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Steventus

Feedback comments for LD47

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Timestamp	Since previous	Game		Steventus's comment
Oct 6 12:38:10		Spin Attack	♥ 1	Hey @1punnyguy44 , I have to say, I very much enjoy this game actually. A simple gimmick, let's go through the positives: 1) Ample difficulty at brisk pace. Unlike other games like Crypt of the Necrodancer, when enemies only 'move when you move', you get to take your time and absorb everything happening before making your next move - making it akin to action/strategy kind of genre. I do like it, and I think you executed it adequately well. 2) Good replayability potential. While I did not play the multiple characters available, I can see this having good potential in that regard. In the little time we have, its impressive you made do with that! 3) Honestly: amazing artstyle. It's cohesive, works well together, and you have a good hand at pixel art - knowing to limit yourself to small palettes really brings out the aesthetics of your game. I have much to learn from you. Other things I think could do more good: 1) The music feels off occasionally. The tone doesn't sit well with me, could be subjective but I feel like I'd make that point. 2) Game does not feel as smooth/responsive/nice(?) to play is the best way I can desscribe it. While the game design is fine on its own, the moment-to-moment feel is a bit off here. Nevertheless, I think this game did well - and as such, deserved such a fitting rating as well.
Oct 6 12:51:37	13m 27s	The Titan's grave	♥ 1	Hey @badpiggy , I think this was quite a nice and simple game! I will give my feedback based on my personal experiences with action/boss-rush/bullet-hell games. Lets go with the positives first: 1) Nice, simple, and cohesive art style altogether. Blending together the sound AND art altogether very well here. Nothing else to do but to sing praise at how cohesive it is! 2) As a whole, the controls are simple and with the boss phases, give the controls themselves depth. After all, the viability of a skill is dependent on the enemies that you fight. 3) The fact that the player slows down while attacking is a criticism that is highly subjective. And I'm quite frankly in a mixed bag here. On one end, it really throws off the player's movement especially during the second phase. On the other, it maintain a form of offense-defensive playstyle that will soon become prevalent in the game. More on this below for you to take it however you will. Some of my other thoughts: 1) The second phase of the boss is not particularly interesting - as bullet hell goes (especially since you advertised your game as such). I think it could make do with more interesting patterns, or interesting rhythms, both. It can be somewhat off-putting playing the second phase but overall, I'm not too turned off by it. 2) Player movement feels a bit clunky. And this is something I do not entirely have an answer for. It's something I just want to make notice. Regardless, very nice! Enjoyable from start to finish.
Oct 6 13:03:05	11m 28s	The Loop Collection	♥ 1	Heya @geegaz , I come from a mainly action perspective so take this how you will. It's quite good if anything, but I have a few qualms I'd like to express. Let's go through the positives: 1) Simple, minimalistic(?) art that is prominent from the start to the finish. Very well done on that regard, and deserves celebration! 2) As a collage of games, I think you did well in compiling them ie. designing good short games that work as a whole package. Herein, the saying goes "the sum is worth more than its parts"! Other games that come to mind are Rhythm Heaven which also works like a compilation of games. Very noice! Some other qualms I have: 1) For the third game, I think it suffers from having a 3-D aspect (ie you can go behind some rocks), as it is a game that demands precision of avoiding rocks, if we don't exactly know which rocks are to be avoided and which are "somewhat-safe-to-touch", it can be a bit confusing as a whole. 2) Understandably, we were working for a short time but the lack of a music - especially in a game going for a arcade-ish/casual-ish approach can very drastically detract from the experience. Nevertheless, the game works well enough with its very good sound effects. Though in this situation, I think the cons outweight the pros. I think it's a good game, but it might not have been my kind of game. Doesn't change the fact that I always loved your art though.
Oct 6 13:13:35	10m 30s	The Maze!	♥ 1	Hey @mellow-cello , I think this game could benefit from a lot of improvement but understandably this was your first completed game - so let's first go through the positives: 1) Initially, I was somewhat detracted from the art of the game. But it kinda grew on me after a while. Especially with how gloomy, and dark, and empty everything is, your art direction you're trying to covey here works in your favour. Other than that, I think that's about it. Naturally, your game is far from perfect - and that's fine. This is a learning process and you've just started yours. I see with the direction of this game is going, it's leaning in towards puzzle-platformer instead of pure mechanical platformer, so I will give my 2 cents on one thing to improve on: 1) Maybe give some directions to the player. Some context on the maze they are in - how it is looping them. Give the players a goal at the beginning so they know what they are playing. This can be in the form of a text box really. But I think just such a short thing, is a good starting off point for game design as a whole. I wish you good luck in your journey here man. It's a rough, but one hell of a ride here.
Oct 6 17:27:52	4h 14m	What's up?	♥ 3	Hey @tuatarian , this is a hidden gem. It's mad good HAHA. I have so much good things to say about this but let's stick with the important ones. First the positives: 1) This game works absolutely well as a rage-game. The kind of games where it is infuriatingly hard. Think meatboy, celeste where there is a naturally higher level of difficulty. The speed is initially quite fast but I got used to it and quite enjoyed it a lot. I did not finish the game but for the time I play, it was good! 2) Simple aesthetics, simple song. I think the BGM could be something different but otherwise, it is amazingly good as is. 3) Simple game mechanic. Just get to the end. A concept that is well visited in mobile games but you really brought it to its extreme on PC form, and in such destructive fashion (in a good way - it's a rage game in my eyes). Some nitpicks where I see: 1) I think the collisions are not working as intended. Sometimes, I die when I didn't even touch the walls. I think the collisions just need more fine-tuning, and that can be important in games like these. 2) Towards where I stopped, the difficulty of the level becomes less of traversing pass the middle section but instead, getting to the white square at the end. I think you could make do with diversifying your difficulty some more. Otherwise, this is actually quite a hidden gem (I said that twice now). I play a lot of action games and I absolute loved this!
Oct 6 17:39:38	11m 46s	ronron Therapy	♥ 2	Hey @redunca , I think this game was a bit of a mixed bag from me. I'm going to focus more on the gameplay as a whole first. Let's start with the positives: 1) There is definitely good art here and it works to tell the story you want to tell. The amount of effort is something worth celebrating! I do have more qualms than I have positives about this game so let's dive right into the most important ones: 1) The game pacing is too slow. I think if you had more words to type out, it'll feel much more fun to play. Remember, it's a game, while a narrative is good (especially for the narrative you are conveying) - a player that quits early on will not experience that narrative at all. Consider making it so that you start with 3 words, and every interval, you learn 3 more new words. This way, the player can feel like they are progressing faster - especially given the current slow pace of the game. 2) I am generally confused of the goal of the game too. Even if the theme is 'stuck in a loop', there is always a goal the players must strive towards. This game seems to present the protagonist in a very passive sense, not really doing anything. While it makes sense in a narrative standpoint, it just doesn't completely make for a completely good immersion/fun factor in the game. I think this is entering subjective territory, but you should revisit how to frame the game to give the protagonist a more active role. I think this can become something important in the future with the narrative it is trying to tell. Keep it up!
Oct 6 19:21:33	1h 41m	Defuse in under 5	♥ 0	Heya @darylsteak , For such a small game, this game has a LOT of things going for it. It's astonishingly good, very tight, very nice! I have never thought it would be possible to inject so much juice into a puzzle platformer. Let's go over the things I like: 1) All that small touches. The meaty slightly audible ticking for every second. Sound effects. Jumping. Snipping. I think the sound effects really brought the game to its maximum potential and you've definitely created really good sound effects to bring the game to an amazing shine! 2) Simple gameplay, single level, master to perfection. An interesting twist on puzzle platformers. Its initial difficulty could stem from the puzzle aspect but as players learn the level and become adept, the focus can shift towards speedrunning. What an innovative, interesting design here! As for nitpicks, where I have any: 1) I do not have anything strongly negative to say about this game. If anything, I wished there was a better tutorial? But even that is really pushing it (because you put the tutorial in the description). I think this game is amazing, and well deserves the attention it gets. Very nice!
Oct 6 19:32:24	10m 51s	a nice place	♥ 4	Hey @netmute , This is nice. Like, that's the best way to put it. It's nice. Good mood, good atmosphere. Let's go through the more prominent positives: 1) Sound. The lack of a music is really spot on here. I hope it's intentional because it really works in this game. I have seen games that also work well with music during periods of reflection so that isn't to say the lack of music is the absolute best way about it. Nevertheless, I enjoy it. I only hoped that, during the period where the protagonist sleeps on the beach, the waves would dim to a silent for a moment. That would just add a small bit more polish to the game! 2) And honestly, it's a nice place. Hah. It's a very short game. But you've decorated the world with small bits that hint at the narrative and as the plot unfolds, so to does the player's understanding of what the game is about. You've set a good place for the narrative in my opinion. I enjoy it! If there were any nitpicks I have, it would be: 1) The controls. It feels too clunky to move around having to spam the movement keys, or press too long for the auto-movement to kick it. But it doesn't detract too much from the experience. Overall, very nice. A hidden gem almost. Really loved this neat thing!
Oct 7 04:45:13	9h 12m	Dude Ranch	♥ 4	# YEEEHAAAWWWW fun.PNG In the most professional manner, BRO: this game is hilariously GOOD. Let's go through the things I like: 1) This makes for such a great arcade experience. If your team ever feels like it, this can go for some stupid fun mobile game kind of thing. Share it with everyone. Let's go kidnap some dudes. The gameplay as a whole is simple, cohesive. I think it could use more game juice, but by all means, the juice is definitely there though. It's a very well polished game! 2) The audio is amazing. Voiceover, sound effects and that funky music really adds to the feel of the game. You guys really did such an amazing job creating a game with SUCH a strong feel to it! For any hiccups I have with the game (oh lord, the wild west is getting to me): 1) Throwing the lasso feels... off. I can't quite put my finger on it. It just does. I thought I'd make a point on that. It's not a strongly negative point though but it's worth mentioning. 2) I think it would add to the gameplay if you added a soundeffect when the buff dude, or the gold dude spawns in. It would encourage the player to actively look for it, rather than passively wait for them to come to you (by chance). Hilariously good.
Oct 7 11:19:02	6h 33m	Aztec Ride	♥ 4	Hey guys, I'm pleasantly surprised with this game. Although it is not exactly my cup of tea, I would still rate it as a good game regardless! Let's go through the things I do like though: 1) Amazing art execution here by the team. The BGM, sound effects all blend in really well together. It's a pleasant to just watch it go from start to finish. 2) The extreme camera option is such a neat touch - and an amazing game design choice because it oozes with so much uniqueness the moment its on. Literally makes you go WEEE along with the audience. Some other qualms I have: 1) I think the gameplay just isn't my cup of tea. But it's not a strongly negative because of that. 2) I think the game could make do with an indicator as to where the audience are falling from, especially when they are flung up high in the sky and you can't see them. But overall, I enjoy the short ride I had with the game!
Oct 7 11:51:57	32m 55s	Ebontale	♥ 2	Heya @justcamh , Haha - unrelated, but big fan of your hole punch work. But pushing that aside: This is quite a breath of fresh air, narrative-focused games are always welcome in my book. Let's go through the things I like: 1) I think the art is entering programmer art territory. So I don't think I will judge it too harshly. It works well as a programmer art form of game. If anything, even as programmer art - there is an art direction you tend towards which works! 2) That SMOOTH transition. The iconic scene of your game if anything and you did amazingly on it. Really threw me off when the phone rang the first time. Although I anticipated it from the teaser gifs, the transition to other realities was still quite surprising and kept the narrative on its toes. For any qualms that I have: 1) I only wishes the sprint button was a toggle option. My fingers had to do a bit of gymnastics to continue sprinting but it would be nice if it's toggle-able. Otherwise, it's good - would travel to the inner depths of escapism again!
Oct 7 13:06:36	1h 14m	W.M.L.F	♥ 1	Heya @webox, This game is goooOOOOD. In a good way, lots of things I love, let's go through the most prominent ones: 1) Movement feels really smooth and good. Especially for a game about catching floating horses with a lasso, I appreciate the movement in this game. I find myself sprinting the entire game so I think you may as well make that the default movement if anything. Very enjoyable! 2) Lasso takes a bit to learn but it is quite satisfying to make work! I enjoy the game a lot! Some qualms I have: 1) This game would definitely shine so much with some funky music! Although you don't really have an audio category to rank on so that's fine. Otherwise, this game is fun to play! I love it from the start to the end!
Oct 7 13:32:17	25m 41s	Danger Beat	♥ 1	Heya @rhoff95, As a bullet hell lover, there is something here for me that I quite like! This game is adequately challenging which I do like! Let's go over the best positives: 1) Good bullet patterns/rhythms. It creates for engaging gameplay and as a whole, feel pretty good moving around. 2) Simple art style that serves the arcade feel of the game! I enjoy playing it just as I enjoy looking at it! But I think as far as bullet hells go, the biggest qualm I have is: 1) The lack of a 'move-slower' button for precise movements. I think that was something absolutely important that you unfortunately did not include here in your game. Otherwise, pretty good. I like it!
Oct 7 13:48:31	16m 14s	Loop City	♥ 1	Hey @fupi , This game is pretty good actually. I played it for a short time and I can see good potential in the game. Plenty of things that I liked, let's go through the positives:] 1) You have a very distinct art direction here and it works alongside your happy-go-lucky music! It may look very simply but I think it's pretty good for what it does, a pretty funny game. 2) A pretty good innovation of the theme if I do say so myself. Basically falling into the bottomless pit and people live down there for some reason. If I have any qualms, it would be: 1) A better tutorial would really smoothen your experience better. A wall of text is not always the best way to introduce the entire game on. But otherwise, I quite like the game!
Oct 7 14:39:51	51m 20s	Fear Of Gears	♥ 4	Hey @dev-dwarf , why is this game not top 10? I love action games in general and this game is hitting ALOT of good spots. This is almost a full-fledged game, you could DEFINITELY take this to a full release. If you are doing that, I'd like to be a beta-tester please, hit me up. Let's start with the positives: 1) Lots of juice here. Everywhere. Sound effects, music, the hitting, the dashing/teleporting, the killing. There is a lot of things done right in this game, and the pacing/flow feels really good! Very reminiscent of my time playing Hyper Light Drifter where it's a lot of dash and slash. Really good feeling here! It's good enough for me to say, I'd pay for this. It's amazing. I love what you did here. 2) The artstyle is something worth celebrating. It's absolutely cohesive with everything else in the game. 3) Thematically? Simple, it's a roguelike. Execution? Perfection. I personally advice your team to start posting about your game on the LD feed. It really brings the game a lot of publicity, as it did to mine, even when my game was a humbling idle game. You guys deserve a lot for this! Some other qualms with the game: 1) Once you get the hang of the combat, you can really start pushing with getting all the cards and the pros can quickly outweight the cons. Obviously, it's a jam game, balancing is not exactly the top of the priority (especially in end-game balancing) but it's something worth noting. I reached the point where I basically don't die, and I kill the boss by him touching me (thorns(?), it was the second playthrough though). But other than that, this was great. I enjoyed this game so much.
Oct 8 10:01:20	19h 21m	Epsilon - 2D Atmospheric Platformer	♥ 2	hey @sherwin-claridge , I think your greatest strengths in this game are definitely the mood and audio which really brings out the atmosphere in your game. They represent your strongest positives here: 1) Your mood is one of the strongest aspects because of your simplistic and gloomy art direction which brings out the dread in the game. Your sound effects also greatly enhance the overall experience so I think your storytelling was superb! I have some other qualms about your game: 1) I think the gameplay definitely needs a whole lot more improving. The jetpack/air-borne controls do not feel good to use. It doesn't feel good to have the player immediately stop after removing the movement keys while airborne. The ledge climbing is a bit glitchy as well. These are critical because you label-ed your game as a puzzle platformer, but there's no puzzle, and the platformer is not up to par. Nevertheless, as a story/atmospheric game. This holds up well. Consider polishing up your platformer mechanics though!
Oct 8 19:20:00	9h 18m	Loopy Dungeon	♥ 2	Heya @spaceguinea-productions , I think the concept here has a lot of potential but it wasn't explored too well. Let's go through the positives first: 1) The art is pretty good. It's not just 'servicable' or programmer art, but like it works well and it's nice! The sound design could use more work to blend with the art style but as a whole, I'd say it's nice! 2) A relatively innovative take on the stuck-in-a-loop, by being absolutely direct and literal about it. Haha. It's an interesting mechanic, almost like a tower defense but you're stuck in a minecart. I think with much more polish, this would definitely be great. Speaking of polish, this leads to my major qualms about the game: 1) I think the lack of bullets is very dentrimental. You can continue to have raycast shooting but the lack of visual feedback to the player that you're shooting (or missing) quite strongly detracts from the experience. 2) I think you have a very dispersed focus on this game. On one hand, you say it's a tower defense but the only 'towers' you put are the traps. And you also have a guy that takes active control during the battle. I think if you narrowed down your focus/scope a bit more to pinpoint accuracy, you'd be able to deliver a more focused/cohesive experience. In my head, if you removed the entire trap-setting mechanic, and focused your design around the tracing-your-own-path mechanic. You'd be able to create something much more interesting and fun to play around. Having talked to you, I can see understand what you mean by what you said about your game. But nevertheless, as a hardcore-optimist myself, I do see potential in this. It just definitely needs a lot a work to make good. It doesn't change the fact that this idea is not bad, the execution simply needed more work. And hey, maybe next game around, you'll make a way better game then!
Oct 9 18:25:35	23h 05m	Clone Arena	♥ 2	Heya @grizzliusmaximus , I think this was quite a mixed bag for me. Maybe because it's not exactly my type of game persay, but I do have some suggestions that I think will help the game better even for my short playtime. Let's go through the positives first: 1) The art is good! What you've done well, and I'd like to highlight this because it's exceptionally important, is that the ground is very easy to see and therefore, easy to know where you can stand. The small background elements, the strong contrast with bullets all works well too. You've created good visuals that play well, and looks good too. My most major qualm with this game would have to be: 1) The movement does not feel that good to play around. The moving platforms move too fast, the player falls too fast are some of the more prominent issues I have. Take into consideration that an average human's reaction time is around 0.30ms (I think.. I did not double check that.., but the point is, there is an average human response rate) which you should design your gameplay around. I think with this bullet hell-esque gameplay, the player could also make use of a dash button to quickly move out of bullets. I think the game is okay. It's definitely not my type of game once I got into it but I wouldn't say it's average. There is good work put into this and it shows. Good work!
Oct 10 09:30:47	15h 05m	Bust-a-Loop	♥ 1	Hey @peachtreeoath , Valiant Foot -> Fireball -> Blade Drop -> Blazing Heart -> Buster Dunk I dare you to do that. I think it's quite difficult (At least for me) but damn, the satisfaction of finishing a combo feels gooooood! I actually ended up spending way more time than usual playing this game because it's pretty damn fun! Let's go through the positives: 1) Combat feels very good. I think you've outdid yourself here, it's really well done! I can see you have a lot of love for fighting games making this. It's really nice being able to live the fighting game dream because I suck at fighting games but it feels good to be able to nail combos in this simplified one! 2) I want to give props to your amazing tutorial! It helps create engagement and let player sink into games really well. Nptorious to fighting games are their typically lackluster tutorials (or in some of them, extremely well done tutorials such as in Guilty Gear). Your tutorial really helps ground the foundations of setting up combos and help me come up with my own. I think your tutorial system was well worth making and if you intend to make complicated games, a good tutorial is absolutely essential. You outdid yourself here. I love it! My major qualm is: 1) The lack of sound effects is sad in the way that, if you added sound effects, landing the combos would feel extremely good. And for some of us, at least for me, hearing audio cues would also help me land combos way easier. I think this is an amazing game. It's so good!