Super Leap Day

From The Nitrome Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Super Leap Day
Super Leap Day Aqua Update icon.png
Developer
No. of players
1
Genre
  • Platform
Series
Leap Day series
Released
Apple Arcade Apple Arcade
6 August 2021

Super Leap Day is a platforming game released on August 6th, 2021[1], on Apple Arcade for iPhone, iPod Touch, Mac, and Apple TV. It is a sequel to Leap Day and like that game features a daily level.

Controls[edit | edit source]

Super Leap Day is played by tapping or tapping and holding on a touchscreen. The game is also controller compatible.

Touchscreen[edit | edit source]

  • Gesture Tap.png Tap - Jump
  • Gesture Hold.png Tap and hold - Activate a contestant's special ability (where applicable)

Gameplay[edit | edit source]

In Super Leap Day, the player plays as a Contestant and is tasked with reaching the Gold Cup at the end of the level. The Contestant automatically moves and can jump, wall slide, and wall jump. The game's main feature is that it features a new level each day. Each level consists of vertically oriented and sidescrolling level segments and has a specific theme that influences some of the game components that can appear. Fifteen checkpoints are present in each level, which are activated by touching the checkpoint flag. Once activated, the Contestant will respawn there when they die. Trophies are present at five-checkpoint intervals.

  • A Bronze Cup is present at checkpoint 10.
  • A Silver Cup is present at checkpoint 5.
  • A Gold Cup is present at checkpoint 1.
  • Collecting at least 80% fruit in the level will grant the player a Fruit Cup and earn a Fruit Cup sticker on the calendar.

Each level also has a "Tomorrow on Leap Day" room that shows what the theme for the following day will be. Prior to Version 1.8, the game also had a "coming soon room" that showed content that was planned to be added to the game. If the player dies a certain amount of times at any point in the level, the Referee will appear and help the player.

Like the original, levels are constructed by using a seed created based on the game's date, which then determines what game components to use for the level[2]. An overview of how levels were constructed in Leap Day can be seen on the Leap Day article.

In addition to its main mode, Super Leap Day also has a local multiplayer mode where two players race to the end of a level. This mode can be played between devices on iPhone and iPad and on the same screen on Mac and Apple TV.

Bonus games[edit | edit source]

Bonus games can be purchased in the shop. After at least one bonus game is obtained, two games-lifts will start appearing in levels, spaced out at two different checkpoints. Winning a bonus game's level allows the player to spin a prize wheel to obtain a power-up or coin. Unlocked bonus games can also be accessed in the arcade for 10 Super Leap Day - Coin.png per play, but they do not provide the player with any prizes.

Every bonus game has a total of twenty levels, with five levels in each of the four difficulty sets (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced and Expert). Levels can be completed in any order within a difficulty set and once a set is completed, the player will earn an achievement and the next difficulty set will become available to purchase in the shop.

If the player loses a level in a bonus game accessed through a games-lift, they will be given the option to pay 10 fruits to retry the level, provided they have enough fruits in their inventory. Fruits used to re-attempt a bonus game do not deplete from the player's overall fruit collection count in the main level.

  • Golf Day - Hit a ball across sidescrolling levels.
  • Pinball Day - Navigate a pinball across pinball boards.
  • Fishing Day - Direct a fishing line underwater.
  • Rolling Day - Manipulate obstacles and interactive objects to navigate a ball through levels.
  • Abseiling Day - Descend vertical levels on a rope.
  • Racing Day - Navigate a car across sidescrolling levels.

Shop[edit | edit source]

Incomplete section

This section is incomplete. You can help by adding the missing info. (Needed: Other prerequisites, fill in table.)

The game has a shop where new characters, character upgrades, and bonus games can be purchased with accumulated gold coins. The following shop items have prerequisites before they appear in the shop and can be bought:

  • Goop: Level Yolk, Puffer, and Sprout's ability to level 3.
  • Racing Day: Complete all beginner stages of a minigame.
Item Cost Effect
Yolk level 2 25 Yolk can stop moving.
Yolk level 3 100 Yolk can lay an egg that acts as a respawn.
Yolk level 4 500
Puffer 5
Puffer level 2 50 Puffer gains an extra jump.
Puffer level 3 100 Puffer gains an extra jump
Puffer level 4 200 Puffer gains an extra jump
Sprout 25
Sprout level 2 50 Suck range increases and can suck coins.
Sprout level 3 100 Suck range increases and can suck items within boxes.
Sprout level 4 200 Suck range increases and can suck items within chests.
Goop 100
Goop level 2
Goop level 3
Goop level 4
The X
Donate 100 coins to the King in the shop.
The X level 2 Can respawns at checkpoints.
The X level 3 Can may reappear in place of certain fruit.
The X level 4 Can will not fall off during ground pounds.
Wings power-up Introduces the power-up into levels.
Sword and Shield power-up Introduces the power-up into levels.
Midas Touch power-up 500 Introduces the power-up into levels.
Golf Day beginner 10
Golf Day intermediate 50
Golf Day expert
Pinball Day beginner 50
Pinball Day intermediate
Pinball Day expert
Racing Day beginner 10
Racing Day intermediate
Racing Day expert
Fishing Day beginner 50
Rolling Day beginner 50

Enemies[edit | edit source]

Main article: Enemies (Leap Day series)

Interactive objects[edit | edit source]

Main article: Interactive objects (Leap Day series)

Credits[edit | edit source]

Game director
Game producer
  • Gwilym Hughes
Artwork and animation
Programming
Additional programming
  • Anchit Sharma
Level design
  • Alvaro Farfan
  • Owen Midgette
  • Marco Cifarelli
  • Henny Glaze
Additional levels
Music
Sound design
  • Fat Bard
Produced by
  • Apple

Credits notes[edit | edit source]

  • Mat Annal is credited as "Matthew Annal"
  • Fat Bard is an audio duo consisting of Patrick Crecelius and Zach Fendelman, whose names are credited directly after.
  • The "Special thanks" section includes: "the Nitrome team", "our families and partners for understanding" and "our loyal fanbase".

Announcements[edit | edit source]

2021[edit | edit source]

  • July 6 - Apple Arcade on Twitter announces the game.
  • August 6 - Nitrome announces that the game has been released.
  • August 19 - Nitrome posts about Version 1.1.0 being released.

2022[edit | edit source]

  • January 28 - Nitrome announces that the Aqua Update has been released.
  • March 18 - Nitrome announces that they have released an update for Super Leap Day that adds Rolling Day.
  • April 19 - Nitrome announces that the Treasure Mines has been added to the game.
  • July 13 - Nitrome announces that Abseiling Day has been added to the game.

Trailer[edit | edit source]

Icons[edit | edit source]

Version history[edit | edit source]

Pre-release updates[edit | edit source]

The following updates were released prior to the game's release.

  • 1.0 - The first version of the game. Released on July 6, 2021[3].
  • 1.0.1 - Released on July 24th[3]. Uncertain what was changed.
  • 1.0.3 - Released on August 2nd and was the first public version available[3]. The patch notes are described as "Bug Fixes"[4].

Post-release updates[edit | edit source]

Note: For the linked patched note sources, some pages only list part of the patch notes and the rest can only be seen via use of the inspect element browser tool on the patch note text.

Name Release date Changes Patch notes
1.1.1 August 18, 2021[3]
  • Level creation algorithm was changed to make future levels shorter.
  • Fixed bugs relating to the game crashing on lower-end devices.
  • Fixed a glitch where resetting a day would erase all level completion data for that month.
  • Fixed a glitch where fruit and coin progress was lost upon leaving a level.
  • Chests will not get in the player's way as much[5].
  • Minor adjustments[5].
[30]
1.1.2 August 27[3] Adds save slots, fixes various other small bugs, and makes various minor adjustments. [31]
1.1.3 September 28[6]
  • Fixed a bug pertaining to phone language settings causing a crash.
  • Added "coming soon" room and a room showing the theme for the following day.
  • Character upgrade levels can now be adjusted.
  • Updated Conflict Canyon enemy sight cones to better show what the enemies could see.
  • Other miscellaneous bug fixes and adjustments.
[32]
1.2.1 October 21[7] Referred to as the Power Ups Update in the patch notes.
  • Added videos on where to use bought shop items and videos on how character upgrades worked.
  • Added 3 new Power Ups and Instant Bubbles.
  • The Power Ups system was also updated to allow for clever placement of Power Ups. New level chunks were added to make use of this new feature.
  • Keys could now be found in enemies in relevant level chunks
  • Referee's Power Up now allows the player to fly.
[33]
1.2.2 November 4[8] Fixes a bug in the final level chunk on November 1st where the key to open the gate would not spawn. Makes other undisclosed adjustments and bug fixes. [34]
1.2.3 December 3[9] Various small bug fixes and minor adjustments. [35]
1.3 December 21[10] Adds the Aqua Update[11]. This version of the Aqua Update was accidentally released and was only meant for internal testing[11].
1.3.1 December 22[12] Removes the Aqua Update[11]. [36]
1.3.3 January 28[13] This update is referred to as the Aqua Update.
  • Adds the Sunken Island theme and the Fishing Day bonus game.
  • Changes level creation algorithm for greater level component variety and a more randomized theme order.
  • Adds "What's New" panel.
  • Bug fixes and tweaks.
  • Changes game icon.
[37]
1.3.4 February 3[14] Fixes crashing bug on the Sunken Island theme[15].
1.4 March 23[16]
  • Adds Rolling Day.
  • It appears that this update accidentally released Treasure Mines, which was in an unfinished state, as it was used as the theme for the April 6 level[17].
[38]
1.5 April 7[18]
  • Fixes some bugs and makes small adjustments, according to the patch notes.
  • Causes a glitch where playing a level with any character other than Yolk causes the character to freeze.
[39]
1.5.2 April 13 Makes unspecified bug fixes and adjustments. [40]
1.5.3 April 18 Adds Treasure Mines. [41]
1.6 June 13[19] Adds Abseiling Day. Makes unspecified bug fixes and minor adjustments. [42]
1.7 September 1 Adds multiplayer and the a new trophy room. [43]
1.71 September 7 Unknown.
1.72 September 27[20] Unknown.
1.8 January 12, 2023[21] Adds the Windy Skies theme and removes the "coming soon" room[22]. [44]

Future content[edit | edit source]

Another update with a large amount of content is currently planned as on June 2023[23].

Beta elements[edit | edit source]

The two-headed ostrich that had been created in early mockup art for a potential Leap Day sequel prior to one being considered was later resurrected for Super Leap Day. It was planned for the Rainy Ruins theme but could not be included due to the breadth of game content already in the theme[24].

A police robot enemy who first appeared in mockup art was considered for the game but was not integrated due to Nitrome never getting around to working it into the game[25]. Nitrome did share it was possible they may integrate the enemy in a later update[25]. The mockup art the enemy originates from was created when the game was still in pixel art and Nitrome was considering high definition graphics[26].

Development[edit | edit source]

Prior to a sequel to Leap Day being considered, Mat Annal, one of the original game's artists, created some mockup art for a potential sequel over the Christmas break in late December 2018/early January 2019[27][28]. Development of the game started in 2019[29], and at this point it was not planned for Apple Arcade as this was before the service was announced[30]. The game was officially announced on July 6th, 2021[31] and was released on August 6th[1].

Abseiling Day was developed by Mat Annal and Aaron Steed[32]. The idea for Abseiling Day came from thinking of what more could be done with the rope from Fishing Day[33]. The mini game was nearly cancelled multiple times due to difficulty in getting the right physics[32].

Super Leap Day incorporated several ideas and game components that Nitrome were unable to implement in content updates for the original Leap Day due to its outdated engine[34]. Unlike prior Nitrome games, all of Super Leap Day's art was hand drawn[35], a design change that stemmed from Nitrome wanting to try out other art styles[36]. This game also marked the first use of vector graphics since Chick Flick in 2006.

The engine for Super Leap Day was created before the game went into development, which was some time before January 2019[28].

Dave Cowen, the game's composer, did more music that was not included in the game[37]. Nitrome mentioned that no release on other platforms is planned due to the game's contractual exclusivity with Apple Arcade[38].

Influences[edit | edit source]

  • The game was influenced by the Mario series, along with other video games. Nitrome also theorized that the wall sliding animation was influenced by Super Meat Boy[39].
  • Wall running was reused from Nitrome's cancelled Sonic the Hedgehog game pitch[40]. The idea for minigames also was an idea from that game that was reused, and was based off the Bonus Stages from the Sonic the Hedgehog games[41].
  • Nitrome theorized that the Pinball Day minigame was likely influenced by the Casino World theme from Leap Day[42].
  • Rolling Day was inspired by mechanical ball arcade games from the 1970s and 1980s that involved rolling a ball bearing through a maze[43].
  • The design and game components of Treasure Mines were based on minecart stages from several retro games[44].

Trivia[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Sensor Tower: Super Leap Day, N/A, retrieved 6 Aug 21. (note: App version updates are off by 1 day)
  2. Nitrome on Twitter: [1]: NOBODY: Are levels in Super Leap Day still assembled the same as they were in Leap Day? (seed generated based on date determines what level chunks and theme to use)

    Nitrome: It is not the same algorithm but it the same in that it uses the date as a seed to determine what to use so yes., 11 Sept 21, retrieved 12 Nov 21.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 6 Aug 21 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  4. Archive.is: Super Leap Day, 6 Aug 21, retrieved 6 Aug 21.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Mat Annal on Twitter: [2], 19 Aug 21, retrieved 19 Aug 21.
  6. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 9 Oct 21 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  7. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 23 Oct 21 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  8. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 12 Nov 21 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  9. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 9 Dec 21 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  10. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 24 Dec 21 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 Nitrome on Twitter: [3]: (other tweets: [4], [5]) , 24 Dec 21, retrieved 24 Dec 21.
  12. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 24 Dec 21 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  13. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 29 Jan 22 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  14. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 3 Feb 22 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  15. Nitrome on Twitter: [6]: We have a new update for #SuperLeapDay It should fix the crashes reported for the users who could not access the new Sunken Island theme on the last update., 3 Feb 22, retrieved 3 Feb 22.
  16. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 3 Apr 22 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  17. Nitrome on Twitter: [7]: Oh dear! We are looking into this now to see what went wrong. Ultimately Treasure Mines is not supposed to be there yet and you are playing a non final version., 6 Apr 22, retrieved 6 Apr 22.
  18. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 11 Apr 22 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  19. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 14 Jun 22 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  20. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 17 Dec 22 from the original) (note: App updates are off by one day)
  21. Sensor Tower - Super Leap Day on the Wayback Machine (archived 14 Jan 23 from the original)
  22. Nitrome on Twitter: [8]: [...] We took it [the coming soon room] out on purpose because we grew tired of being asked when the content would come out. We would rather keep any future content under wraps until we either just launch it or announce its coming closer to the actual release., 14 Jan 23, retrieved 14 Jan 23.
  23. Nitrome on Twitter: [9]: A new update is in the works. It’s a big one. Soon though? Not sure on that, 13 Jun 23, retrieved 13 Sept 23.
  24. Nitrome on Twitter: [10]: We considered it for Rainy Ruins but it was so packed with content it didn’t make it., 1 Sept 21, retrieved 2 Sept 21.
  25. 25.0 25.1 25.2 Nitrome on Twitter: [11]: [in response to this tweet] Note that along with some elements that changed significantly there is one big thing there that never made it. We wanted to get the big cop guy in there but never quite got to him….maybe we might come back to him later though., 28 Aug 21, retrieved 25 Jun 22.
  26. 26.0 26.1 Nitrome on Twitter: [12]: These were the first two mock up images we made of Super Leap Day when we considered turning the art HD instead of our usual pixels. Lots of things changed but it looks fairly close to the end result: #superleapday #screenshotsaturday [two images] , 28 Aug 21, retrieved 25 Jun 22.
  27. Mat Annal on Twitter: [13], 2 Jan 19, retrieved 2 Sept 21.
    Mat Annal on Twitter: [14], 6 Jan 19, retrieved 2 Sept 21.
  28. 28.0 28.1 28.2 Nitrome on Twitter: [15]: This was the first pixels drawn imagining [a sequel to Leap Day] way back in June 2019! The actual engine was started even earlier!

    (note: June 2019 was a typo according to the date on this tweet; the intended date was January 2019. The artist also clarifies here that this art was created before a sequel to Leap Day went into development), 1 Sept 21, retrieved 2 Sept 21.
  29. Nitrome on Twitter: [16]: It’s a little hard to say how long it took because it took on various forms over time but started a long time ago. It was worked on more aggressively for two years and by the final year had became one of the biggest teams we have assembled behind a single project…, 19 Jun 22, retrieved 20 Jun 22.
  30. Nitrome on Twitter: [17]: No Apple Arcade didn’t exist when we started making it., 2 Sept 21, retrieved 2 Sept 21.
  31. Apple Arcade on Twitter: [18], 6 Jul 21, retrieved 8 Jul 21.
  32. 32.0 32.1 32.2 Mat Annal on Twitter: [19]: Probably the most fun bonus game we made for this yet! It was a pain getting the physics to feel right but @st33d [Aaron Steed] nailed it in the end…I was ready for us to give up on it after a few failed attempts so full credit to him for sticking with it!, 13 Jun 22, retrieved 17 Jun 22.
  33. Nitrome on Twitter: [20]: [...] We played with rope physics for the Fishing game [Fishing Day] and this [Abseiling Day] was just an idea that developed after thinking what else we could do with the rope., 14 Jun 22, retrieved 17 Jun 22.
  34. Mat Annal on Twitter: [21]: I loved working on this. We crammed in many ideas we wanted to try with the original but couldn’t make fit with the ageing engine., 6 Aug 21, retrieved 8 Mar 22.
  35. Nitrome on Twitter: [22], 20 Aug 21, retrieved 21 Aug 21.
  36. Nitrome on Twitter: [23]: We love pixels but it was more something we fell into rather than consciously deciding to only ever do that. We always were tempted to try something else and this just felt the right opportunity., 20 Aug 21, retrieved 21 Aug 21.
  37. Nitrome on Twitter: [24]: He actually did a lot more music that didn’t make it into the game., 15 Aug 21, retrieved 15 Aug 21.
  38. Nitrome on Twitter: [25]: The game is contractually exclusive to Apple Arcade. It’s not possible to bring it to Android paid or otherwise., 1 Sept 21, retrieved 2 Sept 21.
  39. Nitrome on Twitter: [26]: Mario is obviously a major influence along with other things like maybe Meatboy for the wall sliding., 29 Dec 21, retrieved 29 Dec 21.
  40. Nitrome on Twitter: [27]: Did you ever wonder why we added wall running to #SuperLeapDay? http://apple.co/-SuperLeapDay A long time ago we pitched a #Sonic take on the Leap Day format. Sadly the #SEGA gods did not see the potential. But we did make this demo and we liked the mechanic so decided to keep it., 23 Dec 21, retrieved 28 May 22.
  41. Nitrome on Twitter: [28]: Our plan would have added bonus rounds like the original games and this is another thing we took forward in inspiration on Super Leap Day: [video of Racing Day] , 24 Dec 21, retrieved 28 May 22.
  42. Nitrome on Twitter: [29]: [...] we had a fairly Sonic inspired theme in the original Leap Day so it [Pinball Day] was probably more an extension of this, 27 Dec 21, retrieved 27 Dec 21.
  43. App Store: Super Leap Day on the App Store, 23 Mar 22, retrieved 3 Apr 22.
  44. https://archive.ph/61l7h
  45. Game Developer's Blog - Nitrome: Super Leap Day track in Beat Star!, 10 Apr 22, retrieved 12 Apr 22.