Rushing, quality, and Green Project

In 2023, seeing as 2.1 was coming to a close, I started making VERTICAL after seeing that I hadn't actually released any major levels after Side Project. I wanted to make something as fun as possible, especially after seeing that Side Project was a lot more of a pain to play than I expected.

I wanted to make a level that felt like my 2.1 magnum opus in as many aspects as I could, and I think I can say I did that job quite well, as I still feel quite proud about the level and people are still calling it fun despite the level being two and a half years old at this point.

After 2.2 came out, the first thing I was certain of was that no new level of mine was gonna be worked on for a long time. I indeed did use all my artistic creativity on VERTICAL, and I had in mind that years would pass until I get the creativity needed to do something new.

But time was happening, and the years came and went. Next time I check and VERTICAL turned two years old.

It's a bit of an open secret right now that all the green shitpost was hinting at a new level being made.

In March, I felt the need of doing something about this, just working on a good level with the purpose of releasing it quick, as a 2.2 gameplay experiment. I was aware it wouldn't be anywhere as remarkable as VERTICAL, but I still wanted to come back to creating.

So the days passed, I aimed at a release on April 1st (which would have given me less than two weeks to make the level from start to finish), and after seeing that there's no way to make a good level that quickly, I pushed the date back to later that month.

After reviewing the level again, I don't think I can say I am proud of how the level is turning out. I could fix the gameplay and take my time to polish and finish everything, but that would take a long time and it still wouldn't get close to VERTICAL in terms of quality and originality.

So I have made the decision to cancel the level.

Not all hope is lost, though. Working on this level has taught me many things about making levels in 2.2, and there were a few parts I built that I found quite good!

I believe I can make a very good level if I let myself take as long as I need, and in a context of enjoying the creation process as much as I can.

And speaking of canceled levels, holy shit I have so many abandoned projects!

To start fresh for what I make next, I have decided to showcase every single abandoned level I've ever made. Yes, even that one. Stay tuned for the premiere next week.

Until we meet again.