The Great Crystal was a nightmare.
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What is the worst designed level you've experienced?
- Thread starter Megalosaro
- Start date
The Great Crystal was a nightmare.
LorDjidane
Member
Never found the fourth item. So I had to rage quit.
I know its easy to choose a level in a bad game, and while Bubsy 3D is terrible all around, it has the WORST platforming stages I think I have ever seen. The level layouts are atrocious (among other things). Which level? Every level. They almost seem randomly generated.
Having played around in level 2 for nearly 500 hours total (it's my top favorite level of all), I discovered many bugs and secrets during all that time. Ever wonder how you can get on top of that rocket? Want to know the very highest point you can stand on or the highest point you can get to? Care for some mountain climbing or some other side challenges? I demonstrate 5 of my 9 main secrets in this video. No cheat codes are required either (the position cheat is used, but even that is not required). The left speaker has me speaking to explain the various secrets along with a few other remarks. The right speaker plays the original sound track.
SniperHunter
Banned
randomly generated dungeons from dark cloud 2
they were too long and dull
they were too long and dull
Came to post this....
Septimus Prime
Member
I hate random, procedurally-generated levels. Honestly, I'd rather play a poorly designed level because you can at least get used to it and map it out in your head.
I feel like, with that, the games end up being fun in spite of the random levels, as opposed to because of them.
There are two that come to mind.
The first is the first 'compy level in the EA made The Lost World videogame back on PS1.
Half the platforms you had to climb up had major clipping problems and you would die if you fell through what appeared to be solid rock.
The second that comes to mind is Halo 3's Cortana level. A fundamentally broken, impossible to navigate blandfest with poor signposting, terrible spamming enemies and an all-round rubbish experience. I actually enjoyed the Library level in the first game, but Cortana was a piece of shit and pretty much killed my interest in the series (along with the rest of the 'story' in Halo 3, but that's a different issue altogether).
The first is the first 'compy level in the EA made The Lost World videogame back on PS1.
Half the platforms you had to climb up had major clipping problems and you would die if you fell through what appeared to be solid rock.
The second that comes to mind is Halo 3's Cortana level. A fundamentally broken, impossible to navigate blandfest with poor signposting, terrible spamming enemies and an all-round rubbish experience. I actually enjoyed the Library level in the first game, but Cortana was a piece of shit and pretty much killed my interest in the series (along with the rest of the 'story' in Halo 3, but that's a different issue altogether).
PoweredBySoy
Banned
Haha, you don't like BIG METRO 24/7!
I admittedly like Metro, but it is not well designed lol.
PoweredBySoy
Banned
Shut your mouth.
jacob armitage
Banned
First thing that came to mind was the damn marble garden zone from Sonic 3. I just find it dull, frustrating mechanics (the spin top). Recycled mid boss and it just never fucking ends, ugh.
Never cared for the music track either. Certainly my least favorite sonic from the glory days.
Never cared for the music track either. Certainly my least favorite sonic from the glory days.
Aeriscloud
Banned
I never knew Gran Pulse was a straight line.
A Red Letter Day, from Half-Life 2.
Because you basically follow Alyx into a room, you walk around and fiddle with bits, people exposit a LOT (which goes counter to the AMAZING intro where there WAS no exposition) and it's mostly useless shit (essentially: 'here's backstory, now go to Eli who will tell you why you're here'), then there's a contrived reason for you to go through the excessively-boring Canals.
Being locked in a room so people can talk at you but not tell you anything worth knowing? Bullshit level design, right there.
Lots of bad level shit in that game, though. The final level is awful because it presents no challenge--it's like suddenly playing a game with a gun that's been modded with 999 dmg. Ravenholm, while GREAT from an audiovisual standpoint, showcases the game's reduced ammo count, forcing players to rely on the game's physics (Half-Life 2 is pretty much just a contrived physics tech demo, anyways). Sandtraps was a bunch of needless physics stuff, with really fucked up pacing (Half-Life 2 is basically 'bad pacing, da gaem').
I could pick on a game like Legendary or something, but, hey, why not a 'great' game? Don't get me wrong; there are good levels, which I genuinely enjoy, like Ravenholm (yeah, I know what I said above), Nova Prospekt, Anticitizen One (I think?), and Highway 17, but the game's first few hours, and occasional bits throughout really, really irk me.
Also, I may sound nuts, but you know when I stopped liking Nova Prospekt? When Alyx showed up. In fact, as I look back on the game, I realize that I don't like a single bit where I'm hanging with her.
Wow, I love that level. Sure you don't just hate it 'cause it's a Flood level?
The first time through, I got kinda confused by it, but ever since then, I've had a blast going through it with multiple loadout types (just like every Flood level other than Keyes, which is awful because of the infinite Flood and too-narrow corridors), just trying to see what I can do. The only part of the level I actually hate is the corridor section with the ranged Flood forms, because it really sucks on Legendary, and kinda on Heroic. The hiddenish flamethrower seems pointless.
Uh, could be Two Betrayals, Assault on the Control Room, The Library, or 343 Guilty Spark.
Personally, I think The Library is amazing. It's the level that weeds out people who don't know how to play first person shooters. I could wax eloquent on this, but I'm tired. The basic idea is that FPSes are easy to pick up and play, but because of that ease, they're kind of hard to come to grips with. There's not so much a skill curve as there are two distinct skill levels--one for everyone, and one for people with really good spatial skills. The Library is the level that really forces you out of your comfort zone. Halo has an insanely wide variety of ways to play, not just with the sandboxy levels, but the massive enemy gamut and the weapon sandbox. Unfortunately, players seem to get fairly comfortable playing just one way--they tend to find Halo boring as a result, and hate The Library because of this. It's a game that forces you out of your comfort zone. You go from popping out of cover and picking guys off to suddenly being forced forward, nonstop. If you're stuck playing one specific playstyle, then, well, the Library will fucking destroy you. It's a work of genius, and only bad players hate it.
Two Betrayals and Assault on the Control Room are the same level, in reverse. I used to hate 'em, because they were repetitive, but when I returned to Halo, after years of playing video games and actually becoming somewhat good at them, I discovered that, holy shit, they're actually pretty fucking awesome. They're a series of nigh-identical arenas with varying setups of enemies and weapons. Here, Halo is trying to encourage the player to try different things. It's like "hey, hey, hey, you there, try new things!" So it presents you with a lot of superficially similar situations, then remixes them. So first, you go through it with increasing difficulty (iirc, the last room before the gauntlet up the tower to the control room proper) until this room with some hunters, and then you're sent back through, but this time, in increasing difficulty with Flood. It comes directly after The Library, IIRC, which is a 'pure' Flood level.
Basically, Halo's structure is like: covenant + getting used to driving --> covenant but more focused (and hunters, hi) --> ultimate covenant sandbox that is SILENT CARTOGRAPHER (I love this level) --> 'now let's have fun with covenant' --> meet the flood and phase out covenant --> pure flood level --> reintroducing flood + covenant --> full-on flood + covenant (fuck Keyes, though, seriously) --> now put it all together and you have The Maw.
The levels are repetitive in part because the game wants you to feel comfortable with navigating spaces so you only have to think about combating the AI, rather than being enamored with the level spacing. So it's all about encounters with enemies and changing that up across playthroughs, rather than having a lot of unique corridors.
Then there's 343 Guilty Spark, which I tend to get lost in. I enjoy playing it, but it's hard to navigate--easily the hardest to navigate level in the entire series.
Halo is basically a mirrored game. I mean, your journey is bookended on the Pillar of Autumn, Assault on the Control Room/Two Betrayals is a thing, and then there's Truth & Reconciliation/Keyes. But, given how complex Halo's AI and weapons are, I'm pretty sure I'd be insanely satisfied just playing a randomly-generated selection of enemies and weapons inside a cube.
Because you basically follow Alyx into a room, you walk around and fiddle with bits, people exposit a LOT (which goes counter to the AMAZING intro where there WAS no exposition) and it's mostly useless shit (essentially: 'here's backstory, now go to Eli who will tell you why you're here'), then there's a contrived reason for you to go through the excessively-boring Canals.
Being locked in a room so people can talk at you but not tell you anything worth knowing? Bullshit level design, right there.
Lots of bad level shit in that game, though. The final level is awful because it presents no challenge--it's like suddenly playing a game with a gun that's been modded with 999 dmg. Ravenholm, while GREAT from an audiovisual standpoint, showcases the game's reduced ammo count, forcing players to rely on the game's physics (Half-Life 2 is pretty much just a contrived physics tech demo, anyways). Sandtraps was a bunch of needless physics stuff, with really fucked up pacing (Half-Life 2 is basically 'bad pacing, da gaem').
I could pick on a game like Legendary or something, but, hey, why not a 'great' game? Don't get me wrong; there are good levels, which I genuinely enjoy, like Ravenholm (yeah, I know what I said above), Nova Prospekt, Anticitizen One (I think?), and Highway 17, but the game's first few hours, and occasional bits throughout really, really irk me.
Also, I may sound nuts, but you know when I stopped liking Nova Prospekt? When Alyx showed up. In fact, as I look back on the game, I realize that I don't like a single bit where I'm hanging with her.
Wow, I love that level. Sure you don't just hate it 'cause it's a Flood level?
The first time through, I got kinda confused by it, but ever since then, I've had a blast going through it with multiple loadout types (just like every Flood level other than Keyes, which is awful because of the infinite Flood and too-narrow corridors), just trying to see what I can do. The only part of the level I actually hate is the corridor section with the ranged Flood forms, because it really sucks on Legendary, and kinda on Heroic. The hiddenish flamethrower seems pointless.
Uh, could be Two Betrayals, Assault on the Control Room, The Library, or 343 Guilty Spark.
Personally, I think The Library is amazing. It's the level that weeds out people who don't know how to play first person shooters. I could wax eloquent on this, but I'm tired. The basic idea is that FPSes are easy to pick up and play, but because of that ease, they're kind of hard to come to grips with. There's not so much a skill curve as there are two distinct skill levels--one for everyone, and one for people with really good spatial skills. The Library is the level that really forces you out of your comfort zone. Halo has an insanely wide variety of ways to play, not just with the sandboxy levels, but the massive enemy gamut and the weapon sandbox. Unfortunately, players seem to get fairly comfortable playing just one way--they tend to find Halo boring as a result, and hate The Library because of this. It's a game that forces you out of your comfort zone. You go from popping out of cover and picking guys off to suddenly being forced forward, nonstop. If you're stuck playing one specific playstyle, then, well, the Library will fucking destroy you. It's a work of genius, and only bad players hate it.
Two Betrayals and Assault on the Control Room are the same level, in reverse. I used to hate 'em, because they were repetitive, but when I returned to Halo, after years of playing video games and actually becoming somewhat good at them, I discovered that, holy shit, they're actually pretty fucking awesome. They're a series of nigh-identical arenas with varying setups of enemies and weapons. Here, Halo is trying to encourage the player to try different things. It's like "hey, hey, hey, you there, try new things!" So it presents you with a lot of superficially similar situations, then remixes them. So first, you go through it with increasing difficulty (iirc, the last room before the gauntlet up the tower to the control room proper) until this room with some hunters, and then you're sent back through, but this time, in increasing difficulty with Flood. It comes directly after The Library, IIRC, which is a 'pure' Flood level.
Basically, Halo's structure is like: covenant + getting used to driving --> covenant but more focused (and hunters, hi) --> ultimate covenant sandbox that is SILENT CARTOGRAPHER (I love this level) --> 'now let's have fun with covenant' --> meet the flood and phase out covenant --> pure flood level --> reintroducing flood + covenant --> full-on flood + covenant (fuck Keyes, though, seriously) --> now put it all together and you have The Maw.
The levels are repetitive in part because the game wants you to feel comfortable with navigating spaces so you only have to think about combating the AI, rather than being enamored with the level spacing. So it's all about encounters with enemies and changing that up across playthroughs, rather than having a lot of unique corridors.
Then there's 343 Guilty Spark, which I tend to get lost in. I enjoy playing it, but it's hard to navigate--easily the hardest to navigate level in the entire series.
Halo is basically a mirrored game. I mean, your journey is bookended on the Pillar of Autumn, Assault on the Control Room/Two Betrayals is a thing, and then there's Truth & Reconciliation/Keyes. But, given how complex Halo's AI and weapons are, I'm pretty sure I'd be insanely satisfied just playing a randomly-generated selection of enemies and weapons inside a cube.
OP hit the nail on the head! I love Mother 1, but this was just stupidly designed.
Oh man, this so hard. Absolute shocker of a game.
Also, most turret sequences in games are terrible. Thinking Gears of War, any of the Call of Duty games, etc.
Tomb of the Giants in Dark Souls just felt like "Okay we've used most of our cool stuff for all these other awesome levels. How about we just make it pitch black?" It's sucky.
Climatrol from Phantasy Star II is worse, in my opinion, and a lot of people don't even consider that to be the most difficult dungeon in the game. Phantasy Star II is probably the only game I've ever played in which looking at a map for a dungeon actually made me feel worse, because I realized just how much shit I was about to have to go through.
MAtgS
Member
First thing that came to mind was the damn marble garden zone from Sonic 3. I just find it dull, frustrating mechanics (the spin top). Recycled mid boss and it just never fucking ends, ugh.
Never cared for the music track either. Certainly my least favorite sonic from the glory days.
Sonic 3 levels in general are quite messy when viewed at a distance but this one takes the cake.
I think I just realised what part of the book this was trying to represent and I can't believe they have the author's approval. Another terrible level in Metro is Battlefield or Battle-something, the level where you have to go through the map with the fighting Nazis and communists. The first 30 seconds of that can be played exactly one way and you will be forced to hear the commander sing every time you restart. The rest of the map is a bunch of random shit ending with another scene where you have to wonder how the author ever approved.
PaulExcellent
Member
Booker Dewitt
Member
I don't recall anything downright bad (the shooter section was really weak though), just bland and easy.
Not like that dungeon in the first game where you get the portal gun. The dungeon is fine, and probably the trickiest out of all of them, but the fact that you had to fight the same terrible miniboss with the chain-ball three times made me quit the game and start over a year later at least twice. It's a long tedious fight that they repeat almost verbatim the second time (except you have to have him hit the ground twice initially before you can damage him, it's exactly the same after that). They change it up the third fight, but it's too late.
China Dont Care
Banned
Halo 3 Cortana
Mass Effect
Member
The Fade in Dragon Age: Origins. It was too long, too tedious, and fuck that incessant bloom.
Boo. No. That's my favorite level in SM64.
Boo. No. That's my favorite level in SM64.
BurnOutBrighter
Banned
Halo. Library.
Jawmuncher
Member
Every Dungeon in Persona 1....Every Single One.
They just get so convoluted and maze like that I can't understand how anyone had fun exploring them. Those dungeons still haunt me to this day.....and I was using game shark to beat the game.
They just get so convoluted and maze like that I can't understand how anyone had fun exploring them. Those dungeons still haunt me to this day.....and I was using game shark to beat the game.
Halo campaigns feature some of the most boring and repetitive level designs I've played. At the start of the fifth level in CE you are literally forced to experience the same level design of hallways and outside connected bridges and challenge 3 times before the game finally moves on. Add to that, that half of the game is literally going back through the same environments you've already experienced with a Flood coat of painting on top. Don't even get me started on Cortana.
Arc Christelle
Member
Exactly! Aside from the anime and Metal Sonic I find it to be the worst 2D Sonic.
Stay the hell away from that game. lol
;_; But that stage.... is.... actually decent.
Woah is that the whole map of Marble Garden?? crazy. I want an overview of the modern sonic stages from Unleashed, Colors, and Generations now or even City Escape.
Man for me Sonic CD goes down as one of the worst games I played. Random dips for no reason, bad spindash, getting stuck in the floor, and that god damned UFO Special Stage.
(which gets better with practice but still fuck it.)
The rerelease fixed some of the errors but still kept that level design..... Had to pass on it.
gow ascension battle at archimedes. The one where you fight against the medulas. Y'all know what i'm talking about. I returned the game right there.
kittoo
Cretinously credulous
I concur. While I might have played other even worse levels, this is the one I recall right now. Extremely confusing layout with infinite hordes of enemies. Who thought that was a good idea?
ZombiePlatypus
Member
Oh god Babel Tower. So much rage and agony stemmed from there. That place completely broke my tolerance for random battles.
tiggerkiddo
Member
Taturus from Persona 3...had a horrible layout and was always a drag to get through. Persona 4 thankfully fixed that.
First thing that came to mind was the damn marble garden zone from Sonic 3. I just find it dull, frustrating mechanics (the spin top). Recycled mid boss and it just never fucking ends, ugh.
Never cared for the music track either. Certainly my least favorite sonic from the glory days.
Nice to see I'm not alone when it comes to Marble Garden. It's just so messy and confusing.
Hey, the UFO stuff is pretty cool! Find it to be one of the easier special stages in the 2D Sonic games.
Surface of Me
I'm not an NPC. And neither are we.
One of the levels in the first BLOPS game was atrocious in design and instruction. I can't remember which one it was though. The whole campaign was awful.