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[krazyjakee]

Play it here: http://purplex.io/

I have no idea where to take it next

I'm thinking of doing something like special moves after you collect enough of each item... any thoughts?

My score is usually around the 400 mark 

[vitorlanna]

Wow, the game is hard O.o

Maybe it could be interesting to have levels, starting with smaller boards and less symbols and then increasing the board and number of symbols as you progress?

[k_polke]

I do agree! I think the concept is cool, but may be a little easier to understand if maybe we can start with one plane and then to two, etc.  Like vitor said, build us up. I felt overwhelmed when the game opened up. Also the timer had me nervous to where I just felt like I shouldn't play any longer. Could also include some practice rounds as well. It would be neat to include like some sort of power up that can eliminate non matching tiles or maybe like an auto swap power up.

Best of luck,

 

[dimoniy]

My brain is about to explode. Yeah, smaller field and less symbols to start would be great...

[hcs]

Cool! My high score after a few tries is 410.

Props on the name, very appropriate :)

I don't know if you're constructing the level with particular solutions in mind or if it is completely random. If random, it seems like constructing long lines is essentially impossible (and it definitely feels this way), maybe a next step could be more deliberate level construction where things come together for larger scoring? Then again my tendency is to design pre-constructed puzzles so this is my own game design bias.

A few nitpicks:
I feel like the symbols are too many and too detailed to be sufficiently distinctive. You've got... (let me try to count this) cards suits (4), elements (water, fire, leaf, spaceship?), and the gear, so 9? Any reason why you don't use digits? Maybe it would look even more overwhelming then? It feels confusing as it is.

A little thing I found irritating was when there are a few tiles in order by chance, you have to switch them back and forth to get it to count. Maybe this is intended but it feels like a bug.

I understand the desire to add a little texture, but the background just feels confusing to me.

Got me sucked in for a while, so you're doing something right! (up to 450 now)

[krazyjakee]

Man I love this forum.

Thanks for the super constructive feedback all.

I'll cut the difficulty, find some art direction and get back to you.  

EDIT: Updated game to be simpler.

[hcs]

Cool, definitely more fun to play with the odds more in your favor, I guess there's only 6 now? It feels like I have a better intuitive grasp for the odds now.

P.S. high score 1115

[Quicksand-S]

I think my main issue is that it feels too random. It's up to the game whether or not the colors that are needed for lines will actually appear in a given spot, and if the color I need isn't there then I can potentially use more randomness to try to make it appear using matching colors. I know that games like Puyo Puyo are also pretty random, but the difference there is that I can always wait for another piece that fits.

One slightly crazy idea is that you could give players the option (or maybe use a timer) to shift or rotate rows. That way, it would always be possible to obtain the color you want, but you would still have to use your time efficiently and might not want to wait for pieces to shift.

Anyway, despite the randomness and the fact that I found it pretty boring at first, I started to kind of like the game after a while. It was still frustrating that sometimes I had long lines with one piece missing that I was completely unable to obtain, but other than that it was pretty good.

Some simple sounds would be great, and maybe some music.

The game's pretty well made. The mechanics are very clear, the interface worked great, and I really liked that it showed me instantly which pieces I'd be able to switch with.

[tjcbs]

How about this: every 10 or so blocks you clear, you gain a wildcard point, which lets you switch any one block to a random color. This way when you are stuck you can work on other lines then come back and try to finish the one you were stuck on.

Or instead, you get a power which you can spend either on a wildcard or gaining say 15 seconds. This way you can rack up some serious points

Then, after every 100 or so blocks you clear, an additional color appears.

[Quicksand-S]

How about this: every 10 or so blocks you clear, you gain a wildcard point, which lets you switch any one block to a random color. This way when you are stuck you can work on other lines then come back and try to finish the one you were stuck on.

Or instead, you get a power which you can spend either on a wildcard or gaining say 15 seconds. This way you can rack up some serious points

Then, after every 100 or so blocks you clear, an additional color appears.

I kind of like the idea of something happening when you clear enough blocks, but I don't think the game needs more randomness.

One thing that could be interesting is if the blocks that are grouped weren't actually in symmetrical positions. Maybe the left and right sections are flipped vertically or something. That would mean that depending on how you approach things, you have different options. That might be too weird for players to get used to, but I'm just thinking there must be some way to make it so that you're not just stuck with the four blocks you're given.

A game like this could probably use some way to set up combos, but I'm not sure how you'd manage that.

[krazyjakee]

Thanks for the great feedback all of you. It inspired me to keep working on this project.

I have a new playable version which is using easeljs so I can hopefully deploy to mobile/tablet.

You can play it at: http://purplex.io/

For anyone interested, the old version can still be played here: http://purplex.io/old

[Quicksand-S]

The new version has a few issues with it, but probably is better than the old one in most ways.

-If you select a level, the first move you make will do something when you click (ie. it won't require a second click and will either fail or switch two points without you selecting the second point).

-If you return to the title screen after having selected a level, it will show Level 1 until you click the plus or minus button.

-The orange and red dots look a bit too similar, I think. When I was leaning back in my chair, the colors looked almost identical on my monitor at that angle.

-Sometimes the mouse feels really unresponsive, as if the collision-checking on the circles doesn't encompass the entire circle. It's also a bit frustrating to have to click twice in order to cancel one selection and create a new one.

-It would probably be a good idea to show which circle is currently selected in the group.


The cross-shaped timer is a nice idea but I found it very distracting. For some reason, having that there made me less likely to spot the selected circles in certain positions.

I like that the puzzles seem to be pre-made this time around (or at least the starting positions are? I don't know if the ones that spawn when I clear a line are as well), but I still don't find it much fun to almost always be one circle away from having a complete row. I really dislike the four circle limit and would love to have the choice to approach from a different angle in order to change the selection (ex. if I click the circle in the left triangle, I get a slightly different group than if I click that same position in the bottom triangle). It would be much less frustrating if I had options like that. Maybe it's just me, though.

[krazyjakee]

The new version has a few issues with it, but probably is better than the old one in most ways.

Glad to hear you say it because this is my first game done with a loop and the code is... organised chaos.

the first move you make will do something when you click

Try as I might, I can't recreate this. Do you have any more information?

it will show Level 1 until you click the plus or minus button.

Oops! bug bashed.

The orange and red dots look a bit too similar

Changed the colors further apart by about 10%

the collision-checking on the circles doesn't encompass the entire circle

Aha, yeah I spotted an issue here, a little complicated to describe, but improvements have been made.

have to click twice in order to cancel one selection and create a new one

Fixed!

show which circle is currently selected in the group.

The selected circle now pulses.

The cross-shaped timer is ... very distracting

I'm gonna go forward with this as I need a big purple x somewhere and a non-discreet way of representing the time left.

I'm using what is called a seeded random number, so each new random number will be the same every time (based on the initial seed). I though about showing the next colors that were coming but I don't think there will be room.

The tactic when you are stuck with the last circle is to look in the other corresponding rows to see if you can make a line there, then you can proceed back to your initial row.

I hear what you are saying about the four circle limit, but I think these are good rules to keep the game challenging. I found a lot of people are so conditioned by games like bejewelled that it takes a minute or so to adjust to a new game mechanic which is a shame.

I am hugely grateful that you took the time again, thank you so much :D

[Quicksand-S]

the first move you make will do something when you click

Try as I might, I can't recreate this. Do you have any more information?

I played a game, returned to the menu, selected a higher level and started the game. My first click made the circle grow and then instantly shrink as if I'd clicked twice. I quit, started a different level and this time my click switched two circles instantly.

It seems almost as if my clicks are affecting the circles before they're visible.

[The Translocator]

Something isn't right here...

[krazyjakee]

The Translocator: What seems wrong? If you're talking about lining up the blues, you can get new colors by swapping two colors that are the same.

Swapping 2 tiles of the same color will transform them both into a random color for 5 points.

Hope this helps

[marcgfx]

havent read any comments. its hard and quite clever, but I did not find it addicting or fun. maybe there is just a kind of reward missing? adding sound effects could help. using more of the screen might be nice too. im also not so sure about the orientation, having to think rotated might be a bit too hard? maybe you can use the same concept, with different arrangements. kind of like levels. then you would at least have a possible win? i would have also expected diagonal lines to work.

[krazyjakee]

Now includes a tutorial & SFX

[Windwalker]

And we thought our game was hard... congrats, I really enjoyed it. I like the simple yet deep concept. Agree on above posts on smaller starts, though.

Regards;
-Wind.

[Jackolantern]

I think it took me a little while for my eyes "to see it", because at first it felt like you could get stuck with no more possible moves on a row (and I knew about the same-color swapping for new colors), but for some reason the second time I played I just got it and ended up getting 615. Next try got 1245, so obviously I am getting better at it.

I like it and do feel the addictiveness. In fact, I think I am going to go play again. Nice game!

You should package this as a mobile game, since it would work very well as a quick, pick-up-and-play-screen-tapper game.