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Feedback comments for LD45
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| Timestamp | Since previous | Game | Random-storykeeper's comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 8 00:56:49 | Adrift | ♥ 0 | Tried playing the game again after I died, and I was met with this message: ``` ___________________________________________ ############################################################################################ ERROR in action number 1 of Draw Event for object obj_spaceship: Trying to draw non-existing sprite. at gml_Object_obj_spaceship_Draw_0 ############################################################################################ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- stack frame is gml_Object_obj_spaceship_Draw_0 (line -1) ``` But overall, I was interested in this one because it seemed quite similar to my team's entry. Overall, I liked being able to zoom in and out of the area. The physics felt a little...drifty?? which fits the whole "drifting aimlessly in space" mood. 😂 It was quite tedious to steer around, though. The sound effects were fitting. My one major gripe is that the time between waves seems too long. The only time I really need in between waves is putting together the parts of my spaceship, which pauses the timer and causes it to reset, so I'm just sitting around waiting for a while in this vast area. I thought the asteroids were destructible, but that appears to not be the case. Maybe they take an absurd amount of bullets. 🤔 It's interesting that the missiles are attracted to the cursor rather than being homing missiles that seek out the enemy. I felt like that might have been more intuitive. I really enjoy the menu screen, particularly when you click "eject" and the astronaut slowly floats away. Nice visuals overall. | |
| Oct 8 05:15:01 | 4h 18m | Real-time Gardener | ♥ 0 | This was the perfect game to come across as I left to have some tea and dessert after dinner. I have a soft spot for games like these where you can leave for a while and come back with results (like the zen garden in Plants vs. Zombies haha). It also helps that the game is super cute, and seeing the pictures of these adorable flowers made me wonder exactly which kind I was going to get. Overall, I enjoyed it. Not saying I could play these types of games too often, but every once in a while, it's nice to see something like this. The audio was quite something. I think I heard a super high pitched voice cut through the music, if ever so subtly. It was kind of grating, and I'm not really sure if that's intentional. Looking at these previous comments, if it's supposed to be screaming, that's actually kind of terrifying. 🤣 But that aside, the track that plays during the game is also happy and it makes me feel happy, too. I like the subtle voices - at least I think there were subtle vocals aside from the super high pitched one. I almost felt bad for turning off the music for a bit because the music note looked so sad under the 🚫 . So yeah, the game did what it was supposed to do and I was glad to see my flower grow after I left my computer for a while. Nice job. |
| Oct 8 08:11:12 | 2h 56m | Survivor Slots | ♥ 3 | I like how this game has elements of chance, but also involves some strategic thinking in order to win. The instructions kind of confused me, but once I got into the game and realized that I could just look at the slot guide instead of guessing which way those arrows make the panels move (I know; I'm slow 😂 ), I managed to beat the game on my second try. It still took a while, though, got up to day 18 before I made it out, but at the very least, I did not get eaten by gorilla demons and played it super cautiously. The game had an unnerving pace to it despite having no music. Knowing I could take as long as I needed to plan out my decision but still had to deal with impending doom was a little worrying, but overall, I enjoyed the game quite a bit and can say that I haven't come across a lot of games like this on Ludum Dare. I wish the game would have indicated which day I got out on on the ending screen. I nearly forgot and it would be nice to have some proof with a screenshot that I made it as far as I did, haha. That aside, all this really needs is audio. Although I must say, it's hard for me to spend as long in games that have absolutely no audio as much as I did with this one. This is a pretty solid entry, all in all. |
| Oct 10 08:34:06 | 48h 22m | In The Beginning | ♥ 1 | This was a neat little game, like the nods to Biblical references and I like the overall pixel art aesthetic. There was enough sound going on overall that, while there was no music, felt like there was enough sound to not feel empty, which is good. The cards were a neat approach; I was confused on how to play at first, and despite not really looking at the instructions, had no trouble understanding the basics of what I had to do. When a game can just present itself and have the player go in with little to knowledge of how to play and be able to pick it up right away, I think it speaks to how well the game was executed. I was engaged by this game; it kept me interested long enough to keep playing and play the victory card. Well done. :) |
| Oct 12 00:41:47 | 40h 07m | Nocero | ♥ 2 | The game was confusing at first to me, especially with how to time the attacks. I wish there was more of a visual indicator, kind of like the combat system in Undertale. I think that was pretty much my only issue with the game. As a whole, it is well put together and the controls are responsive. I quite liked the look of the game and the two audio tracks had enough contrast to distinguish them but still fit within the game environment. With the waltz feeling of the main world track, it almost feels like I'm in a castle. I enjoyed the idea of starting with no attacks and having to learn them along the way. It would be cool if you had to learn the attacks from other enemies who had attacked you rather than just going through the menu, because the current system feels like just a more elaborate way of selecting an attack and I think it might have connected more in regards to how Nocero thinks of the attacks (rather than just thinking of them out of nowhere). It's a good entry overall; I enjoyed learning how all the moves worked against the enemies. I like their appearances a lot, particularly the surprise ones that aren't even in the main overworld. |
| Oct 12 01:18:33 | 36m 46s | Forbidden Fruit | ♥ 1 | This game was so bizarre; I didn't even know what to expect. I didn't realize there were a ton of references until I was told what said references were. But even though I didn't get most of them, it still made me laugh because of how random the game was. The boss battles were frustrating, but I liked that you respawned right at the boss you were fighting rather than right at the beginning. The bosses had a neat progression and there were enough safe spots to strategize, but it was still challenging enough along the way. I also found it strange that you acquire the weapons of the figures you kill along the way, although a lot of them seem very similar to each other. I'm not really sure what the significance of Adam was in the game - I think I did try to hit X after acquiring the fruit, but it didn't seem to do anything. The alternate ending was quite interesting and I like how you accounted for that possibility. Very funny overall. |
| Oct 13 05:00:54 | 27h 42m | One eraser / one rubber | ♥ 0 | I quite enjoyed this; it was fun trying to figure out what I needed to trade based on the hints and the other items these people had. I thought the visual style complemented the audio and the dialogue well - it was amusing to see what these non-playable characters were called, and seeing my inventory grow was quite satisfying until I became the queen...or king. 😏 My arm must be very long, considering it can go all the way to the top of the screen. I like how my hand can go under the text, too. 😂 But that aside, it was a very cute game that kept me engaged until the very end. Nice concept overall. |
| Oct 13 05:53:37 | 52m 43s | You Gotta Buy Everything | ♥ 1 | This is great, definitely an engaging one. I love these kinds of games where you start with, well, nothing and then slowly build your way up to making a full game. The art style and music reminded me a lot of An Untitled Story, especially when buying the shop items. I wish I would have been able to buy upgrades for the shop button sprites...it would have made the whole "buying to reveal the game" concept more thorough and satisfying. But overall, I appreciated the concept and integration of the theme. It was kind of funny just how unnecessarily powerful I could get at the very end. 😂 |
| Oct 13 08:12:52 | 2h 19m | Sweet Nothing | ♥ 1 | I really love the narration in this game. The voice acting had great delivery to make the game fun while I was figuring out the puzzles. Some of the quips, even the ones that were supposed to be insulting, were rather amusing. I liked the pleasant music track and that credits detail at the end for "Game design" was a nice touch. I found the movement of the character to be on the sluggish side and unresponsive when first pressing one of the A or D keys to move. But other than that, the level design was pretty solid as a whole. I like how the last level unfolds into a longer level, although it might have been cooler if the buildup to that longer level was more gradual. Still, I give this game two thumbs up. 👍 👍 |
| Oct 13 08:54:13 | 41m 21s | Basil | ♥ 1 | Needless to say, I was pretty salty about my score. 😏 basil - score 7-03.png Overall, I was on board for this game - well, half on board and half in the water. 😂 It is a little confusing learning how the game works, but once I got the hang of it, that's when it got fun...and the difficulty started to ramp up. Making this an endless game felt kind of bleak, since the boy never calls for any help, and his desperation grows the more he's all alone, trying to survive. But it overall works for the premise of this game. Don't know if this was intentional, but I found it strange that the game starts out in fullscreen during the cutscene and then goes into window mode when playing the game. What's even stranger is that when starting the game again, the cutscene was windowed the second time I opened the application. I thought that having the balance between spending time in the water to collect materials and then build with them or use them to cook food was a good idea. Everything seemed to work fine; the character movement was good and the music was bleak, but had some nice tones that fit the mood. I really like how washed out the character looks - that suited the mood perfectly. |
| Oct 13 09:22:51 | 28m 38s | Nothing Left | ♥ 2 | The cutscenes were definitely the most striking part of the game, and I like the way that the game ties in to the story. It reminds me of [Soom](http://www.pixellovegames.com/games/soom/?game=soom), in terms of the premise. That being said, I found the gameplay to be on the frustrating side, particularly with the dash mechanic. The second to last stage especially proved itself to be quite the hassle, as it felt as though the space bar wouldn't respond at the times when I actually pressed it (although the space in which you have to move while dashing proves this to be hard to tell). Maybe it was because I wasn't used to using my left hand on WASD to move, and I ended up crossing my hands over each other so I could control my character's movement with my dominant hand. 😂 But overall, I did think these two mechanics worked pretty well in conjunction with each other, and the simplicity of the aesthetic seemed to work for the portrayal of this mysterious "caught-in-the-afterlife-but-not-quite" kind of setting. The part that also stood out to me a lot was that the main character has a strong resemblance to my irl appearance. I found that coincidence to be funny. 😂 I don't know if I relate to the character a whole lot, though, have to think more on that. 🤔 |
| Oct 15 05:52:28 | 44h 29m | The Idea Explorer | ♥ 1 | This game is a great example of a simple idea executed in an intriguing way. I like the narration, despite a few minor grammatical quips and how well it tied in to the gameplay. The way the level zooms out completely when you finish a level makes things extra satisfying; I love being able to see the level I just navigated in its entirety. The way the colour palette changed kept the minimalistic design interesting without becoming stale. I really love what you did with the audio in this game. It's very clear that time and effort were put more into the mood and the audio, but I think the idea is distinct enough that the mood and audio actually help to enhance the gameplay overall. Starting out with very few notes with the delayed shorter notes chiming in every now and then sets the tone perfectly for a world that is more abstract. Actually, it almost feels like I'm stuck between worlds, maybe even some unknown dimension. And I love how that music gets built upon as I progress through the levels. The guitar and percussion were fitting and if they were not layered upon the already existing background track, everything flowed together seamlessly. 👌 Also, can I just add that the sound that plays when you obtain inspiration/motivation/determination is just amazing? It's a big part of the reason I wanted to keep playing, even after I crashed the game by pressing the spacebar (should've read the comments first haha). The controls are probably the most puzzling aspect of the game (no pun intended?). Using only WASD keys for movement seemed too restrictive, especially since the only function of the mouse is to advance text boxes and any UI. A more practical set of controls for this game could have been either WASD or the arrow keys to move and the spacebar to advance the textboxes and level start/complete screens. Unless the gameplay actually depends on the mouse, having two different control sets for movement (ie. WASD and the arrow keys) is generally most ideal. Another interesting thing of note is that the controls seem to be geared towards perpendicular movement while the game perspective is isometric. I may be using the terms wrong here, but games that have this sort of isometric setup (Naya's Quest as an example) usually have regular arrow key controls that are set so that you automatically move at a diagonal when pressing up or left, etc. rather than having to press up *and* left to move. Maybe I'm too used to playing isometric games that have such controls, but I think it may be worth considering. More precise movements can be difficult to attain if you're expected to press two keys at once. But I understand if this was an intentional decision, as it's more intuitive if paired with simple enough level design. The tower design is really cool, but it gave me the most trouble because I was never able to see behind the tower, and I'm not sure if the spotlight truly illustrates how the tower's structure worked exactly. If the camera were able to rotate along with the player, I think it might have caused less confusion as to why I kept falling when I was walking at times. The final part towards the end also had some perspective issues, where it looked like I was going to fall off a tiny platform but was still hanging onto it for some reason. But all in all, I was able to complete it. All issues aside, I like your game a lot. It hits that right balance for me in terms of sound, gameplay, visuals, all meshing together perfectly to create an evocative mood. (although, the ending also crashed the game, but I think I might have hit the Exit button out of curiosity 😂 ) |
| Oct 15 06:16:07 | 23m 39s | Dead on Arrival | ♥ 0 | I think the audio issues are probably worth fixing in your current build, even after the deadline. It's the kind of thing that could be considered an "overlooked bug". I didn't experience any issues after the first few levels upon dying, but yeah, once I did die in level 4, I think, the game started again and began to stack the audio. The music is strangely straddling that spot between chill and intense. I think it has something to do with the stark contrast between the composition and the instrumentation. I'm not really sure if it fit the tone of this game at all, but I dug the music on its own, at least. It's worth a thumbs up if you do post the music on SoundCloud or something. 👍 Also, regarding dying, the game seems to start you right at the beginning of the game rather than the level you were on, which is quite frustrating, given the game's overall premise. Is there supposed to be a cooldown for your HP bar filling up? It seems to carry over with each level you progress. I think a more ideal balance would be to either have the bar reset to 0 every level or to have some way of getting rid of your full HP. Maybe if you were to extract bullets from the ones they had shot at you. 😂 The overall idea was super interesting, and I think it's a rather unique perspective on the concept of being a player killing enemies. I think there's a lot more to explore with this premise, like if you're reversing time, starting the first level as the last level in a typical game of this sort. But you did tap into something neat during this jam, and I can see even the execution of what you have working well if there were some balancing tweaks alone (along with the audio stacking fix). |
| Oct 15 09:29:53 | 3h 13m | Night Lights | ♥ 1 | Cute game! It plays well and the overall premise is easy to pick up and get into playing right away. The graphics are adorable and I love the setting with the bushes and red flowers. The vignette lighting also sets this charming nighttime mood that works for me. I do echo the feedback of previous comments in that there are some collision issues with the character collecting the fireflies. It seems to occur whenever I approach the fireflies at a diagonal, ie. when I'm pressing up/down and left/right simultaneously, which causes me to slide up or down alongside the fireflies. The game certainly would have benefited from faster character speed and just a few more elements to the gameplay that make it more challenging. I did check out the post-jam build, and I like the idea of having bats that take away the number of fireflies you have, although I do think there needs to be more indication on-screen that this is happening, like showing the fireflies sprite on the bat if it comes in contact with the player and even a sound effect to go along with it. You could also consider enemies that temporarily inhibit movement as something the player should be avoiding if they want to get the most amount of fireflies possible. I'm a little mixed on the choice of music. While it is happy, I'm not sure if it complements the "night" mood that well. I think that element is best captured in audio, especially since the only visual indicator of this being night (besides the title) is the vignette lighting. But, I guess the horns kind of give that jovial being in nature tone, which makes sense given the source of the music. Personally, I could have used a bit more "night" tones and something a little less cheesy, maybe even chiptune to complement the pixel art style. Not that cheesy's bad; I - again personally - don't think it really complements the game that well. My highest score was Night Lights score 26.png but I found I had to luck into that number, since many attempts would leave me with somewhere in the low 20s, and I think that one time, there were tons of fireflies that would spawn right under where my character was passing through or very nearby. The RNG and slow speed make this game kind of tedious to try and get highscores with, but it at least gave me the opportunity to appreciate the background and super cute pixel art protagonist. Welcome to Ludum Dare. 😁 |
