Music used: • Видео
Oh man, where do I even start with this one? I've had this level on my radar for about a year now, when I was first watching clear vids for some of the highest rated Team Precision levels. Back then, it wasn't something I thought I was ever going to try clearing, I was just curious to check out what the hardest levels were.
As I started to really enjoy blue platform levels, I thought I could go for Sanctum at some point, once I really got my skills up, to cap off my journey. I've now played most of the team's solo blue platform levels, and all of them rated at a 9 or higher, so I prepared extensively for this, pushing my own limits on multiple occasions. Mr.Green, the second hardest blue plat level in TP, was a huge struggle for me, but after I beat it I knew I was going to be as ready as I'd ever be.
Now, about the level itself, Sapphire Sanctum is genuinely a masterpiece and one of the most satisfying levels I have ever played. The learning experience was similar to Mr.Green in that every jump has to be planned out and choreographed to get the necessary consistency. The level, for me, is the perfect length to make it so you have to be consistent, but it doesn't feel like each far attempt lasts too long. And there are just so many jumps in this level that feel amazing to pull off. There's obviously the recatches which feel great, but a lot of jumps require slowing down or turning around at the perfect time, and managing momentum is one of the most fun aspects of blue plat levels for me.
A bit over halfway through the level, there's a jump which I called on stream "The ONLY Hard Jump". Obviously that's a joke, but that is a beast of a jump and definitely the hardest in the level. It's unforgiving in that there's SO much you have to get right to pull it off. You need to jump off the platform immediately so you can be low enough to land on it again. You need to get the perfect height so you have room to do a proper turnaround. And the hardest part is getting your position to be correct. If you don't approach the jump correctly by landing on the platform at the perfect spot, you're already dead. Then you have to hold left at the perfect time to just barely scrape around the spike wall. That's so many aspects to get right, and I gave it that name when I was still really struggling with it. Like the rest of the level, though, it can actually get more consistent with practice. By the time I was on my final stream with the level, I was hitting it nearly half the time. Is it a choke point, and does that make it unbalanced? I mean, sure. But I think it's fine, and I wouldn't change a thing about the level. It's one of the most satisfying jumps I've ever done, and it feels fair despite being hard. And every attempt that gets past it instantly feels real.
The nai of this level is also quite hard. For those who don't know, the nai of an SMM2 level is the last jump, and Zoren did not hold back on this one. You need to squeeze into a one block spike gap to grab the flagpole, which already sounds hard enough, but with how things are lined up, you are forced to go as high as possible and jump as late as possible to just barely make it in. I had about 50% consistency with this jump, and I was very happy that I didn't die there in the full level. I did die too many times late in the level though before seeing the nai, so the "luck" probably evens out.
The difficulty of this level makes it hard to recommend, and for something like this, how much fun it is will be heavily player-dependent for what you like and what skills you're practiced at. But for me, even with how hard it is, my enjoyment of this level was a 10/10. Playing this on stream was one of the best experiences I've had with SMM2.
TP Difficulty: 11
Hours Spent: 15-16
Some dedications for this clear:
/ blazerb101 - Told me to win when he went to sleep, and encouraged me throughout this whole grind
/ fred_5_1 - The person who introduced me to Team Precision in the first place, and also raided me on the stream I beat the level. It's crazy now to think that I might not even be a precision player if I didn't find his community. Fred also made some of the first hard blue platform levels I was able to clear, so he was a big inspiration for starting the eventual climb up to Sanctum.
/ pokeninjaswag - A legendary precision player and one of the nicest people I have met playing SMM2. He's been on a similar journey playing blue platform levels, and I wish him the best of luck and no nais playing Sanctum!
/ @zoren364 Zoren, for making this absolute BANGER of a level
Too many other people to thank for consistently supporting me. Just know that if your name isn't listed here and you've known me in the community, I really appreciate you :)
Believe in yourself, and you can do what you never thought possible
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