I go back and forth on this level. I used to love it, then I didn’t like it, and now I’ve settled into appreciating it while still seeing many flaws with it. On the one hand, the level is extremely unbalanced. Two parts right next to one another will have wildly different difficulties. Said difficulty is almost entirely oriented around the ship, which feels off for a level that’s meant to be a kind of bossfight for the game as a whole. What’s worse, the level has several mistakes which make it look incredibly rushed. In that respect the level falls flat.

However, I cannot deny what the level does well. The “demon face” is incredibly iconic for a reason, and it just feels right that a demon-difficulty level would be themed around structures that actually look like demons. This kind of top-down design also allows for the gameplay to feel just a bit awkward, but in a good way. This is especially true in the mini-UFO, because the mouths are so wide but the UFO’s movement makes it feel so cramped. It makes the level feel so imposing. I also love the few parts where Rob really uses vertical space, especially the cube part right after the first ship. It makes the level feel like a big fortress that you’re only seeing a small part of.

So that’s where it stands. Its highs are really high, but it’s marred by some major problems. Overall though I cannot deny how iconic it is. It’s closer to an 8 than a 6.