Rating Curve

As I alluded to in my 1929 review, this level is without question the most important level to my entire GD career. Partially because of the journey I had with it, and partially because of the level itself.

On May 23, 2017, KrmaL uploaded his verification video of Black Blizzard… and 9-year-old Doge was floored from the moment he saw it. The level was so unlike anything I’d ever seen at that point, and I knew for a fact that I would eventually beat this one day (and even dreamed about doing so that night!) Of course, considering I hadn’t even beaten a single Demon yet, Black Blizzard was FAR too much for me, and I don’t think I could even get 2%. But the level remained in my conscious for a very long time, until October 2023, when I finally transitioned from an iPad to a gaming PC and could finally start working on conquering this behemoth of a level that I held so close to me. It took five months from start-to-finish, but on March 1, 2024, I finally got to add my name to the list of Black Blizzard victors. It still holds several records related to me - biggest jump in difficulty up the AREDL (445 spots as of my completion), most attempts taken on any level (25,364 - my previous record was 9,471 on Doradura) and biggest fluke on any Extreme (I fluked the level from 65% after dying to the dual one time from 0.)

And the reason I did all of that? Because of the level itself. This is without question my favorite Extreme Demon in all of Geometry Dash, and it really isn’t hard to see why if you know what kind of levels I like. Everything about the gameplay is something I like - the first two cubes that took timings to a level never-before-seen at the time it was released, one of the best duals ever made in any level (honestly, only second to the Endless Dream dual), and all of the other little bits and pieces in between that make this level so fun. But no Extreme can hold a candle to this level’s decoration - and for good reason. This level is one of the best examples of setting up a theme and an atmosphere that I have EVER seen in almost eight years of playing Geometry Dash. Remember how I said I was absolutely floored by the level when I first saw it? That was partially (mostly) due to the dual - which I still hold is probably the single best part of any Extreme when it comes to setting up an atmosphere. It is genuinely mind-blowing (present tense used deliberately).

Black Blizzard is an absolute beauty to behold that, in my opinion, takes the well-deserved title of the best Extreme Demon in all of Geometry Dash. I don’t think we’ll see many Extremes get close to matching the level of quality that it presents for a very, very long time. While it may not be my hardest Demon anymore, Black Blizzard will always have a special place in my heart.

Christ almighty, here we go…

This was my first ever Extreme Demon completed, with me conquering it on June 24, 2023. But it had been a project of mine for eleven months at that point, with me uploading my first progress video on it on July 23, 2022. So why did it take me so long?

Ha…

When I say that I am the unluckiest victor of this level, not only am I not joking, but I think it’s completely fair for me to add “by a long shot” to that title. Most people die in the last 40% of levels 20 times, maybe 30 if they’re unlucky. Me on Doradura? 291. And in case you don’t believe me, here’s all of them, painstakingly listed out.

60x8, 61x23, 62x20, 63x59, 64x43, 65x36, 66x27, 67x11, 68x9, 69x21, 70x6, 71x2, 72x6, 73x2, 76x2, 77, 78, 79, 83x5, 84x2, 85x2, 88x2, 91x2. And 91 is the last ship gap.

This level is insanely hard to review for me, just because of how much it mentally screwed me over when I beat it the first time. When I got my 240hz PC and when 2.2 dropped, I revisited this level, and this time, I had an absolute BLAST beating it! If only that could’ve been my experience the first time…

What hurts the most is that… I genuinely love this level. This is probably one of the best Extremes in the game, decoration-wise, and when you’re not getting absolutely blasted, the gameplay is extremely fun, too. (If you’re wondering how I arrived at the gameplay score for this, I just averaged out my two enjoyment ratings.)

But as much as this screwed me over, I can’t help but have a deep appreciation and respect for Doradura. This and 1945 were really where my willingness to stick with a level, no matter how awfully it was going, was born, and I truly do believe that I would not be where I am today if I didn’t get so unlucky with it. Going through two of the worst experiences you’ve ever gone through in a video game pretty much back to back makes it a lot easier to stomach the little problems, both in-game and in real life. So in that way, it actually changed my life for the better.

My hardest demon at the time of me writing this, xo is a level that I had been looking forward to beating… pretty much since KrmaL verified the level in late 2019. Obviously, with my hardest at that time being Clubstep v2, there was no way in HELL I’d be able to beat it at that time, but I knew that I’d probably get to the skill level required. Fast forward nearly half a decade, I finally feel like I have the confidence to take it on after beating Sunset Sandstorm, Blade of Justice, Endless Dream, and Ethereal Artifice in the two and a half months prior. So I start going for xo… and, well…

The funny thing about this level is that it’s still really good! Most of the gameplay is very fun (and shockingly fair) and the decoration is a lot better than most people are willing to give it credit for. But this is a rare example of an Extreme that so blatantly tests your confidence, and seeing as that’s something I’d never really gone through - I struggled a lot. This was the first time since Doradura (which I’ll get to in a later review) where a new hardest made me feel genuine dread upon thinking about having to play it. I think a large part of this was due to the circumstances - I had mostly committed to playing the level entirely in secret, only telling about a dozen people. If I didn’t do that, I think it would’ve been a lot easier, especially since I didn’t try to beat any other Extremes while playing xo. (I have a set Extreme plan for my first 50 or so. Yeah, I’m weird.) But somehow, with three hours to go in 2024, I finally conquered xo - fluking it from 67%, to boot.

Despite my tainted experience and severe mental health struggles not relating to the level (school, college, and the cancer battle that one of my friends was going through pretty much the entire time I was going for this), I can still say with confidence that xo is a great level. This is yet another reason I consider KrmaL the greatest creator of all time - even a 1.0 level can make me feel things that the most impressively-built, hyper realistic levels can’t. He is truly one of a kind, and I’m honored to be able to have called multiple of his Extremes my hardest demon at one point or another.

If there was a Big Three of levels important to my GD career, those would be Black Blizzard, Bloodlust, and 1929. This level was my first ever Insane Demon (beaten on October 30, 2021) and the rush I felt from beating it is what has led me to accomplish all of the things I have wanted to since - but three years and 17 Extreme Demons later, it still holds a special place in my heart.

The level itself is also very good! It’s got extremely fun gameplay the entire way through, and never once got boring or unnecessarily sluggish. The only real problem I have with the gameplay is the transition at 79, going out of the part that took its gameplay from Michigun’s part in Yatagarasu - I don’t even know how many deaths I had in that area, because I stopped keeping track after #10 or so. Nonetheless, this level was very, very fun for me, and it also looks great! While this was pretty clearly made before Lfritz really hit his stride, there’s still a lot of moments in the level that I think look spectacular, even though I couldn’t experience them directly (as I beat the level on a 60hz iPad and had to use the LDM to run the level).

1929 may not be my favorite level of all time, and it may not be anywhere near the top of my hardest list nowadays, but I will always hold this level very close to my heart for all that it’s ultimately done for me. I’ve met so many incredible people, made so many amazing friends, and achieved so many things that 2018 me could never have even dreamed of - and I have 1929 to thank for that.