Way Away (DAD COP 2) - We already had a bit of back and forth on this file so I'll keep it succinct.
24.26s- The descending roll starting at the end of the 4 anchor here is pretty awkward. The same applies albeit less so to the next variation of this with the 1 anchor. The 2/3 anchor variants of this pattern later on are more intuitive/fun to hit.
29s- Haven't decided if the next half second is charming or rage inducing so I'll mark it here for now but don't change it yet.
39.3s- Look at the preceding 4343, then look here. Then kys. Then shift the 3 in the jump at 39.6 to 1.
53s- There's no drum hit here. Ditch the [34] jump and that'll also solve the problem with the rush-trappy nature of the section due to the extended anchor on 3 that leads into them. Probably, it might also make it worse.
54.8s- I'm noting this because I mentioned it to you earlier already. I don't think it's too much in the context of the file as is. There are other much more problematic areas. It may turn out that once those are smoothed out, this kind of stuff sticks out greatly, but that isn't the case yet.
61.5s- I just want you to look at this and think about how monumentally awkward it is.
95.37s- Not quite planet hell... more like... jovian moon hell, but still hell.
111.8s- same as 53s
120.7s- Ditch the flams or ditch the 32nd notes. Don't just layer them together- it feels like your divorced parents both wanting to take you to the same park on saturday.
Actually now that I look back at it most of the major problematic areas are the results of variations of what first appears at 31.27. Early on in the file they're manageable but as the file progresses they quickly devolve into mash/rush traps. You might want to leave the early ones as-is and then tone down the layering in the later incarnations, or repattern/relayer/redo them all. Planet hell/weird trill->anchor transitions aren't inherently bad. There are very few patterns that are actually just terrible outright- usually it comes down to context. How fast is it? Speed compounds awkwardness factor which ramps up localized stress/stamina drain on the player during that section. What are the transitions into/out of the pattern like? 61.5s has a quarter measure long 34 gallop at 48ths leading into a [34]43[34] 24th anchor pattern. There's like a 289% chance the player hits the the 4 as a 34 gallop, hits a super early boo on the 3, then keeps hitting the 3 on the long 16th anchor without even realizing what happened, resulting in a frustrating boo rush. Repetition tends to reinforce vanilla patterns and makes them easier to hit (see: memoria reborn), conversely repetition tends to compound the awkwardness of wacky patterns and leads to habit forming (see: talmb). Basically you want to straddle the line between challenging/intriguing the player and frustrating them. Obviously that line isn't the same for everyone but I tend to have a much higher tolerance for stuff like this and even I think it's gone too far.
I'm still not enthralled by the file but I think it's solid and getting there and lofty has a more favorable disposition than I do.
morbid profundity
ALONE (James May) - Nice fast fixes. Everything looks :OK_Mine:. There are some remaining questionable patterns in the second to last set of 32nds but I'll wait until some more playtesting before any further commentary.
Itsuwaranai Kimi (Celirra) - Ok I had my reservations when I mentioned that hearing the 32nds actually made me want to hit 32nds, because it would likely push the difficulty of the ending up too far, and it has. It's not too hard in the sense that it's an outright absurd difficulty spike but it's certainly the hardest part of the file in what should, apart from the very intro, be the easiest. Supposing the player has fc'd the rest of the file the ending should pose a "ok now just pay attention and close it out" rather than a "ok now comes the tricky part" threat.
My rationale for the suggestion was this- 32nd rolls would probably be too uninteresting/easy and roll patterns lend themselves less to that kind of snare hit than anchored patterns do. Looking at it now 32nd rolls might just be fine. Alternatively you could use the same structure at 24ths or perhaps even 16ths. 24th trills/splithand rolls are other options to play around with. The danger with vanilla 32nd rolls is they become jumptrill bait which is sort of the antithesis of the control based patterning in the rest of the file. You could also try 24th friendly freeze stream to emphasize control instead.
Nepal (Celirra) - After a few more plays I'm pretty settled on the extra layering on the minijacks being an unnecessary burden/distraction. I've also made a number of additional small edits mostly centered around shifting some of the more awkward anchors. It'll probably be easier for me to just send you my edits and for you to sign off on them/shoot back alternatives. I'm sending this to you via discord. The places changed are around:
29s
78.5s
111.3s
120.5s