Rating Curve

I'm very, very split on Requiem as a level. When I look at it, the first thing that is made apparent to me is the sheer amount of anger it was made with. Anger at the world, anger at almost all 8 billion people that roam this Earth. Grief, especially with suicide, is incredibly difficult to deal with, and I think Requiem represents that very well... were it not for its pretentiousness. The story it's trying to tell is not apparent throughout the level, nor is it through its predecessor, Killbot. However, if you are given context to the story and creation of Requiem, a picture begins to form.

Online harassment and even destructive criticism suck, they've hurt me physically aswell. You show the world something that you put your heart and soul into, and you're met with people telling you that you have no talent, should disappear, etc. Depicting this as a form of malware that can hijack your brain, like how the Killbot series does, appears somewhat disingenuous. We're already wired to internalize negative expressions that come our way, and our job is to develop skills to cope with them as we grow, ever evolving. When we don't mentally defend ourselves, it may result in self-destructive behavior. It is NOT and will never be "insanity", like Killbot may suggest.

Requiem is the nearly-sobering realization of the tragedy that is not defending oneself and internalizing everything, from the perspective of someone who learned slightly better. Its creation coincides with the passing of David, Lithifusion's friend, by suicide. The actions of a then-destructive community that he'd nearly distanced himself from, hurt him once more. But the idea of likening destructive comments to computer malware hadn't passed. What we're left with is a work that's filled with rage, but unclear to who or what it is directed towards.

When witnessing Requiem for the first time, I could understand what Lithifusion was going through. I just had so many questions. Why is it so... in my face about everything? Does he want attention? I won't pry about who David was, or what hurt him or Lithifusion. All I know is that I'm concerned about the ideas this level propagates regarding negativity.

This is my favorite Dima level, period. The ending revealing that the world is in a zipper gives it such a bittersweet feeling. Among the best 1.9 levels in my opinion, for a very good reason.

Wow, this is nowhere near as good as I remember. It's a good tribute to Death Moon, but I feel the song and general mood it's going for don't go together at all. Combine that with a cheesy boss fight and text, and... There's a lot left to be desired. I do still appreciate this level for what it is, but it just doesn't hold up very well.

Sidenote:

The only assets I could see that were directly taken from Death Moon were the 「死月」 text and some of the easy-to-recreate flashing patterns, so it doesn't bother me too much.

I can't add anything that hasn't already been said. This level makes me happy.

It's a factory level with a System of a Down song. I don't know how you can't love this.

Very, very nice level for 2.0 standards overall. Good gameplay, visuals, and Jazz Jackrabbit. Nothing extraordinary now, but it's a fun romp. Jayuff's earlier levels never fail to bring a smile to my face.

This level is undoubtedly a tribute to not only 2003devin's unique gameplay and personality, but also the grunge and factory styles. I had a lot of fun in practice mode figuring out the gimmicks, and the gameplay was an absolute blast! The occasional artwork looked really nice and well done... However, I did notice some traced art from another game, albeit made out of unorthodox objects for lineart. I don't believe the intention was bad, though. Moreover, the text doesn't really deliver the creator's personality, but rather, attempts to mimic Devin's witty writing style without modification.

I heavily enjoyed the frequent change in scenery, with every section showing a love for detail. All in all, I think this level's a flawed but fun love letter to an uncommon style I really want to see more of. I'll get around to beating this behemoth one day.

I'm struggling to figure out the creative process behind this level's creation. I mean this in the most positive way possible, but I'm still confused nonetheless. The style change is a complete tonal whiplash (positive once again), but the decoration is lacking in some parts.

Despite my overall rating, I actually enjoy this level, but have yet to beat it.

This is a complete and utter disaster and I'm absolutely here for it.

"I'm sorry I can't be more optimistic, Doctor, but we've got a long road ahead of us. It's like having sex. It's a painstaking and arduous task that seems to go on and on forever, and just when you think things are going your way, nothing happens."