Movement: I would agree that rotation speed and overall speed are a bit much. It would be nice to be able to tap on an arrow key to rotate more slowly.

Strafing: sure, that would be easier, but I prefer the challenge. It is a pain in the areas with multiple turrets, though.

Rocks: do all rocks potentially grant powerups? I find it difficult to decide which rocks to waste bullets on. Which leads to..

Ammo: I like not having an absolute number, but find the display completely baffling. I'm never at 100% ammo, just somewhere vaguely inbetween. Is it 20%, or 80%? Too hard to tell. Or maybe I'm missing something.

Enemies: it might be nice if they don't fire at you when they are in a physically discontiguous area. There was one section, on the first level I believe, where if you got close to a wall, something on the other side would start firing. Since it's in a locked-off area, it seemed odd. (yes, many games do that, and it might be preferable to some people, but it seems weird to me).

Ammo: no, no, no, the percent is your life remaining. You have unlimited ammo (except missiles, of course).

Enemies: who knows, they might get a lucky shot, so they fire anyway.

I wrote a quick blog entry last night with a positive first impression of the game. I'm really amazed at how the theme and implementation has brought this genre of gaming alive and made it engaging.

A few gripes, some of which maybe could be addressed in a point release?

• The controls seem too sensitive. It's very frustrating to sit there spending ages trying to kill some immovable enemy just because a quick tap of the left key moves your firing arc past it in one direction and a quick tap right in the other direction. yes, you can solve this by moving around, but I often wind up in sections feeling more like I'm fighting the game than the enemies in the game. This is especially true for the bosses.

• I'd love it if the save system could be refined somehow. I'm finding that all too often I'm having to replay things I've played through fifteen times before. It's really frustrating. I'll probably register the game because I'm having fun with the demo, but this is the #1 thing that's kept me from registering so far. My least favourite thing in games is having to re-play the same tricky-to-win segment I've played twenty times before, and I really worry that I'll spend a lot of time doing that in the harder levels or that I'll end up just tossing the game in frustration shortly after paying for it because of that. Basically, if I kill something, I'd like it to stay dead.

• Would it be a lot of work to have the game in fullscreen be able to adapt to whatever screen resolution your machine runs at? I think almost all of us these days are running systems that have a screen that looks better at a specific resolution (LCD panels, laptops). If not, maybe adding a bunch of popular resolutions to the resolutions list rather than just 800x600 and 1024x768 would be cool. I'm playing it on a MacBook Pro, and I just play it in the window so I can enjoy its graphics at their best quality, but I think it would be much more immersive if I could play it fullscreen without it looking blurry.

That's about it. I'm really liking this game overall, and I don't usually get much into games of this sort! (I'm mostly an adventure gamer.) Even my wife, who doesn't like video games much at all, walked by and watched for a minute, then said, "That's really cool!"

@epiphyte, on Dec 2 2006, 01:58 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

• The controls seem too sensitive. It's very frustrating to sit there spending ages trying to kill some immovable enemy just because a quick tap of the left key moves your firing arc past it in one direction and a quick tap right in the other direction. yes, you can solve this by moving around, but I often wind up in sections feeling more like I'm fighting the game than the enemies in the game. This is especially true for the bosses.

At first I thought that it was too sensitive as well, but now that I've played more, I'm glad it's sensitive, as it allows me to own everyone in Multiplayer.

@epiphyte, on Dec 2 2006, 01:58 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

• I'd love it if the save system could be refined somehow. I'm finding that all too often I'm having to replay things I've played through fifteen times before. It's really frustrating. I'll probably register the game because I'm having fun with the demo, but this is the #1 thing that's kept me from registering so far. My least favourite thing in games is having to re-play the same tricky-to-win segment I've played twenty times before, and I really worry that I'll spend a lot of time doing that in the harder levels or that I'll end up just tossing the game in frustration shortly after paying for it because of that. Basically, if I kill something, I'd like it to stay dead.

Actually, I like the save system the way it is, as it gives me more practice.

@epiphyte, on Dec 2 2006, 01:58 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

• Would it be a lot of work to have the game in fullscreen be able to adapt to whatever screen resolution your machine runs at? I think almost all of us these days are running systems that have a screen that looks better at a specific resolution (LCD panels, laptops). If not, maybe adding a bunch of popular resolutions to the resolutions list rather than just 800x600 and 1024x768 would be cool. I'm playing it on a MacBook Pro, and I just play it in the window so I can enjoy its graphics at their best quality, but I think it would be much more immersive if I could play it fullscreen without it looking blurry.

This a totally agree with this, let's have better resolutions!

@epiphyte, on Dec 2 2006, 12:58 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

(list)(*)The controls seem too sensitive. It's very frustrating to sit there spending ages trying to kill some immovable enemy just because a quick tap of the left key moves your firing arc past it in one direction and a quick tap right in the other direction.

I'll second this. Even after beating the game, it's still a bit tricky to hit some critters. Still, I do like the overall maneuverability of the ship- it's exactly what every Nova player dreams of.

@epiphyte, on Dec 2 2006, 12:58 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

(list)(*)My least favourite thing in games is having to re-play the same tricky-to-win segment I've played twenty times before, and I really worry that I'll spend a lot of time doing that in the harder levels or that I'll end up just tossing the game in frustration shortly after paying for it because of that.

It's not much of a problem later in the game. Once I picked up a few of the stronger weapons, and get better at the controls, I could waltz around the entire map with near-complete impunity.

@epiphyte, on Dec 2 2006, 12:58 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

Basically, if I kill something, I'd like it to stay dead.

If everything stayed dead the first time you killed it, the game would be pointlessly easy.

Edwards

@zacha-pedro, no, no, the percent is your life remaining. You have unlimited ammo (except missiles, of course).

Oh. Guess I missed that part. I'll stop conserving ammo, then.. somehow I had the impression that some powerups were shields and some were ammo.

Still, in terms of movement, it would be nice to have walk/run modes (so to speak). Maybe holding down Shift decreases the effects of the arrow keys by a half. Accurately aiming at the turrets is touch and go currently.

Merged Fun game! into Suggestions for 1.0.1.

an extra multiplayer mode for online would be nice, with like no rubber rope between u but you were seperated and your screen would be centrered on yourself but you could see an arrow of your ally on the edge of your screen if he/she isnt on your screen and in competitive mode you could also shoot eachother.

This post has been edited by Xaerock : 02 December 2006 - 03:49 PM

I strongly suggest implementing a single-player points system (if there isn't one already); otherwise there is no incentive to shoot everything that moves rather than just flying past it all.

I also agree with Xaerock, it would be cool if there was a 2p mode where you could shoot at each other.

This post has been edited by Titanium Decoy : 02 December 2006 - 04:07 PM

I don't recommend implementing a points system, precisely because I don't want to feel obligated to kill everything in the game.

In fact, I think a fun challenge for this game would be pacifism - kill nothing that you don't have to kill.

The only thing that seriously aggravated me about the game was that the stars are required. When I first found them, I thought I was picking up some kind of medal that could be used to unlock secrets or something. It felt like a reward for thoroughness and creativity, and made exploring the nooks and crannies of the levels more fun. Discovering that I was, in fact, required to find every star if I wanted to win the game took away some of that fun, simply by changing an option into an obligation.

Of course, I rather doubt that anything about that is going to change. Still, something to keep in mind for those of you planning your alternate singleplayer maps.

Here are my opinions:

1. Game control is very good and easy to control. Even with the last speed upgrade to the ship, it can be maneuvered through most parts of the game with few slowdowns.

2. Too short. I've been playing for 2 hours now, and I only lack one star before I can get into the end area properly.

3. Gun balance is a bit off. After I got the wave gun, there is little point in using the others. I got the homing one last, and so far this one seems to be the most useless of them all. The super beam deals too little damage, rendering it obsolete by the super wave.

4. As someone else pointed out already, the guns do very little damage. Arcade games should be action-packed and fast-paced. Standing still and crushing rocks all the time takes away the pace.

5. Too easy. It is nigh impossible to be killed by normal enemies, as the only remotely dangerous ones are the 2 types of opposing ships and the stealthy ice-shards that home in on you. The only thing that proved challenging was the forest boss. The last boss took 2 tries, but was very stylish.

All in all, quite a nice little game. Far too short though, unless there is something after the end game area with the star gates, which I doubt.

This post has been edited by God 2.0 : 02 December 2006 - 07:14 PM

I was sold on the sketchfighter concept from the first 'Upcoming' appearance, and have been checking the progress log regularly. The actual game doesn't disappoint at all in this respect. It's just like being back in third grade, but the drawings are better than mine, and they really move. This is the sort of thing computers were made for.

It is a tricky game, all right. Every boss took me a few tries to get (and I haven't yet gotten the final one). I cursed and swore at the designer every time, until victory; then I forgave him. With practice you can get the hang of it, and towards the end you get enough powerups that the normal enemies do become easy for a while. Which is nice, because then you get to enjoy your hard-earned powers for a while, while tracking down the last stars.

There are also a lot of nice little puzzles, like figuring out how to turn off some barriers, or how to defeat a boss. And sometimes the answer is just to come back later, after finding something somewhere else, which is nice, really, because it means your explorations are worth something. It's not a pushover game as a puzzle, either.

I think this is actually an excellently tuned level of difficulty. It's hard enough to be frustrating for long enough that it is really fun to finally succeed, in each little challenge.

And it's great that there are no points, no ammo limits, and no life limits. This is childish sketches, not Starcraft. 'Be more careful next time' is perfect.

Where I'm a little disappointed is with the editor. I was looking forward to making my own levels, but the available scripts seem a bit too limited. I'd like to be able to at least designate some non-boss unit as a boss for victory purposes, so that I can have 'destroy X' as a level goal without X being one of the seven familiar bosses. It would be nice to be able to use the teleport effect.

And the editor interface is painful enough that it may be a real limitation on how elaborate a level I can stand working on.

@god-2-0, on Dec 2 2006, 03:55 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

Here are my opinions:

1. Game control is very good and easy to control. Even with the last speed upgrade to the ship, it can be maneuvered through most parts of the game with few slowdowns.

2. Too short. I've been playing for 2 hours now, and I only lack one star before I can get into the end area properly.

3. Gun balance is a bit off. After I got the wave gun, there is little point in using the others. I got the homing one last, and so far this one seems to be the most useless of them all. The super beam deals too little damage, rendering it obsolete by the super wave.

4. As someone else pointed out already, the guns do very little damage. Arcade games should be action-packed and fast-paced. Standing still and crushing rocks all the time takes away the pace.

5. Too easy. It is nigh impossible to be killed by normal enemies, as the only remotely dangerous ones are the 2 types of opposing ships and the stealthy ice-shards that home in on you. The only thing that proved challenging was the forest boss. The last boss took 2 tries, but was very stylish.

All in all, quite a nice little game. Far too short though, unless there is something after the end game area with the star gates, which I doubt.

Once I get it, I always use the super beam almost exclusively. Super wave is powerful, but too short range for my liking.

@god-2-0, on Dec 2 2006, 04:55 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

3. Gun balance is a bit off. After I got the wave gun, there is little point in using the others. I got the homing one last, and so far this one seems to be the most useless of them all. The super beam deals too little damage, rendering it obsolete by the super wave.

I agree, mostly, but you'll find some places where the homing gun is useful. The weapon I find most pointless is the Super Pellets. Once you've picked up any other super weapon, it has no power advantage, and it has too few bounces (one) for those to be anything more than a mechanism for carefully set-up trick shots.

@god-2-0, on Dec 2 2006, 04:55 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

5. Too easy. It is nigh impossible to be killed by normal enemies, as the only remotely dangerous ones are the 2 types of opposing ships and the stealthy ice-shards that home in on you.

Play on Hard Mode. And don't get the shield boosts.
Standard games are quite well-balanced, damage-wise, for not-so-great players. The bosses might be a bit hard, but otherwise it's fine. I just want to know if there's a "super-hard" mode after this, or some sort of bonus for doing a minimal-item run.

@god-2-0, on Dec 2 2006, 04:55 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

The only thing that proved challenging was the forest boss. The last boss took 2 tries, but was very stylish.

Wow. You managed to beat that thing in just two tries? I can manage that now , but it took a good ten or twenty attempts on my first run.

Edwards

It's been fun reading all the "This game is too easy," replies. I'm finding it very challenging! But then, I don't play a lot of action games.

I have to agree that a points system doesn't appeal to me. I often feel compelled to try to shoot everything simply because it seems in this type of game that you're supposed to, but I really feel bad about some of them. It makes me feel very conflicted to shoot the little baby crab-like things that actively try to run away from me, or the cute spiky turtles that seem to just want to be left alone, for instance.

The forest boss, and the ice boss, have a crucial weakness - they depend on you staying away from me. I admit that the first few times I took on the forest boss, I died horribly while inflicting practically no damage on him. He keeps spawning new enemies too fast for me to deal with them, and they aren't the kinds of enemies you can ignore, either. That gave me almost no time for shooting him.

Then I decided to just sacrifice a little health for rapid damage. Take out the two orbs on the sides, fly through his tentacles, and park in front of his face, unloading everything I had. He died in maybe a second.

Similarly, the ice boss, if you just sit in front of him and fire, is rather trivial. It's if you keep running and turning to fire that the fight takes a long time.

@derakon, on Dec 2 2006, 02:39 PM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

In fact, I think a fun challenge for this game would be pacifism - kill nothing that you don't have to kill.

Whoa... new concept... gimme a minute...

This post has been edited by Titanium Decoy : 03 December 2006 - 02:43 AM

@student-of-trinity, on Dec 3 2006, 02:02 AM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

Where I'm a little disappointed is with the editor. I was looking forward to making my own levels, but the available scripts seem a bit too limited. I'd like to be able to at least designate some non-boss unit as a boss for victory purposes, so that I can have 'destroy X' as a level goal without X being one of the seven familiar bosses. It would be nice to be able to use the teleport effect.

And the editor interface is painful enough that it may be a real limitation on how elaborate a level I can stand working on.

I already replied to your other topic that the boss scripts don't mean that the enemey you're giving it to is a boss, too. A boss is an enemy which you gave the name "Boss", it can be a rock as well (if the rock is on the enemy mode/enemy layer). Read the entire editor manual for more information, or look into the sample levels for examples.

@titanium-decoy, on Dec 3 2006, 08:42 AM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

Whoa... new concept... gimme a minute...

It's not a new concept, let me tell you

@derakon, on Dec 3 2006, 08:39 AM, said in Suggestions for 1.0.1:

The forest boss, and the ice boss, have a crucial weakness - they depend on you staying away from me. I admit that the first few times I took on the forest boss, I died horribly while inflicting practically no damage on him. He keeps spawning new enemies too fast for me to deal with them, and they aren't the kinds of enemies you can ignore, either. That gave me almost no time for shooting him.

Then I decided to just sacrifice a little health for rapid damage. Take out the two orbs on the sides, fly through his tentacles, and park in front of his face, unloading everything I had. He died in maybe a second.

Similarly, the ice boss, if you just sit in front of him and fire, is rather trivial. It's if you keep running and turning to fire that the fight takes a long time.

Ha! See, this is something else I like about this game. The boss fights are actually puzzles, not just tests of reflexes. It will be interesting to see how well one can use the editor to invent new boss challenges. There seem to be only the seven built-in boss scripts, but with different sprites and different room layout, maybe some new effects can be created.

In reply to the weapons discussion: I prefer the Super Pellets to the Super Beams. The Super Beams aren't all that damaging, and in a narrow corridor you can make a tsunami of super pellets that clears out everything. Well, kind of, anyway; plus it looks cool. And the bouncing trick shots can be used quite often if you want to. I do agree that the Super Wave pretty much rules once you get it, except for a couple of uses of the homing weapons. That's fine, though.