Sample X

jorim 2020-04-21 10:06

The idea is interesting, but I didn't think it was very engaging. I'm mostly confused about the lack of a failure state. As far as I can tell there is no way to actually not keep it alive, so that kind of breaks the theme for me. I might change the description away from an idle game, because it isn't really idle, mostly just active clicking (although maybe there is content I'm missing how to unlock). I like the idea of the message board in the game!

omiya-games 2020-04-23 01:17

Oh, hey, I can leave a comment now! I was a bit confused when I started the game, but when the LabTech private messaged me instructions, I knew what to do. I've now ascended.

Wonderful humor, as always.

omiya-games 2020-04-23 01:38

Note: Spoilers below! Other constructive comments:

Early in the game, it's difficult to make out how the sliders affect the rate one can click on the samples. I found that by making more, it helped me gauge how the sliders changes the values. To me, that implies that similar to the freeze sample command, it might be a good idea to actually hide the sliders until there are, say, 10 to 20 samples that the user can see effective changes in how the sliders affect the numbers.

I get that the objective of the game is to deliberately lose samples. This wasn't well communicated in the beginning, however, as the moment I started seeing that number, I instinctively stopped freezing samples from losing more. It might be a good idea to either swap the numbers around a bit, having the host number show up first before the missing samples so a connection can be made, or to have clear instructions to freeze more, with some sort of tongue-in-cheek dialogue that it's OK to lose some samples that you've made.

I definitely like the slow-crawl of the story slowly revealing itself, and making the player rethink about their own actions. I feel some of those information could have revealed itself slightly less antagonistically, so as to motivate the player to continue playing and see how the scenario ends. As it is now, I felt the pacing was slow because I ended up taking a careful route, and avoided experimenting with the numbers.

whenyoucantfindafriend 2020-04-23 17:09

"There is nothing wrong, Everything is Normal!" LOL! Interesting investigation of community space and workplace etiquette. I feel like everyone is bombarded with these kind work emails. The generic emails from your supervisor are mixed in with ones you actually have to read.

You create a humorous science fiction spin on the ethics of labor too! Many companies, especially during this time, risk the health and mental well being of their workers for a stronger profit/outcome. Some companies act like nothing is wrong when people get injured or die. Sorry if my political response is off base! Great Job! I enjoyed playing your game!

eduardogacn 2020-04-28 03:32

interesting game, a bit confusing at the start

testlab 2020-05-07 08:25

I am not sure that i got the game. i've clicked so many times but the game doesn't seem to be progressing. So far i tried to maximize the sample to split count by adjusting the values. The freezer is still out of order until next week.

zenandanna 2020-05-07 18:01

I very much liked the humor of the Space Office Messenger. However, I am not sure if there is a win condition (or anything I can do to lose) after playing quite a while. -- Zen

nonumbersgames 2020-05-12 13:25

Really liked reading the narrative and tips through the messenger. I feel that unlocking new messages through gameplay progress was what kept me playing the most.

Temperature and density controls were interesting, but I'm still not sure why and how they impacted the sampling (I guess density controls how many samples are ready to split, but then I don't know why you would ever want it anywhere lower than maximum).

It was cool how freezing samples was encouraged by the narrative and eventually impacted it.

voidsay 2020-05-12 18:15

Not sure how or even if temperature and confluence affect the sampling process.

Would be cool if there was more to do and the announcements where actual audio.