Marble Blast Nostalgia [INCOMPLETE RELEASE]

UPDATE 4/4/2017
It finally happened. MBN died. You were probably all expecting this post sooner or later.
I should've listened to everyone who told me this was a bad idea, but at the time I didn't care, as I was an ambitious 12 year old who had decided he was going to make a mod. Also, I don't know how much random crap is in the MBN folder, as I last worked on this mod quite a while ago. Hopefully you can enjoy this mod anyway. BTW: There should be a director's cut folder under missions, if you want to try some of the worse levels l had planned.
Special thanks to BPXRockU and Rozi for playtesting this a little bit, and to Weather for making the MBN splash screen. I really appreciate it!
Download MBN Incomplete Release


Original post V

Can I quote you on that in 3 months? :^)

rektgaming1337 wrote: Hi everyone, this may seem like a noob mod(probably rightfully so)

I admire the fact that you recognize this.

rektgaming1337 wrote: so don't get your hopes up.

too late

rektgaming1337 wrote: But, I've decided to try to make a mini-mod.

Follow your dreams!

rektgaming1337 wrote: That's all for now, haven't even started yet.

What a great way to advertise and build anticipation. There's a reason I didn't end that sentence with an exclamation point.

rektgaming1337 wrote: Also, PLEASE don't try to discourage me, as I AM going to do it.

Noted. Refer to Kalle's post.

rektgaming1337 wrote: Period.

grammar lol

Good luck with the mod, I hope it turns out well!

rektgaming1337 wrote: Hi everyone, this may seem like a noob mod(probably rightfully so)

The more you practice, the better you will get so it may not turn into a "noob mod" but something way better! Even so, it takes more than a noob to make one, therefore making it not a noob mod.

Quick update on the mod: Decided on a theme for it. Using the LE interiors only. Nothing else. You can see a mod similar to this on the old forums, link here .

An LE based mod is a very cool idea! Designing a good LE level is a difficult challenge, now that people are used to seeing constructor-made levels. Good luck!

From my point of view, I want to say that one of ghe most important things about creating levels in the Level Editor is alignment. If you check a couple of my levels (like Red Climb and Blue Branches of Ultra), you can see that I spent quite some time on aligning interiors.

Rozi wrote: I want to say that one of the most important things about creating levels in the Level Editor is alignment. If you check a couple of my levels, you can see that I spent quite some time on aligning interiors.

In the LE, select your interiors, go to the special menu and click Round Coordinates. You can also make a larger snapping scale in the World Editor Settings and setting Move Scale to something like 0.5. It will make moving stuff with the gizmo (the thing with three axes coming from a point) twice as hard, but if you are using round coordinates, you only need move it by dragging on the object without highlighting the gizmo first, and can move it up and down by ctrl-dragging.

I would like to point out that LE levels can be better than some Constructor ones.
By the way, what will the mod's name be? Is Marble Blast Nostalgia going to be the name?

Some of my all time favorite levels were in the level editor tbh. I think the masters of the level editor were Andrew and Moshe with Technostick's code to really shake things up. Xelna did excellent levels as well, but wasn't a top 3

For me LE doesn't mean levels must be super aligned, but I don't want to get my marble stuck inside interiors and see some weird kinks. Heck, LE actually gives you a leeway to misalign stuff and get away with it. On the other hand usage of Constructor/QuArK has me expecting to see proper alignment because you have little reason to screw things up.

Here are a few screenshots, so you can see how i'm doing so far.

Also, some level pictures (first 4 levels)

Thats very interesting. Can't wait to play!

WOW! At first I thought making LE levels are bad, but you seem to be really good at making these awesome levels!

Woah, these looked so much better than I expected!

Because people seem to like these so much, I've decided to show one more screenshot.
This level is called "Advanced Techniques" and it teaches beginners how to edge hit, wall hit, and how to use diagonal movement.

Very nice use of the Level Editor! Can't wait. Keep up the work!

Hey guys, another update. I've put together a level pack of the first five levels of beginner to keep you occupied until I release the full mod (not kidding at all, those legendary times are hard!). You can download it in the first post.

EDIT: Just realized I didn't put bounds triggers in those levels. That will be fixed in the final version.

I like what you did with PowerUp and Hazard Training.
I see you changed Custom to Expert, but how did you get the font MB uses for changing the texture?

I found some site called ufonts.com that had it. Also, the font is called "Dom Casual" if you want it for whatever reason.

Very nice start to your mod! A word of advice though: If you really want the mod to have awesome, stunning levels, then don't use the level editor all the time. Try your hand at Torque Constructor or QuArK to build some of your levels. That way, it'll show that you're using your imagination and not just sticking to the default MBG interiors. Just a word of advice!

Thanks for the advice, but the whole point of the mod is to use only default mbg interiors, just like the old CLA custom levels. Thanks anyway though

StewMan46 wrote: Very nice start to your mod! A word of advice though: If you really want the mod to have awesome, stunning levels, then don't use the level editor all the time. Try your hand at Torque Constructor or QuArK to build some of your levels. That way, it'll show that you're using your imagination and not just sticking to the default MBG interiors. Just a word of advice!

I would argue that it's using the default MBG interiors in new and innovative ways that shows you're using your imagination. Anyone can make whatever they want in Constructor, but making the same thing with the level editor can sometimes take more "out-of-the-box" thinking. Consider Technostick's levels for example. Do you realize that Master the Super Jump 3 was created exclusively with trapdoor.dif? Granted, Technostick went further out of the box into mission scripting to create this level (and others, mind you), but that's why he is a prime example of someone who epitomizes the idea of what it means to think creatively. Now, I'm not here to suggest that everyone has the skills (or, more appropriately, the will-power to learn the skills) to create the same stunning levels with the LE that Technostick and many other great LE level designers can. But before Constructor/Quark became a thing, every level was done in the LE; people had to constantly be thinking outside the box to use the interiors in new ways (a lot of CLA levels are really well done; can't recall names but a large number of those levels are LE). Sometimes, using limited resources helps to embrace your imagination more than endless options will.

All that being said, I can't say that I fully endorse what I've seen so far on this mod. But like anything, proficiency at something takes both patience and a yearn to learn. That's why most people don't finish mods.

To sum that all up, there is something to be gained by working with limitations. Endless options can sometimes be a hindrance to your creative side.

Beginner levels are now done, so i'm 25% through with the mod (in terms of levels).

Joey wrote:

StewMan46 wrote: Very nice start to your mod! A word of advice though: If you really want the mod to have awesome, stunning levels, then don't use the level editor all the time. Try your hand at Torque Constructor or QuArK to build some of your levels. That way, it'll show that you're using your imagination and not just sticking to the default MBG interiors. Just a word of advice!

I would argue that it's using the default MBG interiors in new and innovative ways that shows you're using your imagination. Anyone can make whatever they want in Constructor, but making the same thing with the level editor can sometimes take more "out-of-the-box" thinking. Consider Technostick's levels for example. Do you realize that Master the Super Jump 3 was created exclusively with trapdoor.dif? Granted, Technostick went further out of the box into mission scripting to create this level (and others, mind you), but that's why he is a prime example of someone who epitomizes the idea of what it means to think creatively. Now, I'm not here to suggest that everyone has the skills (or, more appropriately, the will-power to learn the skills) to create the same stunning levels with the LE that Technostick and many other great LE level designers can. But before Constructor/Quark became a thing, every level was done in the LE; people had to constantly be thinking outside the box to use the interiors in new ways (a lot of CLA levels are really well done; can't recall names but a large number of those levels are LE). Sometimes, using limited resources helps to embrace your imagination more than endless options will.

All that being said, I can't say that I fully endorse what I've seen so far on this mod. But like anything, proficiency at something takes both patience and a yearn to learn. That's why most people don't finish mods.

To sum that all up, there is something to be gained by working with limitations. Endless options can sometimes be a hindrance to your creative side.

A good point that I never even thought of!

Quick update, the progress of the mod is going to slow by a lot, as I would like to learn constructor, and some other things. Not to mention it's in the intermediate levels. No, the mod hasn't died. Keep looking forward to it!

I thought you were doing Level Editor levels...

Rozi wrote: I thought you were doing Level Editor levels...

He wants to learn it for other stuff I believe.

All right, I tried the first 5 levels! Very nice job! I was able to get all the gold times:

Basic Movement - 2.386
Collecting Gems - 9.439
Powerup Training - 8.203
Hazard Training - 4.583
Good Hazards - 7.049

Good god motb, you destroyed my PB's! Can I get a video of that?

Yes, I could do a video of your levels. I will go for lower times, since these can be easily improved.

Edit: My video is released, with improved times:
Basic Movement - 2.382
Collecting Gems - 9.124
Powerup Training - 7.334
Hazard Training - 4.351
Good Hazards - 6.748

You can see it in my video topic.

Quick question: should I use CLA interiors in the mod? IMO it seems like it would ruin the nostalgia if I use QuArK'd non-official interiors. Please post your opinion below.