Mega Man Level 2 Feedback

I had 3 players test my game. One of them was my sister, one of them was my mother, and the last was a student in the class by the name of Kilan Larsen. I created this game with the restraints given in mind, and attempted to create a map which followed mega man as he investigate a jungle fortress. I had the players test my game with a PS4 controller, which I was slightly worried would hinder my players. Luckily, they said they adjusted quickly, and that is wasn't an issue.

What went right?

First, the players said my placement of the checkpoints was adequate, although it could definitely use some work here and there. The players also expressed that they enjoyed the enemy variety in my level. They enjoyed the ranged enemies, the stationary melee enemies, and the pseudo-boss towards the end. They did have a problem with said pseudo-boss' placement, which I will cover in the next section.


What went wrong?

I received lots of feedback on my level and realized it would need lots of improvements to become a fun level. First, the players were able to skip the first mini-boss, even though I had originally intended for the door behind the boss to be locked until the boss was defeated. This was 100% an error on my part, as I did not properly create the level to make the boss area separate, making the door not locked to that particular mini-boss. The players expressed that this is a prevalent problem throughout the level, with many areas having easily-skippable enemies. Kilan also added that the level does start as a forest level, but the level itself was very linear and without dynamic choices. He said the level wasn't very fun due to this and its short length. I am happy he gave me this feedback, as it opened my eyes to the major flaws of my level. Finally, the players unanimously recommended that I add incentive to use the weapons in the level. While the weapons clearly had some areas where they were necessary, they had no incentive to be used anywhere else in the level

How might you improve your level next time?

Next time, I plan to extend my level heavily. I also plan to make the entire level forest-themed, as opposed to the fortress I originally had planned. I plan to add more player choice to my level, as the level was completely linear, and was a very -go-through-the-motions level. I plan to change some areas to connect or disconnect them from the rest of the level, such as with the mini boss or in some vertical areas where the player was forced to make a leap of faith. Next, I plan to add a section which teaches players to jump and slide through the level.

Were the challenges presented appropriate to the skill level of the player?

Yes and no. The players said that the challenge is appropriate theoretically for this level, but that it is nullified because the player can just bypass certain areas. I believe this is due to my shortcomings as a designer, as I completely forgot to try and play the level in different ways when I was designing it and making sure it works.

Was the critical path obvious?

Yes, the critical path was obvious. Too obvious at times, and not obvious enough at other times. One of the biggest flaws of the level is how linear it is, as i mentioned earlier, and another major flaw is in the areas with no wall or floor. They would either lead to the player losing immersion to an invisible wall, or to the player taking a leap of faith and praying when they don't need to, and at a time when I didn't originally intend to.

How was the overall flow?

The overall flow was weak. While the direction of the flow was good, the flow itself was quite linear and didn't offer any room for deviation. I plan to add more options for the player in terms of path and direction in my next level.

Were there circulation elements?

Yes. I added ladders to circulate the player vertically, and doors to circulate the player horizontally. Unfortunately, I did not add the floating platform enemies as originally intended, so I did not accomplish one of my original goals.