Review: The Hydrotronic Amplivolumator

Author: Toxic Bunny
Year: 1999
Genre: Single Player Episode
Filename: Flood.j2l
Download: J2C, Mirror

I normally use this blog to review things that are in some way noteworthy, but sometimes it's fun to take a look at levels that aren't. It gives you a chance to play something that you probably haven't even heard about, and it gives me a chance to do an in-depth look at something I normally wouldn't bat an eye at.The Hydrotronic Amplivolumator is an example of this. It's a fairly more or less standard episode from 1999, which uses official JJ2 tilesets and official JJ2 music, and for the most part uses a type of level design that mirrors the official JJ2 levels. The most noteworthy thing about it is probably it's creator, Toxic Bunny. Today he is mostly known for his tilesets, which are all pretty good and are still used today. I think this episode was made before any of his tilesets were, and as far as I know it's his earliest ever release.

This is a pretty short episode, containing only three levels of modest length. There is a bit of a story attached to it, but it seems to be more of an afterthought, being contained mostly in the readme file. The story is basically Devan Shell being up to no good again. This time his evil plot is using some sort of evil device to flood Carrotus for no particular reason other than the fact that he likes to be a dick. The plot is pretty thin, but you can't expect much from only three levels, and it does serve its purpose. Even a mediocre story is enough to give an episode some direction, and motivate the player.

Story is something that is very important for episodes to have. That cannot be stressed enough. Without a story, levels can start to get boring, and the whole thing feels directionless. A player can go through one or two levels with no plot and still come out fine, but anything longer and the attention span starts to wane. A story helps unify the whole thing, and keeps even the dull segments somewhat interesting. This is because even in a boring segment, the player knows what to expect in the future, and still has a goal to work towards besides "get to the end". The Hydrotronic Amplivolumator illustrates this well: even a simplistic story is better than none at all.

When it comes to the level design itself, this episode is pretty average. The first two levels are fairly typical for 1999. Eyecandy is somewhat sparse, but passable. Some of it feels a bit like a rehash of the official JJ2 campaign. Difficulty is low-to-medium. There are a few tile and masking bugs here and there, but nothing serious. The only truly unique thing about them is the fact that changing water levels comes into play. This was a fairly novel concept for the time, and even by todays standards it helps the levels feel a bit less bland.

The third level is the main reason I am reviewing this. Unlike the first two levels, the third one is actually pretty original, and the level design is a lot better. The level has a lot of gameplay tricks, and challenges that go beyond "get past some enemies". For example, there is one area with a whirlpool that can suck you down and kill you. Many areas use sucker tubes in fun ways, and springs are fairly common as well. Even though this level is still pretty average overall, it's fun and way more dynamic than the other two. Because of that, I can feel safe in giving this pack a 3.0 instead of a 2.0. The difficulty in it is also a fair bit higher than the first two levels, which is appropriate (after all, an episode ought to get harder towards the end).

The design of the third level isn't groundbreaking or anything. Most of the stuff in the level is probably stuff you've seen before, being standard features which you could find in other levels. The key here is that it really comes together in a way that is fun, and presents a lot of variation throughout the level. Instead of doing the same thing to get through each room, you have to face different challenges throughout the whole level, using different sorts of movement and different tactics. The word I use to describe this is "dynamic". Single player levels should always strive to be as dynamic as possible, as this is the one of the best ways to keep a level interesting all the way through. If a level is dynamic it means that each of its areas plays differently, ideally looks different, but still avoids feeling disjointed. This does not mean avoiding repetition completely, but it does mean that any repetition should serve some sort of purpose, or have some sort of logic behind it. It helps to avoid monotony. Part of the reason why I like this episode is that the third level really demonstrates this, especially when contrasted with the other two.

Don't expect a whole lot when playing The Hydrotronic Amplivolumator. It's not going to have any lasting impact on you, and it's definitely not a classic or anything like that. On the other hand, it's fun. And besides that, its age gives it value if only for the sake of curiosity. This episode got three stars on J2C, which was the highest possible rating on the site at the time. Today this episode would probably get a score from around 6.5 to 7.5 on J2O. It really shows how much things have changed, and especially how standards today are a lot higher than they used to be.

In the future I will probably continue to feature less noteworthy episodes from time to time, once every few months or so. For the most part I'll keep the focus on "important" levels, but there's also something enjoyable about digging up stuff that basically no one remembers any more. You never know what you're going to find.

Good:

• Entertaining, despite the merely average quality
• Not too long; not too short
• Good third level

Bad:

• Eyecandy is pretty bland, and a bit off in a few places
• The first two levels are mediocre

Score: