What was it like for you when you were learning to build on Mario Maker?
Bowser’s War Tanks is one of the first levels I made on MM and is still a favorite in my local circle of friends. If you played World 8 in SMB3, you will quickly see where I drew inspiration. You have no idea how excited I was to make the Complete Run video with the cannon hopping in the beginning.
I started playing Mario Maker probably in the middle of 2016, so I was only just discovering the nuances in the game. The most fascinating thing to me at the time was being able to make enemies giant (like in SMB3 World 4), so I pretty much flooded the underground areas with large enemies randomly.
Another thing I learned was the game’s limitations, particularly with doors and pipes (which I’m sure is something everyone else runs into also). If you played through this level, you’ll know you have different pathways to choose from, which end up going to the same central tank towards the end. I originally built the course to allow you to choose from two completely different paths – super gigantic level. I finished the entire design and saved the pipes for last.
I needed 13 pipes; the game only allows 10.
So I spent the next two days figuring out how to work around the problem, mapping the whole level on a spreadsheet and trying to salvage my work. Luckily, after breaking down walls and combining certain sections, we have the level as it is now.
I am pretty proud of this course overall, especially the boss fight. I personally love the boss room itself, since it has that surprise factor with Bowser Jr.’s behavior.
What was your level-building experience like early on? How did you deal with the game restrictions such as asset and space limits? I would be glad to hear about it.