Rating Curve

Manix's magnum opus to this day. Manix influenced a large portion of my early years of playing GD, releasing many memorable works in 2.0 like Volcanic Rush, TakeDown, M A N I X and a handful of collab parts as well. It's true that his earlier 2.0 levels somewhat felt like a LazerBlitz knockoff (and other styles resembling it), but he showed improvement level after level - diversifying and deepening his style, even experimenting with effects in M A N I X, and overall making his levels feel much more vibrant. In that sense, Primal Redux is possibly the best finale to his 2.0 creating career. It essentially recaps everything he improved throughout that period, somehow even more refined. What I love the most about Primal Redux is that it's really diverse in terms of theming, yet all of them just feel 'Manix' in the end as they're tied together by his signature tech block design. Conclusion: This level's really cool, has pretty much everything I remember and love about 2.0. It has aura

I adore levels like Neurostasis, where there is a perfect balance of order and chaos. Especially noticeable in Neurostasis is that even when the entire level is breaking down, you're able to identify scattered fragments of the (previously) ordered parts, and as a whole makes it feel 'controlled', bringing the entire level together amidst the chaos.

reset your mind essentially takes the same ideas, but cranks up the chaos to the max. Although - despite there being even less of a coherent style or theme (although it seems it is loosely based on a computer going haywire), the structuring and design choices are actually quite intricate and well thought out upon closer inspection. Finding new elements in levels that I would not have noticed at first glance is what I love seeing, and reset your mind does exactly that. There's a certain feeling of satisfaction after you realize the level isn't just a cluttered mess but rather controlled and organized in a very smart way.

Simply incredible for its time, its legacy outlasting many other revered masterpieces even to this day speaks a lot for itself.

Love the vibes in this one a lot, not much to say, genuinely just beautiful. My favourite SGC entry along with Echo Delta

Almost a perfect platformer megacollab in my eyes. Parts were not made to be cohesive and were only loosely tied together into chapters by themes, which allowed creators to explore more unique themes and as a result create some of the most memorable platformer parts (some more, some less!), Enough about that though, my favourite part about DON is how flawlessly it pulls off the IWBTG fangame vibe it originally aimed for. There's an underlying ambient, lifeless atmosphere throughout its gigantic runtime, combined with incredibly diverse theming across parts as well as gimmicks - on top of how even small elements like the menu, credits, ending and practice interface all feeling like they could easily belong in a needle fangame. To me, the fact that they nailed this initial concept so perfectly is enough to outweigh any inconsistencies in quality (although personally I'd argue even the deco quality is a small issue) or cohesion. As a final remark, I really do wish this level did better performance-wise - although, it was an inevitable outcome considering the sheer volume of the level.

Incredible level.

I've kept an eye on rply's previous works such as time plus tragedy and Trick Room, as he already built a unique style and showed competence with effects. Although great, the aforementioned levels were not groundbreaking; rply was going to be another addition to the list of creators who would gradually show their full potential in the editor over the coming years. Needless to say, commatose completely blew my expectations out of the water. Despite its lengthy runtime of over 9 minutes, commatose keeps the player engaged throughout, beginning with a slow-paced predrop that some might argue to be boring and unnecessary. Personally I felt that this part contributed heavily to the slow build-up of energy up to the climax, as well as introducing the environment of the level to the player, as the similar light-blue, orange colour scheme is repeated throughout the level. All that follows afterwards needs little description. Movements of structures and effects are extremely well-orchestrated, giving a sense of order even in chaos. The ending is also notable where the level comes to a crashing finish, decaying into unorganized structures following the song. Unbelievable level all-around. Probably my favourite level of 2024.

One of the best traditional design levels in the game, if not the best.

Sillow's magnum opus by far, the attention to detail is unreal. I promise you that you will notice something cool for every re-watch, as I am also finding new things myself! There's just so much character to the level, evidenced by all of the 'creatures' and references Sillow put into the fiery landscape that is FIREPOWER. I'm also impressed by the colour work in this level, a colour scheme largely based around red can be seen as generic but Sillow did a great job mixing them together. For the reasons above, the level really gets you absorbed throughout its (somewhat) lengthy runtime.

Absolutely phenomenal, X Future really created something special here. It feels both like a bittersweet ode to all of the amazing levels made in this game and a journey through the creative process itself that shapes them. I actually wrote a lengthy review on this level (link below) so I summarised my thoughts here a bit, but the ending is one of my favourite parts in a level ever. I'm taken aback by how X Future managed to craft a mesmerizing atmosphere with such simplicity, stirring up emotions I can't fully put into words. I think it's incredible that a Geometry Dash level can make me feel that way, which is why I adore OUTPUT SPRING even more.

Edit: Also helps that it uses Cacola's masterpiece

https://x.com/1kbbb_/status/1891413056338448736

My current hardest, and I've decided to include a gameplay rating unlike most of my reviews. In short, this level is a masterclass in progression, pays homage to several other of KiwiPenguin's works, has great song representation, and - as the cherry on top - is extremely fun to play! Just an incredible level overall, KiwiPenguin outdid themselves creating something that is awesome to both watch and play.

Without a doubt my favourite Space Gauntlet entry, the reason being that it's really the only level that successfully explored cosmic horror as a theme. The environment in cometface and Serponge's parts elevate the alien, almost hostile feeling, building up to an explosion of energy that AudieoVisual portrayed as the inside of a black hole. There's many reasons why this level appeals to me, but the ending contributes a lot to that; the player fading away into the vastness of space really gave a sense of completeness. Overall, a stunning SGC entry that blew my expectations away, which were already high from seeing such a stacked creator lineup.