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[Taiko]

(old screenshot, see further down in the thread for improvements!)

You are a cloud that is responsible for keeping the garden green.  Use your rain to water the ground, your wind to move around, and your lightning to keep the bugs from eating your plants.  Each of these skills require energy.  The more energy you have the darker your cloud will be.  Energy refills over time.

   If you don't water your plants, they will decay over time.  When a plant has died (fully turned brown), it will gradually dissapear.  If a bug is buzzing around a plant, it will die faster.  Bugs are born when plants die.

You can download it at http://www.reinebold.com/ACloudyDay.zip

This was basically my attempt to see if I could make a game with 0 art assets.  Everything is drawn from primitives.

Specific Criticisms Requested:

Controls, difficulty, things you would like to see added.  

Also any general notes you have would be great.

Thanks for your feedback!

[fupersly]

Hey dude.  I played this.

Controls:  Moving the cloud felt like the game was lagging when changing directions but once I realized I was controlling the wind I kinda understood why you did it that way.

Difficulty:  Well it seems like I can keep growing plants.  Letting the cloud get dark enough gives me lightening but that just seems to fly the bugs away for a bit.  I'm not sure if
there is a strategy, I just pressed enter and space alot!

I would like to see flowers or some color on the plants.  I like the procedurally drawn plants.  The random movement of the bugs is nice too.  i think it would be cool if the bugs would start munching the plants where they landed though instead of at the trunk.

I would like the lightening to be more visual, perhaps a plant upside and white?  maybe let me kills some bugs but damange the plants?

[Taiko]

Just uploaded a new version (same zip file).

New features:

• Wind!
• Fixed several errors related to bug spawning.
• Fixed an error where sometimes a plant wouldn't get created properly.
• I shrank the window size to get rid of some dead space.

I liked the fruit idea and am looking into some l-systems recipes to make that happen.

If anyone here is good with animation I would like some feedback on my wind effect (in additional to general comments).

Thanks!

[EggRogue]

I just gave this a shot,

Firstly I think you have an interesting and original concept, that's a good start.

I had no problem with the controls, it was fairly straightforward.

At this stage it has the feel of a tech demo, rather than what I would call a game. So I guess what I feel is lacking is the game itself. There's really not much to do, and the three controls (movement, rain and thunder) don't provide enough depth to really give any interesting strategy to the game.

I'd say there would have to be a few more elements added to make this into a game. My suggestions:

• Sunshine. The screen could lighten and darken, affecting plant growth.
• Different bug types. Perhaps some bugs encourage plant growth while others eat the plants.
• Move up/down for altitude, where the higher you are the greater an area the rain sprays over, but with lower growth, and lower altitude means a smaller area but higher growth as a result.
• Maybe even some procedurally generated birds or other wildlife that can benefit/harm in various ways. You may not want to scare the birds off with your thunder.

Basically, I want more! More things to do, more elements, more ideas.

Other general modifications I would suggest:

• Improve the look of the rain and get it to fall much more naturally. You are creating a game that wants a very organic feel to it and the drops look like pellets that fall jerkily.
• I don't think the plant growth should collide with the clouds, since they are tiny and bugs can eat them. Give the screen some more vertical space. Just making a regular resolution would solve this I reckon, instead of the very unusually flat resolution you've chosen.
• The bug eating noise is the sound of a buzzing fly - flies don't eat plants. Picky I know but perhaps choose a mini-chomping sound or something.

That's pretty much all I can think of at this stage. Hope that comes off as constructive, it is certainly intended to be.

[Sakar]

• Maybe even some procedurally generated birds or other wildlife that can benefit/harm in various ways. You may not want to scare the birds off with your thunder.

Perhaps birds could eat fruit or something off the plant and drop seeds elsewhere, creating more plants.

Haven't played it yet, but I will make sure to try it when I get home

[Taiko]

Thanks everyone for the feedback so far!  Taking this thread and feedback from my friends into account I made some changes (url for the download is the same):

• Changed the rain effect to look more natural.  Now the drops are affected by wind and there is a sprinkle effect when they touch the ground.
• The flies now turn red when they are mad.
• I increased the y resolution of the screen.
• The more energy your cloud has the lower it will be on the screen.  I might take this effect out as it is a little jerky when you use lightning.
• Hitting flies with rain makes them angry.  This should add a little more depth.
• I added an inchworm who slowly makes her way across the bottom of the screen.  If you hit her with water she gives birth to more flies.

I think it is looking much better now.  Here is an updated screenshot:

[Society]

Entertained me for 5 minutes, or so. Good idea and cute interface catches attention until player notices looped nature of things: rain, growth, rain, growth, rain, growth, thunder. Same grass, same flees, same worm. Sound is another matter: while expecting some ambient midi, I got constant buzzing in my ears. Consider adding some texture to soil, btw: while we all like green rectangles, it should at least change after watering. Last, but not least is wrapping issue: going out of edges sure could be considered as act of freedom, yet cloud should just come from another side after a while. Good luck !

[sabajt]

I like this concept very much.

I have to second what fupersly's suggestion about adding flowers to the plants.  Flowers, or fruit, or some form of further development for the taller plants would be very satisfying.  As far as making the game more strategic (or at least having the the players interactions matter more), perhaps certain areas of the ground could be more fertile than others, or some variation like that.   

[farcodev]

i like the idea/concept/design very much too, i hope you'll continue to expand it