next »

[Udderdude]

Those are all good ideas.  I made a gravity puzzle game myself, maybe you can get some ideas from it.

http://rydia.net/udder/prog/rotator/index.html

[chrishughes2d]

I made a gravity puzzle game myself, maybe you can get some ideas from it.

http://rydia.net/udder/prog/rotator/index.html

That's cool, dude. I especially like the arrows that spin against the room to control whether you can pass through a block. Limiting the number of spins definitely amps up the puzzle aspect too. Only negative is I got stuck a few times on later levels and maybe I didn't pay attention at the start but I couldn't work out how to re-spawn other than to wait for the time to expire.

It's interesting how 2 people can take the same mechanic and end up with games that feel so different. Playing your game has definitely helped to spark the creative juices some more. Thanks!

[Udderdude]

maybe I didn't pay attention at the start but I couldn't work out how to re-spawn other than to wait for the time to expire.

There's a big Retry button at the bottom.  Maybe it wasn't fitting in your browser and you didn't notice it?

It's interesting how 2 people can take the same mechanic and end up with games that feel so different. Playing your game has definitely helped to spark the creative juices some more. Thanks!

Glad I could help :D

[chrishughes2d]

There's a big Retry button at the bottom.  Maybe it wasn't fitting in your browser and you didn't notice it?

Wow, don't know how I missed that. Thanks again! :D

[chrishughes2d]

Hi folks,

I finally got around to releasing the 2nd episode of Spin Spin. Here is a sample:



I'd love to hear whether you think the game is heading in the right direction. I learned a heap from the feedback last time around, so again I welcome your honesty and well intentioned brutality.

I hope you enjoy!
Chris

[maetheec]

My feedback is similar to most comments here; and the puzzle is fun.

This comment might be a bit late considering your current progress of the game... but I'd like to stress one problem about the mid-air spin.
It's good that the eye is an indicator when you can or cannot do mid-air spin... but many times, I have to fall to die and find out that you can't do a mid-air spin here. So, 'consistency' about when I can or cannot do a mid-air spin is my biggest problem.
My suggestion is to give some indicator 'before' you start falling, whether mid-air spin is allowed or not. May be the background color of the level where mid-air spin is not allowed is a different color? or you have to pickup some item before you can do a mid-air spin?

[chrishughes2d]

Hi maaethec,

Every time you stand (i.e. feet touch the ground or a block) you restore your ability to spin. You can use your spin while you're standing or after you've dropped off a ledge, but once you've used it you need to land again before you can spin again. Is this consistent with your understanding of the controls?

Planning when and how to use your spin is the heart of the game, so I'm reluctant to change it. That probably sounds like I'm unwilling to take on feedback, but that's not my intention.

Is the problem that the spin behaviour is inconsistent or that it isn't well explained? I had similar feedback during development of episode 1, then inserted prompts into the first few rooms to explain the controls as you go.

Have you played episode 1? Admittedly in episode 2 the controls aren't re-explained, but rather rely on the player having played episode 1.

Thanks for taking the time to play my game. I appreciate it! I'll keep thinking about ways to make the spin mechanic less confusing, and of course I'm glad to hear any other ideas you have in this area.

Cheers!

[Pixelulsar]

I like the series, and am looking forward to future games, but I noticed that the second one is a lot harder, and like you said, the controls aren't re-explained.  Not everyone will play all the games, so I think you should at least re-explain the controls. 

I don't find the spin mechanic, where you land to recharge your spin confusing at all.   However I'm biased because I use this to do double jumping in my games, so I'm familiar with it.

[maetheec]

Ah, I see. that made much more sense... I actually did play the first one a little, but the mechanic was so simple, so I didn't read the tutorial text carefully. I was just thinking "ok, spin left, spin right, got it" 

[sevn]

I absolutely love the story introduction. I've only recently learned about the importance of story in games from The Art of Game Design by Jesse Schells. Seeing games like yours reinforces that importance. Even though its only a tiny bit of detail, it makes the your game more compelling

I made a quick game play video. You can see how at the start I used the arrow keys first off. This is not a bad thing, I actually like the humor behind hitting the arrow key first and dieing. Although it does add a bit of confusion.

[chrishughes2d]

The start is pretty funny, as is the last screen when you go flying over the hole into a wall of spikes. Not that it should be surprising - pretty much the whole game is built out of spikes!

Thanks for sharing the video. It's cool to watch other people playing the game, to get a real sense of whether the design works. Cheers!