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TIGSource ForumsDeveloperPlaytestingDaily Chthonicle
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charon
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« on: April 15, 2015, 01:50:33 PM »







A game about running a newspaper/detective agency in a Lovecraftian world.

More pics + download link at http://gamejolt.com/games/strategy-sim/daily-chthonicle/52798/

Enjoy!
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Protesilaus
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« Reply #1 on: April 15, 2015, 05:52:28 PM »

Hi,

I like the concept, I think it could go places, but the gameplay needs a bit more direction.  First, the way you interact with the clues seems very easy to miss what is actually going on, and there is no connection between the clues that you have and the telephone that seems to be the main way you can get clues.  I'm also not sure what sending a reporter to a crime scene is doing.  Also, when using the phone, it would be nice if I could restrict the choices to a specific case.  The reporters coming or going from the room is a fine bit of interaction, but seems very random, there should be a more straight forward way to deal with them outside of just sending them onto a case.

I like the board, I was going to originally ask for a journal feature until I found it.  It at least allows you to condense all of the information you are getting about several cases to 1 point.  I realize that as I play different stories are going to intertwine which is why you are able to click on several cases to put them on the board at once, but the interaction is very unclear (since you need to click on a fuzzy piece of paper, and you can't really tell which case is which).  I realize you want the player to start making connections between the cases themselves, and that is why the interface is as it is, but I don't really like that from a gameplay perspective.  If two cases are connected, this should be automatically done when you discover the interlinked threads (such as a common clue, local, witness or victim).  You should also not allow the player to make erroneous links, since that will lead them to spending a lot of time chasing down the wrong direction.

I think you already know, but you need to fix the resolution issue if you are going to have a PC release (I think your designing for a tablet).   If I try to run it on a resolution outside of the tall resolution I lose the top 2 windows.  You should be able to place the two windows to the left of the main window without doing too much resize work and the layout should be fine. 

Dolores is my secretary I guess, but I don't find that out until I send her onto a case.

That's it for now, I'll keep playing with the game and see if I can solve a case or make a newspaper (I haven't figured out how to do either yet).
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charon
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« Reply #2 on: April 16, 2015, 01:33:17 AM »

Heya!

Thanks for the extensive feedback this kind of response is exactly what I need at this point.

As you probably realised, at this point, the game is still somewhat experimental stage. There aren't many reference points for this type of game so partially I am just shooting in the dark, but I think I am generally moving in the right direction. In regards to all the things I would like to have included, the game is barely about 1/3 done.

Which is exactly why I need as many comments like this one as possible Smiley

Now about the issues you've listed, I think I need some more feedback on some of them or I will try to explain how things work because I know that tutorial-wise the game is still very weak.

Regarding the resolution - in the final version there will be some kind of setup menu for such things. Personally on my measly 15'' laptop I prefer seeing the central screen as big as possible so the vertical 2+1 layout isn't very useful. Eventually there will be options for vertical and horizontal 2+1 layouts, and also single screen layouts. At present, the layout toggles depending on the width/height of the game window. However you are correct the target platform is tablet (but also PC).

Some of the things you mentioned are also on the todo-list, such as an address book allowing you to filter people depending on their involvement with the cases, profession etc. Actully solving cases is still somewhat of a moot point at present, but you can print the newspaper, or better said, it prints itself at exactly 2 in the morning. However you can edit it yourself by clicking on the typewriter before that happens.

Also in regards to Dolores, reporters and the function of things - have you tried right clicking on objects? Right clicking on reporters PRESS card gives you a description of their abilities and similar, which also tells you about Dolores, but if you have any suggestions on how to better present that information to the player, I am welcome to suggestions (in either case the final version should have some kind of 'character sheets' for the journalists). This also goes for the blackboard, which (using right click) allows you to directly call the people from there, and pinning important topics to it which creates connections with other topics and cases. Pressing the ? icon repeatedly uncovers new connections.

I am not really sure what you mean by 'journal feature'... oh and a couple more things that might help:

- the game starts in sepia mode. Use pgup to cycle to the full color mode and the blackboard becomes more usefull because you can now see the real color of the clippings (they are color coded to match the events) which makes it easier to see separate cases and operate within that.

- Not allowing the player to make erroneous links. This is something that I'm really not sure about, if the player isn't allowed to make mistakes, is the game still actually a game? My final goal is to allow the player to either focus on a certain area or do everything. So sending reporters to investigate cases that suit them is important. Send the detectives to investigate crimes, the occultists to investigate monsters, ghosts and other supernatural phenomena. In many cases the player's involvement will not be needed because the reporters are capable of solving the more simple cases on their own.

However if the difficulty of solving cases does become an issue, there will be probably some kind of difficulty level setup in the start. Think something like System Shock that allowed you to select difficulty in separate 'regions' (puzzles, action, story, adventure) I can do similar in regards to cases solving, or how demanding your readers are (in the final game, cash will be important both for solving the cases, hiring the experts and upgrading your office).

Okay I think this is all for now. If anything more comes to your mind, please let me know! I am looking forward for more feedback, because this game is something I really want to finish (I am not generally very good in that department, as you can see looking at my previous posts XD).

EDIT: I just found a bug that messed with the cards color coding, no wonder it was confusing... Fixed it and the new version is uploaded to GameJolt...
« Last Edit: April 16, 2015, 12:44:35 PM by charon » Logged

charon
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« Reply #3 on: April 30, 2015, 12:09:46 AM »

I made a bunch of improvements around story generation & investigation, the game is starting to shape up. The mood and gameplay that I'm aiming at is that of Fourth Protocol game on 8 bit systems (spectrum, commodore) but with generated as opposed to prescripted mysteries to investigate, and I think I'm on a good way to acomplish that.

That said there are still many problems, mostly with having a very large pool of different story bits, the breadth is too wide and therefore lack of depth. Which is why I am now also working on a redux/spinoff demo that will only deal with regular crime, murders and serial killings but no supernatural elements. That way I intend to make the stories more deep/interesting and investigation a bit more focused. Will let you all know how that goes and post a link as soon as I got something more definite Smiley
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charon
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« Reply #4 on: May 23, 2015, 10:57:01 AM »

Just letting everyone know I'm still alive and kicking, so is this weird experiment of mine...  Noir

After a thorough rehaul of the engine (from prototype to alpha) I also posted a mini spinoff game that is more like a classical noir murder mystery game. It's kind of like a test project for the engine and the built in story generator but it also illustrates what can be done with it in a manner of couple days. The final engine will be scriptable using native english language (yeah I know that sounds preposterous but Inform 7 has come pretty far and I have some ideas of my own but we'll see what comes out in the end...)

Regarding that I should warn that the system is still fairly primitive. As much as could do in a period of about two months (learning more of the c#, graphics & GUI framework, prolog interpreter, plus the content and script for both games).

Spoiler: click on the right bottom drawer of your desk for the solution. Some are pretty simple affairs and some are more complex.

Have fun!
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charon
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« Reply #5 on: May 27, 2015, 11:31:00 AM »

Okay, I promise this is going to be the last post on this topic for a while, I apologize for my somewhat spammy behavior most sincerely...  My Word!

The mini detective game is now over and out, as a prototype, I think it functions well enough. There is playability even though it's possibly a bit too easy at times, but after I've added more content and tougher obstacles this should no longer be the case.

I welcome any ideas regarding the ergonomy of the game, however, because it's mostly pop up menus and that's not exactly the peak of fun. I will be making a complete visual and interface rehaul before the game is 'officially' released.

Here's a quick link to the mini game:

http://gamejolt.com/games/daily-chthonicle/download-distribution/68204/?os=windows

Have fun!
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