It'sa me, Kaizo Mario!

[lincolnic]

I had a little time this afternoon, so I played through Flatline in Hark 2. It's a very good level, although there's a bit of jank in the back half where the throw block occasionally triggers the winged coin block that you have to stand on early in the section. Also that troll at the end was mean.

Agreed all around. I absolutely died to that troll the first time.

I just finished both exits of It Takes You Away (which is a couple of stages ahead of you, Mike) and...I'm assuming that's the dolphin level Snake was referring to above. At least, I hope it's the level he was referring to. Because I did not enjoy that level.

I'm still having a lot fun, but I'm noticing a trend of having to do a lot of leaps of faith in this hack. There's one in particular in the first half of Boom Town which felt especially bad to me. I know a lot of the streamers complain that many hacks have too many indicators, but I feel like this one could often use more. I wonder if the current patch addresses any of that.

Overall the batting average in this game is super high, though. Excited to keep going! (Also I just want to say how nice it feels to finish multiple exits in a sitting, after finishing Invictus.)

 

[SilentSnake]

Yeah, It Takes You Away is a low point for me. That and Deep Breath have frustrating dolphins, but at least the latter is short. The only other exit I had a problem with is the normal one in The Lie of the Land. Boo rings. Ugh.

I'm on the third exit of Sayonara, and it's wonderful so far. The chocolate has been ramping up with every level, and I love it. The first level is an Akogare tier regrab test. Doki Doki Rush then turns things up with custom para-beetles from SMB3 and some really neat setups. And the level I'm on currently is...a dolphin level, but it's one I really like. There's basically no floor, and the background scrolls at a different speed than the action, so you constantly feel like you're in freefall, which is a feeling unlike any I've had in a hack before. It does require some memorization, so it's definitely a love-it-or-hate-it kind of level, but I still dig it. The hack is really cool so far.

 

[lincolnic]

Hey, I figured out how to transfer my save data over to the latest version of Hark Bros! But if I find out that Chris made any of the levels I already beat easier, I'm gonna be mad*.

*I'm not.

 

[MCBanjoMike]

Well he added a message box to one of them...

(it doesn't say anything)

 

[lincolnic]

Can't believe I got denied an empty message box, uninstalling.

Finished three exits this morning. Boy, that secret exit in Back and Forth sure is something, huh? Now I have my choice of two levels (Sidetree, which seems very hard, and whatever the one after Aliens of London is). Proooobably going to take the easier path.

 

[SilentSnake]

Yeah, Sidetree is quite tight. Not that I dislike it! It's just a difficulty spike. Deception has some really cool custom stuff is all I'll say.

So heads up, the hot rumor right now is that Akogare 2 is going to come out very soon, perhaps as soon as this weekend. So take that for what you will.

 

[MCBanjoMike]

Dang, we’ve barely had time to play Hark 2! There’s a big new hack coming out like every week this year, it’s bananas.

 

[lincolnic]

I'm not ready! I'm not ready!

Well, I might be ready by the weekend, I think I'm at...16, maybe 18 exits in Hark 2? But damn, 2021 has been an embarrassment of kaizo riches so far.

 

[lincolnic]

I must've been at 18 exits last time I posted, because I did two more and I'm now 20 exits in. The red switch palace...was not a good level. I have not played a ton of hacks, but I feel pretty confident in that assessment.

Snake, I have a question about end-game pathing for you. My current options are Magician's Apprentice (I think that's what the level was called, the one past the Back and Forth secret exit) and Sidetree. I'd think that Sidetree would be the critical path to the end since it clearly leads to more levels, but there's that big old "Bowser" sign right on the overworld in front of Magician's Apprentice. I popped in there for a minute and the message box sure made it seem like it was supposed to be the final level. What's my intended route here?

 

[SilentSnake]

You go through The Magician's Apprentice route first.

 

[lincolnic]

Thanks! I'll start there next time.

 

[SilentSnake]

Mike posed me a question last night: What hacks would I consider running back? I thought about it, and I have a few in mind. Hyperion is definitely one, as are the Bunbun World games. Sayonara is honestly proving itself to be up there for me, to be honest. It's just connecting with me. I love all the custom mechanics, the aesthetics, just the general vibe of the thing. So yeah, those are my four runback games. I do want to wait to do that until I get moved to a new place so I can stream my runbacks though.

 

[lincolnic]

That's a good question! Definitely Hyperion for me as well, and Quickie 2 (which I've already run back and will do again). Probably Invictus, though not any time soon. Haven't played the Bunbuns yet so I can't comment on those. I'm tempted to consider Akogare as well, not because I loved it but because I'd be curious to see how it feels with a lot more experience. Not sure if I'd want to play the entire thing though.

 

[MCBanjoMike]

Ok, I made it to the dolphin level. After all the negative chat from you two I was surprised when I finished the secret exit in like 15 minutes. Then...I spent an hour getting the checkpoint on the main path. I actually had to stop there, but at least it seems to have saved my checkpoint for next time. God damn helper dolphins.

(If I ever make a dolphin level I’m going to call it Look for the Helpers)

 

[lincolnic]

(If I ever make a dolphin level I’m going to call it Look for the Helpers)

A+ level name, I already don't want to play it!

For me the secret exit of that level was super easy, the actual first half super hard. The second half isn't quite as bad...but it still sucks.

I cleared three more exits yesterday, which means I have just one level to go! Sidetree was maybe one of the coolest levels in the game so far, but it could also be the most frustrating. The second half was also a bit confusing in spots, but it's built in such a way that you've got a finite number of options so it doesn't take too long to figure out what to do. Actually doing it, on the other hand...no individual trick in the level is that hard, but it wants you to move with Invictus-level speed and precision. Even so, it might've been my favorite level in the game?

I was initially really worried that The Magician's Apprentice wasn't going to have any checkpoints, so it was a huge relief when they showed up after every third room. I'm guessing the message box at the end was the hint Chris added? I like that the overworld palette and music changed after beating the level, but I miss the happy overworld music.

 

[lincolnic]

Had a little bit more to go than expected, but Hark 2 is done! Overall it was a very, very good hack. A few issues that kept it from being a Great Hack for me, but definitely top tier. Light years beyond Hark 1 for sure.

What I really like is that so far I hadn't really seen too many hacks that fit in between Akogare and Invictus on the difficulty scale, and this one feels like it fills that niche perfectly. I think it could easily join the kaizo canon as a stepping stone between those two hacks. I'd recommend it that way, at least.

Next up: Bunbun World, finally, unless Akogare 2 comes out sooner, in which case I'll get to be part of the zeitgeist once again!

 

[SilentSnake]

Nice job! For the record, the hint that was added was the message that Harkadia takes you to if you input Luigi.

 

[lincolnic]

Nice job! For the record, the hint that was added was the message that Harkadia takes you to if you input Luigi.

I'd noticed the Luigi screenshot on SMWC, so I figured there was going to be a GPW2-style swap at some point, but I can see it being very confusing if you hadn't caught that detail and that hint didn't exist.

 

[SilentSnake]

And Sayonara is done! This game definitely ranks up with Hyperion and the Bunbuns for me. What a great experience from start to finish. And the custom mechanics weren't overdone, either. The game still feels like Mario. And that last level is just a triumph of visual design.

I'm following this up with a newer hack that I've heard is good but on the easier side:

 

[lincolnic]

Oh let us know how that one goes! I've somehow managed to see the last level of that game twice, but none of the rest of it. I'm curious!

Where would you put Sayonara, difficulty-wise? I don't know anything about it but it sounds like I should add it to my backlog.

 

[SilentSnake]

It's in the ballpark of something like Hyperion or Take it Easy World, maybe a touch harder than those? Maybe around the same as Hark 2, come to think of it.

 

[lincolnic]

Oh, cool, I'll definitely add it to the list then. Assuming there's no surprise Akogare 2 drop I'm probably going to start Bunbun World tomorrow.

 

[SilentSnake]

THIS IS NOT A DRILL

 

[lincolnic]

Welp, guess I know what I'm doing tomorrow.

 

[MCBanjoMike]

Dammit, I still have 8 exits to go in Hark 2! I actually just got through a section that was kind of a slog, so I'm hoping the game picks up again. The dolphin level was tough going, then I got super hung up on the p-switch in the poison mushroom level, then I played the super weird cave level with the buzzy beetles where just about everything felt off. Now I've discovered the mimic mushrooms, which were a pretty funny little surprise, and the level they're in doesn't seem so bad. But yeah, kind of a rough couple of exits in a row there.

Speaking of Akogare, Infamous Greg sent me a version of the first game that MrMightyMouse modified to include custom music! My likelihood of playing that hack all the way through just went up by like 50%. Of course, at this point I might just go straight to the sequel...

 

[lincolnic]

The dolphin level was tough going, then I got super hung up on the p-switch in the poison mushroom level, then I played the super weird cave level with the buzzy beetles where just about everything felt off.

Oof, yeah, that's a rough series of levels. Maybe the worst stretch in the game? The red switch palace is the actual worst level in the game, but at least it's short. Those three back-to-back are kind of a fun killer, but I promise it picks up again after.

 

[SilentSnake]

So if anyone was wondering if Akogare 2 is harder than the first game, I'm currently walled on the second level. Yup. There's a section where you have to do a shell drop on a pipe, then throw the shell into the air before running up a triangle, then quickly getting to a muncher bed and dropping the shell onto it so it wakes up and you can bounce on it, but not too quickly or it won't wake up when you jump. I thought I was misreading what you have to do, but nope, this is the way. I'll get through it, though.

 

[MCBanjoMike]

Yeah, I saw Greg playing Ako 2 this morning and he kept saying it was way harder than the first game. He was also like a kid in a candy store, so I think he’s enjoying it quite a bit.

 

[lincolnic]

Wow, I went to SMWC to grab it and it's already out of moderation and on the main hacks list. I've never seen a hack get moderated that quickly -- even Hark 2 took almost a week.

Time to jump in. Wish me luck!

 

[MCBanjoMike]

Oof, yeah, that's a rough series of levels. Maybe the worst stretch in the game? The red switch palace is the actual worst level in the game, but at least it's short. Those three back-to-back are kind of a fun killer, but I promise it picks up again after.

That's funny, I kind of enjoyed the red switch palace (at least once I realized you needed to spin jump off the falling gold Bowser statue). It's a good thing, too, because I wound up wasting about 30 minutes doing things completely wrong on the mimic mushroom level and I was starting to get pretty dang fed up by the time I got things sorted out. But now I'm at the ghost house chase sequence and it seems pretty neat. With a bit of luck I'll be able to finish that on stream tonight, which would put me within spitting distance of the end! As to whether I'll dive straight into Ako 2 after that, I'm not sure just quite yet.