Takashi Tezuka on the hard Super Mario Maker levels made by players
We’ve seen a wide array of Super Mario Maker since its launch last month. Quite a few of the user-made levels have proven to be particularly difficult.
Takashi Tezuka, a well-known developer of the Super Mario Bros. series, told EDGE this month that he isn’t surprised that many tough courses are being made. He also mentioned that these creators don’t truly realize how difficult they are for other players since they are already aware of the design and how things will play out.
He said:
“When you design levels for a product, you need to take into consideration a wide range of users. This limits the amount of extremely difficult courses to only a fairly small part of the whole game. I expected that the users who wanted to play more of the hard courses would be attracted to Super Mario Maker, so it’s not surprising to see that a lot of difficult courses are being made.”
“There is a tendency for the courses people make to be a little harder than they think they are. The creator already knows the design, where they have placed their traps, and the best route to take. So it would generally be easier for them to play through than someone trying it for the first time. As a result, the course ends up being more difficult than the creator meant it to be.”
Tezuka also noted the following when asked if any levels have caught his eye thus far:
“I’ve been watching lots of different courses on YouTube. It was quite a surprise how much fun it was to watch the videos, without even playing myself. There are so many intriguing and inventive courses, like one which you couldn’t beat if you picked up a mushroom. It’s been a huge motivation for us developers to do better.”
