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[jthespacec]

Hey all!

Link: www.kevinmurphygames.com/sos-private-demo
Instructions for playing:
You can play directly through Unity Web Player (not in Chrome) or download a PC build from that URL above.
Controls are all listed at the start of the game or in the menu and there are even some smart hints for you at times.
Requirements:
Windows PC for the download, or a non-Chrome web browser (Firefox recommended) for the web version. A gamepad is recommended but keyboard works fine.

About:
I'm making an indie PC game (as a 2 year full time project) called Sons of Sol: Crow's Nest. The idea is to take the sorts of missions from a Wing Commander style space combat sim, put it into 2D, then add a strategy layer. My elevator pitch is "Asteroids meets Total War".

What I've got here after a couple of months of development is just a starfighter combat demo, really.

I'm looking for general feedback here. The flying is meant to be skill based. Instant-twin-stick-shooter recognition is not what I'm going for here. With that said, I want to know how does it feel? Is it hard too hard to control? How are the orders? The art is placeholder but how about that sprite style generally?

The mission provided here is very basic. Just kill a few enemies, but interesting mission structures and narrative pacing are what I'll be developing.

There's actually a feedback form (Google Forms) that the game links to within the menu. Or feedback here or through the site's comment box are all great and super appreciated. Good and bad. I want it all.

Thanks a mil guys.
Kevin

PS I'm new here as of today (just heard about it) but I'm already posting hellos and commenting on your games. I look forward to playing more of them and getting to know the community.

[jthespacec]

This is my first game up here. Haven't any feedback. Am I allowed to bump once in a while? I saw no rule against it.

[Josh Yaxley]

At the instructions page, I noticed that the analog stick left/right wasn't always responsive. In fact, as I tabbed out to write this, the controller seems to have stopped working completely I refreshed the page and it fixed itself, though.

The game was quite nice to control, though I did often find myself flying into asteroids (the auto-dodging mechanism came in handy there). I like the idea of being able to give commands to your squadron, and I kind of wished there were a few more enemies so I could test the different tactical advantages of different orders.

Was there a disadvantage to using the afterburners, or were they there so that you could choose between having better control of your ship or moving faster?

One thing that would've been nice would've been an arrow that pointed out of the asteroid field for when I needed to extract, as I got a bit lost and it took me a while to find my way out!

I like the style of the graphics, though I'm not sure if the backgrounds fitted into the main art theme. I can't place what it was, maybe they were *too* detailed?

Overall, a nice solid engine with good movement and combat mechanisms working fluidly. Looks like you could expand this into something really nice, keep it up!

[jthespacec]

Thanks Josh.

The stick doesn't seem to work great with the Unity UI so that'll take some creative problem solving, but the D pad buttons work just fine.

Thanks for the feedback. I didn't want to overwhelm players with enemies for this one level as they're just getting used to controls.
You're right, the Afterburner is good for chasing down enemies (or fleeing) but you're at greater risk of smashing into things then. I may add a fuel guage but it's unlimited currently.

I'll consider the arrow, though I'm implementing a larger map so I may not need it then. The Asteroid field is basically one large circle. You can get out in any direction. You come in at it from the bottom at the start of the level (red barrier on the radar).

Good call on the art. The backgrounds were ones I got on the Asset Store as I had a few artists delay me by agreeing to join the project, then realising they hadn't the time. For the demo I just grabbed background art from the store, so it doesn't match my artistic (in)ability on the ships.

I shall keep it up, thanks. Right now I'm setting up a DevLog in that forum as RetroNeo Games (different username, still me) and I'll drop this thread I think. It didn't get much traction and a more frequently updated DevLog might.

Thanks for your encouragement. It means a lot some days, you know?

[Quicksand-S]

I tried the keyboard controls with the web player. I didn't play long (stuff to do) but I mostly liked what I experienced.

I didn't like the weapon sounds and actually turned down the volume within seconds of starting because I found them annoying.

The art...doesn't really do anything for me, but it's not bad. I think it's just a bit dull and flat. The enemies also don't stand out much.

I really liked the way my wingmen moved. They stayed in formation well without it feeling stiff. Nice work on that.

The ship handled pretty well. I had no real issues with that, although I kept not noticing asteroids until I hit them...but I think it was because I was watching how the wingmen moved and looking around at other things.

The sense of scale for the ships was good, although I would've liked to see some larger asteroids.

The only suggestion I have for the actual gameplay, since I didn't play long, is maybe either putting the numbers for the radio on the HUD, or using WASD for the radio. As it is, it's both awkward and a bit confusing to connect the numbers to directions while flying around.

[jthespacec]

Thanks Quicksand. I've taken down all your feedback. All good stuff.

The sounds need a major pass. They're still placeholder sounds from day 1, and I don't even have ship engine noises yet. I find them annoying too, I assure you. haha

I totally agree on the keyboard radio controls. I want the game to figure out what input you're giving and then show you either the D pad (if on controller) or 1234 in a vertical list. This will take some doing though. WASD is a great suggestion. I currently have A and D providing a little bit of strafe ability though. Strafe comes in handiest if you're afterburning through the asteroids and need every sharper turning. I think I'll leave them in, but not decided yet. It would be a quicker fix than a new menu to just use WASD. Thanks for the advice.

Glad you like the wingmen. I'm rather fond of them. Same with the ship scale.

The art I consider placeholder, as I'm not an artist and need one on the team, but I do want to go with sprites over 3D models. People already assume it's a bullet hell game when they pick it up and the 3D models would just serve to add to their preconceptions (Geometry Wars clones are a dime a dozen. I wanted to stand out visually).

With experience you'll notice asteroids sooner with a glance on the radar. There's a newer build available now actually, though none of your stated issues are different in it. I've started a Dev Log here. http://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=49538.msg1165508#msg1165508

[Quicksand-S]

I currently have A and D providing a little bit of strafe ability though.

Wow. Didn't notice that. That's exactly how I had things set up in a space prototype a few years ago. I love that sort of thing too. It's funny that I don't think I've seen it in any released games yet (Of course, maybe I just didn't play the ones that had it).

I do want to go with sprites over 3D models.

Glad to hear that.

With experience you'll notice asteroids sooner with a glance on the radar.

Actually, that brings up another "issue" I had. It's probably just that I haven't played a game like this in a while, but the radar felt really far away from where I was looking and I didn't like to take my eyes off the action to glance at it.

Have you considered something more centered? I'm a fan of more of a compass-like radar, that shows approaching objects on a ring around the player, with the sizes of the icons showing how far away the objects are. (Does that make sense? I can't remember what games I might've seen it in, but I can make a quick mock-up if necessary.) Anyway, that style lets me keep my eyes closer to the center of the screen while still giving me all the info I need.

[RetroNeo Games]

(This is my new account that I set up for the DevLog. Still Kevin here (the artist formerly known as JtheSpaceC)

Have you considered something more centered?

I hadn't at all actually. I get what you mean from the description though. You're the first person to ever comment on the radar either good or bad. I'll definitely keep that in mind. I wanted to avoid clutter as much as possible, but when I bring in the tactical map (full screen, paused the action) then your suggestion might make a lot of sense to replace the old radar with.

I'll definitely keep it in mind. Thanks!

[jthespacec]

Hey all I'm moving this over to the Dev Log part of the forum where I'm posting as RetroNeo Games. Please do go have a look there. I'm locking this particular topic now.
Dev Log here. http://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=49538.0

-Kevin