The Strawberry Jam advanced lobby was a fucking blast. Retrospective and more stats below the cut for nerds.
God this was a good challenge. I fell off doing this when I got hard stuck like a year ago but recently I had a drive to go back and I'm so glad I did. Relearning the tech knowledge and getting the muscle memory back was so much fun. and I feel like I am a lot better at the game then I was before.
Quick thoughts on every level because I loved them all and I want to share:
Sands of Time: Fun seeing the time stop orb reappear.
Slime Time: the fast bubbles were a fun mechanic to learn. the falling blocks made for interesting set pieces.
Lethal Laser Laboratory: if you are new to the advanced lobby play this one first. Took me 4 minutes on my first run through.
Starry Ruins: Portal gameplay was hard to learn first time but its a really slick level when it clicks
Undergrowth: I cant believe this is a green level. I loved the unique platforming this level is focused around. climbing underneath was so fun and some of these screens made me think for far too long.
Lost Woods: I love levels where you loop back around the same room but with new contexts and this level filled that drive beautifully. Also the fall ascetic was pretty as fuck, please make a full level using those colors.
Jellyfish Sanctum: I am an insane woman who loves jellyfish gameplay. The pink jellyfish that you can stand on are a fun mechanic and the ways they were used were super smart.
Tectonic Trenches: absolutely my favorite level in this set. I like boss badiline and I like jellyfish. the ways they were used with the moving touch switches was super smart and creative and put a huge smile on my face the entire time.
Golden Dawn: Normally I dont like move blocks so this level was facing an uphill battle. Realistically I don't think I would like it as much as I do, but I spent like 20 minutes solving a strawberry room not realizing it was one, and during that time the level clicked for me.
Forest Rush: the titular speed level. super fun getting an absurd amount of speed on the skateboard and then making huge jumps.
Attack of the Clone: This level has a tough initial sell but it uses really smart use of item play and a fun custom badiline boss to push itself to something super special.
Bee Berserk: while tough to get with it's cycle based gimmicks the great level theme made this one the first advanced level I played.
Java's Crypt: tough limited space level. Once I figured out the gimmick my favorite thing became seeing how it would look after one more button press. Fantastic idea for a level.
Raindrops on Roses: the umbrella is just kinda a toggle-able jellyfish and that is always fun. Having to consider stamina was a bit of a hassle but I got through.
Toggle Theory: this is a high quality zoom level. Slowly figuring out how the screens work until you get that one run where you're constantly going mach 12 was a treat every time.
Superstructure: grabbable thing gameplay returns but this time it feels super unique. I loved figuring out where the box goes and why I needed it. Its "health" slowly draining when in lightning was a fun detail.
The Tower (XVI): This level is what caused me to fall off playing a year ago. Well I came back and after 4ish hours of pain and learning I conquered the tower. this level is just pure tech and I love it for that. These screens were crazy and beating each one felt better then anything else I have ever done.
Starlight Station: I love this level. Every screen felt like a rube goldberg machine that you slowly unravel as you learn them. Just fantastic
Dusk City: Traffic light dream blocks are a unique feature and this level uses them really well. Great variety of launches and moments when you cling to the block. and slowly making it further after each retry felt really good
Synapse: Continuing the theme of cassette block levels having great music. Routing around the constantly shifting blocks made for a unique challenge and really made this one leave an impact. Also love the superliminal reference
The Lab: The teleporting bubble take a lot of time to get used to because there's no indicator for where you're going. just memory. Can make some deaths feel annoying but I like slowly chipping away at screens and learning more each time. Beyond that sending movers or traffic light blocks to then wavedash off later is super satisfying. Really fun.
Belated Valentine's Day: from my understanding this level is super divisive. I really liked it. The crystal hearts are annoying at first but the screen doesn't ask for perfection in response. The 2 fake outs both put a smile on my face and really brought this one up in terms of charm factor.
Thinking with Portals: Fun mix of portal and item play. The rusty cube we drag along is fragile and I wish would respawn sometimes but overall nothing in this level was super egregious. Just takes some learning.
Rightside-Down Cavern: god I am so glad being upside-down doesnt invert your controls. This level was super goddamn fun. Routing gravity into the mix was a unique challenge and I love the idea of upside-down wavedashing so much that the actual execution be damned. The final screen was so good two with it having 2 moments where I had to reroute entirely.
Call of the Void: SPACE SPACE. Zero gravity opens up so many doors for fun tech. I loved being able to fling myself across rooms with no effort and love the fast reaction time gameplay required in some rooms.
Mango Mesa: The heartsides are always the hardest obstacles in these but omg this one was soo good. Maybe I'm just talking nonsense but there was a real theme of ascension throughout the level and ending with the space level cemented that for me. I loved the postcard message of "the best views come after the hardest climbs". Made me really glad to have clawed my way back.
Anyway thanks for letting me ramble. Here's all my deaths and times for each level.
Have a great day. See ya again when I get through the expert lobby.
