Rating Curve

Truthfully this level has absolutely nothing to do on the challenge list as this pretty much only consists of spamming in the sense that the non spam parts mostly play themselves. Disregarding that I have always had a bone to pick with extremely dark levels, pretty much every victor just cranks their gamma to the max to have a chance at seeing anything... at this point why not just make the level brighter?? Worst part is that the level literally looks better with extra gamma as you can actually see the decoration.. However i will not be taking that into account as i am not rating levels based on how they look if you fiddle with your monitor.

As for the Gameplay its extremely awkward from what i've played but i won't hold it against it as it is currently #2 on the challenge list therefore too hard for me. I still think the structuring is extremely sub par in a lot of places, but i guess the GP get's extra points for having on of the most recognizable click patterns in the game.

This level is a blessing for any gened out 14yo that wants to beat VSC and only VSC to earn their 200 challenge list points and never touch anything other than VSC ever again

Current top 1 on CL, this level is pretty much always described as having "aura", which usually goes for every Exen level. I find IOH to be pretty middle of the road for me, It's definitely one of the best top 1 challenge CL has had but the bar is so low this statement doesn't really hold that much meaning. It's always awesome to see old impossible levels get verified though, which definitely gives it bonus points for me. While i can't speak on gameplay or enjoyability as i am not good enough to play such level, the extremely long and drawn out ""predrop"" seems like it would drive me completely insane if i ever had the skill for something like this, in other words, i don't like it. The wave is well executed though, its typical exen GP / deco / structuring, but this is still recognizable on it's own, while in my opinion representing the level well.

Overall i don't have too much to say about this, other than congratulations to over for somehow verifying this

Official Martin sequel, weaker in my eyes but still great, so whimsical, the level just makes me happy. I will also write more about it later

Phenomenal color work, will write more about it later

Never been a huge fan of Cersia levels, but this one definitely stands as the best one i've seen. It just matches the song so well, both in the gameplay, structuring, deco, and pulses. It's really solid overall, it's good at what it does, the effects are really polished and the level is just well crafted. I personally couldn't find anything in particular to really upgrade with the level. However, it's also not outstanding, it plays it safe in a lot of areas, and isn't a level i would find myself rewatching - still really neat though!

Solid level! I never have much to say about classic design levels as they're not my favorite but this one was intretsting to watch! it's creative and matches the song very well. My main critique is that despite the song going absolutely crazy the level still feels.... dark?? Like there are a lot of colors on the screen but none of them are bright enough to really make me feel the energy that the song conveys. The level just falls short in some places where it could have done so much more. However renn's gameplay in this difficulty range is really solid and i adore what they went on the create (The Sun Came Forth) so i wont hold it up against them. The last third is the best imo and definitely doesnt fall short, it goes really hard. The masking effect is well made and overall renn's level always look so polished to me, i can tell effort went into these levels and i really like seeing that.

Long story short the level does everything well, but could have done it better imo!!

As far as frame aligned levels goes, this is definitely one of the better ones (although the bar is astronomically low). I've spent quite a while hating on frame perfect challenges, and this level is no exception, but something about Paraballa makes it feel completely different from other frame perfect slop you can find overtaking the challenge list. It's grown on me from "i despise this" to "it's tolerable" which i think is quite impressive considering it's also one of those levels where if you want to have a chance at seeing anything you need to up your gamma to the max, and god knows how much i hate it when levels do that. One thing i can say is that the song representation is surprisingly good in this, and if you've read a few of my reviews you'll know how much i LOVE song representation. The click pattern for this level has become pretty iconic overtime, which to me warrants this level being note worthy which is one of the reason why i wont put it in the same shit bag as other levels of it's kind.

At least its better than foolsong

Starting this off by stating that this is criminally underrated, as far as experimental levels go this is one of my favorite, i will forever appreciate levels that radiate with passion like this one does. Nothing here feels rushed, and the level constantly throws new ideas at you, making it really enjoyable to watch. I also need to comment on the song choice, LLAAPPSSEE is my favorite NG artist, and the song used in this level is one of their best works.

The first part is very sync based, the orbs chaining one after the other to represent the bass is a very neat idea. The first few percentage already lay down a lot of the color work that is done throughout the level, lots of pulses and hue changes, many varying saturation... The entire part feels very washed out, i think of it as a relic of the past. The foreground is a very bright yellow and different assets clash with each-other in a very neat manner. The dark blue background plays an important role, its simple, effective, and serves as a way to keep things readable. The very strong flashes starting at ~6% almost completely drown out the level in the previously mentioned bright yellow, i really like the executions of these pulses as they feel very powerful yet dont impair the readability of the level. The added streetlights are a really neat detail and the background becomes more detailed to match the song picking up in intensity. The wiggling outlines matching the very surreal looking sawblades help the part feel more "alive". A side effect of the background being made with shaders is that whenever you pass a size portal, you can see reflections matching the colors withing the background. This detail is very likely unintentional but it caught my eye and i figured it was worth mentioning. The sort of branch-like structures slowly taking over the level is a very awesome way to slowly transition into the next part while adding another layer of depth.

For the second section, the song picks up in intensity even more, the pulses become more harsh and the structuring is pretty much entirely made out of spike towers, making the part feel very "hostile". The star assets add a sense of verticality to the level that i appreciate a lot. While in this part, you are near the stars, previously, you were on the ground, indicated by the streetlights. The level doesnt give up its color scheme, but deviates from it slightly, adding color shaders to make really strong pulses that for a few instants completely deviate from the initial yellow and blue that was established in the previous part. Worth noting that the background uses a different shader effect. I wish the branches from the previous parts were more developed here. They only appear for a few seconds in clutters and i think that's a missed opportunity. But other than that the speed changes, the nature of the gameplay, and all the previously mentioned details make this part have really good song representation.

The break part is the most surreal looking one, it heavily focuses on sawblades and the level's established color scheme. There isn't much to say here, i appreciate the contrast with the very chaotic structuring and gameplay tropes clashing with the very calming section of the song. Some of the orb effects are worth pointing out too.

The section right before the drop is beautiful, it has so much anticipation and works so well with the song. The gameplay is simple yet effective, the background & structures serves as a preview for what's about to come with the drop, it just looks like it has so much energy built up, it makes the drop feel way more impactful. I like it when creators add assets around the icon, in this case, the particles orbiting the cube work really well.

The drop of this song is nothing short of amazing and this level does it justice, i really like spinning backgrounds and this one is no exception. The level gives up the yellow and blue color scheme to fully focus on yellow / orange, this really makes you feel like you are close to the sun, which the level is themed around. The structuring is yet again simple, which does wonders for this section as it is fast paced, and bright, which would have made it difficult to read of the deco was convoluted. Throughout this entire part you will find different "pillars" scattered in places that i also find very neat. Every asset in this part feels purposeful and fits in very nicely with the rest. The hue shift this section takes on in some places help the part not feel boring as it is quite long. This level has a trope of making some parts have progression within themselves, which is a really awesome detail. The long dash orb holds really stand out for me as i feel like they fit the song perfectly. The robot section picks up in pace and complexifies the structuring while still keeping the gameplay style the same, once again some very awesome progression. Long repeated jumps are another example of song representation done right, they perfectly encapsulate the song in my eyes. Around 75% the song reaches peak intensity and in some sections the level is completely drowned out by it's own pulses, a very daring trope to add to your level that i think was more than justified considering what LLAAPPSSEE has put forward with this song. As you float away you hit one final dash orb that transports you into the final section.

The last part honestly caught me off guard on first watch as it's a perfect follow-up to the part before. It's so pleasing to look at and the colors are amazing. The lighting ties everything together perfectly and matches the song. Details such as the trees are really well made and i really like the streelights making a comeback. For the last few percentages, the level gets darker, the gameplay snappier, you finally land back on the ground, and you float away one last time.

One of my favorite levels to come out from this update. Very inspirational.

In my eyes this is among the most recognizable extreme demon in the game, and for a good reason. The song representation in this part is so good that the first cube section has become iconic for it, every somewhat experienced GD player remembers the click pattern. The base gameplay in this part is good and really innovative, the level takes a simple structure, repeats it, and explores so many ideas on what to do with it. Unfortunately, the pink orb section at ~8% has been ruined by 2.2, making it much harder than what it originally was. My only real complaint with this part would be 11%, i don't mind the gameplay being completely covered up but the section just shouldn't be this hard considering that the gameplay is invisible. I would also like to point out the color progression throughout the cube section, as the bright and pale yellow turns more orange and saturated.

As you are catapulted into the second part you encounter really odd memory ish gameplay, that at first might seem unfun, but after learning it it gets very consistent apart from 1 or 2 clicks. The wonkiness of some of the inputs can be excused by how creative the structuring in this part is, the level is literally closing in on you as you narrowly escape which was really well executed. This part is imo really underrated as the song representation is just as immaculate as the first section. The guitar riffs goes so well with the gameplay and each one of them is made powerful through both the decoration and gameplay. My only complaint is the wave part, it feels rushed, and i don't like how it completely discards the idea of going through structures that the entire level had maintained so far.

The drop energy the drop part carries is phenomenal. The song is already great on it's own and the decoration just goes so well with it, it just has that raw energy where what matters most is the ideas being put forward, and not the execution itself, which i think is a mentality more creators should adopt for decorating overall. The background is simple but works well, the color work is great and the gameplay really keeps you engaged. It's fun, gimmicky in some places, never gets frustrating. The level gets easier overtime, making the drop really enjoyable to play on it's own, while not being frustrating if you play from earlier in the level. The ending ball part is really neat, its a great ending to a great level.

I doubt this is what the creator intended, but to me the progression in this level just boils down to "getting closer to the sun", the start consists of a desaturated yellow, and ends with really bright and colorful sections. Again, i just wish 2.2 didn't mess things up with this level.