Keyboardsmash Phase I: Legacy Submissions Open

[Gundam-Dude]

I was going to put off reviews for one more day but I've got a busy schedule starting soon so I kinda rushed through the last few files. Sorry if my notes towards the end aren't super detailed or concise (I went in alphabetical order).

Amatias (REVISION)
· Beat 205 I personally find the layering transition abrupt now that you removed all the notes around the holds :/
· Measure 136+ I feel would be better if you layered every 4th and 8th note a jump seeing as it's the ending climax in the song. This particular section plays better and feels concise with denser layering as opposed to the sparse jumps you currently have.
· Nothing worth noting otherwise.
Yes


April#02
· Good usage of xmods.
· Entire beginning section would be better if the mines weren't restricted only to [1] only because it's a very long section. Essentially varying the patterns up and putting column mines elsewhere.
· My only issue with the roll usage is when you place notes immediately after longer length rolls which can be awkward from a playability standpoint. If you so much as tap the roll off-beat, the note that follows will definitely give a perfect or worse, lol.
· Beat 47 and 164, you could probably place mines. I say this because in instances like Beat 191, you place mines during similar stop sections which is kind of an inconsistency I picked up on first play-through.
· I personally found the quads a little bit overboard only because there weren't nearly as many 3-note hands to counter balance said usage.
· Nothing worth noting otherwise.
Yes


Atröpos (rCaliber)
· I'm not a fan of piano holds but they were well used in this chart. Many of the longer holds can be trimmed in length though—holds don't have to be as long as the note they go to, what matters is that it's there.
· Some transitions into mini-jack patterns I found awkward but it's passable.
· Nothing else worth noting.
Yes


Atröpos (rparty)
· In general, I personally am not a fan of placing holds to held piano chords. It becomes incredibly redundant when you carry the concept throughout the chart.
· Piano chords aren't thoroughly layered enough throughout the chart.
· When the amen break or whatever kicks in, percussive jumps can be layered in as an additional element to what you already have. Single notes with very sparse jump usage doesn't quite do the trick.
· The single note 16th stream again just doesn't really have the kick to it when it's so under-layered with hundreds of things you could be layering at the same time.
· Measure 36+ now all of a sudden you start layering in 3-note hands and consecutive jumps when the chart up until now had barely any of that? Not only is this a major layering inconsistency, but now you have a massive jump in terms of note density when this break section of the song isn't quite nearly as intense compared to the rest of the song which should be much more layered.
· The chiptune-esque sounds can be accentuated with mini-holds if you'd like to add another layering element.
· The holds are way too long in length, especially once the hold-stream kicks in at Measure 56+.
· Overall, too many layering issues and the chart as a whole needs an entire re-haul. It's decent as a semi-easy chart, but needs quite a lot more to be acceptable for this pack.
No


Bad Boy
· Holds going to the piano note is unnecessary and it becomes incredible redundant since it repeats and you have to break the consistency of it when you begin layering other stuff.
· Wubs are better accentuated and layered as jacks in my opinion.
· The percussion during the drop can be heavily layered with jumps and even hands. Keeping it as single notes is much too weak considering it's prominence in sound and as an instrument.
· A lot of the holds that go to the main synth in the latter half of the chart aren't really necessary and can be taken out. You could keep the longer length ones, but scrap the mini-holds.
· The [1234] mines don't serve much of a purpose. I feel the mines would be better suited if you layer them to the piano chords you intentionally ignored instead.
· Overall, needs tweaks to be acceptable.
No


Botines (REVISION)
· Holds can be trimmed in length to mini-holds. Holds do not have to be as long as the sound they layer, what matters is that it's there to accentuate and any player can immediately pick up what they layer on a first play-through.
· Additional note to the above, it also makes note transitioning smoother and clearer, especially in cases where you have notes that are placed at the very end of holds which could become awkward to hit.
· Short and sweet. The song and chart doesn't offer anything mind blowing or spectacular though and it's essentially copy pasted. Because it's very short, my decision is torn for this chart—if it were any longer, this is a definite reject due to the quality control.
Maybe


Bodom Beach Terror (REVISION)
· I would still trim some of the longer hold lengths down a notch just for visual aesthetic. Holds don't have to be as long as the sound they layer, so long as they're there any player can pick up what they go to during a play-through, lol.
· Still got the troll 24th left hand trill but whatever I guess.
Yes


Catastrophie (REVISION)
· I would say just completely scrap and remove everything past measure 67. Everything layered past here isn't really that interesting and you won't have to deal with the awkward song fading-out while still layering problem.
· A vast improvement since last time at the very least. Overall, the song just doesn't offer that much to work with and I really don't see many people playing this one more than once, so I'm going to flat out reject since I'm subjected to a higher standard of quality control. Normally I'd let this slide in if I was being lenient.
No


Cedar Shed
· Xmod gimmicks added a nice touch.
· I see that you do in fact vary the staircase patterns during the stop gimmick sections, however I actually suggest you vary it up even more. Every instance of it occurring would probably be better if it were a different pattern than what came previously in the similar gimmick sections before. I say this because I'm seeing [1][2][3][4] etc. way more frequently and it becomes incredibly predictable and dull once it repeats a second time let alone a third time after.
· Pretty much all the long holds can be trimmed down to mini-holds—holds don't have to be as long as the sound/note they follow, what matters is that it's there. This would also free up plenty of space in which you can take advantage of and layer in more jumps to the bass hits much more consistently and thoroughly rather than sparsely like it is now.
· Once the song really picks up with the percussion, I hear countless opportunities where you could layer in mini-jacks to go to the snares. It'd add a little scoring factor, variety, and playing interest to the chart. I see that you somewhat do it already but I'd like to see you go all out with it and layer it thoroughly.
· Overall, a pretty decent chart considering it's under-layered and has a very nostalgic old school-esque feel to it. Consider making tweaks and this should be good.
Maybe


City (REVISION)
· A minor personal nitpick I have is that because the majority of the chart is 16th jump-stream with hands sparsely layered, it becomes incredibly monotonous to play after awhile (RE: IcyWorld-esque files that are pure jump/hand-stream and nothing more layered). I definitely see the audience of players playing this for scoring though.
· There are 7 holds in the entire file, so I suggestion would be to use those more to your advantage in terms of layering or accentuating certain song elements. For example, you currently have hands
going to the "WHOA" sound sample, what if you layered mini-holds on top of the hands? Hell, even a simple jump with mini-holds would suffice, you don't even need to use a hand. You don't have to do exactly what I said, but I'm just pointing out other layering alternatives you can use to your advantage.
· Hands on cymbal crashes would add a nice touch if you layer them in for the beginning half of the file. .
· Measures 65–67, adding mines to the voice sample on every 4th note would also add a nice touch seeing as though you've got a similar column mine thing going on between measures 49–64.
· Measures 67–77, I found it a little odd that you swapped between single note to jump layering when there isn't anything really going on that warrants them other than the voice sample. This isn't a big deal though, this is a technical nitpick.
· Measures 77–80, same deal with adding mines to the hi hats and voice sample would make nice touches.
· Measures 104–106, same deal with adding mines to the voice sample would make nice touches.
· Measures 161–163, you're missing jumps/hands to layer the bass hits. Technical consistencies.
· Measures 177–179, same deal with adding mines to the voice sample would make nice touches.
· Overall, the only appeal this chart and song offers is the long jump-stream scoring factor—this doesn't particularly offer anything mind blowing or interesting to sit through otherwise. Regardless of all the technical nitpicks I had, I'm fairly certain this won't warrant a pass from me.
No


Collision Point
· Double check jump and hand consistency for usage. Spotted a few missing and/or strangely under-layered chords.
· Short and sweet. Nothing major worth noting technicality wise, although I do question the replay factor of this chart considering the target audience of StepMania overlords over here. I'll pass it though.
Yes


Danger Danger
· Holds can be trimmed in length.
· 4th bass jumps aren't layered consistently.
· 24th notes seem inaccurately layered—probably missing some notes.
· I don't quite seem to understand the purpose of the hand layering and all the jacks that appear later on in the chart. I see the jacks go to the stuttering vocals but because these parts are layered so densely, they don't really serve much of a purpose other than make the chart harder.
· Overall, the song itself doesn't offer much to work with other than putting mindless, monotonous jump-stream to it. Even with tweaks I don't see myself accepting this due to the pack's apparently high standards I'm supposed to enforce.
No


Do Not Go Gently
· The beginning section's guitar rift is so heavy that it almost warrants layering it with jumps. I actually think that would feel better than tapping single notes. Once the song picks up, you can just keep the current layering, but the beginning section would probably benefit from denser layering.
· Holds can be trimmed a bit in length.
· Nothing else worth noting for technical nitpicks. Acceptable as is but I do feel denser layering would be beneficial to the chart overall.
Yes


Dream Express
· Denser layering with jumps to percussive and bass elements would be beneficial to the chart.
· All of the holds can be trimmed in length. They're questionable overall though because I feel they aren't even entirely needed in the first place because the main melody is incredibly prominent. The holds added to support said element only add a messier visual aesthetic to the chart in general.
· Considering the number of repetitions in the song without anything different to work with, the chart drags on a lot more than it should unfortunately. The song and chart doesn't offer anything spectacular or interesting to warrant anything more than a sightread play-through.
No


Endless Despair II
· Longer length holds can be trimmed slightly shorter for better visual aesthetic.
· Nothing worth noting for technical nitpicks. Great song and chart overall although it does drag on due to the song length.
Yes


Funny Shuffle (REVISION)
· Nothing worth noting.
Yes


Hakugin no Datenshi
· Long holds can be trimmed in length. Again, they don't have to be as long as the sound/element they layer, what matters is that it's there to accentuate.
· Personally, I think this chart suffers from actually having quite a few too many under-layered guitar solo-ish sections. Because you sit through these instances for about 3 times through the duration of the chart, each and every time I don't actually find myself enjoying the chart as much as I should. Solution: layer in the jumps/hands for probably the very first solo section that occurs. 2 solo sections is probably the maximum considering the length of this song and chart.
· Also, due to the number of repetitions in the song itself, I feel like I'm replaying the same patterns way too many times. Mainly when you've got a long hold with a few single notes layering percussion, I keep seeing the exact same patterns over and over again. Vary patterns up and even considering changing the layering in the latter half of the file to be slightly different and/or even more denser than it is now.
· Tweak and play with the chart more while considering what I've mentioned. I definitely see potential for this chart. Normally, I'd accept this as is if I was being lenient but because I'm subjected to the apparent high standards here...
Maybe


I'm Your Daddy (REVISION)
· Nothing worth noting.
Yes


Idola (REVISION)
· Considering the BPM and speed of the song, trimming the hold lengths by a notch would improve the overall flow and minimize awkward note transitions.
· Measures 25–31 I feel would be better if you layer in the bass jumps. It's heavy and prominent enough to warrant the usage and it feels good to hit during a play-through.
· A few mine placements are dangerously close to notes, but it does add a nice scoring factor to the chart. Probably not worth changing in my opinion.
· Overall, chart is well layered and nothing major to note from a technical standpoint. I'm willing to pass this off as is.
Yes


Insane Techniques (REVISION)
· Nothing worth noting.
Yes


IX
· Long [2] jack was a very rough start to the file especially at 198 BPM, lol.
· Skimming through the chart and the entire chart is nothing more than mindless dense jump/hand stream with jacks. It offers nothing memorable other than the scoring factor.
· This would be better off in another pack, it's not quite what this pack is looking for unfortunately.
No


Magic (REVISION)
· Easier difficulties are all solid. Some minor nitpicks here and there but nothing that warrants definite changes.
· In the hardest difficulty, the mini-holds before the drop aren't really necessary, but it's a good way to distinguish itself from my chart.
· Nothing worth noting otherwise. Solid chart overall and different enough to warrant being a separate file than mine, lol.
Yes


My Time (REVISION)
· Did you literally just put 32nds in between your notes without even changing the patterns you lazy ass motherfucker. Re-adjust the patterns so they aren't SHIT.
· TBH now that I'm playing this again, the file would really benefit from a song cut if you removed maybe part of the beginning and the ending break section that followed the 32nd parts. Shorter would be better because this file is so damn long and repetitive I get bored and don't want to sit through the rest of the file after the 32nd part pretty much—lurker's right about having a hard time finding a target audience for this file. Normally I'd let this slide but for now...
Maybe


Proof of the Existence (REVISION)
· I still think starting the 16th triplets and stream earlier would be beneficial but your file, your call.
· The ending is an IcyWorld dump but I'm pretty sure everyone will play this because of that.
Yes


Story 2
· Nothing worth noting. Clean and well layered overall. Chart might not really be memorable considering the target audience of StepMania overlords, but at the very least the song really picks up in the speed up and the ending stream, haha. I'm willing to pass this off because the entire chart isn't simply one use dull rap verse and actually progresses well.
Yes


The Ceiling Could Never Hold Us
· Nothing worth noting from a technical standpoint other than personal nitpicks here and there which are very minor.
· Szycag V2 pretty much, so I do see certain people playing through the entire file. However, I'm not quite sure if these are the kind of files Rebirth is looking for—normally, I'd pass this off if I was running a pack and doing the usual lenient judging. Because you're running your own pack at the moment, I'd say toss this there instead.
Maybe


The Divine Comedy Reverse (REVISION)
· Nothing worth noting.
Yes


Twirl
· Xmod gimmicks are excellent.
· Nothing worth noting. Well layered and overall a solid chart.
Yes