Rating Curve

A haunting anti-drugs PSA that is as devastating and powerful as Aronofsky's Requiem for a Dream, "drugs is bad" is a stunning, surrealist, psychedelic, Lynchian fever dream which defies all explanation in its mere existence. It's a masterful, magnificent, and deeply experimental tour de force that can't be described as anything but a bold, subversive, thought-provoking and avant-garde masterpiece that will remain with you long after you've played it. Standards and societal expectations have truly been abandoned through this brave, revolutionary, and renegade breakthrough in level creation. It's a true enfant terrible that rises high above the 'soulless slop' that 'objectively' (yes, I know I'm using this incorrectly) plagues the Awarded tab. "drugs is bad" is a tremendously breath-taking work of art that will unsurprisingly and inevitably ignite a new revolution in Geometry Dash history. Sorry, FunnyGame. It seems as if khenomy will be the new innovator to break the boundaries of what is possible within the limited confines of the GD editor.

(Uh, did I include enough buzz-words?)

I can't believe Split72 developed self-awareness! In spite of this rather shocking breakthrough, I think that "Slop" is a level that is exactly what it says on the tin. It's a factory-produced, unremarkable, disposable, forgettable, and easily-replaceable artefact of mediocrity with no distinguishing features that allow it to stand out, except being astonishingly empty and devoid of any life or flavor. There's absolutely nothing unique about it other than its somewhat self-aware title. However, just because it may be self-aware of its nature as 'slop', that doesn't necessarily mean that it's actually good, just like how bringing up linguistic devices in an English essay doesn't actually mean anything unless you can explore the effect the use of each device has on the reader/audience. I'd be willing to give "Slop" a few extra points if it was at least willing to be sardonic or sarcastic about itself, yet its intentions on being 'slop' are wholly genuine and sincere. It isn't attempting to make any sharp commentary on the dire state of the GD rating system or the homogeneity of most levels in the Awarded tab and instead just opts to perpetuate it. It's self-aware of its nature as boring sludge that is dispassionately pumped out but instead of trying to subvert or pointedly criticize that, it's wholly complacent with just being mass-produced 'slop'.

I'm glad I was able to rebeat this in 1 attempt, but "Flappy Ice Cream" just isn't a good level. First of all, ice cream isn't supposed to kill you. Secondly, this level isn't worth 4 stars. Thirdly, it's just extraordinarily lazy. Fourthly, I wouldn't be surprised if this level gave somebody a phobia of ice cream or made someone never want to eat it again with how awful it was. Fifthly, this just shouldn't have been rated in the first place.

The ice cream actually looks good for a 1.9 level, but the abysmally repetitive gameplay is exhausting enough to turn somebody off ice cream for the rest of their life. I'm not sure why the hell the level decides to randomly switch to wave part-way through… It's called 'Flappy Ice Cream' but still can't fully commit to the 'Flappy' part of its namesake. At least the wave spices things up and is easier to control than the UFO, though that doesn't make the UFO parts any better or less tedious to play through. The chain deco would be fine if it just wasn't the same three patterns repeated throughout the entire level. I think Defectum should be questioned on how an approximately 1 minute and 40 second level is able to feel as if it lasts an eternity. The time dilation on display here is astonishing.

(At least it isn't "Flappy Illuminati")

"ANYBODY" is a (visually) serviceable glow level which is tainted, blighted and ruined by its absolutely abysmal, dismal and miserable excuse for 'gameplay'. It's a hostile level that actively tries its hardest to be as unfun as physically possible. When I first — yes, first — beat this level sometime back in 2020 (I can't really pinpoint exactly when), my game crashed, and let me tell you, I was probably going to implode had I not beaten it within the next 10 attempts following my game crashing. Anyway, "ANYBODY" is a dreadful experience, regardless of how 'easy' it is.