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[MazK1985]

I agree, I wasn't aware of the suicide button either so it's probably best to force the player to use it. I can't think of a better way other than repeatably telling the player that they can do it.

If you feel it's not worth adding in different level heights then that's completely understandable, not much point in doing a lot of work for relatively little pay off, especially since you already have solutions.

How about curved walls?

[anteevy]

I'm thinking about adding 1-2 more tilesets to the game. Currently, there's only the one with walls and the one without walls (like in level 5). One idea was a tileset that has laser barriers as "walls" (like these: http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/starwars/images/0/00/Laser_gates.png/revision/latest?cb=20130120033330) - it could also have curved barriers as corner tiles. Maybe the barriers would even destroy the ball when touching them, or they'd have a high restitution/push the ball away, which could be used to keep the speed flow when rolling around corners.

Just some low-priority ideas though. Most of the visual variety lies in the background, particle effects and colors so they don't affect the core gameplay. Thanks again for the input! If you have more ideas/thoughts, I'm listening.

[MazK1985]

I'm no expert in game design so it's my pleasure to help in any way I can

I really liked the wall-less tiles, cutting corners while risking not falling off was fun. I also like the idea of walls/lasers pushing the ball away when touched. That could be quite challenging and fun.

Three more ideas I just came up with:

• Thinner floor tiles.
• Windy or force-field like areas that push the ball a bit.
• Lasers that move laterally.

[anteevy]

Cool ideas, thanks! Wind is something I think I'll add sooner or later as it's easy to implement.

[Personman]

Hi! I was really excited by the description in the topic, and grabbed the demo - and then quit halfway through level 2. For something that bills itself as "rhythm driven", this game is incredibly slow-paced. I don't care about waiting around for things to get out of my way. I want to zoom around in between things as fast as I can.

There's also surprisingly little momentum for a ball-rolling game - it doesn't have that careening, scary, going-too-fast feeling of monkey ball or marble blast at all.

I like your concept, and your name, and your visual style, but this game seems to just not be for me. I'm not sure if there's anything actionable for you in this post - it seems like you're pretty clearly just catering to someone else. Still, I wanted to put it out there just in case you felt like nudging things in a bit of a faster, freer direction.

[anteevy]

Thanks for the feedback!

For something that bills itself as "rhythm driven", this game is incredibly slow-paced.

Our understanding of "rhythm-driven" might be different here. For me, it is very different from "velocity-driven". Instead of just getting as fast from A to B as possible using your reflexes, you have to carefully proceed through the levels. Good observation of trap patterns, perfect timing and puzzle solving are key in Roll Playing Game's campaign.

That doesn't mean it has to be slow-paced, though: Level 1-2 is probably the slowest in the whole campaign, because you have to wait for the slow rotating laser beams to clear the path. I'm currently reworking the 2nd and 3rd level to make them more open and faster and provide shortcuts/alternate routes. 1-4 introduces timer buttons that require fast movement at certain sections in the levels. Evil balls and projectiles will hunt you down in later levels, too.

Also, as I know that many marble fans love speedrolling, there will also be a bunch of "Rush" levels (partly based on the campaign levels). These include a timer and highscore lists, you can challenge your friends to beat your score in a certain level etc. Add to that the community level support and there should be plenty of speedy content in the game.

Still, overcoming/solving rhythmic hazards and puzzles represents the core of the game and if one doesn't like that, he/she would probably be better off looking for different kind of game. Roll Playing Game goes more in the direction of Ballance/Switchball instead of Monkey Ball/Marble Blast.