So a heads up. Mr. Cotton is no longer a judge. It's too stressful for him to keep up with it while worrying about school at the same time.
But we've still got the other 3. And in that regard, it's time for Round 25 Grades!
psb123's grades:
The Khallos Express by
Kevandre
Iconic Status: 5/5
Was admittedly considering a 4 for a bit. But I think a 5 is justified. This entry in the series may have ended up being an experimental afterthought in some ways. But it did introduce stuff that laid the ground work for things to come in the future.
Full 3D
Customizable Avatars
Mega Evolution
The Fairy-Type
And of cour............wait. This isn't Pokemon. This is Timesplitters. Sorry, I was thinking of the wrong Kalos.
Iconic Status: 2/5
Was on the fence between this and a 3. But I decided on a 2 because this is the last game in the series. And considering the console generation it came out in. That hurts it quite a bit.
Originality: 10/10
Not really sure what else you could do with a stage set on a train to be honest. Well, for this train at least considering the source game. Not to mention, a train fight from a realistic game like this is decently creative for a Smash stage based on setting alone.
Playability: 9/10
The bullets might rack up damage just a LITTLE bit too fast. And you know how I feel about the possibility of items appearing on a stage even with items turned off. Everything else works out well though.
Overall Score: 21/25
Ghost Portrificationizer by
GolisoPower
Iconic Status: 5/5
Luigi's Mansion sticks out pretty well despite being a series of only two games. This may be from the first one, which you could argue is getting up there in age. But it is still the more fondly remembered of the two. Plus, the 3DS remake is a thing.
Originality: 9/10
Astonishing! I've never encountered such smart-itude.
The size of the machine is calculated to allow comfortable fights to the perfect degree. And the captured ghosts are able to become portraits the serve as platforms in such a fascinating way. There's just one things that seems a tad off. What could it be?
Eureka!!!! I've discovered it! It's that the process of the ghosts becoming portraits takes too much time. As does Professor Elvin Gadd appearing in the stage at all.
So in conclusion, We have a stage filled with creativity seeping from it's very design documents, but I can't award a full score until the time of of the professor's work is tweaked to the perfect calculation.
Still. This is a fine example of excellent work. Perhaps you would do quite well as my assistant! Now then, I'll need an accurate report of how to defeat evil, end poverty, and make broccoli taste like ice cream by next Tuesday.
Playability: 9/10
As I said in my, doctor persona, just now (And yes I mean doctor. Not Professor. I didn't earn the PHD for fun thank you very much!) there's too much of a time gap for when E. Gadd comes in and for when the portrait's are made. Some of them can also cause some damage. Though a small amount I will admit.
Overall Score: 23/25
Mt. Battle by
splat
Iconic Status: 4/5
The Shadow Pokemon games aren't the heaviest hitters out of Pokemon. But they earned their fanbase for a reason. And Mt. Battle certainly will stick out in the minds of whoever has played either game.
Originality: 10/10
Layout's that depend on which character you're fighting? Considering Ultimate's thing of "Everyone is here" that's actually quite brilliant.
Playability: 10/10
You introduced over 70 possible layouts for one stage, and kept them all balanced? How???? HOW?!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!?!
Overall Score: 24/25
All-Cup Tour by
PeridotGX
Iconic Status: 5/5
A memorable element of Mario Kart that is exclusive to Double Dash. Personally I think it should stay that way. Picture this. An All-Cup Tour, in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. You may now run away in fear.
Originality: 10/10
Props right off the bat for only including one track per cup. Any more would have been just too much. I also like the relation that each course has to each other in the source game. Well, save for Dino Dino Jungle. But DDJ does have probably the most unique setting of them all.
Playability: 9/10
Only real concern is the Cataquack. Maybe a smaller amount for the Piranha Plants but it's mainly the Cataquack that I can see being annoying. It can't KO you unless you're already in a lot of danger though. So there is that.
Overall Score: 24/25
Gateway to Destiny by
TechPowah
Iconic Status: 2/5
This game had some notability back in the day. So some people who got into around then might remember it. But that's all it really has going for it.
Originality: 10/10
I am so glad I never played this as a kid because it would have drove me insane, and I hate this stage for being a perfect adaptation of why.
Playability: 2/10
Too. Much. INSANITY!!!! Faithful as it is to source material is sacrifices a lot of playability in the process. Tricking people into thinking they're turning off the system in the middle of a game speaks for everything by itself.
Overall Score: 14/25
Cosmic77's grades:
"The Khallos Express" by Kevandre:
Iconic Status: 2/5
Perhaps I'm not as familiar with Timesplitters as I should be, but by comparing it to some of the niche franchises already in Smash, I just don't see many people recognizing this stage.
Originality: 9/10
Despite having a stage already based off a train, I think what you came up with was very original. The layout is original, the crates were a simple yet welcome addition, and the helicopter attack added a little more flare.
My only gripe is that the crates don't respawn. This stage loses a lot of its unique layout once the crates are gone.
Playability: 8/10
Aside from from the helicopter, my only complaint is the walls of the two train cars on the sides. I feel like you'd have some trouble trying to push someone to the blast zone if they camped in the middle car. Aside from that, looks great.
Overall Score: 19/25
"Ghost Portrificationizer" by GolisoPower:
Iconic Status: 5/5
I've played this game at least a dozen times, and even though I love the cutscenes that take place here, it's not really the most memorable area in the game.
Then again, maybe this really was the best choice, seeing how Smash has already used the entire mansion as a stage. Either way, very iconic.
Originality: 9/10
By Jove, I think you've done it!! You've fabricated a Smash stage from this remarkable machine!! Splendid work indeed!
...Ahem. Anyway, I really like the layout of your stage. Seems like there's lots of bells and whistles on the machine to keep players on their toes.
Playability: 8/10
Now you do have a few hazards here, but it seems like you've toned it down a bit. The smasher was the only hazard I was concerned about, but 5% damage is reasonable to work with.
Overall Score: 22/25
"Mount Battle" by splat:
Iconic Status: 3/5
I mean, I played these Gamecube games when I was a kid, but did they age well?
...No, Seriously. Did they age well? I genuinely don't know.
When I don't know how iconic a certain game is, I usually look at a stage and its features. Does it have any iconic characters or background elements? Is there anything that would make a younger kid say, "Ooo!! That must be Pokemon!!" With your stage, I couldn't really find anything like that. Even putting a Pokeball emblem somewhere would've helped.
Originality: 5/10
This seems similar to the Wii Fit Studio.
Okay, so before you start yelling at me, let me explain. The main gimmick of your stage is the "random" layouts. There's dozens upon dozens of different patterns for the platforms to appear, and there's no way of knowing what you'll get. While some of your platforms can move around, that's still very similar to the Studio (and to a lesser extent, Mario Maker), just without being a walk-off.
I hate giving you this criticism because you obviously spent a lot of time on your stage, and although I love what you came up with, it's just not a 100% original concept.
Playability: 10/10
Looks fine. I can't think of any reasons to take off points without being incredibly nitpicky.
Overall Score: 18/25
"All-Cup Tour" by PeridotGX:
Iconic Status: 5/5
It's Mario Kart.
Once again, another well though-out review from Cosmic.
Originality: 5/10
Okay, so you managed to find some unique layouts from the tracks. That's good.
After that... I don't really know. I think the concept is creative, but it doesn't really feel like a Mario Kart stage. Maybe an emphasis on karts and racing is what your stage is missing.
Playability: 9/10
There’s a lot of hazards on your stage, but none seem like they'd actually become a problem during a match. Looks safe enough overall.
Overall Score: 19/25
"Gateway to Destiny" by TechPowah:
Iconic Status: 1/5
Forgive me if there's some sort of dedicated fanbase that still plays this game, but I can't really remember this at all.
Originality: 10/10
Xel'lotath is what saved your stage. Those wacky, bizarre gimmicks really make this stage memorable, and I think this would be one of the most fun stages we've ever had in a Smash game.
Playability: 2/10
I always say hazards are a gamble because although they might raise your originality score, they can also potentially murder your playability score. I think your stage demonstrates the consequences of that.
Xel'lotath made your stage memorable, but he also made it nearly unplayable. The invisibility, the fake power screen, the fake damage percentages - it's just way too excessive. The only way you could've fixed this while keeping all the hazards is if you clarified how often he appears. Preferably, no more than once once during five minutes.
Overall Score: 13/25
TheMarioAddict's grades:
This round turned out stunningly close for my grades (three identical scores and a fourth with only 1 point more). I may need to get a tighter grip on my grading criteria moving forwards...
"The Khallos Express" by Kevandre:
Iconic Status: 3/5
My entire knowledge of Timesplitters is limited to the level-making and multiplayer modes of Timesplitters 2 (which my friends and I played the everloving hell out of), so I’m not sure where this stands on the iconic level… I’ll give you a score right in the middle, to play it safe.
Originality: 7/10
I want to say that a fight on top of a train is a very original idea, but unfortunately (for your stage, not in general) Spirit Train exists. You do have a very different layout, of course, so that doesn’t factor in a
lot, but I still think it’s worth mentioning. I do like the helicopter coming to fire on the players, though I’m a bit disappointed the crates don’t respawn in some way - it would’ve been nice to see them come back somehow. Maybe the train with Cortez and Tipper could’ve dropped more crates on the stage to replace the old ones? Or better yet, dropped some in new positions, to keep the idea of the center area always changing over the battle.
Playability: 9/10
Seems perfectly playable, even factoring in the helicopter fire, though walk-offs always cause me a bit of concern. That’s really just a bias on my part, though - this is still a very nice layout.
Overall Score: 19/25
"Ghost Portrificationizer" by GolisoPower:
Iconic Status: 5/5
Alright, gotta admit - this is not the first place my mind would have gone when thinking of Luigi’s Mansion. Still, it’s a very memorable location from that game, and I’d say Luigi’s Mansion was a fairly popular game, so I’ll go ahead and give you a 5 here.
Originality: 8/10
I don’t think we’ve ever had a stage set atop a large machine like this before (which surprises me, honestly), so that’d some nice points there. I also like the variety of things this stage does - it’s got conveyors, smashing things, printing things, and just a lot of personality to it! Even the platform layout is pretty original, so I think this stage is worthy of a high originality score.
Playability: 7/10
*slaps roof of stage* this bad boy can can fit so many stage hazards in it! In seriousness though, I think you’ve actually managed to balance out the hazards some. The printed ghosts don’t seem to much of an issue, and while the smasher is a bit concerning, you’ve learned from your previous stage and limited the damage to something fairly unthreatening (I see you took my advice about burying players rather than knocking them back as well). Still, the platform layout seems a bit on the wonky side to me, enough so that I think playing on this stage could cause some issues.
Overall Score: 20/25
"Mount Battle" by splat:
Iconic Status: 2/5
I’ll be frank - I don’t think the Gamecube Pokemon games were very memorable (I admit I personally recognized this stage pretty much immediately, but I think I’m in the minority there). The only thing anyone really remembers them for is being on the Gamecube - if you were to ask someone about Pokemon Colosseum, they’d be like “oh yeah, the Pokemon game on Gamecube!” But if you were to show them an area from that same game, I don’t know if they’d be nearly as quick to remember it.
Originality: 8/10
Once again, you’ve managed to absolutely knock it out of the park in the creativity department. Admittedly, it’s not perfect - while not truly
random, the wide variety of layouts is effectively the same gimmick as Mario Maker, so that drops a few points from the score. Still, as was once said to yours truly by psb: it’s nice to see a stage that can prove you don’t need a boss or a crazy hazard to be creative.
Playability: 9/10
Insane though it may be, all the layouts seem perfectly playable. I do have one question though: how does the stage determine which fighter to base the stage on? That is, which player is considered to be the “foe”? Is it always player two? Does it pick randomly? What if there’s more than two players fighting on the stage? These kind of questions are enough of a problem for me to take off a point, but that’s the most I can justify.
Overall Score: 19/25
"All-Cup Tour" by PeridotGX:
Iconic Status: 5/5
I’d be hard pressed to find a reason not to give motha-flippin’ Mario Kart a perfect iconic score, especially so with Double Dash, and especially
especially so with the courses you picked. Well chosen, all around!
Originality: 5/10
It’s… nice, I suppose. You don’t really do anything crazy with the stages, and the platform layouts are all pretty simple. Which isn’t bad, not by a longshot - the locales are pretty unique, and it’s got a certain charm to it - but it just kind of feels… right in the middle. Which is what I’m grading it as.
Playability: 9/10
There’s a couple things that concern me, but they don’t concern me a whole lot. The cataquack seems pretty dangerous, but then again a player at 160% is probably dead already. The piranha plants are relatively harmless, and while the dino could be problematic, it’s a small enough platform that I’ll let it slide.
Overall Score: 19/25
"Gateway to Destiny" by TechPowah:
Iconic Status: 1/5
The only reason I remembered about this game (and indeed, the only
thing I remember about it) is because of the super meta stage hazards you included, but more on those in a bit.
Originality: 10/10
I’ll be honest: I’m giving this a 10 exclusively because of Xel'lotath. Fake percentages and a fake power-off screen have to be the most creative ideas I’ve ever seen for a Smash stage.
Playability: 3/10
Hoo boy. Where do I even start… So good first: the base stage looks fine, and the platforms summoned by Ulyaoth are all in nice locations, complimenting the stage’s simple layout (post-edit edit: the blast-zone removal is weird, but I don’t think it affects playability much). But then, the bad stuff: Chattur'gha is a bit on the wonky side, and I could see his buffs interfering with the flow of combat (the same way I dislike the Dark Lord in Find Mii). But the biggest playability problem is by far Xel'lotath. Yes, he’s creative as hell, but I would hate playing on this stage exclusively because of him. Random invisibility can be frustrating to
all players, percentages not displaying correctly is a
huge playability concern, and the power screen would obstruct view of the stage by a ridiculous margin. With hazards off, or even with just Ulyaoth in play, this would be a great stage, but the other guys absolutely murder it. Sorry.
Overall Score: 14/25
Total Scores:
Kevandre: 59 points
GolisoPower: 65 points
splat: 61 points
PeridotGX: 61 points
TechPowah: 41 points
The Winner is..................
Ghost Portrificationizer by GolisoPower
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
