I really like the main mechanic of this game, really wish it wasn't so short! Really love the music as well. And the use of colours to subtly hints things at the player. Love the way enemies split in half too. Very satisfying.
My main issue while playing was that even after using the axe throwing/receiving/teleportation mechanic, my brain would still sometimes get confused which button does what, and would often call it back even when I know I should be teleporting.
Sometimes, I'd even kind of forget I threw it (like when it goes off screen). Would be nice of there was some visual cue on my character when I don't have it.
Maybe if there was a bit of a delay before it started coming back or before you teleport. The protagonist would flash green if he's about to teleport, and put his hand out and flash blue when he's trying to call the axe back. Or maybe he puts out different hands depending on the action, and each hand has a different colour, and has some looking "X" and "Y" tattoo on hand that the player could see.
I don't if those ideas would necessarily work, just something to help the player not forget these things.
I think some enemies like the bat need to make a sound and have some noticeable animation before they attack. The bat in the second room comes at you way too fast without much warning. Also not sure why I can jump on the grunts (maybe monks?) to kill them and not bats.
There's also room to give more cues that the door was open when I press the button in the second room. Like a cloud of smoke and a more noticeable and unique chime (kinda like in Zelda when you complete a room)
Would be cool if the blood splattered on the tiles instead of freezing mid-air. Speaking of tiles, the "breakable wall" tiles should look a bit more noticeably different to me.
Overall, really enjoyed. Would love to see more of this game!
Screenshake/10
Viewing post in Viking: Samurai Ninja comments
Glad you liked it!
Yeah I get confused about the buttons myself. In hindsight it probably makes more sense to have Throw and Call Back on the same button, have the Warp be some kind of attack (like the Warp Strike in Final Fantasy XV) and have it on the same button as Slash. Might make the distinction between the buttons more clear.
Agree that all enemies should be jump on-able (real word) unless indicated with a clear visual difference.
Definitely should be more audio and visual cues, j'agree.
I'll have to look into how that blood splatter works, sounds complicated!
Thanks for playing! Screenshake all day!