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Lori's Redemption - a demonstration aimed at enabling
better understanding of Lori's capabilities on JJ2
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Disclaimer:
You don't have to read all of this if you don't want to. It's mostly just
advice and
explanation to go with the level. If you don't care about Lori even after
playing this
level, that's fine by me. I don't mind others having different opinions,
but what isn't
acceptable is for people to flame others for any reason. Flaming cannot be
justified,
reasonable disagreement can be (emphasis on *reasonable*).
What you do with this advice is entirely up to you, since you are the
one(s)
doing the good things on J2Online. My intention is only to provide means
to make more use
of Lori.
Also note that the ideas in this level and readme were discovered
independently of
J2Online. If there are any copyright infringements in here, they are
entirely incidental and
were not intended, or even forseen. As far as I am aware, I have not
plagiarised anything, and
cannot take responsibility for anything I had no knowledge of.
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This is a small test level I made to highlight several flaws that
many have experienced with Jazz Jackrabbit 2: The Secret Files,
mostly regarding the character Lori.
As I'm sure you're aware, Lori had been sloppily programmed in the
standard TSF release. She couldn't grab onto copters, many
multiplayer issues were in place, and she had no higher jump.
All of this has sadly led to many on the J2Online community to
regard her as useless.
Well, the main goal of this level is to change that. Since this
level uses JJ2+, you'll be able to see the bugfixes that it provides
on Lori's end of things, which already give her many more uses.
This level is not password-protected, partially because I do not
believe that password protection is a justified means, but primary so
that others can absorb these tricks into their consciences and use them
for their levels, many of which will be better than anything I could
produce.
The tileset for this level was chosen simply for eye candy reasons, nothing
too
obscure.
Just bear in mind, I'm not the kind of person who tends to venture out
there on
the Internet, so don't expect to see much in the way of uploads or
contributions
from me. That being said, I simply couldn't allow this level to go to
waste.
I just had to share it with you guys.
Besides all that, have fun using Lori more often. She has many unique uses
that
usually require lateral thinking to put into practice. Use these tricks in
combination with things you know, and/or find ways that I haven't shown
you, and
you'll see that she's as good and as valid as Jazz and Spaz.
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Other neat tricks in Lori's arsenal:
Stupid AI - As I'm sure you're aware, some enemies like to smack into you
to
cause damage. So long as Lori is doing the kick animation, any enemies
that
try that stunt will be stomped. Simply make sure Lori can't move in that
direction,
and hold the kick until your enemy touches you. Great for dealing with
those infernal
Dragonflies.
Mass Takedowns - If for any reason you are faced with a huge line of
enemies on the ground
(enemies like Lizards, Turtles, Crabs, anything like that), simply hold
kick until you've
ploughed through the whole pile. They won't be able to do squat to you,
and you'll dispatch
with them in a matter of seconds.
Comparison: Jazz, Spaz and Lori
-Some may wonder, why does Lori not have a higher jump? Well, it turns out
that there's a very good reason
for that. It's all to do with what she does have.
-The copter ears ability is a desperately useful feature when it comes to
controlled flight, careful
landing and long-distance jumps. Since Spaz can only do his double-jump
once in open mid-air, Jazz and Lori
are capable of going much further. Since Jazz can't side-stomp, Lori can
clear a path through side-stomp
blocks and then long-jump afterwards; she has the best of both worlds.
-There's a big difference in the side-stomp features as well. Spaz's slide
tackle only lasts for a limited time,
before he has to stop, and wait a while before he can execute another.
This means that he isn't able to clear
the side-stomp blocks that path over the collapsible scenery in the
included level. Lori's kick makes her not
only move faster, but she can also recharge it quicker, and it remains
active until you let go of the buttons.
The result, high-speed never-ending stomping fun with the added extra of a
speedy change in direction, should
one annoying little enemy happen to evade you.
-In short, the lack of a higher jump on Lori's end of things is actually a
balance thing. She doesn't have to
jump high to be downright useful in places, and lethally powerful in
combat.
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