Rating Curve

Really good atmosphere. Not too much to say given the level itself is also very simplistic

I remember seeing some of the previews and thinking to myself "it's not looking super crazy good, but it's still neat and definitely worth looking forward to". If things continued on in that universe without any interruptions this review would probably be a 7/10. However when it was done I opened the verification video, only to get interrupted by this person calling me "Sam?..." and it completely killed my enjoyment.

There are levels where text is definitely an annoyance the level could do without, but not enough to really change my opinion. Khorne is a good example.

Then there are levels where text really hurts an otherwise good level in a way I can't ignore, and it's quite a shame when this happens. Menace and Echolocation are otherwise absolutely amazing but I just can't rate them as high as they deserve to be when there's such a glaring weakness with both.

Then, way down at the bottom, there's this. This level's text is awful. Bad enough to make me actually cringe irl. Like, any merit the rest of this level has is completely killed by "Sam I've lost all control, I DON'T KNOW WHY, i'm freaking out! I'm completely helpless!! I CAN'T GET YOU OUT" etc. I literally cannot enjoy parts that would otherwise be great because it's just so impossible to ignore. All the dialogue feels very unnatural, distracting, thematically out of place, totally unnecessary, and just all around poorly done. Hell even some of the text that isn't part of that SORRY excuse of a story is stuff this could do without. You don't have to give us lyrics for random samples, spend your effects on something else, and I would've preferred that the morse code part pop up without a translation.

Just completely dumbfounded how Darwin looked at the text in this and thought "yeah, good enough".

Just some really solid and interesting gameplay, feels very intense and it's fun to watch the wave navigate up and down through tight spaces like that

man what the hell is this song. also really just not interesting, dont have much to say.

definitely did not review the wrong dead of night at first

Great despite the awkward gameplay. Serves as a better music video than the official music video honestly (seriously, focus on and stick to the gimmick/theme you set up at the start, it's not that hard)

If I tried to explain why I like this level so much it would be worse for the same reasons any other joke is worse once you explain it

VoTcHi and SyQual please finish The Hallucination extension

Another high-intensity good-but-not-great SyQual duo collab which I used to like a lot more. Great effects, really the highlight of the level (that double spike is genuinely up there as one of the best jumps ever), there are some good designs, and a few specific moments in the gameplay are just perfect. That being said there's a fine line between making something high-speed in a good way and making something go by too quickly, and this level is hopping back and forth across that line like a rabbit

Great theme that should've been expanded on more, creative gameplay with good sync but could use a bit of work, intense but could've been more intense, a nice effect that ends up feeling unnecessary, some iconic bits but some forgettable parts. There was a point where I liked this a lot more but in retrospect the execution falls short in a lot of places. There's an alternate universe out there where this is a universally beloved all-time classic, but it isn't ours.

I have spent 6 and a half years deliberately avoiding this level, and I have just watched it for the first time prior to writing this review. A little disappointed it wasn't even worse, but it still definitely earns its "so bad it's good" reputation.

Better than level easy for sure. Aside from that though this is definitely one of those "huh, that's cool, whatever" levels you rarely give a second thought. Some bonus points for that last clubstep monster being god tier, at least