Yamamura's Dojo
Yamamura's Dojo is a mode in Super Mario Maker 2 where players that can view lessons on how to make courses. Yamamura and his assistant Nina teach the player when viewing a lesson. Maker lessons come from three categories: Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced, and there are fifteen lessons per category. Players can also view Mario's Moves on all game styles. In the Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World, New Super Mario Bros. U and Super Mario 3D World game styles, players can view how to use the Super Leaf, Cape Feather, Propeller Mushroom and Super Bell, respectively. The background music is an arrangement of the World 1 map theme from Super Mario 3D World. The lessons use the New Super Mario Bros. U style.
Maker Lessons
Maker Basics
Yamamura: Coo. (In this introductory lesson, we'll cover the basics of making courses.)
Nina: The basics are REALLY important, so you should probably pay close attention. The mode we're in right now is called Course Maker.
Yamamura: Coo. (First, we'll explain how to place parts. "Parts" are the various elements you can place in a course.)
Nina: The menu that runs along the top of the screen is called the Palette. This magnifying glass button is the best way to find parts. Tapping it will open the parts menu. The parts menu is where you'll choose which parts you want to put in your level. You can place a part in your level by touching the spot you want to place it. All right, let's practice by placing a ? Block. Good job with those ? Blocks. Very...creative.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Keep in mind that there's a limit to how many parts you can place in a course.) Coo..coo. coo coo. (As you can see...parts you recently placed will appear along the Palette for later use.) Coo coo, cooo. (You can quickly check out the parts you placed by running a test.)
Nina: Go ahead and touch the Play button to test your level. If your test didn't go so well, try moving your parts around. To do that, let's touch the Make button to go back to edit mode.
Yamamura: Coo coo coo, coo coo. (After placing parts in edit mode, it's good to quickly test to make sure they're set up right.) Coo coo, coo. (Keep repeating the edit-test process to make your course.)
Nina: Next we'll explain how to erase parts. Press this button to go into erase mode.
Yamamura: Coooo coo. (When in erase mode, simply touch parts to erase them.)
Nina: OK, let's mess around with erase mode for a little while. YOU MONSTER! Those ? Blocks had families! But don't worry-their pain is only temporary. Because we have Undodog on our side! Just hit the button, and this good boy will undo the last action you made. Now then, let's just go ahead and undo our last...action. YAY! The ? Blocks that you brutally erased are back! You're a hero! (Kind of...). Moving right along... Let's talk about some other tools that'll come in handy. Press / to activate multigrab and copy.
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (This enables you to move many parts at once and copy parts that you've placed.)
Nina: And now for something incredibly handy... The Reset Rocket! Press and hold this button to instantly destroy the world.
Yamamura: Coo coo. (To be clear, it will erase all of the parts from your course so you can start fresh.) Coo coo. (Let's move somewhere with a lot of parts so we can test it out.)
Nina: OK, go ahead and hold down the ignition button. Congratulations. You ruined everything.
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Well then, I guess that's all for the basics of Course Maker.)
Nina: Oh! But first I should probably tell you how to save. Press this button to save or load levels that you've made. "Save early, save often," I always say. Welp...That's it for the basics of Course Maker!
Beginner
Intro to Making
Yamamura: Coo, coo coooo. (Before we start making courses. I should probably explain what a "course" is.)
Nina: Courses? Where I'm from we call 'em levels!
Yamamura: coo, COO, coo... (Last time I checked, this was YAMAMURA's Dojo. We call them courses here...) Coo... Coo cucoo. (Ahem... A course is the space that Mario travels across from the starting point all the way to the goal.) Coo coo coo, coo, Coo. (On his way to the goal, he'll likely encounter various obstacles and enemies. Let's take a look.) Coo coo. (Courses always begin from the starting point.) Coo coo. (From here, Mario will head toward the goal.) Coo coo coo, coo. (If he can make it all the way to the goal, he'll clear the course.) Coo coo. (In short, the course is everything between the start point and the goal.) Coo coo, coo. That's a basic overview of courses, though I'm sure it's old news to anyone who's played a Mario game before.)
Nina: Have fun making levels!
Workflow Basics
Yamamura: Coo coo. (If you haven't played Super Mario Maker before, you might not know the first thing about making a course.) Coo. (So we are going to show you how.)
Nina: Wait... We're gonna make an entire level? Like...right now?
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Yes. We are going to create a simple course.)
Nina: Aww yeah! Take it away, Kawamura!
Yamamura: COO! Coo coo? (MY NAME IS YAMAMURA! All right, let's start with some terrain, shall we?) Cooo coo. (Next, we'll make some platforms that force Mario to jump.) Coo, coo. (OK, Nina. Please test the course of me.)
Nina: Easy peasy!
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Indeed. Now I'll go ahead and build until the goal.)
Nina: You have a lot of Ground in there. Hoe about an enemy or two to spice things up?
Yamamura: Coo. (Good idea, human. I'll add some Goombas and Koopa Troopas.) Coo. Coo. (OK, give it a shot, Nina.)
Nina: Nice. It was definitely harder than the first half.
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo. (Most enemies move, which forces the player to have good timing.) Coo coo. (When making a course, think about how you want the player to feel during each moment.)
Nina: Placing and erasing parts is a snap, so unleash your inner mad scientist!
On Inspiration
Nina: Sometimes making a level can feel overwhelming because there are just so many options!
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo. (In times like that, it helps to have some kind of inspiration for the course you're making.) Coo, coo. (So let's talk about different sources of inspiration.) Coo, coo coo. (The area you see here is a simple series of platforms for Mario to jump on.) Cooo coo? (So what can we do to make this area more exciting?)
Nina: Ooh! Place an enemy on the highest platform! Then maybe the enemy will drop down to challenge Mario.
Yamamura: Coo. (Very well. Let's try putting an enemy there.) Coo coo, coo. (The single Goomba made this area slightly more challenging.)
Nina: Pshh. One Goomba? Wake me up when there's a real challenge.
Yamamura: Coo, coo? (You want more enemies, do you?) Coo, coo. (There you go, Nina.)
Nina: You're one sick bird...
Yamamura: Coo, coo cooo. (There's a lesson to be learned here. You must strive for balance in all things.) Cooo, coo coo. (As you may guessed, I used stairs as my inspiration for this area.) Coo coo. (Now we'll change areas and look at another source of inspiration.)
Nina: Whoa! It looks like a house!
Yamamura: Coo cooo, coo. (Yes, Mimicking the shapes of objects can be a great source of inspiration.) Coo coo coo. (Recognizable objects allow you to establish a theme and give your course a story.)
Nina: Yeah, like what if this house was turned into an enemy hideout?!
Yamamura: Coo. (A fine idea.) Coo, coo coo. (To make this feel like an enemy hideout, I added a variety of enemies and obstacles.) coo, coo coo. (As you can see, thinking about the story you want your course to tell makes it feel much more inspired.) Coo, coo? (This area looks much more unique than an area that's nothing but Ground, don't you think?)
Nina: Yeah, all of the Pipes here make this area look awesome!
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Up until now, we've been talking about using inspiration to shape the terrain.) Coo. (But you can also develop a theme for your course by using primarily one type of object or enemy.)
Nina: In other words, instead of throwing a disconnected jumble of parts into your level, try using a few parts you like in creative ways!
Yamamura: Coo. coo. (Exactly. There are no rules to making a course, but try to put thought into which parts you're using.)
Fixing Mistakes
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Sometimes when you're testing a course, you'll notice something that isn't quite right.)
Nina: Yeah, like ALL the time. But I always fix it right away!
Yamamura: Coo coo. (So let's talk about ways to fix mistakes.) Coo, coo. (First, please play through this area, Nina)
Nina: I'm all over it. HEY! The dash button on this controller is busted! There's no way I can make that jump!
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo. (Yes, I sabotaged your controller for demonstration purposes. This gap is too wide for you to jump over. Coo, coo, coo? (So how do you think we can fix this problem, Nina?)
Nina: Uh... You could start by buying me a new controller!
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. (Or we could just make the gap smaller.) Coo coo. (Testing each section and fixing it as you go is a good way to improve your course.) Cooo. (When you come across a problem in your course, try fixing it in multiple ways to find a fun solution.)
Nina: Yeah, I still think fixing my controller is the best solution. Seriously, I just bought this thing.
Yamamura: Coo. Coo. (Indeed. Every problem has multiple solutions.)
Testing
Nina: OK, there's a path to the goal now. That means our level is finished, right?
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo? (Not quite. Have you played it from the very beginning?)
Nina: Huh? I guess not. Give it a shot, Yamazaki!
Yamamura: Coo...coo, coo coo. (For the last time, my name is Yamamura.)
Nina: So far so good. AHHHHHHH! Someone call a plumber!
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (I see we made a mistake when building the course.)
Nina: Lemme fix this... Phew... Much better.
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo? (What is this about, Nina?)
Nina: Oh that? Just a little, uh, visual flair. WOAH! I didn't realize that could be an alternate path!
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo, coo. (Sometimes players will do things you don't anticipate.) Coo coo, coo. (When you;re testing your course, try to get into the mind of the player and find alternate routes.) Coo, coo coo coo. (It's best to know all of the ways your course can be played so you can shape your vision.)
Nina: I was so focused on making the top path, that I didn't realize players could take the bottom path.
Yamamura: Coo cooo coo! (It happens to the best of us. And I actually found the bottom path to be more exciting!) Coo, coo, coo coo. (It just goes to show when you think you're done with your course, try playing it from the beginning with fresh eyes.)
Using Parts: Terrain
Yamamura: Coo, cooo. (In this lesson, we'll be talking about Terrain parts.) Coo. Coo coo. (Lets start with Ground, which is generally used as a foundation to walk on or for making walls.) Coo. (Let's see it in action.) Coo, coo coo. (Placing terrain like so creates platforms that Mario has to jump on.)
Nina: But there's no rule saying that Ground tiles have to be placed on the ground. You can also place them in the air to make floating islands!
Yamamura: Coo cooo. (Next, let's look at Bridges, Semisolid Platforms, and Mushroom Platforms.) Coo, cooo, coo cooo. (These parts are interesting because Mario can jump through them from below to get on them, but he can't get through them from above.) Coo. (Also, let me show you something.) Coo, cooo? (Nina, do you think you can get these four Coins?)
Nina: The ones in the middle? Easy peasy! Noooo! The walls are too high. I can't get out!
Yamamura: Coo... Coo coo. (Heh heh heh... Remember to keep in mind how high Mario can jump when designing your course.)
Using Parts: Blocks
Yamamura: Coo coo. (The Brick Block and ? Block parts are some of the most versatile and iconic tools in your Maker toolbox.)
Nina: Mario can walk on Brick Blocks and ? Blocks, meaning you can use them as midair platforms.
Yamamura: Coo. (Let's try walking on some Brick Blocks.) Cooo. (Next, I'm going to place some ? Blocks.) Coo cooo. (You can put various parts inside of a ? Block.) Cooo, coo. (Whatever you've placed inside the ? Block will pop out when Mario hits it.)
Nina: Oh, yeah! Let's stuff some parts in these ? Blocks. Let's go, Super Mushroom!
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Ah yes. That's a power-up item.)
Nina: Trampoline time, bay-bee!
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Yes, you can put certain Gizmos in them too.)
Nina: And I'll stick a Goomba in here!
Yamamura: Coo, coo, co- (OK, that's an odd choice, but-)
Nina: Last but not least, a Green Koopa Troopa!
Yamamura: Coo coo... Coo. Coo coo. (I'm getting too old for this.. Go ahead and play it. Nina.)
Nina: Try and stop me! ...Huh, it's kind of annoying when enemies come out of ? Blocks.
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (When a player hits a ? Block, they expect to find something good inside.) Coo cooo coo. Coo, coo. (I recommend you avoid putting enemies in them, unless you can think of a fun reason to do so.) Coo. (Finally, we'll cover the Brick Blocks.) Coo coo. (Mario can break Brick Blocks by hitting them while he's powered up.)
Nina: That's right! Small Mario can't break those suckers!
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Let's see what this means in practice.) Cooo, coo coo. (If you break a ledge made of Brick Blocks, you may not be able to clear the course. Think about that when designing.) Coo coo coooo. (Try to avoid creating situations where the player has no option but to restart if they break a Brick Block.)
Using Parts: Enemies
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Now I'll teach you about Goombas and Koopa Troopas.)
Nina: You probably already know this, but enemies like Goombas and Koopa Troopas will hurt Mario if they run into him!
Yamamura: Cooo. Coo, coo. (Let's observe a wild Goomba in its natural habitat.)
Nina: The Goomba isn't exactly a genius. It keeps moving forward when it reaches the edge of a platform, only turning around when it bumps into a wall.
Yamamura: Coo coo. Coo. (You can defeat a Goomba by stepping on it from above. Like so.) Coo coo. (Next we'll cover Koopa Troopas.) Coo coo, coo. (Watch the movement of the Green Koopa Troopa and the Red Koopa Troopa)
Nina: The Green Koopa Troopa keeps moving forward when it reaches the edge of a platform, whereas the Red Koopa Troopa turns around when it reaches the edge.
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo. (Jumping on the Green Koopa Troopa or the Red Koopa Troopa from above will turn it into a shell and cause it to stop moving.) Coo coo, coo. Coo. (But if you leave them there for a while, they'll pop back out of their shell and start moving again.) Coo coo. (Mario can kick a Koopa Shell by bumping into it from the side.) Coo coo. (It's also a good idea to think about terrains that allows players to use Koopa Shells effectively.)
Nina: I wonder why the green ones and the red ones move differently... Do you think it's cultural or biological?
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. Cucoo. (Biological. They're just programmed to move that way. Anyway, there are many other types of enemies as well.) Coo cooo coo coo. (Knowing the characteristics of each enemy type is important when placing them in your course.) Coo, coo coo. (Enemies can create difficulty spikes in your course, so don't go overboard with them.)
Nina: Treat enemies like truffle salt. A little bit goes a long way!
Using Parts: Gizmos
Yamamura: Coo coo. (In this lesson, we'll be talking about Gizmos.)
Nina: Gizmos are handy for lots of things, including moving Mario around the level.
Yamamura: Coo. (We'll start with Lifts.) Coo coo. (let's look at the Lifts in action.)
Nina: The moving Lifts let you cross wide gaps and reach high places!
Yamamura: Coo coo. Coo. (Next, we'll cover the Trampoline. Take a look.)
Nina: The Trampoline is a great way to let Mario reach high places.
Yamamura: Coo coo, cooo coo. (Player actions can be different depending on the Game Style. There are some Game Styles that allow players to carry Trampolines.) Coo coo. (You can also adjust the size and movement direction of many Gizmos.) Coo. (The Fire Bar is one such Gizmo.) Coo coo coo. (Now I'm going to adjust the length and direction of the Fire Bar rotation.)
Nina: Changing the Fire Bar length and direction can really affect the difficulty of getting past it!
Super Mushrooms
Yamamura: Coo. (In this lesson, we'll talk about the Super Mushrooms.)
Nina: If Small Mario munches on one of these, he can power up into Super Mario!
Yamamura: Coo. (Let's go get a Super Mushroom.) Coo coo, coo. (Small Mario turned into Super Mario and broke the Brick Block, allowing him to advance through the course.)
Nina: Uh, are you sure it's cool to just leave power-ups lying on the ground like that? Doesn't seem very...sanitary.
Yamamura Coo. Coo coo coo. (Good point. Power-up items should probably be put into ? Blocks to make them feel special.) Coo, coo coo. (With that in mind, I'll put the Super Mushroom in the ? Block.) Coo, coo. (All right, Nina. Give this a try.)
Nina: Mama's feelin' hungry for a Super Mushroom!
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo. (Finally, there's one last thing I'd like you to keep in mind.) Coo, coo cooo coo. (OK, Nina-transform into Super Mario and try to get all the Coins in the next area.)
Nina: You don't have to ask me twice! ACK! I turned back into Small Mario, so I couldn't break the Brick Block! And this stinkin' wall is too high for me to go back, so now I'm stuck FOREVERRRRRR!
Yamamura: Coo cooooo. (Nina's agony, while entertaining, is precisely why it's important to avoid creating areas that trap players.)
Coins
Yamamura: Coo. (In this lesson, we'll discuss Coins.) Coo, coo. (Players are naturally drawn toward Coins.) Coo, cucoo. (When creating your course, don't hesitate to exploit the insatiable greed inherent in all human beings.)
Nina: Uh... What?
Yamamura: Coo coo. Coo. Coo cucoo! (I can't really blame you. Without Coins, I couldn't purchase my delicious edamame!) Coo, coo coo. (let's just go ahead and place some Coins.) Coo cooooo, coo. (I placed them strategically to lure Mario toward places I want him to jump to.) Coo, coo. (Nina, play this are and...just do what comes naturally.)
Nina: Wh-where am I? I remember seeing those shiny, beautiful Coins, and next thing I knew, I got Mario to the end!
Yamamura: Coo? Coo coo? (Why do you think that is? Because your Mario skills are second to none?)
Nina: Hmm... No, I just like shiny stuff.
Yamamura: Coo... Coo. (Humans... Now I'll introduce another way to place Coins.) Cooo coo. (First, I'll put a cache of Coins to lure the player where I want them to go.) Co- (This will caus-) Coo! (I wasn't done explaining!)
Nina: Huh?! Where am I?! I saw all of those Coins and just kinda...blacked out. Why did you put all of those beautiful Coins there?
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo coo? (When you see this many Coins lying around, you immediately want to pick them up, don't you?) Coo coo coo coo. (I placed these Coins here to give the player a sense of satisfaction.)
Nina: Wow, Coins are more powerful than I thought...
Yamamura: Coo. (Coins are powerful indeed, but you must use that power responsibly.) Coo, coo... (If you place too many Coins in your course, they'll lose their power. You know, inflation and all that...) Coo, coo, coo. (You should make the player work to get Coins. Humans want that which they cannot have, after all.)
Tracks
Yamamura: Coo. (When you want parts to move around your course, you use Tracks.)
Nina: Ooh! I love Tracks! They're used to move stuff!
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. (I just said that. Let's begin by placing some Tracks.) Coo coo. (You can extend a Track by sliding in the direction that you want it to go.)
Nina: But you can't cross two Tracks over each other, so don't get any big ideas! Mr. Y, what kinds of parts can be placed on Tracks?
Yamamura: Coo. Coo cooo coo. (I'd say most parts can be put on Tracks. Through there are some terrain and Gizmo parts that can't.) Coo coo... (Let's see here...) Coo. (As you can see, I just put a Lift on the Track.)
Nina: Wait... So I can put almost anything on a track? SO MANY POSSIBILITIES!
Yamamura: Coo, coo, coo. (Yes, tracks open up all kinds of gameplay options. Like making vehicles to transport players.) Coo. (Let's see it in action.)
Nina: Ooh! I bet that would be more fun if you had to avoid enemies while you were grabbing the Coins!
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Perhaps. It all depends on how you want to make the player feel.) Coo coo. (here I added a Grinder and created an area full of Coins.) Coo, coo. (Give it a go, Nina.)
Nina: On it.
Yamamura: Coo, coo, coo. (Combining Tracks with hazards such as Grinders can force the player to react in interesting ways.)
Nina: Seriously. Even if you dodge the Grinders, it doubles back after it reaches the end of the Track.
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo, coo coo. (On that note, if you erase the end of a Track, the Grinder will fall off when it reaches the end.) Coo. (I'll show you what I mean.) Coo, coo. (You're up, Nina.)
Nina: WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?! Phew... I somehow managed to dodge both of the Grinders, but they almost sliced me to bits!
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (And there you have it. There are many ways to use Tracks to liven up your courses.)
Nina: The more creative you are with Tracks, the more you'll be able to terrorize players!
Themes
Yamamura: Coo coo. (As you place parts in your course, there are many things you'll want to keep in mind.) Coo, coo, coo. (But before we get into that, we're going to have Nina play this course.)
Nina: Uh... OK. WHY DO YOU HATE ME?!
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo coo. (For demonstration purposes. As you can see, this area is just packed full of enemies with no rhyme or reason.) Coo coo coo. (It's obvious that the Maker of this course didn't have a clear vision. They mistook difficulty for challenge.)
Nina: I know what you mean. Sometimes when I'm making a level, I just want to stuff in every idea that pops into my head!
Yamamura: Coo. Coo, coo. (Putting too many ideas in your course is an easy mistake to make. Chaos can be fun, but only if there's purpose behind it.)
Nina: Yeah, whichever bird made this level messed up bad.
Yamamura: ...Coo. Coo cucoo. (...Yes, the course certainly seems to lack a theme.) Coo, coo coo. (If you want to challenge the player, try to pinpoint a specific skill you want them to demonstrate, and use only parts that fit the theme.)
Nina: That's an interesting way of thinking about it.
Yamamura: Coo. (Let's look at another example.) Coo coo. (I used a Goomba theme for this course.) Coo, coo coo, coo. (You can make an entire course based on a single enemy if you want.)
Nina: Try to limit yourself to a few parts and find creative ways to use them!
On Difficulty
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo: coo? (Since the dawn of time, philosophers, game designers, and seat-cushion engineers alike has asked the question: How hard is too hard?) Coo coo. (Everyone has their own opinion, but this area here feels fairly difficult to me.)
Nina: That IS a lot of enemies.
Yamamura: Coo. Coo. (If we wanted to make this area easier, we could reduce the number of enemies.) Coo coo. (In 1, I reduced the number of Goombas.) Coo coo. (In 2, I changed the Spinies into Goombas, which can be squashed from above.) Coo coo. (Then, in 3, I increased the space between the Goombas.) Coo, coo coo coo. (Changing the number and layout of enemies made this area easier.)
Nina: But don't make it too easy! I like a good challenge.
Yamamura: Coo. (I'll now introduce another way to change the difficulty of a course.) Coo, coo. (Nina, if you would.)
Nina: OH COME ON! This controller is busted! I totally jumped off of that Brick Block!
Yamamura: Coo. Coo...coo. (Yes, I'm sure it's the controller's fault. Let's just make this area easier...for the controller) Coo, coo. (You're up, Nina.) Coo coo. (As you can see, Nina was able to make the jump that time.)
Nina: Nailed it. First try.
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo, coo. (Adjusting the size or width of platforms can also change the difficulty. Keep that in mind.)
Asking for Feedback
Yamamura: Coo, coo? (Nina, would you mind playing through this course I'm working on?)
Nina: Anything for you, Yamamara!
Yamamura: ... (...So close. It's Yamamura.) Coo coo? (So what did you think of the course?)
Nina: Let's see... The part where I had to jump across all those tiny platforms was pretty tough.
Yamamura: Coo? (You mean this part?)
Nina: Yeah. If I wasn't a world-class Mario player, I probably wouldn't have made it!
Yamamura: Cooo... (Right... World-class...) Coo coo coo. (I put these platforms close together so players could use small jumps to hop across them.)
Nina: Oh, one more thing. There was a part in the second half where you break the Brick Blocks to advance.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Hold on-I'll move into that spot.)
Nina: If I didn't get the Super Mushroom and jumped up the Semisolid Platform on the right while I was still Small Mario, I would have gotten stuck forever.
Yamamura: Coo! Coo coo. (Good catch! I need to fix that.) Coo coo coo. (This is precisely why it's good to have other people play your course and give you feedback.) Coo coo, coo. (Feedback from other players always make your course better.)
Nina: Yeah, other players will never fail to notice things you didn't see yourself. Everyone has blind spots.
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo, coo. (When you think you're done with a course, as your family or friends to play it and tell you what they think.)
Nina: And be sure to thank them for it! Isn't that right, Tebasaki?
Yamamura: ... (Teba...? Oh, come on!)
Intermediate
Coin Brainstorm
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (In this lesson, we'll discuss how to help Mario get to those Coins in the upper-right corner of the screen.)
Nina: He can't jump that high, so he'll need a platform or something to help him up.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (All right then. Let's make a platform out of a Block.) Coo, coo. (Nina, if you please.)
Nina: Come to mama, my shines!
Yamamura: Coo. Coo? (That was too easy. How about a Lift?)
Nina: Hate to break it to you, but the Lift was just as easy.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (OK, let's try this.)
Nina: Now we're talkin'!
Yamamura: Coo coo... (Or better yet...)
Nina: I had to wall jump to get up there that time!
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (Yes, this method works well if you're making a course for people who are good at controlling Mario.)
Nina: My turn!
Yamamura: Coo! (Impressive!)
Nina: And that's just a few of the ways you can help Mario get up there. Try to think up your own!
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (Brainstorming different ways to get Coins is a good way to come up with new course ideas.)
Checkpoint Flags and You
Yamamura: Coo. (Checkpoint Flags and you: a practical guide.) Coo, coo coo. (If Mario touches a Checkpoint Flag, he can retry from the Checkpoint Flag if he fails the course later on.) Coo coo. (There's a limit of one Checkpoint Flag per course area.)
Nina: It's the worst when you're playing through a super-long level and the Maker didn't place any Checkpoint Flags.
Yamamura: Coo coo, coooo. (Let's talk a bit about the best way to place them.) Coo coo. (Let's say Mario gets defeated after taking out these two Hammer Bros.) Coo. (If that happens, he'll have to try again from the beginning of the course.)
Nina: Aww, man. Then I'd have to go back and fight those Hammer Bros. again.
Yamamura: Coo? Coo coo. (Right? That's why it's a good idea to drop a Checkpoint Flag after a tricky section like this.) Coo coo, coo. (Let me tell you a couple of other tricks for effective Checkpoint Flag placement.) Coo, coo. Coo? (The placement of this Checkpoint Flag could be a bit better. Can you tell me why, Nina?)
Nina: Because restarting from the Checkpoint Flag would put you in the path of an approaching Goomba?
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (That's right. Left like this, the player doesn't have much time to react to the Goomba.) Coo, coo. (Let's chance the terrain a bit to prevent that from happening.)
Nina: Now the Goomba can't reach him, so Mario starts in a safer spot
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. (Another good spot to place the Checkpoint Flag is right BEFORE a difficult challenge.) Coo, coo. (Give it your best shot, Nina.)
Nina: Oh yeah! Nina time! It's not Nina time.
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. (No, it's not. But lucky for you, I put a Checkpoint Flag right before the Fast Lava Lift so you can try again.) Coo coo, coo. (Placing a Checkpoint Flag right before a tough section that's likely to take many tries to complete is a good idea.)
Nina: Like boss fights!
Yamamura: Coo, coo, coo. (Precisely. You may also want to place a power-up near the Checkpoint Flag in situations like that.)
Nina: Yeah, starting off as Small Mario can be rough sometimes.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Learning proper Checkpoint Flag placement will make your courses easier to enjoy.)
Water Level
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo. (You may not know that choosing the Forest Course Theme allows you to change the water level.)
Nina: I knew that, but I haven't really figured out a good way to use it.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Well then. Let's dive right in.)
Nina: Cool! So you can have both platforming gameplay and swimming gameplay in the same level!
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Yes, water allows you to have both kinds of gameplay, but don't overthink it. Let's start with something easy.) Coo, coo. (Give this part a try, Nina.)
Nina: Here we gooo!
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (I tried to create an area that feels like swimming through a lake in a forest.)
Nina: I really like the atmosphere! And I see you pumped up the difficulty by adding some enemies.
Yamamura: Coo... (Correct. Let's continue...) Coo, coo. Coo. (The water-level feature allows you to raise and lower the surface of the water like a wave.) Coo coo, coo. (The Spike Traps at the bottom mean that you can't move forward until the water level rises.)
Nina: And once the water comes up, you can grab those delicious Coins that you can't reach from the ground.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Some enemies change their behavior when submerged in water, so keep that in mind.) Coo, coo. Coo. (And this feature isn't limited to Forests. You can also change the lava level on Castle courses.)
Nina: When you change the Course Theme to Castle, the water automatically turns into boiling hot lava!
Yamamura: Coo, coo? (That's right, Nina. Why don't you demonstrate?)
Nina: My palms are all sweaty! I think I may have short-circuited my controller...
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Yes, forcing the player to stay safe while the lava rises is a great way to make them sweat.)
Nina: There are also enemies that can pop out of the lava to attack Mario. Use a few of those to turn up the heat!
Making Vertical Courses
Yamamura: Coo. (In this lesson, we'll cover vertical courses.)
Nina: I don't know squat about vertical levels, so this one's all you, Yama-senpai.
Yamamura: ...Coo. (...Right.) Coo, coo. (Nina, if you would.)
Nina: Sure thing!
Yamamura: Coo coooo. (As you can see, the player is asked to travel upward in this course.)
Nina: Yeah, it feels like I'm climbing a tall tower!
Yamamura: Coo coooo coo. (Vertical courses are a nice change of pace for players who are used to running left to right.)
Nina: So what should I watch out for when creating vertical levels?
Yamamura: Coo coo. Coo. (I'm glad you asked. Please continue playing.)
Nina: It's raining Goombas!
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo coo. (When Mario jumps toward the top of the screen, the screen will scroll upward.) Coo, coo coo coo. (This means that he may instantly run into enemies that drop from the top of the screen.)
Nina: That's not fair! You can't just drop enemies on Mario's head!
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. (Agreed. Now let's fix this mess.) Coo coo coo. (I changed the height of both the ground and the platform with the Goombas on it.)
Nina: Now you can see the Goombas come down in front of you and dodge them
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo. (By the way, you can't increase the width of vertical courses.)
Nina: And you can only create vertical levels in sub-areas. Give it a shot!
Know Your Gizmos
Nina: Mr. Y, there are so many parts in the Gizmos category. It's kind of overwhelming.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (You're not wrong. It's important to know what each Gizmo can do in order to use it effectively.) Coo, coo. (First, we'll show you some Gizmos that Mario can step on and hit.) Coo, coo. (Please do the honors, Nina.)
Nina: Let's do this...
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (The idea here was to have the player use a P Switch and an ON/OFF Switch to open the path forward.) Coo, coo. (Now let's talk about Gizmos that enable different kinds of movement.) Coo, coo. (Using a Warp Door will let you go to a different location in the same area of the course.)
Nina: For example, you could make a Warp Door lead to a room full of Coins or power-up items.
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo, coo. (Also, if you change a Pipe from the Terrain category into a Warp Pipe, it can take Mario to the course's sub-area.)
Nina: And you can change the Course Theme in the sub-area to give players a change of scenery!
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Combining various Gizmos can add all kinds of gameplay ideas to your course. Give them a try.)
Autoscroll Tips
Nina: Tell the good people about autoscroll, Mr. Y
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Normally, the screen will scroll to match Mario's movement through the course.) Coo, coo. (But if you turn on autoscroll, the screen scrolls automatically regardless of Mario's movement.)
Nina: And the person making the level can decide the direction and speed of that automatic scrolling.
Yamamura: Cooo, coo. (What that means for the player is that they can't let Mario stand in the same spot for too long.) Coo coo. (Autoscroll courses tend to make the player sweat a little bit.) Coo coo. (There are a few things you should keep in mind when crafting an autoscroll course.) Coo, coo. (Give this a try, Nina.)
Nina: Here goes nothin'! GAH! I got sucker punched by that Goomba on the right side of the screen!
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Yes, the Goomba appeared on the screen and ran into Mario almost immediately.) Coo coo, cooo. (The screen won't scroll based on Mario's movement, making some enemies harder to avoid.)
Nina: Can you make it so that doesn't happen?
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. (There's no perfect way to prevent it. Sometimes you just have to have hope that the player has a strong self-preservation instinct.) Coo coo. (That said, there are ways you can warn the player that there's something dangerous ahead.) Coo coo coo. (First, you can adjust the terrain.) Cooo, coo. (I've placed an enemy in a location Mario can't reach, meaning it won't run into him right away.) Coo, coo. (This makes the enemy easier to spot before it gets too close to Mario.) Coo coo. (Here's another trick.) Cooo coo, coo? (If you see Coins about to slip off the screen in an autoscroller, you want to run and grab them, right?) Cooo, coo. (Try to have enemies come on the screen while the player's off grabbing the Coins.)
Nina: Huh? Were there enemies or not? I was blinded and transfixed by the Coooooooins...
Yamamura: ...Coo coo. (...Such simple creatures.)
Mario's Limitations
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Coins and ? Blocks may be used often in courses, but they're sacred and deserve your respect.)
Nina: Whaaa-- What do you mean?
Yamamura: Coo coo. (As a general rule, you shouldn't put them in places that Mario can't reach.) Coo coo. (Let me explain.) Coo, coo, coo. (If you were to go after the four Coins, you'd fall into the hole.) Coo, coo. (But as we've discovered, most humans will go after them anyway.) Coo, coo. (This time, the Coins are placed so high that no matter how you jump, you won't be able to grab them.) Coo coo, coo. (There's a ? Block here, but it's surrounded by ground so you can't hit it.) Coo, coo. (However, the player may be convinced there's a way to hit it and spend their entire day trying.) Coo, coo. (In this case, the ? Block is unreachable no matter how high you jump.)
Nina: OK! I've seen enough! What kind of person puts Coins and ? Blocks in places Mario can't get to?!
Yamamura: Coo--coo. (A person with no moral compass--that's who.) Coo, coo coo. (Though it the player can collect the Coins or hit the ? Blocks through other means, it's OK if Mario can't reach them.)
Nina: I solemnly swear to never abuse Coins and ? Blocks ever again. I'll always put them where Mario can get them!
The Key to Success
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (There are a few things you should be aware of when it comes to placing Keys.) Coo, coo. (Let's get right into it.) Coo coo, coo coo. (The Goomba was holding the Key, so Nina needed to defeat the Goomba to get it.) Coo cooo, coo coo. (But before Nina could stomp on the Goomba, it got stuck under a Grinder, making it unstompable.) Coo coo. (Here's another example.)
Nina: NOOOO! I jumped up on the Semisolid Platform before getting the Key, which doomed me for all eternityyyyy!
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo. (A bit dramatic, but yes. The Key is so close, yet so far.) Coo coo. (Try to avoid this type of thing if you value your reputation as a Maker.) Coo coo. (There's another thing you should be aware of when using a Key and a Key Door together.)
Nina: You should always make sure there are enough Keys to open all the Key Doors!
Yamamura: Coo. (That's right.) Coo, coo coo coo. (I've placed one Key and two Key Doors--one that leads to Coins and another that leads to the goal.) Coo, coo. (If you would, Nina.)
Nina: K.
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo. (You used the only Key to get to the area with the Coins, so you can no longer advance through the course.)
Nina: I didn't know that I needed to save the Key for the other Key Door, but at least I'm rich! CHA-CHING!
Yamamura: Coo. (The moral of the story is to always be aware of how many Keys and Key Doors you've placed in your course.)
Forgiving Player Mistakes
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (Humans are imperfect beings. They're going to make mistakes when playing through your course.) Coo, coo. (When they make mistakes, it's your duty as a Maker to give them a second chance.) Coo coo, coo. (Here I've created a way forward by placing a P Switch that allows the player to change Coins into Blocks.) Coo coo. (Try playing this, Nina.)
Nina: Yeah, Nina's got it! I...uh... I threw the P Switch into a bottomless pit.
Yamamura: Coo. Coo... (Yes. Yes, you did...) Coo, coo coo. (But we can fix this. We can give you a second chance.)
Nina: You made it so the Pipe kept spitting out P Switches. I can throw them in the pit foreverrrrrrrrrr!
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (On second thought, maybe I'll just get rid of the pit altogether.) Coo coo. (But let's move on.) Coo coo. (Nina, if you'd be so kind.)
Nina: Here I goooooo! I was taking my sweet time with the ? Blocks, and the Flimsy Lift left without me.
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Like before, I'll make some changes so you're not left stranded.) Coo coo coo. (I added another Flimsy Lift in case you miss the first one.)
Nina: Now I can savor every last ? Block!
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (You can also solve this problem by not giving the player a platform to get stranded on when they ride the lift.)
Nina: Those are just a couple of ways that players can get stuck in your level. You'll always be good at playing the levels you make, because you know what to do, but you also have to think about it from the perspective of a total newb.
Yamamura: ...Coo, coo coo. (...Right. Offering players a chance to clear your course without having to pause and restart is the fair thing to do.)
Providing Direction
Yamamura: Coo, coo? (Want to give this course a try, Nina?)
Nina: Do I?! Uh... Cool level, dude.
Yamamura: Coo coo. Coo? Coo. (It's a "course," not a "level." And why did you stop playing? There's a platform ahead of you.)
Nina: WHAAAAAT. I couldn't even see it!
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo coo. (The Maker of this course knew there was another platform, but the player can't see it.)
Nina: That sneaky little--
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo coo. (There's no way for a player to know that there's a platform beyond the edge of the screen.) Coo, coo coo. (To avoid this kind of thing, you should always try to put the next step somewhere that's visible.) Coo coo, coo. (This applies to both horizontal and vertical paths, of course.) Coo, coo. (Nina, if you would be so kind.)
Nina: Fine.
Yamamura: Coo coo? (It's a dead end, right?)
Nina: I'm not even sure anymore! EVERYTHING I'VE EVER KNOW IS A LIE!
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo, coo. (If you can't see the platform, all you can do is either go back up or risk dropping down.)
Nina: And if there's no platform down there, I'll fall to my doom!
Yamamura: Coo coo. (That's why you should always give the player a hint about where they should go. It's the fair thing to do,)
The Power of Power-Ups
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Each Game Style has a variety of power-up items.)
Nina: Do you have a favorite power-up, Mr. Y?
Yamamura: Coo, coo, coo coo. (I'm partial to the Propeller Mushroom myself.) Coo coo. (With Propeller Mario, you can reach areas that can't be reached by jumps alone.) Coo, coo. (Nina, please play this.)
Nina: Let's-a go!
Yamamura: Coo coo. (See? The Coins are in a place that you can't reach no matter how much you jump.) Coo, coo coo! (But if I add a Propeller Mushroom, you can power up into Propeller Mario and get those Coins.) Coo, coo. (Give it another try, Nina.) Coo, coo coo coo. (As you can see, giving players a Propeller Mushroom enables them to reach new places.)
Nina: Grabbing all of those Coins at the same time felt AMAZING!
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (Yes, I placed them so you could grab all of them quickly if you used Propeller Mario's flying ability.)
Nina: Man, Coins are just the best. They're just so shiny and beautiful and they taste like--
Yamamura: Coo. (Let's move on quickly.) Coo coo. (Some power-up items allow Mario to attack enemies in new ways.) Coo, coo. (Here, I placed a Fire Flower and a Super Star.)
Nina: MuAHaHAhaHa! COWER BEFORE MY MIGHT, FOUL BEASTS!
Yamamura: Coo, coo, coo. (Of course, if you give the player too many power-ups, it may go to their heads.)
Nina: Yeah, it's no fun being the most powerful being in existence. I yearn to be challenged!
Yamamura: Coo, coo coo coo. (Power-ups change the way players act. You'll need to account for them as you design your course.)
All about Timing
Nina: This lesson is about timing, right, Yamamura?
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo. (Yes. As Mario jumps over enemies and objects, he'll often need to time his jumps to stay safe.) Coo, coo (Let me show you what I mean.) Coo, coo. (Give this a try, Nina.)
Nina: Yokay. I had to wait for the Lava Bubbles to drop back down before moving forward.
Yamamura: Coo coo, coo. (I made it more difficult by placing multiple Lava Bubbles that jump to different heights.) Coo coo. (Now I'll show you an example of timing with a Lift.) Coo, coo. (Please play through this part, Nina.)
Nina: You really need to time your jumps when jumping between the Lifts!
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (And I placed both Spike Traps and a Grinder to get in your way.)
Nina: It makes you pay attention to both the Lifts AND the Grinder.
Yamamura: Coo, coo, coo. (Timing is everything when it comes to jumping to or avoiding moving objects.) Coo, coo. (Finally, here's an example of some well-timed jumps off of Goombas.) Coo, coo. (You know what to do, Nina.) Coo, coo coo coo. (Here, I required the player to stomp on the Goombas coming out of the Pipe to get up to the platform.)
Nina: Trying to get the timing right really makes you concentrate!
Yamamura: Coo coo. Coo. (Giving the player timing-related challenges like this can create tension. Use it to your advantage.)
Creating Enticing Directions
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (In this lesson, we'll cover how to draw attention to areas of interest in your courses.) Coo. Coo, coo? (Do you see those Coins up there, Nina? They look shiny, don't they?)
Nina: Cooooooins... Wait, NO. Stay strong, Nina.
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Perhaps I'll just...sweeten the pot.) Coo, coo, coo. (I've added a ? Block. Let's watch and see how Nina reacts.)
Nina: Coins AND a ? Block?! I MUST HAVE THEM!
Yamamura: Coo, coo, coo. (Placing a ? Block in a spot like this turns this platform into a destination.) Coo coo. (Now let's take a look at this next area.) Coo coo? (There are two different paths of equal width. Which one do you think you'd take?)
Nina: They both look the same to me, so I'd probably just pick one randomly.
Yamamura: Coo coo? (But what if they looked like this?)
Nina: Now it seems like the narrow path might be hiding something.
Yamamura: Coo, coo... (When making two branching paths, we tend to make them both the same size...) Coo coo, coo, coo. (But with different widths, the player will choose the one that catches their eye instead of choosing randomly.) Coo, coo... (Last but not least...) Coo. (Tell me what you see here.)
Nina: Well... I want to climb up to the Cloud Blocks that go up to the right. I'm also curious about the Hidden Blocks hiding in those little holes.
Yamamura: Coo coo. (Good. I created those features to draw the player's interest.) Coo, coo... (You can place all sorts of enemies and object on your way to the goal...) Coo, coo... (But by creating little spots to make players curious, you can get them to explore a variety of paths...) Coo, coo. (That keeps your courses from becoming linear journeys from point A to point B.)
Nina: Hey, Yamamura... If I went to check out the hole down to the left, would I be able to get back?
Yamamura: Coo! Coo... (Good catch! I'll need to fix that...)
On Atmosphere
Yamamura: Coo coo. (The gameplay of your course is important, but the look of your course also impacts the player experience.)
Nina: You can say that again. Sometimes the atmosphere of a level is the most important part!
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. (Courses. They are called courses.) Coo coo coo. (You'll notice I just turned the Blocks into Ground.) Coo coo. (However, the size and location of the platforms that Mario can stand on haven't changed.) Coo, coo. (Please play this section, Nina.)
Nina: Oh yeah! Nina time! Now they look like sturdy, natural platforms in a valley instead of platforms floating in the air!
Yamamura: Coo cooo. (Here's another way to change the atmosphere.) Coo, coo. (Nina, try playing it again.) Coo coo. (I used the Tracks as decorations to make the platforms look like they're unstable.) Coo, coo. (Again, the size and positioning of the platforms haven't changed.)
Nina: It definitely makes them look sketchy. Like they're just being held up by some flimsy rails.
Yamamura: Coo. (Let's move on.) Coo? (Does this look like a tunnel to you?)
Nina: A...tunnel? Not really.
Yamamura: Coo...coo coo. (Well then. Let's change that.) Coo cooo coo. (The Semisolid Platform can be used decoratively to give an area more atmosphere.)
Nina: This looks waaaay better. It feels like a real place now.
Yamamura: Coo, coo. (OK, one last atmosphere example.) Coo coo. (I changed some of the Ground into Bridges.) Coo, coo. (The size and position of the platforms haven't changed.)
Nina: Now it feels like a man-made tunnel instead of a natural cave!
Yamamura: Cooo coo coo. (These are just a few ways that you can change the atmosphere of your course by replacing parts.)
Treating the Player Fairly
Nina: Treating the player fairly? What does that mean?
Yamamura: Coo. Coo coo. (Allow me to show you.) Coo, coo. (Please play my course, Nina.)
Nina: Uh... OK. WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS?!
Yamamura: Coo coo? Coo coo, coo. (That wasn't very fair, was it? Cheap shots and surprise attacks are almost never fun.)
Nina: I didn't even have time dodge it! I'm done with this level.
Yamamura: Coo. Cucooo. (Hold on, now. Let me make it up to you.) Coo, coo. (Please try this, Nina.)
Nina: Whatever. RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGHGHABRHGAAH!
Yamamura: Coo! Coooo coo! (Haha! I put a Hidden Block here...knowing that you'd hit it...and fall to your doom!) COO! Coohoohoo! Coo... Coo. (BAAAAHAHA! Eeeeeehehehe! Hoooooooo, man. Ahem... But seriously. That's not cool.)
Nina: SO NOT COOL! It might have been funny to you, but it wasn't to me!
Yamamura: Coo coo coo. (As you can see, cheap shots don't make players feel good. Nina failed through not fault of her own.) Coo coo coo, coo. (Providing a solid challenge is great, as long as you're fair about it. This is the most important lesson of all.) Coo coo, coo coo. (Think about the way your course makes players feel. Your reputation as a Maker depends on it.)
Nina: Remember: no one likes a troll.
Advanced
This section is under construction. Therefore, please excuse its informal appearance while it is being worked on. We hope to have it completed as soon as possible.
