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shru5 years ago (1 edit)

Hi, thanks for playing!

When you say that the start of the game took you a long time, was there a part in particular that didn't click right away for you? It sounds like you might've been stuck in the little pit where Sprighou (the Gardener) resides and didn't realize you could get out of there by planting the seeds? Let me know if I'm correct, because if I know exactly what didn't click for you, that'll help me greatly while trying to figure out a way to make it more clear.

If the game took you about 2.5 hours in total, then I'd say that's about the playtime I was going for. The bosses are definitely supposed have have a sort of "die -> get better -> try again -> repeat until you win" cycle, even on easy. The idea for easy to give a bit of a struggle,  but still set the bar lower enough that even players who aren't super into the genre can proceed before they get frustrated. It sounds like it probably missed the mark for you though. Can you give me an idea of how many deaths it took you for each boss before you were able to beat them?

The skull icon just shows the direction of the boss in relation to your character. The idea is that you can visually focus on just your section of the screen and focus on dodging... But it's probably something that's more useful when playing with a gamepad, so maybe I'll consider removing it for mouse and keyboard players.

A lot of NPCs are definitely supposed to come across a little rude. I was hoping it would come across as more playfully cheeking than annoying.

Your comment about the English being bad is highly interesting to me. You're the first person I've heard say this, although I definitely am taking it seriously as a concern. I've probably spent a disproportionate amount of time learning the intricacies of ESL english. So it does not surprising if while making a writing this came across. Was there an NPC in particular who you felt was particularly bad for this, so that I can give them some more scrutiny? Or better yet, even a line of dialogue?

Changing clothing doesn't reflect on your character right now, but you would have noticed your HP change from 1/1 to 3/3.

A handful of items are just gag items which clutter up your inventory for now... :) maybe they'll find a use eventually.

Noted on mouse navigation in menus. That's on the todo list, it's just hard to find the time for.

Thanks again for sticking through the whole thing and for taking the time to write such detailed feedback!

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rtricher5 years ago(+1)

Hi Shru,

 By the time i go to sprighou i was good, i think it was the jumping between  raised platforms, getting used to the controls, talking to the NPCs and the initial profile that doesn't seem to have a bearing on the game though i suppose it will for the full game. Might have taken me some ime to walk all the way to the left away from ronove and start moving through the platforms...  I realized i had to plant seeds before i saw the gardiner i knew i'd have to do that as soon as i saw the fresh earth spots.

I also died like 5 times just getting back from the boots !!! found it a lot easier to get in than out... 

I think the main NPC where i noticed the English was probably Xarria.. though i may have been only a line or two i'd have to read through the scripts again, Ronove too and he was the cheekiest especially walking into the game and getting started.  Though they have the most speaking lines. Otherwise i think the rest were good though i must say i did a lot of "speed reading".. 

I did try to go back through the normal mode and stopped after dying twice against the first flower.. I was just trying to gauge the difference between  easy and normal.. Is it possible the monster is faster in normal and his seedlings too... it was noticeably more difficult though i wasn't giving it my all. But there was a difference.

As i had said earlier this was my first bullet-hell and it's not really my style, so not very proficient.. 

Deaths on Easy: Boss 1:  10 to 15;  Sarcophagus like 17 to 25; Oro i think less than 8.

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rtricher5 years ago

OK so i went back to look at the text... 

I think it's mostly in the descriptions/instructions. But you might want to have someone look through the script.

Oh and in the game calibration you could ask about gender and then get rid of the "sir or madam" I found that weird. 

This time through i did hit a bit of lag on Mandrake in the final stage.

Also i suppose this is just the style of game, but i find it a little too bad that you are kind of forced into a corner to avoid dodge missiles and sort of miss out on the really nice patterns that are being drawn.. They were very nice and caused me to die a few times,, just admiring them. Oro was definitely easier once you get into the final stage Although i did get all the questions right so there were no red X's ... i think that did make is a bit trickier the first time through. Might want to randomize where the correct answer spawns.

Anyway hope it helps.

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rtricher5 years ago

Oh yeah... i'm surprised that Oro seems to say toodles when he leaves, considering he's the BBEG. I guess it just seems so out of place with the rest of the conversations being terse. 

Especially considering your use of alliterations in the interaction pop-up. I realized what you were doing when i found it strange that you would "Gossip with the Gatekeeper" when really that doesn't make sense.. 

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shru5 years ago

Thanks for clarifying on the start of the game and who you thought had awkward dialogue. Ronove referring to you as "sir or madam" is supposed to be intentionally weird and is supposed to be emblematic of his total disinterest in accommodating or helping you.

~10 deaths on the Mandrake boss and Orobas is about what I was aiming for difficulty-wise. 20+ is maybe a big too high for Sarcoph Augustus, but then again you said you weren't using the Hourglass, so that would have made things more difficult than it needed to be. So I'm not sure whether I should touch him.

The higher difficulties mostly affect the density and speed of projectiles, and well as the resting time between volleys/patterns of bullets. The seedling minions move at the same speed on both Easy and Intended, but there are more of them on Intended, so that would create the effect making their pursuit feel more threatening.

In terms of being "forced into a corner" during boss battles, I agree with you. That's been something I've been trying to design bosses to avoid. I think the Mandrake's design makes it so that it's pretty optimal to just stay back in the corner and move yourself just enough to dodge bullets. However, Sarcoph Augustus and Orobas were both designed to make it so the player should have to utilize most of the arena to be successful.

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