It’s obvious a lot of effort when into this game. And there’s a lot of accomplishments in it. The pixel art is well done and so is the enemy behavior. There are even secret-like areas that you can smash into and through. And of course there are the power ups and back tracking. Yes, this teams understand metroidvania well.
That said, I had an issue with the controls. It’s a common theme in the jam and I’m now thinking we need to have a play-test channel or something so we can ask for help from others with play testing. It’s so difficult to tell when you’ve made a bad choice on things in a game once you get used to them. We had issues with that when it came to certain things. And we’re so glad for the feedback, even if it’s after-the-fact sort-to-speak.
Anyway, the long jump is a nice feature. But with the game pad you have to hit both the X and A buttons simultaneously to do it. It can be done. But you have to time it right. And timing challenges aren’t bad in games. But not to the point of frustration. On narrow ledges getting the timing down is very difficult. This is where I gave up.
I tried to use the keyboard. But I’m left handed. So using wasd plus the left shift to sprint and then whatever else to jump – it’s just too much.
One other things I disliked wholehearted was getting stuck in a pool of water with no way to get out. There were a few. And you can blindly drop into them. You should make it so that once the player drops into a pool they can always jump or get out. Always. Using breathing under water as a gating ability is fine. Trapping players is not.
I think with a little more work, your game will be so much more enjoyable!
If you would be so kind, please play, rate and leave a comment on our game and let us know what we missed in our play testing! Thanks!