Rating Curve

Meh. I honestly kinda prefer HOW…?

The fact that Spu7Nix confirmed my suspicion that the ending was rushed in his video makes this level even more disappointing to me. Also not a huge fan of the LDM being a demake instead of a proper LDM; I think that could have stood on its own like Aperture 1p9.

For how old THE LIGHTNING ROAD is, it actually has some pretty good sync. If the block designs were more appealing and the gameplay toward the end wasn’t as strange, this could’ve been one of the best levels of its update.

Generation Retro is one of the most infamous gauntlet levels thanks to its flawed execution and Colon’s review (which, by the way, he doesn’t hate the level), but it still has charm. The gameplay has some hiccups, but it isn’t too bad after a practice run. The theme is somewhat creative, and having a story is ambitious for 2.0. Its reputation has only made it even more memorable to me, and while I wish he would fix the more obvious issues, I hope ArathhSA knows this level has its fans.

ReTraY is one of the few beloved map pack levels, and it was awesome back in the day, but I’ve grown less fond of it over time.

First, the updates. ReTraY was updated in 2.0 and 2.1, the latter being the longest-lasting and most well-known. But the second coin is boring (you get rewarded for doing nothing), Potbor makes no sense being here, and the black click counter always stood out as ugly to me, among other changes I’m not a fan of. This is a common issue among map pack levels, but at least most of the gameplay was left alone.

My second issue with ReTraY is that it recreates several block designs and effects from Gigabyte. This feels unnecessary, given that ReTraY has several great original designs; I would have liked to see a heavier reliance on those.

Lastly, I’m not a fan of the last part being auto. The way it was done is a bit clever for 1.9, but the energy of the part wears off on repeat playthroughs.

I find ReTraY somewhat of a missed opportunity, and I prefer Dima’s other work, but it’s still a fine level.