-ck

- You guys must have made combat easier, because I only lost once or twice on this playthrough, whereas I recall losing at least 3 times to Boyd the first time I played. Feels really good. Still feels tough, but definitely more doable for my bad reaction times. I feel like I'm able to get a much better grip on the whole game, and I loved seeing the skills that used tried-and-true attack patterns like in Paper Mario. (That's more of why I got hooked on this, "paper-mario-like combat".)

- I like the way the narrative/text boxes fit together when there's multiple boxes on the screen, it looks cool and is natural to read, as well.

- For me, I gave up playing partway through during one of the first alphas here because I got stuck on the cell block/ladder puzzle ... pretty embarrassing. Today, everything felt pretty easy and nothing felt too hidden, even though I was tempted to give up since I couldn't find the steamy-pipe-vent-tunnel, nor the two tunnels that connected to it until I realized that the 'entryways' aren't exactly explicitly marked. The reason I found the tunnel in the first place was from walking around the Buddy/crate room a lot since I was stumped, and I saw the crouch prompt which really saved my day.

On a more ambiguous note, I'm trying to think of what feels 'less satisfying' about the combat (than paper mario for example), and I think part of it is that in paper mario, perhaps specifically for the jump attacks, the timing comes from matching visual cues in the like 30fps animations, which I guess isn't really as feasible with this pixelated style (and budget, time?)? Just trying to think of what is the difference between the accelerating range-attack/dodge-bar vs. paper mario-esque dodge/attack mechanics. Since the accelerating bar is constant for all enemies, it doesn't emphasize looking at each enemy's unique animation, they're all the same,... yeah, I guess that's the thing.

Well, it makes sense, the choice of using the bar style for the ranged combat mechanics, I guess I just wanted to express that it feels a little underwhelming.

Anyways, this version's combat feels really good to me. The red/orange dodge mechanics felt really instinctive and natural, and understanding the actions enemies are taking and understanding the results of their attacks felt justified and sensible. Really good. Haven't played with controller yet, but I'm assuming it will make even more sense than keyboard, since I feel like the dodge-guard mechanic will be on the bumpers which makes a lot of sense to me.

*oh yeah, i almost forgot. Coming from a paper mario/rhythm action games background, I'm still hoping for some 'rhythm-y' kind of attacks. Right now, combat feels more like trading hits between yourself and the enemy, which is .. well, pretty cool and natural, but maybe the skills will have some more rhythm-styled action sequences? I like the maintenance skill, and the other skills, but maybe even something like earth tremor from paper mario 2 - where you have to press buttons based on a given rhythm or whatever. Not necessary. Just a request. I'm sure you guys have tons of ideas up your sleeves already!

Can't wait for more content! Keep up the good work!

Im using a laptop and i'd like to map all the combat commands to actual keys rather than clicking since touch pads are kind of finicky but changing the setting for melee attacks/etc doesn't seem to actually work and clicking still activates everything.

I finished my first playthrough of the alpha content an hour or two ago (assuming it ends when climbing down a ladder after entering the vents). There's some great atmosphere and a good start on some solid characterisation. I feel invested in Rook's journey, and I'm looking forward to seeing how the ability to shape his (and other party members'?) attributes impacts on the game. I'm also interested to see how other characters' moods will be used through the game (so far, it doesn't seem like they make much of a difference?).

In general, I'm enjoying the pacing of the game, though the intro sequence feels like it might go on a little long for some players (at a guess, 2/3rds the length feels like it might be a good sweet-spot to aim for?). The tutorial, first security droids and final combat sequences feel like they're providing solid beats at good moments in the game (not so sure about the 3 drones, but that definitely wasn't unwelcome).

I loved the cell block/ladder puzzle, and appreciated that the backtracking gave a second opportunity for players to discover stuff in the cells if they'd missed them on their first pass.

It took me a little while to notice that I could shoot the valve to stop the middle flame vent. The valve itself could stand out a little more (not just the steam escaping it). I tried to shoot it while crouching and nearly gave up before I decided to stand up and try it - I'm not sure if that was just bad aim on my part or not.

I found myself wishing I could use the forklift to give myself an advantage going into the final combat sequence (maybe ramming the shield robot?). It's a little jarring to have it disappear, but I guess that sort of context shift is common in JRPGs.

It took me a long time to notice/understand the nuances of combat. In particular, I struggled with timing a lot both for attacking and defending (likely exacerbated by colour issues). Initially I thought that the ranged defence bar was the enemy's attack timing bar and didn't realise that I should have been aiming for the green area (I guess it's green? The right most segment doesn't stand out as green to me). It also took me a while to work out that the mouse wheel could change targets (the dash skill felt pretty useless up till that point!), and it wasn't until after I was reading the character status screens on my second playthrough that I discovered how to use the short circuit skill.

Once I got the hang of it though, I found myself enjoying the combat even if it did ramp up in difficulty faster than I was learning my abilities. If you are planning to make character stats have an impact on timing for ranged attacks/defences and melee defences, I'd say that what's there now is fine, but if not, maybe giving a little extra leeway here (especially early on?) might be worth considering.

Fantastic work! I am very glad to  have supported this game's development and look forward to seeing where things go from here :)

Edit: I didn't find anywhere to use the code I found in the prisoner's cell - is that used in the game or did I sidestep it by solving a puzzle differently?

I'll give my final opinions and such later on, but right now I'm stuck in the Cargo Bay and I've spent a (frustratingly) long time trying to figure out how to a) get the robot out of the crate, b) get the vent open and c) trying to get the forklift to work.

Now I understand that a = c = b (or something similar) but for the life of me, I cannot figure out what tool I need to open the crate, as that tool will not just open the crate to get the robot out but possibly get the vent open at the right stage of the area (where you'll progress further into the game). Now I've explored every nook of this place and I can't figure out what it is I'm supposed to find.

I've found the vent beside the crate the robot is in, but I haven't found a way to stop the second steam-vent from, well, being operational. Clearly I need to block it, but shooting the blue crate won't work nor will "drag", but I suspect this is the way to go.

It's cryptic and I'm running out of ideas (and patience) to move past it. Anyone have a solution on how to beat this stage?