itch.io

Surreal experience.

Rules are consistent and homogenous in time and space, but too hard at least for my perception. As a result I continued to pursue a simple goal-driven behaviour, related to the part of the world I can comprehend. I also followed some arbitrary guidelines, conditioned on my aesthetic sense and some other factors. 

Meanwhile, my actions produced this avalanche of side effects, completely and irreversibly changing the landscape. I managed to avoid locking myself probably only by chance.
I'm so human. Fascinating. 

I probably missed that train, but what's going on here?

Oh, interesting idea! I like visuals, except for the transparent panel at the bottom. Also it seems that it places tiles in the wrong position and sometimes refuses at all randomly. I didn't see this idea, plays similar to dorfromantic.

The real challenge of the game lies in struggling with character movement.

There's so many good things in this.. So unique, I remembered it after 2 years back, when I played it for 15 min. And now again I must quit after 15 min, because controls are really unpleasant (sliding!, speed), music is broken (? all glitchy and harsh) and graphics are just a little too unclear... It needs some polish... but very interesting!

Please just open Celeste and copy the physics! And graphical clearness.

First half through I thought how neatly put together the map was. Only one solution with all the returning later on. It is a feeling of witnessing a fine working machinery...

By the end I had a horrible time. last puzzle.. well it definitely has a few steps. I have no idea how to geometrically calculate it, I just ended up thinking what task seems kinda hard and trying to complete it anyway. There's no high-level logic I see that says "this is achievable if you bring both to that end and then back and then it somehow works out anyways." It was just seemed like a lot of coincidences when ground happens to be at the exact spot.
All the trunk puzzles solved themselves except for the last one, which I kinda bruteforced too. It's absolutely unintuitive.
Water have no tiles or texture and sounds got really annoying.

Sorry, I am so salty about the amount of time I wasted at the last puzzle without the satisfaction I craved... still, I feel It's a few steps from a good puzzle.

I was confused many times. Why the thing happens? Did it happen? From wall jumps to text skipping in dialog and interactions with things. Did I caused it? Is this supposed to happen? No clear distinction of cutscene from the gameplay.

I think feedback is very poor, which makes game unnecessarily hard to get into. What should I do? What I'm lacking? Any intermediate goals? It feels like game is continuously screaming "DO SOMETHING!" what? "I DON"T KNOW! DO ANYTHING!"

Very promising! Visuals are awesome (especially graphic design. some enemies are uninteresting)
- balance is bad. For me (on normal) it was almost flawless up to the final fights where the death felt random and unfair. First levels were such a slug that I wouldn't restart. Ideally, first levels should contain a potential for all skill levels to shine! The minimalistic design leaves a little room for different strats, with such an open upgrade system it would be very hard to allow variety of builds to be equally effective.

- More of a personal one: I feel like 6 abilities in one hero for an hour of play became stale. You just repeat one attack pattern, then upgrade 3 essential attacks forever. I think its enemies. They need much more variety. Maybe force to switch abilities from time to time. (like durability, but something less irritating) And present more focused challenges in each zone, so that you need to tweak the build in anticipation. (Easy grunts shouldn't be at the latter part and so on..). Throughout the whole run I was thinking of hero party with 2-3 abilities for each one, but it's a pretty different game, sorry.

-A more subtle point: waves and recharge times as it is make waiting at the last enemy for a few turns an optimal play. It isn't fun. Defeating everyone in one turn is much more fun! Maybe endorse it? (I didn't understood combos. Make a DEMON FORM at 3rd combo or smth.)

-Coins. why are they lying at the battlefield?

Thanks, bye!  

The last lvl is good.. Generally I think its rules are too complicated and counter-intuitive. I find that best puzzle games are hard despite the apparent intuitiveness of the rules.. But there's many sources of pleasure in gaming, maybe I'm missing some.

Last lvl got me to figure that final pos is unbound, only yellow can end up at the corner and then I classified game states according to relative position of three objects, which easily unbound along one axis - that's only 3 classes. i.e. lvl is very simplifiable. The filled-up lvl stayed incomprehensible up to the unexpected end, and I used only short-term heuristics planning 1-2 steps ahead at best. Just frustrating.

(Example of what I call cntr-inttv: interaction btw objects works at any distance, but only along 2 particular axes and when objects bound, by moving any, you move all that can move, even if objs that are their direct links couldn't move, but not when the source object itself can't move. Links themselves can bind objects, but only locally this time. This binding is bound to existence of the link. Nothing in our lives acts according to these concepts.. I get that formally rules are simple, but not for intuition)

Levels 4 and 6 are so good! It took me more than 2 hours I think.. I understood 4 completely before solving it, spanning several days. The 6 I solved on conceptual level and the Idea behind it was beautiful, and I feel that it is just top puzzle design (ever created, or smth), but. But most of the time particularities of mechanics stand in the way of high lvl concepts and force you to bruteforce most of the lvls instead. You get an idea, but the fact about the movement of elements and their relative position doesn't allow to test it. Still pondering this thought..

Did you get the WIN? For me lvl 4 was very tough.. :)

No, I can't! NO! no. 

I reached for invariants, and for averagiests, and for uniquests, but failed more then 80% of the times... And my sense of smell is gone.

I won, and I feel I almost understood how.. First 75% aren't necessary, I think it could be shorter.. And the last lvls.. There's this rubics cube concept, when you switch to the other array of connected states by rotating corner cube, and normally it isn't allowed, but some irregularity can gain access to those.. I think it ended up as a main concept for every final lvl, but personally, for me state space is so unclear and small, that I found those state-bridges randomly just before I could GET the lvl... I find this problem in many puzzle games and trying to solve it myself..

SCORE 102, I challenge you all.
Le Slo! Again, absolute best of the genre! Very elegant minimalism. Beautiful game-design, theme is awesome! 

I feel the mechanics are just perfect for enraging mistakes, so I see almost no reason not to include UNDO (exc for infinite regret cycle, but limit to 3 and solved)! For better scoring, maybe eliminating some randomness is beneficial, I'm trying to figure out lvl of randomness at the moment... 

Personally, I also find dynamics pretty monotonous after a few games: the process consists of minute improvements in heuristics, no memorable moments, like executing a long plan to create some valuable element. But I totally see how brittle established balance is and the number of elements is just right to keep it all in mind. But some really rare elements which you crave maybe ok, the problem will be strategic streamlining, though.

"Be the passage of time" - this is just ingenious. CONGRATULATIONS. (We need to solve your popularity, though!)

no.

Awesome, I will keep an eye on your releases! 

I will restrain my stream of thoughts, let me just say that just from purely practical side: sitting through 20 waves at your First acquaintance with the game seems to be a high barrier. Player will get a real feedback on their actions only by the end. Of course, you shouldn't explain your whole vision to me, you have reasons, I just think there's a problem to be addressed. Good luck! ;)

(beaten easy) Great, the game really shines compared to other itch stuff.

Gameplay: Pacing is troublesome in many ways: I found tutorial unbearable and learned on the fly. I assume all cards can appear from the beginning - that a total informational overflow! (Also it kills the simple joy of progression, when you unlock best things in the end) The fact that all upgrades up to the max upLvl are unique, worsens it. Overall structure of just one huge lvl can be improved! Its a prototype, I know, but just simplest map would be a major improvement, as smaller missions give much more granular feedback on your strats. Feedback is a problem with tower defences in general... 

Graphics: For a long time I found all the towers indistinguishable! (green one pops) Also I can't quite tell why, but enemies look cheap - maybe because they are 1px thin in code..

Overall, despite deck-building aspects, I think it plays just akin to classical tower defences, best of which are of course just unreachable at this point.. Innovate more please.

Wow, some amazing puzzle design here! some lvls are immensely satisfying! (24,25 are awesome) 23 was the hardest for me and I don't know how I solved it, disliked this one. 25 was ingenious, thanks! 

Great, thanks!

So, every lvl had a clear problem which can be expressed in a game-mechanic language, that is great. Difficulty jumps all around - weird.(Two of the later ones were easy) So I figured the best lvls are those, where you can use broad concepts to solve it and worst - through fiddly timing. Two I solved by accident, but maybe I didn't grasp the concept that turned them from fiddly into conceptual. 

I liked the idea. Unfortunately I don't think it worked as intended for me: character teleporting independently of screen shifts, no hit collision from enemies.. Satie's ma boy

No, actually you have a point.. The skills developed are too distant from anything else, it doesn't feel to be worth spending time on.

This is the source of a challenge! You shouldn't "put up" with the controls to experience something else, controls ARE the game and it isn't supposed to be just straightforwardly pleasing! If clunkiness was the source of the outcome randomness, it would've been real minus.

U.U I feel you brotha

Hey, checked it out! Full on rpg with cutscenes, Nice. Funny too. You used electron? Is there a reason for that?

As for the gameplay it really more puzzle-like, but maybe too concentrated on number guessing, not that you could "arrive at solution" finally, more like you try, and try, and try, and succeed. And its brutal. but maybe I just need new plan...

:))) thx

No, by grass I meant these square tiles, restricting the whole level, which are too similar to ground ones visually. It seems to me that reading them as walls with "side looking" is very important.. And barrels/boxes: in any other case it would be just fine collision box, but here when you need to hide fast, it seems important to know at a glance where the far edge is. Although visually, seeng character dissapear behind it is kinda satisfying.. And of course you don't need to be sorry (lol you played my game - Im not sorry, no sir) :)

Thx! This is what I needed :). 
Actually there is an infection mechanic that is seems to be really poorly conveyed to the player: Any facebeing can be infected and it is undetectable on the first stages, and shows as color-changing coughing on late stages. At last victim begins to cough out his eyes. It can be cured by golden apples. At the beginning some people in "town" are infected and you theoretically could try to cure them before chaos breaks loose.

Great, solid gameplay! The essence of stealth is conveyed elegantly. For negatives: Hard to read collisions with boxes and grass wall doesn't reads very well on ground. Are guards supposed to see in all directions? Maybe standart look-cone is more intuitive. Thx!

Oh, thanks for the feedback! I posted screenshots at launch (didn't it work?) and am reluctantly discovering how nobody shares my appreciation for geometric shapes :(, tho I agree therere better examples of the style. Its not that I accuse players, I do not Really wanna share my stuff, its more about the system. Look, >550 game devs are participating, if each of them were given one unique game (better 5) to thoroughly review, we all would get our feedback in the first hour! Although it kinda gives that depressing real launch experience..idk. Solution can be to organize something of the sort in community section next time.

Oh. so... You didn't erase him from existence.. You annihilate him the moment hes been born...again and again. what. I just.. Its a bit too much.. I feel sick. He didn't deserve that hell. #ErlsenrvDidNotDeserve

I see! I didn't go to the itch page! Thanks! (Lil bit reluctant to install core rnow tbh... maybe later)

omg thx for validating my existence...

I tried cheating, I really did. Honestly. But I JUST CANT! I CANT WHY WHY! god help me. what where have I gone wrong? WHY WOULDNT YOU LET ME! WHAT! IS ! IT! CHEATING IS FINE GIVE ME GET ME ON! like I know, rules are just constructs that are supposed to serve some purpose and if you question that purpose or if you question the methods you are valid to break the rules. but WHY CANT I! CHEAT! RIGHT NOW! GOD! iwanna..

Some heavy stuff. You building a bridge from the art side of the river to games, right? I Really appreciate that. Writing is awesome, effects are great (what are you using?). Mechanically you don't take any risks.. I'd like to see an attempt to interweave interactivity in such storytelling. I didn't see it done in a justified sort of way ever, but we must fail several hundreds more times before we get it.

Wow, the graphics are misleading! Mechanics are pretty complex and feel unique! You should really consider sitting on art some more. I understand the attitude, but I think its mistaken - even 30 minute art with nicer colors and any sort of background would've doubled overall game's appeal!

Game works just great! Had some nice rich discussions along the way! Collecting a pile is very satisfying. I don't get why you loose when there's 50 trash tho, maybe human people will finally start avoiding the place and we could just chill in peace?!

Wow! The mechanic is Real good! Right now graphics and physics pushing it back. Catching it just above the ground, running then losing it and returning, planning where to stand when the throw will happen - its all really nice!

Wow, a full blown rpg.. Did you really made it for the jam? Inspiring.. Dange is completely random, right? Did you think of dungeon master, who places all the interesting stuff in a generated dungeon? It would push on mind reading type of gameplay.. Just a random thought

Oh, the download doesn't start.. Anybody else with this problem?