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[eclectocrat]

So to summarize, you don't know how to play or what is happening, so you won't play. That's about right eh?

Won't play is not the same as can't play. I played it, I couldn't understand it. I just kept getting killed. I wasn't having any fun. I had the same experience on the desktop version.

I'll try again with your instructions. Maybe just a text window accessible from the menu would help. I understand the colossal pain in the arse that building tutorials is.

Double pressing buttons in the game I think makes sense - I didn't notice it in game, but having it in the title menu is just plain weird. No other title menu on any other iOS app does it so it's pretty jarring and makes it seem like its a bit broken. Its like your interface design is saying that touchscreens are fundamentally broken. That's not the experience I've had with some other apps.

Even if you understand the game, you'll probably keep getting killed It's very roguelike-ey in that way. It's hardcore in that battles are all meant to be pretty razor thin affairs, and you'll likely spend a fair bit of time running away. My girlfriend tries to convince me that you shouldn't be able to die so soon and so easily, and while she has a point, Dungeons of Dredmore has shown that it's not a prerequisite for success.

Lack of instructions is my number one complaint. I realize that it's hurting the experience, but I have some strange resistance to making a tutorial. Maybe it's some lame homage to DF or something. There is a very brief textbox explaining the basics of the game accessible from the options pane. Again, swipe down and select "help!" for a seriously brief and obtuse explanation 

As far as the beginning game screens needing a double tap, that was some kind of unconscious effort at consistency...?

Anyways, I really appreciate you taking the time to try it out and giving me feedback. I'll take all the criticism to heart and make the next version better (and easier to understand).

[jotapeh]

Having played it a bunch of times since release I think st33d brings up a lot of good points.

Also - please stop spending so much effort on the dashboard icon and clean up your title screen instead

Dungeons of Dredmore gets away with the brutal difficulty because you can easily understand what you're doing. Mysterious Castle is a lot harder to wrestle with and could stand with a big interface overhaul, imo. At this point I mostly understand what's going on, but the first few times I played it was very confusing and I was sort of sad that I got killed because I didn't know what I was doing.

It's also a little bit hard to click tiny things on my iPhone (I imagine iPad would be way easier.) I wouldn't mind a zoom of some kind.

Cheers and keep on cranking out those updates, it's appreciated

[eclectocrat]

Having played it a bunch of times since release I think st33d brings up a lot of good points.

Also - please stop spending so much effort on the dashboard icon and clean up your title screen instead

The icon is a cut and paste from a 16th century illuminated manuscript, so no work was put into it
Do you find the title screen ugly or difficult to use (also, v1.8 changed the title a little bit).

Dungeons of Dredmore gets away with the brutal difficulty because you can easily understand what you're doing. Mysterious Castle is a lot harder to wrestle with and could stand with a big interface overhaul, imo. At this point I mostly understand what's going on, but the first few times I played it was very confusing and I was sort of sad that I got killed because I didn't know what I was doing.

I'm a little confused, do you think I need to more clearly explain the interface or to overhaul it? You kind of understand what's happening now I gather, so do you still find it difficult to use? I'd love to hear some specific annoyances.

It's also a little bit hard to click tiny things on my iPhone (I imagine iPad would be way easier.) I wouldn't mind a zoom of some kind.

Cheers and keep on cranking out those updates, it's appreciated

Zoom is a definite must. I have little dainty fingers, so I don't always appreciate the difficulty some people have with selection.

I'm going to keep cranking out updates, this time next year the game will be vastly improved beyond recognition (except the graphics).

Thanks for the feedback!

[eclectocrat]

Today, I am a real indie dev.

RPS Mention!!! 

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/12/23/an-englishmans-home-mysterious-castle/

[ANtY]

Today, I am a real indie dev.

RPS Mention!!! 

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/12/23/an-englishmans-home-mysterious-castle/

Congratulations!

[jotapeh]

Hey, congrats. That's pretty great.

The icon is a cut and paste from a 16th century illuminated manuscript, so no work was put into it
Do you find the title screen ugly or difficult to use (also, v1.8 changed the title a little bit).

Just a bit ugly especially the chunky aliased text. Difficult to use.. it doesn't do anything does it? Just clicks through to the next screen? So no, nothing there.

I'm a little confused, do you think I need to more clearly explain the interface or to overhaul it? You kind of understand what's happening now I gather, so do you still find it difficult to use? I'd love to hear some specific annoyances.

Probably a little tiny bit of both. Moving the 'action points' bar on top of the character is good. I'm not sure exactly what to change, just seems like the important things don't really call attention to themselves. Now that I'm used to it it doesn't matter too much, but might be daunting for new players.

Spells are a touch confusing too, since I've yet to find a town to rest up (usually I die or accidentally hit a town guard with a spell and then die.)

I'm sure you'll get a boatload of new players with the RPS feature, so hopefully you get some nice feedback there too.

[eclectocrat]

Just released 1.9 BETA for OSX, Windows coming soon.

Now I actually have indoor environments, ie: Mysterious Castles and Dungeons.

[Dakota.s]

Awesome, this game looks like so much fun! il try it tomorrow, i am really excited to play it.

[Franklin's Ghost]

Those indoor environments are looking great.

[eclectocrat]

Done! Available on Indievania today. Now I begin my work on 2.0.

www.mysteriouscastle.com

[Udderdude]

My first impressions from running around the first area:

The intro screen buttons don't look like buttons at all - really need some work done on these.

Clicking the message box when it's 'typing in' the text should instantly show the text, not close the message box.

Clicking a message box that appears when you look at a sign should go away when you click on it.

Having to double click menu options is a pain and confusing, especially since they don't seem to do anything even when you click on them once.

Pressing ESC to go full-screen seems really wierd.  Shouldn't ESC back you out of the current menu option or something?

For some reason, when I reached the skeleton enemies, my spellcaster guy dissapeared.  Couldn't see him or use his abilities.  He wasn't anywhere near the Skeletons, so I know he didn't just get killed by them without me seeing.

I'm not sure how but I was able to stack the Dwarf and Halfling on top of eachother.  Not sure if this is supposed to be able to happen.

[Hima]

Looks lovely, eclectocrat! Downloading the demo right now though I'm sure I'd probably be spending money again   

[PompiPompi]

I will try the demo, but if the controls are still too cumbersome I will probably not buy it. I am not sure if I bought it already actually, heh. I just remember the controls were way too painful to play. :/
Edit: Oh, it's the same demo version. 1.9.1. :/

[eclectocrat]

@Pompi

The controls aren't cumbersome, but very non-standard. Once you get the hang of it you can play very swiftly and efficiently. I'm working on a video tutorial series to help newcomers.

It's strange, I get comments on how difficult the control is (mostly from people who haven't played for more than a few minutes), and comments on how smooth and accurate the control is. At this point I have enough feedback to know that aside from a few mistakes on my part, the interface is pretty good. The learning curve is the problem right now.

When Xerox was testing the mouse, many people shook it in the air, talked to it, turned it upside down and rolled the ball, and slid it on the monitor. Education is key, and that's where I've failed

[PompiPompi]

Ok, I will wait for the video tutorials.

[Erinock]

That looks so very cool

[st33d]

I've been playing Avernum: Escape from the Pit recently. The gameplay is very similar to this, but I had a lot less trouble with the UI.

I would recommend you check it out, I've been enjoying it so far.

[Games Inquirer]

So, the game's site has been down, unless it moved elsewhere without me noticing, are there any news for the Windows release of the latest version(s) yet? Unless you don't intend to develop that further and will stick with iOS only. Maybe you can give that version to those that paid for the Windows release if so, if they ask for it. Or did it not sell enough to warrant further support for any version? That would be pretty sad.

[eobet]

I'm sorry if this sounds harsh, but I hope for 2.0 that you get a real UI designer on the job.

The gameplay seems great, the graphics are great, the animation is great... and all of that is just utterly wasted because of the shitawful UI. This game could be indie greatness, but instead it's trapped in amateur hour territory because of the UI.

Again, sorry to be so blunt (and that I don't currently have time to be constructive or give you good examples), but trust me when I say that you should really invest in a good UI designer.

I only say this because there is so much potential here!

[Games Inquirer]

Explaining what version you're talking about would probably help. I had no issues with the earlier releases on PC. Improvements could be made for sure but I found it simple and relatively intuitive for the most part.