So I just tried the demo (been waiting for this since forever) Great stuff you guys have going XD
Anyway, some comments that's hopefully constuctive
- Accidental Jump : If I hold the jump button, player instantly jumps again when he land. I usually remove this in my game since many players have the habit of holding the jump button till they land. Especially in this game, when I want to instantly jump off after I land, I end up pressing jump after an accidental jump, causing me to fly *SPOILER ALERT* which I ends up getting spot in the dark multiple times.
- Activate Fly : This might be a bad idea, I'm not sure... but I was thinking it might be more satisfying if the player activates fly mode from holding jump in the air. Like, press jump to jump, press and hold jump and owlboy do a little somersault. Hold it long enough "0.2" sec, and he spreads his wings. I'd imagine, it gives the "take off" more impact and feels more like you're heading for an adventure. Also, it prevents player from going into flying mode accidentally.
- Monster placement : Felt a little overwhelming when I bump into the 1st group of monsters (3 of them, 2 different variety). There's a few more areas that I felt was overwhelming. Might wanna space them out a little.
- Checkpoint : I realize when I die, I don't revive on the save point, but somewhere else. There's a checkpoint, but we don't see it. The problem with this is that I was dying and thought its fine, I'll probably revive somewhere near, but I didn't. And have to play a whole area over again. The next time, I was trying hard not to die, and restart somewhere near.
- Checkpoint before cutscene : I also realize many checkpoint were placed before cutscene, which means that we need to rewatch everything when we die. Though you probably gonna throw in a skip button, it might be a good idea to rearrange your checkpoint a little too.
- Level Guidance : I feel lost in the level sometimes. I see multiple path, but I'm not sure which is the correct path. I thought I pick a random path and explore a little before I come back, but next thing I know, the gate close up behind, and I can't backtrack now.
The way I usually handle this in my game is - The correct path are easiest to reach and proceed, while the alternate path are usually more troublesome. This case, players that want to explore will take the harder path, and players that want to proceed can take the easier path.
- Closing gate : I can almost never see the gates. This might be good for a trap, making player goes "omg" when the gate closes, but it also means I ends up getting in unprepared too often. On the other hand, if player is able to see the danger ahead, they can prepare themselves for the danger ahead... much like the save point before the boss fight.
- Satisfaction : I'm assuming the audio is incomplete at the moment, but I felt you can go more flashy when the player found a key item. Not just a pose, but some animation, particles, etc.
- Rate of Fire : The default guy with the pistol felt weak, and since his rate of fire is pretty slow, I ended up just dodging all the enemies. Maybe you can weaken his damage, and increase his rate of fire. Perhaps this way, player feel like there's more action, and more willing to attack. *Spoiler* Especially since there's we later have the guy with the spread gun, the pistol felt kinda meaningless.
- Controls : It felt kinda odd with up being jump since you already have a jump button, and using a shoulder button for interaction. Would suggest you simply the controls a little.
Anyway, long post, but that's all for now
I did enjoy the game, and it looks so damn magnificent. Can't wait till the release!
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