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[oodavid]

I like the polish that you've got at the first post, the way those stars explode out of new levels.  Nice polish for the game, in general.  But the art itself doesn't seem very cohesive.  I'm sure it's a WIP.

Cheers about the polish! You're right about the artwork cohesiveness, I made a decision early on that I would do "enough to explain the concept" with a view to approaching a designer with exact specifications. I'm confident that I can get a good designer with a shipped product rather than just a sketch / concept. So yeah, that's why there's such a disconnect between the design and the "juice" (particle effects, animations etc.)

EDIT - could you point me to the parts that look particularly disconnected?

I really like the evolving backgrounds you have going on here. Especially the Dantès Story one. The gameplay seems pretty solid and there is quite a bit of fluid motion on the screen considering the game mechanics. Good work!

Yeah, I don't want to overwhelm the player so the thing will evolve quite a bit as you play through, it's about 50 levels in that I introduce the real story! I'm excited to get this latest release out as there's been a swathe of new features added in the past 3 months!

[tieTYT]

EDIT - could you point me to the parts that look particularly disconnected?

This is not my forte but I'll do my best.  I can sense when something isn't right, but I don't always understand why. 



Here the background looks almost photo realistic, but the balls and HUD look cartoony.



Here the polish looks very nice, but the molecules look pixelated.  I think they need some anti aliasing or something.  The background is really blurry relative to the first image. 

I can't think of any more specific problems. 

[oodavid]

Here the background looks almost photo realistic, but the balls and HUD look cartoony.
...
Here the polish looks very nice, but the molecules look pixelated.  I think they need some anti aliasing or something.  The background is really blurry relative to the first image.

Good pointers! Probably boils down to my complete lack of GFX skills TBH, I'll add these to my requirements list when I give this to a designer...

[oodavid]

I noticed some loading issues (flicker) on iOS so I've added a resource-light loading screen between the map and game - it randomises an adjective and noun and renders "neon nonsense" for example:

[oodavid]

So I've decided to refactor my level design files to cater for different game-modes.

Probably not the best idea given the time.

[oodavid]

Refactoring is going pretty well so far, but I have a jam-packed weekend; doubt I'll get much more done for now.

In other news, I have a new desk - helps my posture somewhat!

[oodavid]

Wrote another article, this time about User-Interface Flows...

What Shakespeare can teach us about User-Interface Flows

Read Full Article Here

[JobLeonard]

Nice little devlog. Also, the graphics are coming along nicely! However, you still have a clash of two styles: rounded fake-3D-esque buttons (with a sweet wobbly effect), and stark, flat rectangles (with drop-shadow) everywhere else. My advise is to commit to one of the two. (Or create a hybrid: flat rectangles with rounded corners?)

[oodavid]

Nice little devlog. Also, the graphics are coming along nicely! However, you still have a clash of two styles: rounded fake-3D-esque buttons (with a sweet wobbly effect), and stark, flat rectangles (with drop-shadow) everywhere else. My advise is to commit to one of the two. (Or create a hybrid: flat rectangles with rounded corners?)

Yeah, I'm still struggling with the graphics, ultimately I'm doing whatever it takes to get each item off my todo list so I can progress with the game as a whole. Overall my interest in graphics is definitely increasing as it's obvious that a good idea becomes great with visual flair.

It's probably a bit cliché or naive for me to think that I can come back to the graphics later, but I'm not yet in a position where I could feasibly hire or partner up with a designer; maybe once the gameplay has been tightened up a bit and I've created a few extra modes and scenarios it will be a easier to approach graphics and story.

[oodavid]

Braindump for a new name without "Match" in it...

Molecule Mountain
Atomic Moon

[JobLeonard]

Radical Bonding

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radical_(chemistry)

[Xienen]

Radical Bonding

What he said! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radical_(chemistry)

[oodavid]

It's really tempting!! I kinda like the definition of "Free Radical" too, that's rather fitting... hmm

[JobLeonard]

That was the inspiration, actually, the whole covalent bonds thing.

[oodavid]

I've literally broken the bonding mechanism... Man the language on this game is getting weird, in the game you can make ad break bonds, as a coder you can break the bonding code.... should be an easy fix though

[JobLeonard]

Hahaha, that's a wonderful fail though :D

[oodavid]

Hahaha, that's a wonderful fail though :D

Yeah, there's something kinda pathetic about it, nm.

I'm almost done refactoring my level data structures, on the way I've added a lot of new features and room to grow the levels as the game progresses, happy times.

I've taken a lot of cues from Candy-Crush Saga level structures; I realised that since the game mechanic is so new that I should try to make sure the other elements are familiar. Sooo there's scope for:

• Inactive Cells
• "Locks" on Cells
• Drop the ingredients
• Clear the sludge
• Smash "X" atoms of type

etc. etc.

Having quite a busy time at work but am desperate to crack on with this!! V. frustrating

[oodavid]

Fannying on with particles again, might as well since I wrote the little engine



I get a "perfect" cause I used all the atoms on the board, easy since I rigged up a small board etc.!

[ryansumo]

Excellent devlog.  I rather liked your latest post on Shakespeare and UI as well.  As for the graphic design I would suggest some flat UI looking stuff like this:



As for the name I'm curious to know why you would want to change the name?  My own brief experience with the app store has taught me that you probably want a more generic name so that people looking for a matching type game might find yours and try it out.  Of course we all want clever names but on the app stores you should give yourself as many advantages as you can in terms of visibility.

Anyway good luck with this, I'll be keeping an eye on it!

[JobLeonard]

I still say "Radical Bonds"