Level Design - Super Mario Maker: Falling Forever

Level Design

Super Mario Maker

Falling Forever 699D-0000-00D8-533B

Falling Forever was the Super Mario World remake of my level Constant Descent (found in a previous post). My favourite ideas from the previous level were brought over and tweaked to match the different mechanics. 

The level also introduced new set pieces that used P Blocks, Doors and the ability to pick up objects. Shortcuts were also introduced to encourage the player to explore their surroundings. This level was designed to be difficult, but not needlessly punishing, with problems where the user can easily discover the solution.

The Run to the Lift

The level opens with a sloping start. The section can be completed by taking it slowly and jumping to each platform, but the layout of the platforms and low ceiling are meant to encourage the player to try sprinting.

The player will most likely die multiple times due to the difficulty of the level, because of that the player is going to feel like getting back to their last death as fast as possible. By allowing them to sprint as fast as they can I hoped to alleviate some of that retry stress.

The Diverging Paths

Upon leaving the lift the player can take off in a sprint once again. However there are two routes to choose from. The lower route requires the player to perform fast, well timed jumps to avoid falling into the lava. The upper route on the other hand is a slower paced affair, with more focus put on positioning and directional input to avoid a spiky death.This split in the path was designed to allow more players to progress based on their own skill set. Players with high mechanical skills are rewarded by taking the trickier route with an array of coins and saved time, if their attempting to beat the world record.

A Red Koopa is waiting when the paths converge. The positioning of the platforms means that the player must land on the Red Koopa to gain extra height on their jump. Since the player has completed the Lift section they should be aware that enemies fall with the platforms. This means that they must accurately land on the Koopa to progress, failure to do so results in a short trip into the lava below.

This section is also intended to teach the player that instantly jumping onto falling platforms is not always the solution.

The Hidden Path

There is a hidden third path in this section to reward the observant player. I placed 2 hints to this shortcut that are visible to the player. At the beginning of the level the user is able to see an intentionally eye catching bright platform. However upon completing the next section they may realise that they never found it again. 
The second hint is at the end of the Divering Paths. A column of coins can be seen but not reached. This is to indicate that this is a location that the player falls from.
With these 2 pieces of information the player has the location and the exit, now they must find the entrance. Due to the nature of the Diverging Paths section, there isn't a place to rest and explore while traversing the tight routes. This leaves the area before the routes begin. The area is high up, which suggests the player must jump to reach it and by doing this action they can stumble upon the hidden block containing a climbing vine. A second hidden block was added to increase the chance of the player discovering it. 
Another option to increase the chance of discovery was to add coins. However I felt as though the player would accidentally find the hidden blocks while jumping for them, eliminating the need for the other hints.

The Flying Platforms

The first step to the Spring section continues the lessons learnt from the Red Koopa from before. The Second step introduces the player to wings, which greatly reduce the speed in which the platforms fall. Due to the decrease in speed the player is now able to jump on items that are placed on the platform, which enables the spring jump. The landing point to the right is purposely positioned to force the player to use the spring to progress, if they simply run and jump they will fall short and fall to their demise. 

The column which dissects the winged platform was designed to block the player from running straight to the landing zone, but as the platform falls it becomes a tool that the player can use to land on the spring with more urgency.

The next winged platform section was created using the idea or setting a winged platform to fall and then chasing after it to ride it again later. The implementation of this idea used spikes to force the player off of the platform and used an ordinary falling platform to play catch up. From there I used coins to encourage the player to jump from the platform towards the checkpoint.

The P Switch Dash

This section begins with a checkpoint to allow the player to rest. It also enabled me to create a difficult section following the checkpoint as failure was now not as harsh. Upon hitting the P Switch (before touching the platform) and holding up the player gains access to the door below. The Door takes the player above their previous location and forces them to perform well timed jumps to get past the blocks. As these jumps are difficult to perform I purposely placed them above safe areas below. This allows the player to retry the section without the immediate punishment of death, as even though they're next to the checkpoint dying in a Mario game is still quite long.
I quickly discovered that P Switches respawn each time the player travels through the door. This resulted in the player being able to take a spare P Switch with them through the rest of the level. As I like to reward players who try something out of the box I incorporated a shortcut later in the level that can only be accessed using the switch.

The Final Stretch

The final part of the level begins with falling platforms obstructing a Thwomp drop. The placement of the platforms requires to the player to hide in the provided alcoves as they descend downwards. The P Switch shortcut mentioned above can be found in one of these alcoves. 
Another shortcut was placed to the right to reward players with extra game knowledge and the wish to break the level. Using a spin jump on top of the Thwomp the player can make an attempt to launch over the wall, they instead collide with a hidden Star block. With the power of the star they are able to navigate through the hazardous path and reach the end of the level. The hazardous path was made long enough so that players couldn't use the invincibility gained after taking damage.
The final set piece on the standard path tries to combine the skills the player has learnt during the level. When the player travels through the pipe they arrive at a small puzzle area. The spring is in full view and the platforms are placed to guide them to the exit pipe. The entrance of the area was designed to allow the player to assess the challenge ahead of them. I also placed a retry tunnel after the exit pipe in case they failed to acquire the spring.
The level ends as it began, a diagonal-free spirited sprint using staggered platforms.