YOUR LEVEL SUCKS IS DEAD. LONG LIVE YOUR LEVEL SUCKS.
Because Your Level SUCKS (“YLS”) has transitioned from a show that was written, taped, and edited offline into one that is instead produced live on the air we’ve put together this page summarizing the main points of the show, how (and why) it’s produced the way it is, and what newcomers unfamiliar to the series can expect. This post should answer virtually any questions that new viewers might have about Your Level SUCKS.
Before we address any of the show’s frequently asked questions however, we need to get this out of the way first:
This is ALL a character act. Draco is portraying an exaggerated caricature for comedic effect. Do not take what he or the crew say as literal. Relax.
SUPPORTING YOUR LEVEL SUCKS:
Streamlabs // Patreon
Q. What IS “Your Level SUCKS”?
A. Your Level SUCKS is a comedy show that takes a look at stages submitted to Super Mario Maker through the game’s “100 Mario Challenge” and excessively criticizes them. The series premiered September 13, 2015, two days after the release of the original game on Wii U. YLS was the first of its kind and is Gatorbox’s best-performing series to date. With the release of Super Mario Maker 2 in 2019 the show follows the same format this time using the “Endless Challenge” play option.
Q. Your Level SUCKS has ENDED?! When is it coming back?
A. The second iteration of YLS was produced as a weekly show between June 2019 and June 2020. This was announced as soon as the series started up again; the “ending” date was provided so that “Your Level SUCKS 2” would be able to have a dignified ending, something the original series lacked. It was very important to us to be able to point to a moment in time and say “this is the end” both as a way to give the series closure but also so that there was no confusion among fans as to when or if another episode was coming out. Despite ending production, YLS may still return in the future for one-off special streams and events. Additionally, should Nintendo ever release a Super Mario Maker 3, there will absolutely be a “Your Level SUCKS 3”.
Q. Does Draco really mean the things he says during the show?
A. No. Draco is intentionally playing an act and is attempting to be as uncouth as possible for the sake of comedy. The Mario hat generally represents an overall “character” on the stream and the extravagant lengths to which punchlines are sometimes taken are meant to be indicative of the idea of a loud and obnoxious streamer/YouTuber. They should NOT be taken as Draco’s personal beliefs or opinions on matters. (Sometimes Draco will go on about personal anecdotes or wax wistfully about various subjects. These are out of character despite the hat still being worn. It’s pretty obvious when this is happening.)
Q. Will Draco play my level on the show if I post it in the stream chat?
A. No. Please do not post your level codes in the stream chat. By its very nature YLS is not an open-submission show; it relies on the roulette of Super Mario Maker’s community levels to provide user-generated content that was made in earnest and as such is unintentionally awful. There will be a time and place when sharing codes to viewer-made levels will be appropriate. We will make the announcement for level submissions when the time comes. Until then please do not post level codes in the chat, they will not be played nor will the codes be kept track of.
Q. Will Draco play my level on the show if I post it in the stream chat AND donate Twitch Bits?
A. No. And now you are out that amount of Twitch Bits, but thank you for your donation.
Q. Why are the level codes for the stages blanked out?
A. Shows such as YLS have the potential to attract rowdy people with undesirable behavior very easily. It is a common precaution taken on Gatorbox shows which involve user/community content to blank out names, URLs, IDs, and other information that could be used to locate and harass someone. It is not the intentions of Gatorbox’s producers to foster an atmosphere where players who are featured on this show get hunted down by mobs from nasty communities. If you have the desire to participate in such actions we kindly ask that you find a different show to watch. If we discover that this is happening we will take appropriate measures to remove the offending people from the Gatorbox community.
Q. Why does Draco skip over so many good levels?
A. The name of the show is “Your Level SUCKS”, with emphasis on that last word. There are tons of competently made levels available within Super Mario Maker’s community but this isn’t the stream where those are played. For the sake of making the most use out of the footage being taped we intentionally skip over stages that do not line up with the theme and spirit of the show. This is not meant as an insult to the creators of these stages, it’s just that we’re not interested in them.
Q. Draco said something offensive, who do I complain to?
A. We do not write nor intend to perform any jokes that are meant to demean someone on the basis of race, sexuality, or other conventionally protected classes. The content of YLS does not break the Terms of Service of neither Twitch nor YouTube. That said, if crass humor isn’t your thing maybe this isn’t the best show for you to watch.
Q. What’s with all the New Super Mario Bros / Super Mario 3D World hate?
A. The games are shitty and their mechanics/physics are total garbage. Both the Propeller Cap and Cat Suit are awful power-ups, New Super Mario Bros’ music is an affront to all of humanity, and Super Mario 3D World’s long jump sucks. None of these points are debatable. (Update: Builder Mario is the worst power-up in the game and all of the dumb hats that were added in the 3.0.0 update further eroded any redeeming qualities these themes had.)
Q. What Kickstarter did the “Kickstarter Pen” actually come from?
A. The Commodore Amiga: A Visual Compendium, by Bitmap Books. Scroll down, there it is!
Q. What is the best way to support this show/stream?
A. When it comes to monetary matters we strongly recommend making a contribution through either Streamlabs or Patreon above all other available options. As of this writing these services offer a much better and fairer cut of your pledge to creators. Supporters of Gatorbox on Patreon have the opportunity to earn a special “VIP” badge in our stream chat ($5/mo) as well as their own custom emoticon ($10/mo). Additionally, contributors through Streamlabs are recognized on their own leaderboard separate from the one for Twitch subs/bits on our stream page.
Q. Why are there no Twitch emotes for $9.99 and $24.99 tier subscriptions?
A. To discourage people from subscribing at that level, to put it simply. If you are willing to pledge $10 or $25 (or more) per month to Gatorbox we kindly ask that you subscribe at the basic $5 tier, so you can have access to our global emoticons, and then make the remainder of your contribution via a pledge through Patreon. (Which will net you additional perks in the process like a VIP badge, custom emote, etc.)
Q. Why do I keep seeing things like “GBcola” and “YLSfinger” in chat?
A. Most of our stream emotes are managed through FrankerFaceZ, a free browser extension for Chrome and Firefox. FrankerFaceZ interfaces with Twitch chat and will replace “GBcola” with its corresponding emote as if it were an official Twitch emote on the channel. FrankerFaceZ is absolutely free and is a trusted extension (by Dan Salvato, creator of Doki Doki Literature Club), we use it on our channel so that you may use our 50 emotes completely free of charge in our channel with no Twitch subscription required.
Q. What was the deal with the MAGA hat from the first season?
A. That was a joke that fell flat and has not aged well. We routinely write gags of all kinds into our shows and in this case the punchline was meant to be “this is ALSO a red hat with white lettering on it, like Mario’s”. It was used on the show long before Donald Trump was voted as the primary Republican candidate for the 2016 election — let alone voted in as the President — back when the media was casually taking pot shots at his silly campaign slogans. The hat itself is a Chinese knockoff that was purchased specifically to avoid contributing any funds to his campaign. Had we known the course things would eventually take, we would not have used the hat as a prop. The hat appeared in one episode and has been censored in that epsiode as well as in all future releases of YLS that use archival footage of the show. The cast and crew of Gatorbox do not support the political ideology of Donald Trump.
Q. If you think you’re so good why don’t you make a level?
A. Levels created by Draco are routinely shared on the show. You are welcome to try them for yourself and think of a better and more original remark while you do so.
Q. Draco is in his 30’s now, isn’t that a bit too old to do this kind of show?
A. Yes.