History Main / BreatherLevel

** In VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld, the secret level Groovy might be this. Prior to it? [[ThatOneLevel Tubular]], Way Cool and [[SlippySlideyIceWorld Awesome]]. Groovy itself? An easy grass land level which is even featured on the title screen.

** {{Subverted|Trope}} by ''Super Mario TKO'', a ROMHack of ''Super Mario World''. It looks like a Breather Level, but Mario may lose a life to the [[TimedMission timer]]. If Mario hits all those multi-coin blocks, he will not reach the goal in time. The level is too long, or the timer is too short.

*** One dungeon that qualifies is the Temple of Time. The level right before it is [[SlippySlideyIceWorld Snowpeak]] [[ThatOneLevel Ruins]], a labyrinthine mess of an ice level with lots of annoying enemies that don't drop hearts at all and [[ThatOnePuzzle sliding block puzzles]]. The level after it is the City in the Sky, an even worse MarathonLevel full of BottomlessPits and bunches of Clawshot maneuvering, plus the very long FetchQuest required to enter. The Temple of Time, on the other hand? It's a very linear level [[note]]You basically go up the tower, fight the boss, and use the dungeon item to take a statue to go right back to the bottom floor to unlock the door leading to the boss room[[/note]] with simple enemies, relatively easy puzzles, and interesting music (plus an easy boss to finish it off).

*** LethalLavaLand may also count, since, outside the volcano, which you'll only need to go into for two stars (and the 100 coin star in all likelihood), it's geographically the smallest level in the game, has a quite simple layout, and the platforms are usually generous enough to make avoiding the lava pretty easy. All of the stars in outside of the volcano are also quite easy, as two of them are simply fights against an easy boss, a borderline insultingly easy red-coin mission, and one that does involve some platforming, but can be worked around with the Wing Cap with relatively little effort.

*** LethalLavaLand may also count, since, outside the volcano, which you'll only need to go into for two stars (and the 100 coin star in all likelihood), it's geographically the smallest level in the game, has a quite simple layout, and the platforms are generally generous enough to make avoiding the lava pretty easy. All of the stars in outside of the volcano are also quite easy, as two of them are simply fights against an easy boss, a borderline insultingly easy red-coin mission, and one that does involve some platforming, but can be worked around with the Wing Cap with relatively little effort.

* Sector Fornax in ''VideoGame/StrangeJourney'', a relatively straightforward area sandwiched between [[ThatOneLevel Sector Eridanus and Sector Grus]]. For a brief few floors, the worst you'll have to deal with is dark areas and pitfalls, with nary a teleport maze in sight.

* It's a staple of the ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea}}'' series to include at least one level in each game consisting mostly or entirely of [[EverythingsBetterWithPenguins Prinnys]], who may or may not be arranged in a fashion that allows you to [[MadeOfExplodium detonate every single one of them in a single throw]]. It's baseball in [[DisgaeaHourOfDarkness the first game]], and bowling in [[{{Disgaea 2}} the second]].

* The VideoGame/{{Disgaea}} games usually have periodic maps where the GeoEffects are all beneficial (particularly in regards to XP boosts), and the enemies are arranged in such a way as to be all killable with a single wide area attack. Basically these are designated spots to make LevelGrinding more quick and painless (which, [[AbsurdlyHighLevelCap in this series]], is a godsend).

*** Quite literally endlessly, if Half-Life 2 Episode 3 is anything to go by.
*** Don't you mean [[VideoGame/DukeNukemForever Half-Nukem Forever]]?

* SuperMonkeyBall is ''heavy'' with [[ThatOneLevel difficult levels]], and sandwiched between two of them is one of the easier levels in the game: Skeleton[[hottip:*:Name in ''Deluxe'', it's Expert 8 in the first game]], who is extremely merciful in stark contrast to [[ThatOneLevel its two surrounding levels]].

* The ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' franchise:

** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros3'' has World 4, [[MacroZone Big Island]]. Coming between [[UnderTheSea World 3]] and [[BubblyClouds World 5]], it has noticeably fewer levels than the worlds that bookend it, pits you against comically oversized versions of the standard Mario enemies (no harder to kill than the standard ones), and along the way gives you two P-Wings and a Jugem's Cloud. In addition, the World 4 airship is one of the easiest in the game (as well as the only one to feature ''two'' power-ups).
*** The World's boss, Iggy Koopa, is also noticeably easier than the one before or after. Wendy O. Koopa of World 3 is ThatOneBoss, with deadly candy rings that continue to bounce around the screen instead of vanishing. Roy Koopa of World 5 is TheBigGuy and can make the whole screen shake when he jumps (stunning Mario). Iggy's gimmick? He fires his wand twice. That's it.
** In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG: Legend of the Seven Stars'', the fourth [[PlotCoupon Star Piece]] is on Star Hill, a very short dungeon with weak enemies and no platforming or puzzles. This is sandwiched in between a very long and involved side plot in which Mario rescues the Princess from Booster, and the Sunken Ship, arguably the toughest dungeon in the game.
*** Not to mention it's the only star you get without even fighting a boss for it. In fact, the most tense moment is when you get scolded by Mallow for eavesdropping on people's - that is to say, his - wishes (which are scattered around the dungeon in the form of little stars).

** {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d in ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'' by Professor Frankly in Chapter 6.
-->'''Prof. Frankly''': No fearsome monsters or dangerous dungeons, either! It's just a tourist attraction!
*** Of course, there's still a pitstop at a dungeon and the obligatory boss fight, but compared to [[ThatOneLevel the last chapter]] it's less annoying. Just be careful of the [[DemonicSpiders Spiked Parabuzzies]].
** In ''SuperMarioGalaxy'', this is the case with most of the beach themed levels. Beach Bowl Galaxy has no boss fights or tricky platforming and some ludicrously easy missions like passing the swim test, and Sea Slide Galaxy has mainly racing and item collecting missions with no real platforming or combat. Especially a breather considering the former comes before Ghostly Galaxy and [[ThatOneBoss Bouldergeist]] and the latter after the tricky Toy Time Galaxy. In ''SuperMarioGalaxy2'', you could probably count Starshine Beach as this as well, since minus an annoying green star it's again a rather sedate level with few tough enemies or jumps and a collectathon focus to it.
** In ''SuperMario64'', possibly Snowman's Land due to it having an easy boss and much less of a focus on platforming than the others at that point in the game.
*** LethalLavaLand may also count, since, outside the volcano, which you'll only need to go into for two stars (and the 100 coin star in all likelihood), it's geographically the smallest level in the game, has a quite simple layout, and the platforms are generally generous enough to make avoiding the lava pretty easy. All of the stars in outside of the volcano are also quite easy, as two of them are simply fights against an easy boss, a borderline insultingly easy red-coin mission, and one that does involve some platforming, but can be worked around with the Wing Cap with relatively little effort.
** In VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld, the secret level Groovy might be this. Prior to it? [[ThatOneLevel Tubular]], Way Cool and [[SlippySlideyIceWorld Awesome]]. Groovy itself? An easy grass land level which is even featured on the title screen.
* In VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiDreamTeam, the whole Ultibed Quest is this. Before it? Dreamy Driftwood Shore, the Elite Trio... and a whole bunch of somewhat difficult areas before that. Afterwards? Dreamy Wakeport take 2, [[ThatOneBoss Earthwake]], Somnom Woods, and the VeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon, complete with lots more tough bosses. The quest itself is just mostly exploring small parts of the overworld in already visited locations, a refight against the first boss and what's basically just a bunch of sidequests.

* Storming the enemy's doom-fortress in ''{{Drakengard}}'' is one of the harder levels of the game, as it requires a relentless assault on a well-defended stronghold out at sea on dragonback which happens to be reinforced with a fleet of battleships. When you finally break into the fortress, there's no one in it. Ominous as this is, it's the easiest level in the game; all you have to do is run to the end.

* ''SuperRobotWarsOriginalGeneration'' has a [[DiscOneFinalDungeon climactic battle]] in which both Maier and Julia are fought for the final time and [[spoiler:Sanger]] is also fought, and like most such levels, the following cutscene has a major [[TheReveal reveal]]. Then the following level is...a rush of enemies that most of your units can probably one-shot.

* The enemy-less chapter "Black Mesa East" in ''{{Half-Life}} 2'' comes right after you've fought your way through lengthy canals and down a river, with intense fighting the whole way. This is also the chapter where you get a gravity gun. And right before Ravenholm.

*** The Ipod version is also simple as it's just a pinball machine in which you need to get points to complete the level with no actual way to die.

* ''EliteBeatAgents'' has Episode 12: A Christmas Gift. Although it's far from the easiest level in the game, it is much easier than the levels right before and right after it. [[MoodWhiplash In terms of gameplay, at least.]]

*** The boss, on the other hand, was [[EasyLevelsHardBosses pretty difficult]].

* Episode 12 of ''EliteBeatAgents'' (set to Music/{{Chicago}}'s "You're the Inspiration") is as close to a breather level as they get in the game. It's much easier than the previous stages, but it's also [[spoiler:a HUGE TearJerker.]]

* Late in the original ''VideoGame/Wolfenstein3D'' are several levels with lots of supplies and no particularly challenging enemies. Gee, what's that huge thing clanking through the door...

* In ''DonkeyKongCountryReturns'', NintendoHard is the phrase of the day throughout most of the game, but the level where you first get [[PowerupMount Rambi]] is not only a cakewalk, it's an empowering one; Rambi TookALevelInBadass since his last calling, and is now more or less an unstoppable horn-tank of pain, including being able to ''destroy spikes by touching them''. Unfortunately, after having a breezy level with Rambi, it's back to the fiery pit of borderline PlatformHell.

* VideoGame/KingdomHearts and VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII have the [[TheManyAdventuresOfWinnieThePooh Hundred Acre Wood]], where Sora doesn't have to worry about fighting any Heartless and spends his time playing games and solving puzzles for the wood residents. Even the command normally labeled as "Attack" is changed to "Hit", letting the player know that they won't need to be entering any stressful battles here!

* The American home version of ''[[VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution DDRMAX]]'' has a difficult Oni course called "Hard Core" that consists mostly 7-9-footers (read: hard), with interspersed 3-5-footers (read: not as hard). While they're a physical break, the life bar is still unforgiving (4 misses is a game over, with one given back after each song).

* The final area of ''VideoGame/{{Metroid}} Zero Mission'' is the Space Pirate Frigate. You start off without your Power Suit and must avoid enemies, as you cannot kill them. It is the most intense, difficult part of the entire game, until, halfway through, you reacquire your Power Suit with its full upgrades, after which you are practically unstoppable. The second half of the Space Pirate Frigate is a breather level for the first half.

** Special mention must go to Wily Stage 1 in ''VideoGame/MegaMan3''. It may be the first of the fortress stages, but it comes after four successive stages that are revamped, harder versions of one of the original eight stages and each contain ''two'' fights with Doc Robot, who mimics the Robot Masters from [[VideoGame/MegaMan2 the previous game]]. The stage has relatively low danger and the boss is quite easy, unlike some of Doc Robot's forms (good luck with Spark Man's revisited stage, which finishes with Doc Robot mimicking [[ThatOneBoss Quick Man]]...[[OhCrap with a larger hitbox and a higher rate of shooting projectiles than the original Robot Master]].) Probably ''all'' of the fortress stages in this game are easier than most of the Doc Robot ones, in fact.