Platformer Rough Design

When thinking of what type of themes/mechanics I wanted to implement into my level, I remembered how much I enjoy Mario platformer games and themes. One of my favorite game mechanics from when I played Mario Galaxy 2 (although this was probably implemented in a previous title) was the red and blue platforms that would change when the player jumped. And I wanted to pair this with the aesthetics of a level similar of Toad's Factory from Mario Kart Wii.

And so my graph paper version was built with these inspirations in mind:

The main difference being that Red and Blue platforms no longer work in a 3D space like in Mario Galaxy 2, but are rather used as both platforms and obstacles that block your way.  These platforms would also interact with other obstacles, allowing the player to block certain obstacles like the "Thwomps" or make a path for the Rolling Rock so it can make a place for the player to jump from.

And although I liked this version, I found two issues - The rolling rock would fall with the placement it has now (being held by a changing platform) and the rolling rock doesn't really fit the aesthetics of a factory so when I did my illustrator version I fixed the minor changes.

 I also decided that having a more temple-like theme might fit better - having a brown and red color scheme inside, and when you leave the temple/cave at the end it would be a much more refreshing green/blue color scheme. I also drew inspirations from some concepts from the upcoming Yooka Laylee. 

I feel much more confident about this design, however I look forward to critic and seeing how I could improve the design even further.