But FYI: the link you give to my level "Above and below the waterfall" is incorrect. You are linking to a long outdated version that still had some bugs.

That version was uploaded to the Knytt Stories level archive without my authorisation and even though I have made it clear in the past that I am not okay with that (among other reasons, precisely for the unavoidable versioning issues that result).

The correct link to the last, and hopefully bug-free, version is https://knyttstories.hoelzl.fr/

Thanks for the heads up! 

I've changed the review to 'OUTDATED' in the spreadsheet and have removed the notes. The imgur album will also be fixed when I go back and update all of them.

My penultimate batch of reviews will be for levels that aren't on knyttlevels.com. Is it alright if I review the most recent version with a link to https://knyttstories.hoelzl.fr/ when that time comes?

I am curious to see what you thought about all of Purple Pineapple's levels as a whole.

Super creative overall - I consider One Screen Puzzle 5 a masterpiece of the genre. Two of the four(?) things I'm working on are directly inspired by them (a one screen level of my own, and a "pure puzzler" ā la Code Conundrum.)

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Also, IIRC hunting for the bonus screens back when I first played their prison break level was what finally convinced me to practice the more advanced KS tech.

I think you played Hypnagogia1.61Update on its own?

You're right, thanks for the heads up. This'll be fixed in the spreadsheet

The "guesswork" screen in Hinterland is not guesswork, take another look.

You're inspiring me to make my new level recommendations page, better do that quick.

I'll give it another play with this in mind. And looking forward to it! 

Hej hej! After 4 months, I have finally conquered the most daunting part of my quest to play and rate every KS level. 703 697 levels later, here are my personal letter grade reviews for levels submitted by authors N-S, corresponding to pages 18-25 on knyttlevels.com.

Disclaimer: I don't consider myself an authority on what makes a "good" level. It's a lot easier for me to fill in a single letter on a spreadsheet than spend hours making these levels so if a particular grade seems unfair I am more than happy to give more in-depth thoughts on any particular level.

As always, these ratings aren't meant to discourage anyone or be harsh. Making a level always beats not making a level.


What each grade corresponds to:   

OUTDATED   Obsolete versions of levels (see newer version for review)     
N/A  Tileset showcases, demos, etc. that can't be judged for gameplay     
---   ---     
F   Broken / flawed to the point of unplayable     
D   Severe issues (see criteria below) that makes completing the level unenjoyable / will not replay     
C   Average levels / no strong feelings one way or the other / good aspects counteracted by flaws     
B   Great levels that are replayable, or great level concepts       
A   Must-play levels     


Things that may negatively impact grade (-):               
Broken levels           
Random tile or enemy spam           
Excessive "hallway screens" that pad-out level with no challenge or noteworthy visuals           
Unnessesarily long walking period before recieving run powerup (unrelated to challenge)           
Arbitrary hidden spikes / invisible death tiles           
Wall clipping on screen transitions / void pits           
Poor distinction between foreground / background tiles           
Poor save point placement (e.g. save point > multple hallway screens > challenge)           
Surprise death by environment/enemy immediately on screen transition           


While playing each level, I've considered its gameplay (challenge, platforming, puzzle) , art (quality of assets/tileset), worldbuilding (unique lore, worlds that feel "alive"), atmosphere (mood), music, and storytelling. My ratings are gameplay-forward, meaning, for example, that a "fun to play" level with average graphics typically will be rated higher than a tedious level with great graphics.


I'm biased in favor of (+):
difficulty:   hard / very hard
genre:   puzzles
art style:   simple and stylized (e.g. Hostile Landscape) can score just as well as 'realistic / heavily detailed' art
mechanic:   use of minimap
   
I'm biased against (-):
genre: mazes   
genre: massive exploration levels   


Without further to do...

SPREADSHEET: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BZHKZnLvsjdrpTRF7z6tdhQaN8bL2FRoP96rAa7nMhU/edit?usp=sharing


If you are unable to sort/edit due to the permission settings, feel free to make a copy of the sheet.

Stats (Imgur): https://imgur.com/a/Vkyxc1F

Sorted by grade (Imgur): https://imgur.com/a/ZuhXcyP

Sorted by author (Imgur): https://imgur.com/a/NocG0ko

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I liked the touch of adding your own photos for the backgrounds, it looks really peaceful! (especially as there were no wild Danes roaming the island )

Flawless voice acting by Tinky


Two very minor things: There was a floating purple shift above a sheep ~2 screens to the right of the friend's house which didn't seem to trigger anything. Also there were void screens to the left + right when I left the friend's house without sleeping (going back inside and sleeping fixed this).

Although I should note that the update at the end of last year actually added a lot more than just Chapter 1.

Good to know! My first playthrough a while back was the story-mode option. It looks like I'm still missing the eye, spell, holo, and purple key in that save, so it doesn't sound like I reached the Vigilant Port yet.

I (re)downloaded the .bin from this post "Newest Version (The Salty Seas) (Dec 31 2022)" for my second playthrough which overwrote the Tranquil Dreams file, though I'm unsure if that means it updated the save I already had with the new content.

The idea is that you'll be learning at least one of them per chapter and can then cast it at specific locations. [...] Also, some locations will instead offer you to cast a stronger version of a spell that requires a certain number of golden creatures.

Sounds cool!

I talked to one of the guys that made the song yesterday and his mind was blown because he said that Born Slippy is one of the band's most profound influences. Despite their songs sounding nothing like it.

Consider my mind blown as well that there's actually a connection. Amazing!

Anyway, Shalev II is coming, after I finish my current project!

Super excited for this 

To my understanding, Tranquil Dreams is the name of Azure Serenity's remake. The Salty Seas is the name of said expansion's first chapter, which was completed in an update at the end of last year. So the two refer to the same level.

I only have the Vanilla-Lite and Tranquil Dreams versions downloaded. Would adding the original version or Salty Seas chapter be redundant?