What I'm showing is an issue with the jump mechanics, not with the level design.
Levels are designed around the game mechanics. The two are inseparable.
Situations like that constantly happen, depending on the place and the character used, in every part of the game, including the regular fighting stages. I think I'm pretty good at platformers and I finished a lot of very hard games such as Super Meat Boy and others, regardless I often find myself in situations like that one in the gif, because the jump mechanics just don't work well for platforming.
And that's not good in a game where platforming is one of the main elements.
But it's not a platforming game. It's a platform
fighter.
By the way, I doubt the "scrub" is trying to look cool; the person who's playing is just trying to finish the game mode as fast as possible to upload it on youtube and not annoy people who will watch it. The fact that he/she/? needed 3 attempts to do such a basic jump speaks itself.
The room is not meant to challenge you, there are no threats in it. It's also possible that with Diddy the room would have been a lot simpler because his jump is different. I think it's just bad design.
Challenge is not synonymous with danger. It's very hard to die in many of the rooms in Portal. That doesn't mean the game isn't presenting you with a challenge.
Those 3 attempts are completely reasonable, and you can see a good progression there of the player figuring out the challenge. In the first attempt, they jump headfirst into the block that is deliberately positioned to stop the easy option of double jumping at the earliest optimum time (peak of the first jump). Player changed tactic and tried to Side-B to the ledge, but there's no ledge to grab on to. Finally player tried what is probably the "intended" method of clearing it, a delayed double jump and made it onto the edge.
I don't know what part of that you don't consider to be a good challenge. It looks well designed to me, and a good fit for Smash's mechanics.
Usually the easier you think of a defense for something, the worse it ends up being.
And these don't sound like defenses as much as excuses.
That works for criticisms too.
First one is irrelevant because platforming like this happens all across the game, not just the optional side rooms. Not sure why you bring that up.
I'm not the one that brought it up, Iko MattOrr is the one that posted the room from Subspace Emissary.
Second one is just untrue, considering there is literally nothing that can kill you in the room. It's a "challenge" in the same way walking down the street is versus driving down the street. Sure, one takes longer and expends more energy, but you will inevitably get to your destination either way, you just want to take the path of most resistance for some reason.
See "Challenge is not synonymous with danger..." above. As for wanting to "take the path of most resistance", that criticism applies to
literally every game ever created in the history of ever. Seriously, just tell me one game that gives you a path of least resistance to the end. If there is then it probably sucks.
Third one directly contradicts the second point.
How?
Point #2 says that the room presents a platforming challenge.
Point #3 says that it presents only one quick challenge.
Where is the contradiction?
Fourth is simply excusing the poor jumping mechanics because the task would've been easier if they could just finely control their jumping without requiring the use of a move with lag to fine tune their jump.
Games are not supposed to be as easy as possible. Games are supposed to derive fun from overcoming their challenges. Do you also complain when an FPS game doesn't auto-aim for you? Or when an RPG requires to carefully manage your mana, item use, type advantages, buffs, and healing to take down a boss instead of just giving you a OHKO spell?
Complaining that Smash's mechanics make that jump hard is like ******** that a jigsaw puzzle doesn't tell you where it's pieces are supposed to go.
THAT'S THE ENTIRE DAMN POINT!!!! IT'S DESIGNED THAT WAY ON PURPOSE!
If you don't like the way particular challenges are designed that's fine. But you too seem to be going way too far in the other direction and are arguing that games should never present any sort of obstacle or challenge to the player at all. I don't know how you can both be missing the point so badly.