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[Superb Joe]

hello derek, it's me, super joe, the hero of the fsa. as the foremost art critic in the field of video games (which are not art) i have just one question, which i will preface with statements because i love to read my own words.

you've updated the art style so it's no longer a retro pastiche thing. i kind of like all the music that's been posted thus far, i just don't understand why having left the 8 bit thing behind visually with the music you've gone with this very unexpected retro fm synth jazz fusion thing going on that seems incongruous with the rest of the presentation. could you talk a little about how you settled on that style and how it came to be? would you tease my crack if when i spoke instead of sounds a muffled and unbroken square wave tone sounded as everything i said emerged in ethereal fixedsys images. thanks, i love you.

[Syrion]

Yes, that's correct.

:handmoneyR:

Take my money! (When "time" is over!)

I guess I'm one of the few who actually likes the trailer music. But, it would be great to hear a new medley of what the ingame BGM will sound like, considering how "controversial" the one from last year was.

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

looks good to me, i like the new graphics and effects, tho i prefer the old music to the new one -- should just have used like, orchestrated versions of the old music or something, the new music feels like a happy circus comedy adventure rather than an exploration of a dark cave for treasure (which the old music did a good job of conveying)

also, why is it snowing in a cave? is that even possible? not that it matters, it's a game, but i just thought that seemed weird

will buy it when it's released

[s0]

Yeah, the music sounds like smooth jazz/elevator music and doesn't really fit the game, but I don't get what some people's problem with the graphics is. They look absolutely gorgeous to me, even better than Aquaria.

Be gettin' this on release day fer sure. 

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

the youtube comments are calling it a minecraft clone (i would have thought they'd call it a terraria clone)

[s0]

red faction is my favorite minecraft clone.

[deathtotheweird]

precisely why the yousabletubefix greasemonkey script is the best script ever. from installing it and disabling comments in youtube videos, my quality of life has improved 10x while browsing the youtubes.

[Headless Man]

I think at least some of those people are just goofing around.  Though I guess you can never tell with youtube.

[s0]

Youtube is filled to the brim with trolls. I'm convinced that at least 50% of the "retarded" discussions in YT comments are actually trolls trolling trolls.

[Derek]

you've updated the art style so it's no longer a retro pastiche thing. i kind of like all the music that's been posted thus far, i just don't understand why having left the 8 bit thing behind visually with the music you've gone with this very unexpected retro fm synth jazz fusion thing going on that seems incongruous with the rest of the presentation. could you talk a little about how you settled on that style and how it came to be? would you tease my crack if when i spoke instead of sounds a muffled and unbroken square wave tone sounded as everything i said emerged in ethereal fixedsys images. thanks, i love you.

Your questions are all answered here!

http://mossmouth.com/forums/index.php?topic=2147.0

Except the last one, which you already know the answer to, in your heart of hearts.

Anyway, we'd love to get your guys's feedback on the post and the sampler. Which parts you like best or dislike most, and anything else you have to say. Thanks.

[unsilentwill]

It's good music and it reminds me of Mario 64's tunes. It's odd to see this game with charming graphics and friendly music when I know that players are going to die over and over and over and over. I'd hope it fits the gameplay as well as it does the levels.

The graphics look well done, but the colors seem a bit off. Super saturated again doesn't seem to fit the gameplay. It doesn't look "cheap or casual" but it doesn't look as much like a cave as it did. Especially with the screenshot in that post, the yellow dirt looks like gold especially against the green, and you can hardly see the gold in it. Comparing the two games XBLA has a very different tone than the one we're familiar with. Happier and less mysterious.

Though like the rest it looks like a blast and I'm going to buy it anyway.

[jotapeh]

My only complaint is that I've been waiting for this for what seems like forever and it's still not out.

[Uykered]

It's odd to see this game with charming graphics and friendly music when I know that players are going to die over and over and over and over. I'd hope it fits the gameplay as well as it does the levels.

Wow, have you played Mario (it had perma death too)? Not every game has to have Diablo's music when you die in it.

[unsilentwill]

Have you played Spelunky? There's a death counter. I'm not saying its dark and evil, but its far from happy fun.

[Glyph]

Looks pretty great so far, I liked the old graphics a lot but these are also pretty good-looking. The music in the video sort of threw me off because, as has been said, it was really cheery, but after listening to the music samples, it seems all fine and well. All said, the simple fact that there's more content and also multiplayer make me overjoyed. I don't know if it's been announced, but a level editor as in the original would be pretty awesome too.
Also, by Mario having perma-death, do you mean the arcade game Mario Bros? Because Super Mario Bros (the classic platformer) definitely didn't have perma-death (It had lives and restarting from the beginning of a world, meaning you kept progress you had made before dying).
But yeah, both games are sorta cheery. The cave in Spelunky still seemed more foreboding than a sprawling landscape and a goomba on the horizon, though.

[Xion]

question:
is playing a full game in multiplayer practical? Like, can it be a potential boon to play with others or does it generally quickly degrade into a clusterfuck where everyone gets in the way and ends up killing each other off accidentally or otherwise.

also, if the golden idol uses the same graphic as you have heading your blog posts it doesn't seem very shiny.


egad, I can't wait to play with the boomerang. And wasps! Bees? honeycomb but fuzzless.

[JaJitsu]

I really like the new graphics, and the music sounds nice [Phlogiston is awesome].
Wish I had an xbox for this one.

[baconman]

I'm also loving the flow of this, though part of me at least prefers a low-def voxel-graphics option. Multiplayer is certainly a great thing, and I'm liking the new level area concepts (which I'm guessing is WHY classic GFX aren't an option). Another glimmer of hope comes from the "temporary exclusivity," which tells me that at least SOMEDAY, I'll probably be able to score it for my PS3. (For the longest time, I thought it was because it was being developed exclusively in XML.)

One nitchy detail that really stuck out to me, though, was the arrow traps. A big element of what made the classic so challenging, especially at first, was how well it blended in with the sometimes-pushable blocks that appeared around the place, leading to many a spectacular YASD. And in this release they're considerably more distinguished, even to the untrained eye. Virtually impossible to NOT notice, in fact! And is it just me, or did the arrow it shot out have NO velocity/momentum to it at all?

[increpare]

Anyway, we'd love to get your guys's feedback on the post and the sampler. Which parts you like best or dislike most, and anything else you have to say. Thanks.

Like the music quite a lot, some tracks I found myself mentally adding string backing sections to (the spooky one especially).  [The title track 'dialog' sounded a bit clunky + repetitive to my ears, I'd personally try for something a little more flowing]

[q 3]

Giant bees. Why did it have to be giant bees?

And Derek: I definitely got a pretty gritty, dark vibe from the original. Kind of like a serious rogue-like.

I agree. It's a game where everything is trying to kill you. Even treasure chests and your own equipment.

the youtube comments are calling it a minecraft clone (i would have thought they'd call it a terraria clone)

That's silly. It's clearly a Cave Story ripoff.