LEGO Rock Raiders What Makes Some Levels So Fun?

[Lair]

So as you all probably know, Return to Planet U is a fairly long game. And I do NOT want to have a bunch of Its A Hold Ups.

So my question is, what makes levels like Explosive Action and Frozen Frenzy (and Rock Hard IMO sometimes) so fun? And how can I make collection missions like this too?

[Cirevam]

All three of those have levels with explorable areas, and Rock Hard spreads out its crystals well enough (ignoring the cache) that you can put off the goal for a long time without trying. None of those have erosion, so there's less pressure on the player to work towards the goal. So I think a combination of a mostly optional goal plus an explorable cavern plus no pressure on the player to work towards the goal makes the levels fun. They're all the elements of a sandbox, really.

[Leumeister]

^ This

Also, If you have plenty of variety in each level, that will have an effect!

And, make them a hard enough to enjoy, but easy enough not to ragequit.

[TheDoctor]

Like Cirevam said, it's the sandbox elements. It's why building games are so fun. You can just do what you want while still having an objective to do. Even better, not knowing where the objective is makes it even more fun.

[Pyro]

I agree with everyone above. Freedom is what makes them fun.

[OvenTrooper]

Definitely. I like Hot Stuff most in this respect, because while it's moderately (read EXTREMELY thanks to the freakin' BATS!) difficult to begin with, there's so much Crystal and Ore surplus about that you can run riot with units and buildings. Oh, and Lava Monsters make it good too.

[Exkajer]

@Lair of Rockwhales

If you have problems with inventing good screenplays to levels, I have an offer for you:

When I was playing rock raiders and map creator, Ive created full 25 round set for it (publicated only one map, secret treasury). Levels are playable, but may have bugs. And not every level works. But every level have special screenplay. You can see some screenshots from other 2 levels, in topic ive posted in "screenshots" forum. Im not interested in doing maps anymore, so I can send you my unfinished map-kit to remake. Do you want it?

[Lair]

@Lair of Rockwhales

If you have problems with inventing good screenplays to levels, I have an offer for you:

When I was playing rock raiders and map creator, Ive created full 25 round set for it (publicated only one map, secret treasury). Levels are playable, but may have bugs. And not every level works. But every level have special screenplay. You can see some screenshots from other 2 levels, in topic ive posted in "screenshots" forum. Im not interested in doing maps anymore, so I can send you my unfinished map-kit to remake. Do you want it?

Um, sure, if you want to send it to me.

[Exkajer]

Ive sent my level pack to Lair of Rockwhales via PM. But Ive decided to make this topic alive. What makes some levels fun? We can discuss on examples. Here are screenplays, of my all levels. Please tell your opinions. What will make it interesting? Or not?

1. "Ice shotdown!"

You are in asylum if ice monsters. All the caves around you are full of them. Be careful. Build your defense before you will discover any cavern.

Main cavern (to discover) is full of hard rocks, sleeping monsters, emerge points and... landslides.

2. "Lava 'n more lava"

In-cave version of "lake of fire". A bit easier. Dig fast before lava will go to your base. Every cavern except one have eroding lava. Level isnt that hard as it seems to be.

3. "Waterfalls"

TRANSPORT. Many lava and water rivers, you must use all your transporting skills to finish that mission.

4. "Acid Attack"

First mission on Acid biome (Ive posted it on forum, but no one commented it). You start in a huge cavern with 4 acid (works as lava) rivers coming to you (slowly). Mission have also some caverns around, you can go deeper to acid rivers, find recharge seam, water lake and crystals cavern.

5. "Seam Quest"

You can find crystals only in Energy Crystal Seams, and you know it from Objective text. This mission has extreme heightmap settings, Ive posted 1 picture from it on "Screenshots" forum, but this image is only a part of bigger totality.

6. "Water Ways"

How to build a base on the lake? You have only tiny "islands" joined with one-area-ways. Also TRANSPORT. Swim or fly to get crystals.

7. "Without Power!"

Idea was that you find only drained crystals, but I cant make it. Nayway its also mission with slimy slugs.

8. "Hunt for crystlas"

Second seamless? No... because caverns with crystals are rock monsters asylum. Huge battle for crystals at the end. Over 10 rock monsters at first moment you enter. And beware to dont open melting lava cavern... to quickly.

9. "Tunnel Scout"

Easy. Lead tunnel scout to base on end of underground river and then collect crystals.

10. "Meltdown River"

Acid near you, Crystlas to get.

11. "Still in danger".

"Weve found a rich energy crystal seam near the lava river. We was sure that getting that will be easy, so we made the base in huge cavern on the opposite side of lava. Measurements of lava pressures had shown us that lava is in a huge pressure.That means, crashing any rock, which blocks lava, will make a disaster! Make sure what you are digging, because any false move will end you in all cavern with lava! Remeber it, and collect energy crystals."

12. "Trap In the gorund"

"We had just begun mining activities in a deeper cavern, when disaster struck! A lot of energy crystals are very close to underground lava spot! High terrain near the base is full of underground lava which flares up from the ground! You must be careful of it. Dont let your rock raiders go there! Its a race against time! You must collect all energy crystals before lava will fill up all the cavern! Good luck and dig fast!"

13. "Double Throuble"

Two bases at once, two base on two opposite sides of mission. You will use one base or both bases? Objective says, that there are two cavern systems split by underground lake...

14. "Dont get into the middle"

Caverns have tiny acid lakes in centers. Flooding. Acid biome.

15. "Water, Lava n' rubble"

Lava coming to you through tunnel, lava monsters caverns on south, big water lakes on north. Try to find yourself there.

16. "Lost in frozen den"

Run the gauntlet, but lets you collect crystals and dig. When you reach the base nothing happens. There is a hidden cavern with nothing (tutorial points) where you can move your lost rock raider to finish mission.

17. "Frozen Nightmare"

You have base in island in center of underground lake. Tiny one-area-ways comes outside lake. You have 8 mining lasers to shot down the monsters. There is no place to put electric fences. Monsters are coming to you through lake. Rock raiders with beams moulder, cause the dont know where to go, where to shot.

Better move your base to different place.

18. "Mining Mayhem"

"Its my fault! Im very sorry, but I just failed a mission. Group of rock raiders was doing a minig activities in an acid cavern. All was going ok, weve collected about 60 energy crystals. But then... There was a huge earthquake which damaged vehicles and trapped roick raiders in a cavern far from base. Weve lost contact with base, but we have still contact with the rock raiders. Please help me, you are good in it! Lead rock raiders to the base and finish digging - collect energy crystals."

When you reach the base you will notice that some caverns are already clear. You start with loader dozer, granite grinder, small transport truck, hover scout.

19. "Under the dam"

@Lair - I forgot, there is also a description.

You can see all on screenshots in "Extreme heightmap settings".

20. "Secret treasury" - Download and play.

21. "Lake is not fake"

Acid. You have choice - Play in cavern with slimy slugs, or in cavern with melting acid. That huge melting acid lake is not fake.

22. "The warmest cave"

Many lava monsters. Lava dont erode.

23. "Labyrinth of danger"

Slugs in every cavern. You need to move your base into a tight labyrinth of ice. Beware of ice monsters coming through water.

24. "Into the tunnel"

4 lava tinnels with fastly eroding lava splits the mission to parts. Slimy slugs, lava monsters and problems with TRANSPORT!

25. "The Great Digging"

3 bases around lake. Cave with melting lava, rock monsters, TRANSPORT, Slimy slugs. All in one. Ive never finished that mission because of game crashing after about 250 crystals.

[Cirevam]

#3 sounds interesting. I imagine that the level would be terraced with waterfalls leading to each level, and you would need to TRANSPORT to climb each level. To prevent players from using vehicles to climb the waterfalls, I'd put invisible barriers on the waterfalls and solid rock around them so transporting is the only way up. This definitely sounds like it could be a break from the ordinary and a fun level.

How would the one-way areas work for #6? That might be neat to see.

[Exkajer]

http://fotoo.pl//out...waterfalls1.bmp

Here is the start of level "Waterfalls". I dont know how to make "invisible barriers" but it would be good to make barriers thorugh you can go only by water vehicles.

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Not "One-Way-Areas, but One-Area-Ways. I was trying to describe THIS:

http://fotoo.pl//out..._waterways1.bmp

__

@Lair of Rockwhales

I've confirmed, that level "Don't get into the middle" is unfinishable. There are too small amount of crystals to win a mission (143 instead of 145).

[Jodide]

All three of those have levels with explorable areas, and Rock Hard spreads out its crystals well enough (ignoring the cache) that you can put off the goal for a long time without trying. None of those have erosion, so there's less pressure on the player to work towards the goal. So I think a combination of a mostly optional goal plus an explorable cavern plus no pressure on the player to work towards the goal makes the levels fun. They're all the elements of a sandbox, really.

Like Cirevam said, it's the sandbox elements. It's why building games are so fun. You can just do what you want while still having an objective to do. Even better, not knowing where the objective is makes it even more fun.

Aye. I also believe that having the ability to build freely, while still having a solid and fun goal without pressure makes for good maps!

And make them big, so that when you have some end-game stuff, you can still use them!

And put in at least one of those crystal recharges. May sound like cheating, but it allows for using those lasers properly for once!