Now that I can actually pass Hard, it's pretty fun. I weaken my statement from "far too hard" to just "too hard", but I still think you can fail too quickly for [Hard]. Admittedly, if you survive, you can build back up pretty easily. Also the frequency of jumps feels too high for Hard. But it doesn't feel like Insane either. It's at this funny in-between point which is still fun and I think it'd be a shame to make it significantly easier (to fit Hard) or harder (to fit Insane). Perhaps you could decrease the drain rate a bit, but that's just personal preference.
I agree about the background.
I'll try a mod, but I'm afraid it probably won't be that useful. I'll mostly just point out bits I don't like (as well as bits I really do like!) without offering suggestions, since I don't map.
Normal
I assume you'll do the rest of the difficulty later. There's not much wrong with it in my opinion. It follows the music well, although perhaps it's a bit repetitive? As for the difficulty, I think it is too hard for [Normal], but I wouldn't know as I generally don't bother with normals. I think you could try increasing the circle size a bit. It feels kinda small for what I remember Normal being like. You could also try leaving some more "mini-breaks" (gaps in time with few notes) between the notes rather than just a constant stream of 1/2 notes - I think Normal players can tackle short "phrases" of 1/2 notes just fine, as long as they have time to parse the whole phrase beforehand. In my opinion the approach rate is about right and decreasing it would actually make it harder. (BTW @CrystalMask, increasing HP drain makes it harder, not easier).
Hard
00:49:738 (12) - I don't think this jump fits the music that well. It comes out of nowhere, so to speak.
01:00:024 (12345678,12345678,1) - I like this stream. It's actually pretty easy and it lets you build your HP bar back up.
01:14:167 (123456789) - I don't like this bit at all. I don't think it fits the music. But I can understand wanting to put something unusual and a bit difficult here.
01:26:167 (12345) - I think this fits the music better if you shift this red combo back in time two ticks (when it's set to 1/4 snap) so the 1 is on the white tick.
01:53:167 (12,12) - These aren't that fun to play IMO, and the way the hitsounds go isn't that nice. The first time you play it it trips you up and leaves you a bit out of sync and you might not get back in sync in time for the stream at 01:55:738 (12345678,1), which is pretty much instafail if you do it wrong.
02:38:167 (345) - This feels a bit overkill after the previous stream. And I don't think it fits with the music - the stream covers the build-up nicely, but then these 3 notes continue the intensity of the stream into the more relaxed bit afterwards.
02:41:167 (12,12) - I love the way this fits the music!
02:55:417 (3,4) - These extra notes seem a bit random. They don't really fit the music, it feels like they're just there to make it harder.
02:57:667 (123) - I don't think this plays that well. 03:04:309 (1234) is better. But this might just be personal preference.
03:15:452 (1234,1234) - This is fun to play. I like it.
I agree about the background.
I'll try a mod, but I'm afraid it probably won't be that useful. I'll mostly just point out bits I don't like (as well as bits I really do like!) without offering suggestions, since I don't map.
Normal
I assume you'll do the rest of the difficulty later. There's not much wrong with it in my opinion. It follows the music well, although perhaps it's a bit repetitive? As for the difficulty, I think it is too hard for [Normal], but I wouldn't know as I generally don't bother with normals. I think you could try increasing the circle size a bit. It feels kinda small for what I remember Normal being like. You could also try leaving some more "mini-breaks" (gaps in time with few notes) between the notes rather than just a constant stream of 1/2 notes - I think Normal players can tackle short "phrases" of 1/2 notes just fine, as long as they have time to parse the whole phrase beforehand. In my opinion the approach rate is about right and decreasing it would actually make it harder. (BTW @CrystalMask, increasing HP drain makes it harder, not easier).
Hard
00:49:738 (12) - I don't think this jump fits the music that well. It comes out of nowhere, so to speak.
01:00:024 (12345678,12345678,1) - I like this stream. It's actually pretty easy and it lets you build your HP bar back up.
01:14:167 (123456789) - I don't like this bit at all. I don't think it fits the music. But I can understand wanting to put something unusual and a bit difficult here.
01:26:167 (12345) - I think this fits the music better if you shift this red combo back in time two ticks (when it's set to 1/4 snap) so the 1 is on the white tick.
01:53:167 (12,12) - These aren't that fun to play IMO, and the way the hitsounds go isn't that nice. The first time you play it it trips you up and leaves you a bit out of sync and you might not get back in sync in time for the stream at 01:55:738 (12345678,1), which is pretty much instafail if you do it wrong.
02:38:167 (345) - This feels a bit overkill after the previous stream. And I don't think it fits with the music - the stream covers the build-up nicely, but then these 3 notes continue the intensity of the stream into the more relaxed bit afterwards.
02:41:167 (12,12) - I love the way this fits the music!
02:55:417 (3,4) - These extra notes seem a bit random. They don't really fit the music, it feels like they're just there to make it harder.
02:57:667 (123) - I don't think this plays that well. 03:04:309 (1234) is better. But this might just be personal preference.
03:15:452 (1234,1234) - This is fun to play. I like it.
