Ragekaje's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Paradise Inc]

Josh, your games are flipping amazing!

You managed to build a very deep game in 72 hours that made me reflect on my life. It literally stopped me, and made me aware of my own thoughts and feelings. I can't thank you enough. Bravo!

The art in particular caught my attention right away. There was such a simple, but very intentional use of color, and I love it! The graphics are simple, yet evocative. You managed to capture so many details while keeping all of the characters and scenery very simple, especially the backdrop of the "outside" area. (both in the real world and in Paradise)

Chris Zabriskie did a wonderful job with the music. It certainly fleshed out the tone that you were trying to evoke in both "scenes." (the real world and Paradise) I like the soft pads sound that plays in the real world because it communicates the mood that the character is in; this helps tell the player the emotions that the character is feeling when the dialogue does not. It is also very cool that the Paradise music is off-putting, but not downright creepy. Because it sits somewhere in between somber and unsettling, it conveys a feeling of "I have to get out." Genius.

The story.... man, the story. I think you did a phenomenal job! You managed to make a 3-4 minute gameplay session have a greater impact than most 20+ hour games. The setup is very nicely laid out. The middle of the story (in Paradise) is cool because there are extra characters to talk to, and this more deeply informs the player of the world and the change that was made by entering Paradise. The climax is so well executed that I got chills, and felt fired up. This wasn't a game about winning or losing, but I felt like I won because my character survived, and that made ME want to survive! Kudos! Overall, I don't think there are plot-holes or missing story elements. I think you distilled the story down to its bare minimum, the essential pieces that create such an impact. By not overtly stating every detail to the player, you make them think and wonder; it makes them look more closely at the details, the background, the word choice in dialogue, the stances of each character, etc. I love finding all those details that HAD to be placed in the game with intention.

In terms of gameplay.... well, that's a hard one to critique. I understand that this form of game requires minimal gameplay. So, I cannot say much.

Overall, this is an amazing piece of art! I love it! 5 stars! You make awesome games! Please, never stop doing what you love! I look forward to the next creation! :)

Criobite responds:

Wow, thank you for the very kind words; you have me lost for words on how to respond! It really means a lot to me that there are people who benefit from my work.

Oh, I want to clarify something about the music. Chris Zabriskie produces royalty free music for people to use, and I just used two of his tracks that felt about right. And that was actually in the last 20 minutes or so of the jam. ^^

[Iso Illusions]

I certainly see what you were trying to do here, but as a player it is very frustrating to play. :(
I should start by mentioning that I did complete the game. It was arduous and frustrating, but I managed to finish it.

The optical illusion aspect is kind of cool. However, it is kind of a guessing game to figure out which direction the next platform is in. As a player it is not very fun because there are no clues. There is nothing to go on, so it doesn't engage my brain and make me think. I just have to keep trying directions until I find the pattern of directions that works. My suggestion is to find a system that works and embrace it.

One of the paths you could take is to make the game more of a memorization puzzle. If the entire level layout is shown from multiple angles from the start, then the player has a chance to memorize where the platforms are. After that, the player must navigate the level using the confusing and optical illusion perspective. I'm imagining the spinning camera that Super Monkey Ball uses at the start of every level. If you end up doing this, make sure that the player can optionally restart the level to see this spin-down again. They might not want to see it every time they fail, but they will want to see it on command.

The other idea is to allow the player to rotate the stage 90 degrees to view it from a similar perspective but at a different angle. This would make the game more of a spatial puzzle, where the player has to make sense of the level by only seeing orthogonal perspectives.

Either way, if this is your first game, don't get discouraged. My first game was awful and I never let anyone see it. Everyone has a tough time when they start, and that's only because there is a lot to learn. Some people will give you valuable feedback (hopefully mine is valuable) and other people will just say how they feel without giving you suggestions or explaining why. Listen to the feedback, but don't let the criticism keep you from making games.

Don't give up! Keep learning, keep trying, keep getting better! :)

[Directional]

Cool concept! It just needs a bit of polish!

The puzzle concept is very cool, its a basic block pusher with a directional twist. However, it was a very rough ride figuring out what the puzzle mechanic is.

I'd like to start by addressing the art, as I feel it was my first barrier to learning how the game functions. When the first level started up, I took one look at the screen and had NO idea what was going on. I didn't know if I had a character or if he was on screen. I couldn't tell what was space and what was a wall, and I didn't know what the movable block was. The art style you were aiming for is cool. After pushing buttons and starting to figure things out, I realized what you were going for and I think it is cool, but over simplified. There is room for improvement if you can get your art to teach the player just by looking at it. If you can use things like color, shapes, lighting, shading, etc. to teach the player what their character is, and what the objects mean, and where the goal is just by looking at the art, you've saved them a lot of time and helped them get to the awesome part: playing the game!

In terms of level design, each of the puzzles was great. It slowly got more difficult, requiring the player to think slightly outside the bounds of what they did before. But, I do have issues with the first level. After being confused by the art, I had to press buttons and learn things the hard way. I figured out quickly that I seem to control the green thing. I moved my green thing (presumably a dude) over to the pinkish, greyish thing, which upon first inspection, looked like a dude with a mustache. (the black "arrow" was a little misleading at first) I tried to push it sideways, but it looked like I glitched the game and that the thing moved diagonally instead of straight. (I understand this is supposed to happen, but as a new player, I couldn't understand why) Needless to say, I had to fiddle with it for several minutes before understanding the concept, why the block moves two spaces sometimes, why it moves diagonally other times, etc. My suggestion is to add even more introductory levels that have basic blocks. (without arrows) If the player first grabs onto the idea of moving a block, they will have a stronger foothold when figuring out the directional blocks. Even if you seldom or never return to basic blocks, starting with them is well worth it!

In terms of sound design, there isn't much to say. :/ I wish there was some ambient puzzle solving music in the background. If you're willing to put in the work, you could have some sort of series of quick notes when the player moves a block, (maybe C E G played very quickly, etc.) then have it play twice on the directional blocks that move more than one space. This could help the player learn that it essentially moved twice. Even more, you could have the rewind function play the notes in reverse to indicate a backwards movement through time. That would be cool! :) Feel free to use all these ideas.

All in all, it seems like you enjoyed making this! I enjoyed playing it! I think you have a sharp mind for design! Keep up the great work, never stop learning and implementing new things! I look forward to what you come up with next! :)

[Desperado Hunter [demo]]

Addicting!

There is a lot of potential here! Don't quit!

Gameplay is great! Controls are responsive, movement and collision are smooth and fluid except in a few parts. If you want to fully round out the game, you'll have to have someone try to break it and mess up in every single possible way, and watch what they do. Often times, as designers, we are quite blind to the ways that our game can break, because we know how it is supposed to work. But, fresh eyes from testers will help explore those unknown bugs and unintended level designs.
For instance:
- spamming jump in a short hallway has a very strange effect on the movement speed.
- on the first level, jumping into the upper corner of the first rock tunnel causes my hat to duplicate and then I have two hats that bounce up as I fall back downwards...
- The plethora of shinies up atop the roofs of level 1 were alluring me, so was the fact that I lost my hat, so I went back and played it again. I tried to come up with some conceivable way to reach the rooftop goodies, or avoid losing my hat in the tunnel, but I could not. These things made me as a player think that there was an alternate way to play the level. I would recommend either removing these, or make an not-so-obvious path to reach these. :)

In terms of level design, you're doing great! But, there are some spots that can improve. You introduce your player to new concepts one at a time, first in a non-threatening way, and then in a more dangerous way, which is awesome! However, there are several instances where the pacing goes out the window. Running into town in the first level, my eyes were overwhelmed because there is a lot going on. There are other characters and they seem to be in the foreground so I wasn't sure if they were objects to avoid, there seems to be an upper level above me that I'm not sure if I missed a way to get up there, and then there are shiny things and people blowing kisses that make read hearts. Suffice to say, there was an abrupt change from simplicity to overwhelming environment.
The other half of level design is to create interesting choices for the player. It seems like your game will benefit from the Sonic the Hedgehog style layout, where upper paths are harder to reach and are often more dangerous, but offer great speed to skilled players. Meanwhile, the bottom routes are safer, but slower. (not so slow that new players are bored, we want to keep the newbies entertained, but steer the veterans toward the more challenging paths) I would focus on that aspect when designing the third level, especially because the shooting enemies are the most dangerous.

I believe that you've got what it takes to round out all of your ideas and place them perfectly into well designed levels! That said, even great designers will have many people play-test their creations because they need input from others. :)

I like the way that you introduce the gun and the bullet bouncing mechanic with the still-frame bullet jump scene. Keep that! ;) But, like others have said, that section after you get the gun needs some toning down, I found myself dying an innumerable amount of times. LOL!

The art style and music is on point! I really dig the pixel art, and the retro bgm that sounds like an arcade machine!

I really enjoy this demo! I look forward to whatever projects you end up working on and releasing!

*side note* At one point, I fell underneath the third level without dying, and floated all the way to the goal, even though I was probably miles into the earth at that point, lol!

UltimoGames responds:

wow! I need to take all feedback in consideration, and wrap it up in the Definitive version of Desperado Hunter. I worked quite a long time on this game, but there was no end in sight for a final product. So I focused on pixel art, and smaller projects. Thanks for the useful review and the kind words Ragekaje!

[Hop Dude Nights: The Meatball of Invisibility]

This is really cool!

Your game is incredibly unique in terms of how it blends the art, story, humor, and gameplay!

I really dig the style here! I love the setup of the choose your own adventure intro with the comic panels that tell the story. It leads fairly smoothly into the free-roam rpg. (although I was dropped into that mode by being chased by deputy handsome, so it was a bit frazzling)

If I had time, I would keep playing and try to explore all the branching paths.
Overall, very cool!

Keep up the awesome work! :)

[ZIGZAG INCOME RACER]

Good concept, but it just needs some polishing.

Very simple and intuitive controls!

I recommend interesting things like branching paths, ones with ramps and one without. Maybe that indicates the harder but more rewarding path. Also, if there was a speed control of some sort (scroll wheel or phone tilt) that would make the start a little more interesting and reward skillful play.

The upgraded cars should have other benefits/trade-offs rather than just increased point reward. Perhaps have some that are faster than others, or some that could float momentarily in the air to prevent the first mistake being a deadly one, etc.

The color of the bridge changes needs to be tweaked. The red color is difficult to see the right edges because the bridge top and the right side of the bridge are the almost the same color. This is ESPECIALLY true of the blue area. I was very disoriented trying to get through that part each time.

Sometimes, there was a bug where one tile of the bridge didn't spawn, leaving me with a one tile gap that was impossible to cross. My only option was to drive off the cliff into the water.

Make some minor tweaks, add some music and some sound effects, and you've got a cool mobile game! :)

[ACCESS CODE: HEAVEN]

Cool game!

I played it all the way through and enjoyed it quite a bit.

Your pixel art is awesome and the lighting creates an ambient sci-fi feel. The animations are a little simple and I think you should challenge yourself by getting creative with enemy sprites, since the glowing red orbs were a bit bland and didn't add to the narrative. The lasers and worms both add to the narrative because the tell the story of the environment. Lasers are the defense systems of the station that are dying, and the worms are the inhabitants that have made the abandoned ship their home. So, create more enemies that tell the story.

The gameplay was fluid at some points and clunky at others. Personally, I would have preferred a little faster movement and fire rate. As a rule of thumb, I feel like the speed of upward movement on a jump and the sideways movement of running should be roughly equal. In terms of collision coding, I found myself clipping on corners that ruined my momentum or prevented me from landing on platforms. While it wasn't game breaking, it was a little frustrating. I know that collision scripting can be difficult, so I want you to know that it's better than anything I could do.

The music was cool, but it didn't exactly jive with the gameplay. I seldom heard the ambient music for most of the game, which makes the station feel abandoned, and that's cool! Personally, though, I would recommend a little bit more ambient pads playing during the quiet sections. On the other hand, the fast music in the green section seems too fast and upbeat for the slow gameplay. Because the character doesn't move or shoot very fast, the music doesn't line up with the gameplay and it feels a little disjointed.

In terms of design, the rooms are cool and feel just like a Metroid game! Most of the rooms felt distinct from one another without introducing too many new elements. However, I would recommend being careful when introducing new elements, because when I first encountered the lasers, I encountered a lot of them. The same can be said for the enemies and the spores. The bosses are a little too simple for my taste, but the rooms in which the fights occur are simple, but compliment the boss's movements. Another additional point would be to leave more space in each room. Rather than clutter the rooms with platforms and enemies, leave more open space (not too much that it becomes boring) to add to that "abandoned space station" feel.

The story seemed like it could have been awesome if the game was a little longer. There was definitely some character development going on there and even the enemies and obstacles tell the story of the environment. (like I mentioned earlier) I wasn't expecting the game to end when it did, so I would recommend some text from the command center guy warning about the upcoming boss fight and how its the central issue plaguing the station, etc.

Quick note, have someone proofread the text for you, there are quite a few typos/grammatical errors.

Overall, awesome job! Definitely don't give up! Keep on making games and make each one better than the last! I want to see what you come up with next! Let me know if you want some help with music! :)

[Tiny Heist]

Great gameplay with deep mechanics! The lack of music makes everything tense. Roguelike elements keep you on your toes. Difficulty curve is steep, but exciting. Graphics are minimal, but informative and enjoyable. Fantastic game!

Here is pt. 2 of AloneInTheHalo's walkthrough:

***CONTINUED FROM ALONEINTHEHALO’S REVIEW***
***SPOILER SECTION PART 2/2***

2.2) Killing gadgets
Pistol (x4): RRT: medium. RNG: a lot of squares, in front of you unidirectionally. Notes: it kills 1 enemy at a time; alerts all mobile enemies (***).

Sword: RRT: high. RNG: all squares until a wall, in front of you unidirectionally. Notes: it kills all enemies in your path; you'll find yourself at the last square affected by this attack; you won't be detected even if the attack PASS THROUGH enemies' fields of view.

Matchstick: RRT: high. RNG: some squares, in front of you unidirectionally and adjacent ones. Notes: it kills enemies weak to fire in its range; kills also the shopkeeper and destroys gadgets on the floor; gems and keys are immune; squares are covered in flames(*).

Bomb: RRT: high. RNG: 3 squares, every direction around you. Notes: it explodes as soon as you use it; kills all enemies in its range; also destroys walls and doors; you, shopkeepers, gems, keys and gadgets are immune; alerts all mobile enemies (***).

2.3) Utility's gadgets
Lightbulb: RRT: low. Notes: it illuminates the entire floor; if the floor is already enlightened or if you’re using a cardboard box, it does nothing.

Skateboard (x3): RRT: medium. Notes: you'll move forward until bumping into an obstacle, consuming just 1 turn; you won't be detected even if PASSING THROUGH enemies' fields of view.

Drill: RRT: medium. Notes: it makes a hole in front of you (all wall squares until an empty square); it does nothing if used in front of an empty square.

First aid kit: RRT: medium. Notes: it heals 1 life. Protip: don’t keep it if you’ve lost 1 life, you need slot for other gadgets.

Teleporter (x3): RRT: medium. Notes: it teleports you somewhere on the same floor; if your arrival destination is within some enemies’ field of view, they'll be stunned. (**)

Time stopper: RRT: high. Notes: it stops time; lasts for 19 turns or until you attack someone or use some types of gadget; you won't be detected even if walking through enemies' fields of view(****).

Portable door: RRT: high. Notes: a door is placed in front of you; if there’s an empty square, a wall or a locked door in the destination’s square they’ll be replaced with a normal door, whereas if there’s an enemy nothing will happen; similarly to bananas, if there’s a gem or a gadget in the destination’s square the 2 elements will coexist, while if there’s a key the latter will be destroyed (probably a BUG).

Cardboard box: RRT: high. Notes: it hides from all enemies' field of view(****); lasts for 49 turns or until you attack someone or use some types of gadget; alerted enemies return at their normal behaviors; visible explored part of the floor will return black; it reduces your field of view. (**)

Helix wing: RRT: extreme. Notes: you’ll instantly escape the game with your current number of gems. If you've this gadget but you escape without using it, you’ll lose 10 gems.

Error: RRT: extreme. RNG: 6 squares, every direction around you. Notes: everything on squares in its range (with few exceptions) is affected by error’s dimension; it alerts all mobile enemies (***).

(*)Every few turns flames on the floor spread from a square to adjacent ones, don't taking into account walls or other kind of obstacles; "elite bots", "rooks", "terminators" and "living flames" are not affected by squares covered in flames.
(**)Protip: best use is when you’ve to deal with a horde of alerted enemies.
(***)Those already on the floor, the ones entering later and those recovering from stunning condition.
(****)You'll still take damage if walking on a square covered in flames.

3) Enemies
I’ll illustrate them by subdividing them in 4 subcategories, for descriptive purposes only: 3.1) Basic enemies, 3.2) 2.0 enemies, 3.3) GPS enemies and 3.4) Special enemies.
Note: lengths will be expressed in squares, speeds will be expressed in squares/turn.

3.1) Basic enemies
If you’re seen or perceived by an enemy of this subcategory it’ll be alerted and/or alerts all mobile enemies on the floor. Mobile enemies of this type doesn’t open doors if not alerted.

Camera: Field of view's max depth(FVMD): 7. Field of view's max width(FVMW): 5. Normal speed(NS): 0. Alerted speed(AS): 0. Notes: it usually rotates between 2 directions forming a 90° angle; it doesn't attack, but if you're seen it stops its rotation and alerts all mobile enemies (*).

Patrol bot: FVMD: 7. FVMW: 5. NS: 2. AS: 1. Notes: it moves forward until reaching an obstacle, then it rotates of 90° (180° if in a corridor) and moves forward until reaching another obstacle, and so on; if you're seen it starts following you, hitting when it reaches a square adjacent to yours (not diagonal).

Guard dog(**): Perception's min radius(PMIR): 0. Perception's max radius(PMAR): 2. NS: 0. AS: 1. Notes: it sleeps all the time but it can perceive your presence when its sleep is weaker, so it's more correct to talk of radius of perception instead of field of view; for 8 turns its perception is null, for 4 turns it perceives from 1 square away in every direction, for 4 turns it reaches its maximum radius, then for 4 turns it returns to 1 square, then again its perception is null and the cycle starts again; if you're perceived it awakes and starts following you, hitting when it reaches a square adjacent to yours (not diagonal). Protip: especially in higher level floor, they usually start to appear in packs of 2, 4 and finally 9, so take some time to study their sleep cycles and learn how to avoid waking them.

Sentinel: FVMD: 7. FVMW: 1. PMIR: 1. PMAR: 1. NS: 0. AS: 0. Notes: it's field of view is composed of 4 equidistant lines that rotate uninterruptedly anticlockwise around it; it also always perceives you if you're 1 square away from it; it needs 48 turns for a 360° rotation; like cameras it doesn't attack, but if you're seen it stops its rotation and alerts all enemies (*).

3.2) 2.0 enemies
Enemies of this subcategory are advanced version of some enemies of the previous one. The main difference is that these enemies are armed with laser, so that a field of view (and/or radius of perception) is ALSO a range of action.

Laser camera(**): FVMD: 7. FVMW: 5. NS: 0. AS: 0. Notes: it works like a camera, but moreover it remotely fires at you EVERYTIME you step on a square in its field of view.

Laser patrol: FVMD: 7. FVMW: 5. NS: 2. AS: 1. Notes: it has the same characteristics of a patrol bot, but moreover it remotely fires at you THE FIRST TIME you step on a square in its field of view.

Laser sentinel(**): FVMD: 7. FVMW: 1. PMIR: 1. PMAR: 1. NS: 0. AS: 0. Notes: it has the same characteristics of a sentinel, but moreover it remotely fires at you EVERYTIME you step on a square in its field of view or in its radius of perception.

3.3) GPS enemies
Enemies of this subcategory are always aware of your presence, even if you hide using the "cardboard box". They constantly make their way to the shortest path to reach you, opening doors (not locked one) on their way. Because of this characteristic, it’s more correct to talk only of range of action instead of field of view. Also their speed doesn't change because they're already aware of your presence.

Elite bot: Range of action’s max depth(RAMD): 6. Range of action's max width(RAMW): 1. Speed(SPD): 2. Notes: it remotely fires at you EVERYTIME you step on a square in its range of action. Protip: when it's in the unexplored part of the map, it's marked with a RED question mark.

Rook: Range of action’s min radius(RAMIR): 1. Range of action’s max radius(RAMAR): 1. SPD: 1. Notes: it can change direction only on squares adjacent to a wall; when it starts to move along a direction, it doesn't stop until reaching a wall or another obstacle in front of it; if it hits you, its radius of action will be canceled intermittently for some turns. Protip: wait a turn as soon as you enter floors 12-14. If you see a question mark that moves it’s surely a rook, as it’s the only enemy with this speed. As floors 12-14 are usually composed of cramped rooms with narrow and tortuous corridors, rooks can be very annoying, so try to outdistance them more than possible.

Terminator: RAMD: 6. RAMW: 1. RAMIR: 1. RAMAR: 1. SPD: 2. Notes: It has the same characteristics of an elite bot. Protip: it's a f****ing terminator, run!!! (However don't forget that, eventually, there're ways to stun or kill it too)

3.4) Special enemies
Living bomb(**): PMIR: 0. PMAR: 0. NS: 0. AS: 1. Notes: like guard dogs it sleeps all the time, but conversely its radius of perception is always null; it works exactly as the "bomb" gadget, but the explosion harms you too; if it explodes when you step upon it you’ll lose 1 life; when alerted of your presence because another enemy or a gadget you used, it starts following you and, when the distance is lower than 10 squares, a timer starts and it'll explodes after 9 turns; if you're caught in the explosion in this case, you'll lose 2 lives; if you use a "cardboard box" when it's already alerted it'll explodes immediately, but you won't take any damage even if you're caught in the explosion.

Living flames(**): Notes: it's a living flame and it's evil, you don't need to know anything else about it. Protip: if you step on the same square in which it is, or if you try to kill it, it'll explodes, putting out fire from squares covered in flames in a radius of 5 squares in every direction around it. Moreover you won't be harmed by this explosion.

(*)Those already on the floor, the ones entering later and those recovering from stunning condition.
(**)Its real name is unknown, therefore I gave it one.

Update about number of key's on a floor level:
I've actually discovered that on some floors may be generated a kind of room, that I've called ritual room, closed with a locked door, which contains 4 "patrol bots" going around a gadget of medium or high rarity, with a key located on the external southeast side of this room. So, when a ritual room is generated on a floor, the number of keys on that floor is incremented by 1, as well as a safety vault increases the number of floor's gems of 2 units.

[Hade]

Fantastic!

This is well thought out, well designed, and well crafted! All the aesthetics point towards that minimalism core. The gameplay is simple and clever. I beat level 24 feeling very accomplished! I do have a few complaints and suggestions about a couple things, but none of them kept me from enjoying every moment of this game.

The graphics, while simple, clearly differentiate each object and its purpose. The simple shapes gave clear indications of what each object did. I like the contrast of the bright puzzle elements against the dark sky, it really helped each element stick out. The simple choice in gray-scale with a splash of red or blue here and there, made it easy to identify elements to aim for and elements to avoid. The color is flavorful without being so vibrant that it becomes distracting. Letting each usable element enlarge when mousing over it helps the player quickly identify whether an item can be interacted with or not. It is a small gesture, but important nonetheless. The graphics work in tandem with the gameplay and the music.

The soft, ambient music was very fitting, and varied just enough to not become repetitive. I did not notice the loop transition until I was done playing, which is great! While it is soft, the music was full enough (as in: covering the frequency spectrum) that it acted as a sort of white noise to help block out audible distractions. However, I would recommend attenuating the volume of the sound effects just a tiny bit. It is not critical, but it would have helped reign in my focus on the gameplay.

As for the gameplay itself, the variation in such simple mechanics made for very interesting puzzles and the difficulty curve was well crafted. Each new element was added right after I became confident in the last, keeping me on my toes. Whenever a new element was introduced, the initial level layout helped highlight the element's function. (the only exception would be level 20, I would have placed the breakable arrow in the launcher's path as part of the initial setup) Here is my complaint about the difficulty curve. While it was smooth and the transitions between each level felt natural, I would recommend letting the difficulty have some back-pedaling once in a while. One level is easy, the next level is hard, the third harder, but the fourth might take a small step back and become a bit easier before turning up the difficulty again on the fifth. This whole process helps the player feel smarter after a couple levels because they can accomplish one with ease every so often. It is very much akin to leveling up in an RPG, everything gets a little easier until the difficulty goes up again.

All in all, this game is fantastic. Keep up the amazing work! I cannot wait to see more!

[BG BLU]

Considering the time frame, this is great!

As others have mentioned, the game needs a bit more polish. Between the lagging graphics (although I have not tried the desktop version) the clunky controls, and the somewhat odd graphics, I am sure you would have tweaked everything if you had more time.

I did manage to finish the game. Despite the clunky controls, which are not game breaking, the game was fairly solid. The platforming parts were difficult, but not impossible. I ended up having to "game" the mechanics to finish the blue room. By that I mean, I jumped into the air while looking down. Then, mid-flight, I sprinted forward until I was lined up with the next platform. This "cheese" method made me feel like a cheater and rendered the blue room helpless to my will.

My main criticism actually has to do with the mechanics not lining up with the aesthetics. The art style was very nice in its own unique way. The color palette and particle effects made the place feel foreign and intriguing. Even the beginning music helped add to this atmosphere. These things played in favor of the game being about exploration. However, upon entering any of the challenge rooms, a loud and intense trance music filled my ears, tearing me away from the sense of exploration that I was experiencing. Plus, the game became less about exploring and more about making finely tuned jumps across gaps. The red and blue rooms became almost a different game, which undercut any sense of an exploration game that the intro had built. The green room, however, is different. The maze did feel like exploration, but the music was still jarring, and there were no unique landmarks to help me link the paths of the maze. Had there been designs on the walls, statues, or anything to help me identify my location, the maze would have let me engage my brain while I mentally mapped the area I explored.

All in all, I give you props. It was a fun little game to play. My advice: make sure that the art, music, game play, etc. all line up and point to the same idea, in this case: exploration.

In short, take out the funky beats, add some stuff into the green room, change the red and blue rooms to be more about exploration.

Keep it up!

Satyre responds:

Hey, thanks for the great review. I agree about the mechanics and the music. The challenge rooms were supposed to be boss rooms after exploring the ways to them. I had to cut a lot to at least have something playable. But I'm quiet satified with the parcour part.

*Spoiler*: The green room has a big hint in form of the green line. It shows the direction of the stairs on the floor. Same goes for the other lines. They show the direction of the artefacts.

The game is just a proof of concept in it's current state. I will for sure build it into something bigger in the future, and all the great feedback will be considered :)