Rating Curve

Press Start is the first level of Geometry Dash SubZero, and by far the best level of this spinoff imo.

The first 15% of your level is your standard RobTop cube part. I like how the effects in this part sync with the riffs in the song. At 15%, you get introduced to the skull which will be a motif throughout this level. Suddenly the camera zooms out and you are thrown into the drop, showing the first of many 2.2 features in this spinoff.

The first drop is pretty uneventful aside from the zoomed out camera. The deco is reminiscent of Meltdown with a few new effects. Then at 38% you get a slow buildup section before the second drop at 50%. I like how the skull slowly rises out of the ground and then speaks “OH DAMN” to the song.

Then at 53% you get what is easily the most iconic part of SubZero - the Skull bossfight. This boss would inspire iconic levels like CraZy and more. In particular, I really like the 63% ship with all the slope gameplay.

Then at 71% you get the first “2.2 hijinks” part in GD history - you get thrown into a room where you platform back and forth repeatedly instead of autoscrolling. The coin here needs more indication but is very cool imo.

Then at 80% you get the second phase of the skull boss where it continues to chase you and starts spitting lasers at you - this part seems a bit uninspired as many 2.1 bossfights did the same thing previously.

Overall, this is definitely the best bossfight level RobTop has ever made (not like there’s much competition) and the highlight of SubZero imo.

A big thank you goes to xiaomao for requesting this level in my review request thread 😊

Wow, just wow. This level is an absolute masterpiece. I’ve always been a fan of slower levels with stuff like Out of Place and Lonely Travel being among my favorite levels of all time, so it’s no surprise I enjoy ur my valentine as well.

The first 25% of the level features a cube with some unique dash orb / S-block gimmicks as well as a unique ground platform that extends beyond what is visible.

25-40% features a short ship part with lots of slopes that makes for some unique gameplay.

40-57% features a mini cube that gradually speeds up, leading to the hardest part of the level

57-90% is by far the standout part of the level - a ship part where you hold between different orb taps. While ship difficulty usually comes from straightfly spam, this level takes a different approach and forces you to react on the spot as to whether you should hold or let go when approaching different orbs. As the ship speeds up throughout this part, the orb timings get more and more precise which is where most of the level’s difficulty comes from

90-100% has a short but sweet mini cube to finish off the level.

Overall, I adore this kind of gameplay and hope to see it in more rated levels. If you’re a fan of Out of Place, I highly recommend this level, you will surely enjoy it

Dash is proof that RobTop is still an amazing creator after nearly 7 years of development on Update 2.2.

Let’s get the elephant out of the room first: the unsightreadable Dash spider part that Colon turned into a meme. I honestly think this part is really funny and I’m glad it made it into the level. This is the 22nd level in the game, so most people playing it have already seen some of the crazy gameplay GD can offer and should be prepared for it. New players will find this spider bizarre and I kind of love it for that. It’s similar to the Deadlocked beginning mini wave - if it’s too scary for you, you’re not ready for the level

Aside from the spider part, the whole pre drop is pretty fun and interesting. It makes good use of all the new 2.2 effects and is arguably the coolest looking level in the game.

Then at the drop you finally get the game mode we waited 7 years for: the swing copter. Unfortunately, swing is probably the lamest gamemode yet, primarily because there are many many levels that already have ball copter gameplay parts. That being said, I like that Rob gives you enough time to react to this new game mode as the most common issue with swing is its unsightreadable and kills you instantly if you guess your gravity wrong.

After the swing you get a few parts with some wacky camera controls including the first mirror portal since Electroman Adventures.

Then after the cool spinning ball part you get the second swing section which has a pretty tight second coin that requires precise control of the swing copter - I like how RobTop updated the indication for this coin.

The spider and cube after the swing are short but sweet. Then you get one of the more annoying parts of the level where you crawl around the walls of a fixed camera room. This part prepares you for some of the 2.2 camera craziness that lots of 2.2 rated levels have.

The third coin in this level sucks - you just have to spam during a random transition. It’s indicated when you tap but there’s no indication if you choose not to tap.

After this room you have a very tight ship part that’s hard due to abnormal gravity. The robot afterwards is cool in its use of the fan effects.

The final gauntlet where you go back and forth above climbing lava is very good and really gives the level a climactic feeling. The cube jumps in these sections are always hard to read, even a year and a half of playing 2.2 rated levels, so I’m glad this part gives you an idea of what to expect.

The end of the level at the top of the tower leads well into the platformer levels in The Tower. This is also the first main level to not feature an end wall and instead feature an end trigger.

Overall, Dash is an absolute banger and a Top 5 RobTop level imo. I think the only reason people might not like it is because we waited 7 years for it - there’s no way it was going to live up to expectations. However, it’s still a great level in its own right and I’m glad it made it to the main game.

Also, shoutout to MDK for finally giving GD a theme song

BWOMP

With one simple sound effect, Waterflame immediately made the most recognizable GD song since Stereo Madness

This level is an absolute banger - easily the most variety of gameplay of any RobTop level up to this point, eclipsing even the demon level Clubstep.

For starters, it introduces arguably the best game mode - the wave. This game mode is simple to learn but impossible to master, and it’s no coincidence both the hardest Pointercrate levels and the hardest challenge levels feature lots of wave gameplay.

Blast Processing gives the player lots of time to react to the wave game mode both in the first wave and the dual wave part.

In between these new gameplay parts, RobTop spices things up with lots of other unique gameplay, featuring lots of sloped corridors and unique obstacles. The second coin with the UFO going through the Clubstep monster is extremely unique UFO gameplay - it looks much harder than it really is.

My one problem with this level is the ending - the final cube features lots of fake block decoration which can be tricky for beginners. That being said, experienced players can easily tell the difference between the real blocks and fake blocks, making this part free on rebeats.

The fact that Random Processing, a carbon copy of this level that just randomizes the portals, has become one of the most popular 2.2 RNG challenges is a testament to the incredible variety this level has.

Overall, this is a fan favorite for good reasons, Blast Processing is a banger

As a kid I hated Cycles but the level has really grown on me. The song is the first of many “moody” slow burner songs that would become popular through this game.

I always found this a weird choice because it introduces the first new game mode since Stereo Madness - the ball part. I would have expected a glorious symphony to introduce this new game mode similar to Stereo Madness, Theory of Everything, Blast Processing, Fingerdash, and Dash, but no, in this level you just get a moody drop part. This subversion of expectations makes the level stand out to me as one of the more memorable RobTop levels.

Aside from the constant triple spikes and the first ball part in GD history, another highlight of this level is the ship part with all the gravity portals. This part was so hard for me as a kid even though it’s really just the same pattern over and over. It gives you enough flexibility to play with the ship while also training you to learn ship control.

Finally, the third coin of this level is incredibly designed, it’s one of the few coin routes in the RobTop levels that feels like a true extended secret path

Overall, this level is an acquired taste but one of the better OG RobTop levels imo

Jumper is a fan favorite and I think that’s for good reason. This is the first song from the GOAT Waterflame in the main campaign (excluding the practice mode song) and it is such a relaxing change of pace that is mathematically programmed to brighten your day

This level introduces the upside down ship mechanic - a mechanic that would come to haunt players in Update 2.2 due to the upside down ship gravity physics change.

The cube parts are memorable, with ceiling pillars repeated throughout, making this level stick out compared to the first 6 levels.

Overall, I think this level deserves its reputation as one of the best OG RobTop levels

Cant Let Go was the first level that truly tested my patience with this game - I think it took me like 700 attempts to beat originally

It’s impressive that this level has some of the least gamemode variety of any RobTop level - cube, ship, cube - yet it still has some of the most aura. The dark cube sections are extremely memorable and were the first major roadblock to mastering this game (at least for me)

If you’ve ever played the hard demon Cant Let Troll, you’ll understand just what a beauty this level truly is. I really think this is the best OG 1.0 RobTop level - banger song that pairs well with the brutal difficulty spike that this level provides in the main campaign