Rating Curve

Written on July 5th, 2024.

Journey into space is an old 1.9 level that was shown to me a few years ago. I am a sucker for 1.9 levels, so this level immediately interested me. I was even more surprised to find out this level is still unrated after 9 years. Many of you might know Joshenjol from Geometrical Space, his fantastic 2.0 level that was recently rated after 8 years. However, Journey into space proves that Joshenjol was an insanely talented creator long before Geometrical Space.

Journey into space features typical 1.9 decoration. However, it maintains a fantastic space theme. Throughout the level, you can find numerous pulsing star objects and corner pieces used as distant stars. You can also find endless patterns made out of glow that resemble distinct cosmoses, and occasional sets of objects that look like constellations. Yet, the assets that really take the cake are the shooting stars at 5% and 87%. Joshenjol made these shooting stars sync to repeating beats in the song, which was a very creative idea. On top of that, Joshenjol has many other effects that he synced to the song. For example, the fading blue detail color at 1%, the pulsing glow lines at 10% and 44%, the Cataclysm-esque pulses at 52% that continue into the next part, and the rainbow color loop at 79%. All of these effects help make the level not only look amazing, but give it a sense of life. Another aspect that Joshenjol excelled on with this level is the color usage. In addition to the varied shades and hues of blue that make up a majority of the designs, Joshenjol included rainbow accents in some parts. The addition of the rainbow accents truly keeps the level fresh and interesting. All in all, the theming, synced-based effects, and colors really showed how much creating skill Joshenjol had in 1.9.

As for the gameplay, Journey into space maintains an easy, yet still challenging difficulty. Joshenjol requested a difficulty of Insane, and this level reflects that difficulty. Most of the level is fairly straight-forward. However, there are plenty of challenging bits, such as the fast paced parts from 22% to 52%. These ship, cube and ball parts can be rather challenging to sight-read, and they are easy to mess up. Additionally, there is a tight and fast wave at 64% that can be challenging for some players. However, the gameplay is still relatively easy, and incredibly fun as well.

Joshenjol has been a talented creator for a while now, and Journey into space proves this. The fun gameplay and flawlessly executed effects and theme help to create an unforgettable experience when playing this level. It is a shame that this level never got rated back in the day, and I hope it will finally get the rate it deserves.

Written on July 2nd, 2024.

Arctic alpine is a level that I’ve been waiting for ShadowIan to finish ever since I met her a few months ago. I’ve heard about ShadowIan previously and truly recognized her as a creator to watch when she released EPILEPSY WARNING, being her first epic rate. However, with arctic alpine, she has really proved how excellent of a creator she is.

To start off with, the decoration is fantastic. Arctic alpine revolves around a theme of being in the peaks of mountains and pulls off this theme fantastically. Every part has uniquely crafted designs themed around the snow and rocks you would find on the peak of a mountain. However, ShadowIan takes other measures to keep the theme and the decoration interesting. She has a very colorful decoration style, and she was not afraid to use it in this level. Almost every part has beautiful rainbow colors and pulses, mainly starting at the ship part at 0:35.This is where the color usage really comes into play. After you pass the dark cave part at 0:51, you are blasted with color for the rest of the level. The parts after feature a lot of individual assets and detailed backgrounds, such as the foliage and clouds at 0:59, and the massive mountain background at 1:08, that flawlessly utilize the rainbow colors. These assets and backgrounds use lots of vibrancy and different hues to build upon the outstanding color usage. Overall, the masterfully crafted designs, excellent theming, and exquisite usage of colors truly cements this level as one of the best in the game.

Additionally, arctic alpine has extremely fun gameplay to complement the perfect decoration. The gameplay also maintains a cool Easy Demon difficulty throughout the level. Unfortunately, there are a few tricky spots that can be confusing for some people. Later into the ship part at 0:35 there are a few yellow orbs that you have to avoid hitting. Additionally, the ball part at 0:51 has a few unclear timings of when to switch gravity off of the rolling minecarts. However, if these few tricky bits can be remembered, then this level is truly a fun experience to play.

Without a doubt, arctic alpine excels in every aspect of decoration and gameplay. ShadowIan has legitimately outdone herself with this level and I think the Legendary rating was deserved. She is definitely one of my favorite creators as of right now, and I am very excited to see what she makes next.