Others have said similar things to what my impressions were! The presentation is pretty neat, and the crossbow bolts feel pretty hefty
But it's really opaque what (dis)allows me to shoot. sometimes I'd reload right after shooting, sometimes I'd run around with no bolts loaded and then die while I started reloading 10 seconds after shooting :(
I had my suspicions about that becoming a pain point and stupid mechanism.
I had some idea about the reload finishing with a clear SFX que too, but that didnt happen.
It's hard to stand still and let it reload while being hunted too. And if you have no energy to bash/dash/ulti, then it's pretty grim.
ohhh, standing still reloads the crossbow! I get it
With this knowledge, I played a few more rounds and it honestly feels pretty slick. I gives a nice cadence to the combat you don't really see in most games because you can do your main action while moving.
Honestly, with a bit of a different energy economy (maybe a regenerating pool that also fills quicker when standing still), this could be an intriguing and different, slower-paced take on the top down arena shooter formula!
I agree with what you pointed out yourself. SFX can help communicate the gamestate to players. Additionally, I really like when the HUD (e.g. the reticle) gives an indication of what I'm doing, so maybe changes depending on if you're reloading or if you have a bolt ready. but overall, this feels like it can go in a very neat direction!
Thanks for those insights! I think a better HUD would have made a big difference. That's something I'll try to get better at.
Yeah imagine having maybe four squares representing the actions with maybe light and dark background depending on if they are available, and you see how the reloading progresses in the shoot-box, and when gaining more energy, the others fill up until they are full too... That would have been a major improvement.
