#favorite levels

Fastfood Saloon

Gnome Forest

The Pig City

Here are five video game levels/areas that are memorable to me. The music, creative design, unique atmosphere and intrinsic value are all decisive factors that led to my ultimate choices.

5. Great Deer Yard Hotel

Deadly Premonition: The Director's Cut - (2013)

The Great Deer Yard Hotel is filled with interesting facts about Greenvale and its historical hotel. If you enjoy game aesthetics, you will love Deadly Premonition. All of the main locations (e.g. the Hotel, A&G Diner, Sheriff's Dept, Galaxy of Terror and Muses Gallery) are carefully decorated and should be explored at a slow pace. The Great Hotel was the point in-game where I was wholeheartedly pulled into SWERY's mysterious world. The nods to Lynch and Kubrick in the hotel were pleasing, especially the picture of Snoqualmie Falls in York's hotel room. While inspecting each room, hallway, piece of art and furniture, I enjoyed reading about specific objects and finding a few easter eggs here and there. The meeting with Polly for breakfast is my favorite cutscene. The ridiculously long dining table and the nonchalant behavior/deadpan conversation is hilarious and charming. And...what better way to finish an early morning meal than with a hot, fresh cup of coffee?!

4. Ice Cavern

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D - (2011)

Recently, I have noticed that I enjoy the colder seasons a lot more than the warmer ones. For whatever reason, winter levels intrigue and comfort me (Ando Prime in Star Wars Ep. I Racer, Mountain Village in Majora's Mask). The Ice Cavern is my favorite winter level and one of my favorite game areas of all time. The ice cold soundtrack is what really stands out for me. The shimmering keyboard bells and gusts of wind offer the sensation of arctic serenity. Besides getting the Iron Boots, there isn't much of a need to spend too much time in this mini-dungeon, but I really enjoyed the serendipitous atmosphere and the puzzles that were a part of it. I loved the sliding block puzzle and the incorporation of the Blue Fire. I was in awe of the final room, where you meet with Sheik in order to learn the "Serenade of Water". As the serenade plays, the camera angles sweep to show the stars on the ceiling and also reveal the glistening icicles that surround you. I love the sense of peace and beauty that is offered in this area.

3. School II

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 - (2000)

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 was one of the funnest games to play as a kid. Each new game release seemed to get better and better in some way (up until Project 8). I have some fond memories of Tony Hawk's 1-4. I primarily chose School II to take the number three spot due to the overwhelming sense of nostalgia that I feel for the level. Oftentimes, this was my "free skate" level of choice. Its career goals were nicely implemented/spread out and the secret areas were fun to engage with. In free skate, School II was a fun choice because I could spend a solid amount of time at a specific quadrant in the level, perform more "realistic" tricks (maybe a kickflip back-smith or kickflip back-lip), then move somewhere else and have just as good of a time (the Roll Call Rails and planter ledges were always a blast). It was also cool to skate a few famous skate spots within the level. These spots included the Leap of Faith, the Gonz Rail and the Carlsbad Gap. Watch out for that golf cart! Beep beep, "skate or die, dude"!

2. Clock Town

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D - (2015)

If I could live in a video game world, I would choose to reside in Clock Town. It is a quaint, vibrant, entertaining and cordial place to live. During my first playthrough, I noticed that there is always some "goings-on" in Clock Town. I had fun walking through each building and engaging with the townsfolk. Everyone has their strict schedule, with certain tasks that Link can observe or investigate. I enjoyed following the Postman and Kafei during their daily routines. In addition to the incredibly personalized NPCs, the attention to color and set design are impressive. The Stock Pot Inn seems like a wonderful place to stay. Granny's (Anju's Grandmother's) room is beautifully decorated and the Mayor's Residence in East Clock Town is filled with endearing character. For me, the curved marketplace in West Clock Town is the most memorable area. I've had vivid dreams that take place in something similar to this bazaar strip. The Astral Observatory is one of my favorite locations as well (if it counts as a landmark in Clock Town). What I love about Clock Town, and Majora's Mask in general, is that it has an incredible fall carnival, harvest season atmosphere. There are many games that pull from traditional Halloween themes. In my opinion, MM has more of a unique autumn, crisp air, comfortably spooky art-style. If I were to be a Clock Town resident, I would prefer to be a pumpkin farmer...or a corn grower...and...I'd sell my crops before the moon drops!

1. Angry Aztec

Donkey Kong 64 - (1999)

There is something special about the developer Rare's game design. Banjo Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64 and Conker's Bad Fur Day all have distinctive graphics, campy storylines and collectathon-driven gameplay. In regards to DK64's levels, all of them are quite memorable. Fungi Forest's day and night cycles offer an innovative twist, Gloomy Galleon is an entertaining 3D water level, and Jungle Japes is a great beginner level. When compared to Jungle Japes, Angry Aztec slightly increases the difficulty, offering more challenging puzzles, platforming and enemies. Angry Aztec takes the crown because I felt completely engrossed in the game environment. The copious amount of tasks had me on my toes for hours on end. There were two Kongs to unlock—Tiny Kong and Lanky Kong. There was also a giant dragonfly boss to defeat. The act of forward thinking was firing on all cylinders and the childish fear of being defeated was raised at a fairly high level. Diddy Kong was my favorite character, and I thought that his jetpack challenges were the coolest thing ever. The additional temples were also exciting and filled with creative content. The Arabian-inspired "Angry Aztec" music track, composed by Grant Kirkhope, is absolutely phenomenal and one that I think about and listen to in present times. As a kid, I would often daydream about DK64. During recess, I would talk to one or two of my friends about boss battle strategies, or go over ways in which to progress through a certain level. My friends and I loved this game, which makes it very special in retrospect. Thanks to Grant Kirkhope's spectacular soundtrack and Rare's love and care for the Donkey Kong franchise, I have become a lifelong Donkey Kong 64 fan.

I know it's hard to choose favorite Sonic characters because they're all so cool, but I never had trouble figuring out my favorite levels, so I'll name a few!

Sonic 1: I like how Marble Zone looked even though that lava puzzle haunts me eternally to this day.

Sonic 2: Aquatic Ruin is really fun when I remember to take the upper path and not fall into the water trap.

Story wise Sky Chase is really hard but gives a great sense of danger before the final levels, so now I appreciate it more even though it's a huge pain when you mess up.

Sonic 3 and Knuckles: I'm awful at this game but Hydrocity and Angel Island are my favorite levels. They have really great music tracks and were designed really well from an artistic standpoint! I love how Angel Island gets you pumped for Knuckles trolling you the rest of the game.

Sonic Adventure: Lost World for sure. That Snake is really hard to jump on and off of but it looks so cool!

Knuckles's Speed Highway/At Dawn has a really nice atmosphere even though the police cars are obnoxious- in a fun way!

Sonic Adventure 2: City Escape because I use it to grind for Chaos Drives and money.

Aquatic Mine has amazing music- it's the water levels that use to annoy me but it's a pretty fun mechanic.

Radical Highway: It's so important to the story which is why I love it. You can sense Shadow searching for his purpose and feel his resentment and bitterness towards the world. I also found the NiGHTS references as a hotel building or a casino pretty cute!

Death Chamber: Finding out that Knuckles was afraid of ghosts has always made me laugh lmao.

Dry Lagoon: besides the awesome music it's my favorite treasure hunt stage bar none. It's got an amazing atmosphere that makes me want to sit back and relax on a lounge chair or something.

Mission Street: Amazing music, and it's fun feeing like you're being chased for being Sonic's framed accomplice.

Metal Harbor: the music and alternate paths are so much fun! But getting an A Rank on this stage is ridiculous unless you do those really cool speedrun tricks.

Pyramid Cave: I love how frustrating the timed doors are- plus the bounce bracelet is my favorite Sonic Upgrade that I desperately want back.