next »

[maxl]

With the skysphere in place, I added a camera tilt on entering a level which adds a lot of "weight":



 

[maxl]

My feel for what works for ingame UI and what doesn't is getting better. I'm trying to use full bright green and orange to visualize dashing and shooting possibilities for the player. I have been wanting to improve the ingame UI for the longest time. But whenever I tried, I found non-ideal situations that were hard to read and/or look bad. Hoping that this is the final version (barring minor tweaks):



 

[maxl]

I just released the first gameplay trailer for Rifter. I hope it gets the gameplay across and makes people want to play it:





  

[io3 creations]

(Been away for a while and still catching up with things here).

Interesting title change. At first glance, I though it was Drifter.  That might also work ~ as D(amage)-Rifter

That trailer is still as dizzying as ever.   I wonder if it would be possible to show some scenes imitially that are "slower".  Otherwise, some people may assume that the game is intended for speedrunners and may avoid it for that reason.  If you don't have such scenes, then you could mention:  "Intuitive controls to help you swing" (or something along those lines).   It might be also useful to display more Features (e.g. GIANT BOSSES!!!).  You probably know what I mean but here's the trailer for Geneshift to see what I mean:  https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=40340.msg1328017#msg1328017

Oh, why does it say "COMPIETE!"  instead of COMPLETE! when you complete a level?

[Tuba]

That's a pretty good trailer you got there! 

[maxl]

(Been away for a while and still catching up with things here).

Interesting title change. At first glance, I though it was Drifter.  That might also work ~ as D(amage)-Rifter

That trailer is still as dizzying as ever.   I wonder if it would be possible to show some scenes imitially that are "slower".  Otherwise, some people may assume that the game is intended for speedrunners and may avoid it for that reason.  If you don't have such scenes, then you could mention:  "Intuitive controls to help you swing" (or something along those lines).   It might be also useful to display more Features (e.g. GIANT BOSSES!!!).  You probably know what I mean but here's the trailer for Geneshift to see what I mean:  https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=40340.msg1328017#msg1328017

Yeah, I was thinking about putting some slower scenes in, but I didn't want to spend the precious time with slow scenes that don't really show the gameplay. I'll do a more "cinematic" trailer that will definitely be slower as well

Oh, why does it say "COMPIETE!"  instead of COMPLETE! when you complete a level?

This is really good feedback! The string IS actually "completed!", but the font makes it look like an i or l instead of an L. It didn't occur to me but now I can't unsee it!   I'll definitely change that, thanks!  

That's a pretty good trailer you got there! 

Thanks! 

[io3 creations]

Oh, why does it say "COMPIETE!"  instead of COMPLETE! when you complete a level?

This is really good feedback! The string IS actually "completed!", but the font makes it look like an i or l instead of an L. It didn't occur to me but now I can't unsee it!   I'll definitely change that, thanks!  

Yeah, I wondered if the font was like that ... but then it's a rather strange looking capitol L.    

On a similar note, I just remembered having a typo (IIRC) "Mission Comlete" in StickMan Sam 1. I did notice it a few days after release but buy then many websites have taken the game and still have that version.    But then I thought, it's not "mission complete" because Sam's real mission isn'l complete yet. 

[maxl]

I just started greenlight for Rifter! 

I don't expect a particularly fast climb or anything, especially as I can't really do much marketing right now. I just got scared of not getting through before they shut the doors and Steam Direct takes over. I would have paid the fee for Direct anyway, whatever it will be, but if I manage to make it through Greenlight, that's money saved 

If anybody has a few seconds, I'd REALLY, TRULY, SINCERELY appreaciate it if you'd vote for Rifter here:

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=905147200

Thank you so much!

[foofter]

The graphics look awesome! (I love bright colors.) Good luck with it! Let's hope we can still get through before Greenlight shuts down.

[wizered67]

Just voted! The game is looking better than ever. Good luck with the Greenlight and let us know how it's going!

[maxl]

Thanks a lot guys!  

Maybe its just me, but I feel like Greenlight has become hell (or has it always been?). Browsing through the submissions you can almost feel the dread of impending shutdown while everybody tries to get onto the the ark.  

The current yes/no ratio for Rifter as at 66% yes 33% no, with 261 yes votes... which I guess is ok!?!? My last and only other greenlight campaign was two years ago and I did worse there (<50% yes), but also made it. Well, we'll see.

Is doing marketing for a greenlight campaign still helpful at all? I feel like no journalist/writer/blogger/streamer/youtube cares about Greenlight anymore, so I don't know how to continue to push this once it falls off of Steams front page.  

@waru99: just returned the favor! How's it going for you?

[foofter]

I've been at a steady 30% yes and 70% no, but I know that my game is weird and hard to get into, so I'm pretty satisfied. (50 Yes and 123 No out of 173 right now.)

And yea...I'm not expecting anything with what I imagine is a huge storm of games on Greenlight at once, but I had everything ready to go so I thought why not just go for it before the whole system disappears.

I doubt anyone wants to cover Greenlight at this point, lol...

[maxl]

I've been at a steady 30% yes and 70% no, but I know that my game is weird and hard to get into, so I'm pretty satisfied. (50 Yes and 123 No out of 173 right now.)

And yea...I'm not expecting anything with what I imagine is a huge storm of games on Greenlight at once, but I had everything ready to go so I thought why not just go for it before the whole system disappears.

I doubt anyone wants to cover Greenlight at this point, lol...

Yeah, niche games are a really hard sell on greenlight.  Still rooting for us both! 

[io3 creations]

Good luck on greenlight!


Speaking of grappling hook games, here's Flinthook:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/401710

[maxl]

I don't know how and why and who, but...

Rifter has been GREENLIT!!!!

 

After only 24 hours on Greenlight, Rifter is through! 

Apparently I picked a golden time to put the game on Greenlight. But I take any win I get, even if it's just because of luck! 

[foofter]

Woah! Congratulations! Hoping this lucky day rubs off on me, too. 

[desdemian]

That was fast! Congratulations!

[wizered67]

Wow, that was ridiculously fast Congrats though and keep up the excellent work!

[sleeper_service]

Congrats man, well deserved. Your game looks super neat.

The current yes/no ratio for Rifter as at 66% yes 33% no, with 261 yes votes... which I guess is ok!?!? My last and only other greenlight campaign was two years ago and I did worse there (<50% yes), but also made it. Well, we'll see.

Yeah your game's yes/ratio outclassed the top 50, that probably worked in your favor a whole lot. Nice!

[pieterator]

The speed at which Rifter was Greenlit comes as no surprise to me, given how utterly fantastic the gameplay trailer is. It's got a wonderful 1980's album cover look, and the synth music synced with the fluid combat and motion makes for an absolute feast for the eyes and ears.

The trailer literally made me go, "I need to play this now!". You can show this to any online news site and they will sit up and take notice. I'd love to have a trailer like this for any of my games.

However, after downloading and playing the demo I soon realised how high level the gameplay in the trailer was. My first 15 minutes of the game resembled nothing like the elegant gameplay of the trailer, and was only after playing the game for about 45 minutes that my movement started to become a bit more fluid (Though I continue to spend my fair share of time in the water :D).

I am sure many players will purchase this purely based of the trailer, but if their initial experience with the game isn't quite as glamorous they might not recommend it to their friends. Which would be a shame, as this game is really fun once you get into it.

Here is just a few of my thoughts as a first time player:

• By far the most satisfying mechanics are the "Dash" hooks and the "Pull" hooks. I honestly feel that these should be the first mechanics introduced to a new player as they immediately give that sense of speed and elegance of flying through the level with minimal effort. Giving players a taste of this early on will keep them around so you can teach them more complex mechanics like...
  
  
• Ninja roping is really tricky. Because of the speed (which you should never be reduced, I love it!) timing the attach and release to get a specific trajectory requires very precise timing. I feel the Ninja Roping is a mechanic that should be worked in sparingly in later levels to ease the player into this mechanic. You might also consider slowing time down a little (while Ninja Roping at a high speeds, which may well end up being all the time:) to give players more time to react to where they want to go. Even though this was the original mechanic, when compared to all the other fantastic mechanics it does not feel quite as satisfying. Don't remove it, just rethink it's potential given what Rifter has become.
  
  
• I love the enemies, dashing through them to kill them feels amazing, and your shotgun recharging after grabbing a hook fits the theme perfectly. But here as well, the most fun encounters were enemies surrounded by "Dash" hooks, and to a lesser degree the Ninja hooks. "Dash" hooks just feel more certain in terms of where you'll end up, where Ninja hooks have a lot of variability associated with them.

What often happens is that developers get so good at their games (because they play it constantly) that they keep making it harder in order to challenge themselves, often forgetting the wide eyed beginner who also just wants to experience the exhilaration of speed.

Hope you find something useful in there, because I really want this game to do well. It is a gem!