About
Interstate is a custom VVVVVV level made in 2 weeks for the NYU Game Center.
The level features new rooms, enemy patterns, and puzzles.
This was a solo dev project.
Media
Interstate is a Frogger-inspired take on VVVVVV.
10 unique rooms to beat!
Discover your sense of timing—
—and put it to the test.
Process
If VVVVVV is a about one thing, it's about precision platforming. So when I had an assignment to design a level for the game, I wanted to see if there were other facets of the game I could explore.
Shoutout to the VVVVVV editor for making it all possible.
A large chunk of my original designs had the player idling, waiting for platforms to crumble to progress. I was essentially exploring the facet of "waiting," not the most inspired choice if I'm being honest. So I switched gears, leaning into another area I was exploring: movement.
Before—
—and after!
The biggest change in my designs, while not included in the images above, was the inclusion of spikes. Spikes are a necessary evil in VVVVVV, since they're one of the few things that can force player movement. It's easy to wait for the right moment once you've figured out a pattern, but throw some spikes into the mix and suddenly stalling for time becomes a gauntlet that punishes hesitation.
Before—
—and after!
In the end I couldn't get away from precision in my designs. But that's okay, because then it wouldn't have been a VVVVVV level, would it?
Of course, the real star of the show was playtesting, since it's thanks to playtesting feedback that I got the necessary kick in the pants to revisit my designs in the first place.
Before—
—and after!
You can watch a playthrough of Interstate on YouTube.
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