I've spent way more time than I should've on this game. On my first playthrough I got to zone 2 and got killed. On my second playthrough I decided to do a range build, reached lvl 56 and got to zone 6. Here're my observations:
Skill tree is uncomfortable to use, cause it's hard to get back to overview and select the subtree that you need. I'd suggest either adding a "back" button or turning it into one big tree.
At first I couldn't figure out how to learn new skills, cause normally you just click on the icon and not on the tiny padlock icon.
I think the game has way too many stats(compare that to other orblikes such as Diablo 2 and Torchlight 2, both of which have only 4 attributes) and it's not clear what some of them do(e.g: what does dexterity do? I kinda figured that it increase the chance to hit the enemy, but I'm not sure).
Ranged skills are quite boring. Mastery skills just increase the numbers, which is also what stats do. And active also often just increase the numbers(full draw, quick shot, focus shot, swift shot, etc) and for most of them it's not worth investing into more than one, cause you can't combine them together.
I had to backtrack a lot. Would be nice to have something like a portal scroll from Diablo 2, which creates a portal to last vendor area.
I had a bizarre glitch, which caused the player to fire at the wrong enemy.
Other than that it's a solid game, I'm gonna wait for more content.
> At first I couldn't figure out how to learn new skills, cause normally you just click on the icon and not on the tiny padlock icon I have the thing
> too many stats I could make Health+Endurance and make Vitality but those two just seem too different to me, but I keep this in mind.
> what does dexterity do? Increases Hit and Block. Hit increases the likelihood of physical attacks (melee strikes and bow shots) to connect to enemies.
> Mastery skills just increase the numbers, which is also what stats do Correct, but stats/attributes give a little bit more. Attributes give flat and multiplier values and behave in increasing returns
> And active also often just increase the numbers(full draw, quick shot, focus shot, swift shot, etc) and for most of them it's not worth investing into more than one, cause you can't combine them together. Yes you can combine skills, that's my game, you combine compatible skills.
Full Draw + Seeking Shot + Multishot + Swift Shot + Piercing Shot + Chain Shot
assign [Base] skill to a hotbar slot
place compatible [Support] skills over the [Base] skill
> I had to backtrack a lot. Would be nice to have something like a portal scroll from Diablo 2, which creates a portal to last vendor area. Backtrack to sell? Just pick up what seems valuable and drop lesser valuables, no inventory tetris, but we still need to inventory manage. And I'm gonna work on Town Portals eventually, i have that listed down for a while now.
> I had a bizarre glitch, which caused the player to fire at the wrong enemy. Did you perhaps have the [Shift] key down and clicking [M1] with an attack skill? If so it's not a bug,
Yeah, I read it, but I didn't notice the "click on" in header, so I assumed that open padlock means "this skill is not locked behind any prerequisites and can be learned".
After you mentioned this, I decided to check it out again, cause I tried it out before, and it didn't work, but now everything worked fine, and I spent one more hour playing the game.
I built a fire based Arbiter/Priest/Paladin character with some frost resistance gear, and it was a nice experience. I did end up dying however, because I was relying upon the "Glory" buff to survive, and it expired in the midst of combat.
I enjoyed the skill tree. I am overall a fan of large skill trees with dependancies such as yours. I would encourage something like a "Minimap" for it, or perhaps an option to zoom out and then back in on it, as I initially got a bit lost and confused before I noticed the arrows linking between classes. I'm quite fond of the skill tree in path of exile, you might benefit from having a look at how they link and group skills visually.
My bags were frequently full, I returned to the start of the game part way through to sell everything once. It was a tragedy to pass up so much treasure.
Do you plan on adding equipment sprites? This might make the enemy types more readable, and it might be interesting to have a more visual sense of what classes you're going up against. Having their class names match the class names in the skill tree might be interesting as well, as it seemed like they might have been drawing from the same pool of skills as the player.
> I'm quite fond of the skill tree in path of exile, you might benefit from having a look at how they link and group skills visually How skills are clustered and makes sense together, yeah, I dig that too.
> My bags were frequently full, I returned to the start of the game part way through to sell everything once. It was a tragedy to pass up so much treasure. just keep the more valuable ones and sell those when you reach the next respite zone lol
> equipment sprites soon (lie)
> Having their class names match the class names in the skill tree might be interesting as well, Good idea, those can be some nice monster encounters.
> mobs seemed like they might have been drawing from the same pool of skills as the player. Yes, you and the mobs use the same skills and systems. Fighter is just basically Warrior+Slayer+Paladins+Warlord skills in a mob, Ranger and Mage runs the same idea.
Okay, so I played for like an hour (not sure) on the browser. I think I got to lvl 20. I only made it past one vendor and several rooms before quitting.
Things I didn't like:
1. Enemies that freeze you. It needs to be adjusted in some way. Getting frozen doesn't provide a danger, it extends the length of combat unnecessarily.
2. The game was very easy (at least for as long as I played) and it doesn't force you to learn the mechanics through difficulty. I was like lvl 6 and passed through several rooms before I used any of the game's skill and attribute mechanics when leveling. I don't think I used any skills until around the time I met the first vendor. That's because swinging your sword and running around is sufficient for a very long time. My guy was equipped with a buckler and blocked so many attacks. I should also mention that even though I stopped playing, I didn't die once.
There were a ton of situations where I would get swarmed like in the pic below but I was in no real danger. This doesn't get me killed, it's just tedious because I keep getting inflicted with the 'frozen' status effect and combat goes on for a while. Sometimes my health would go down, but then I just chug one of many potions. I have to slowly chip at enemy health for minutes and my character barely moves. If this kind of thing is supposed to be punishing and I'm playing the game wrong, then have it be really punishing (lead to death) instead of extending combat.
3. I'm not a huge fan of how the skills in the skill menu were organized.
4. I don't like to play games that involve a lot of mouse clicks for too long. I won't be too hard on you for that. Lots of people like that, so chalk that up more to personal preference.
Things I like:
1. The art and color design. Most of the menus.
2. The attribute system. I enjoy being able to move around stats to my liking.
3. The way enemies get stronger as you progress. While I complained that the enemies aren't tough enough, the progression of enemy skills is very nice. I started to get excited, waiting to see what enemies would be like in the next room. Seeing a bunch of new enemy skills so often was cool. Very good job with this, I think you are on the right track.
4. Enemy variation. There are many different types of archers, mages, and warriors, so I didn't know what would come next.
I liked your game. It might seem like I complained more than I complimented it, but that just means your game engaged me enough to really think about it. And I often complain a lot, even if I like something.
Thanks for sharing, I'm excited to see your stuff again next DD!!
> Freeze Status is annoying Correct. You can defend against status ailments with Blocks and Resistance. You can get flat Block value from Shield equipment, and the Faith Skill. You can further increase Block with Dexterity and Finesse modifiers. Blocks will reduce incoming damage to zero and protect you from status ailments. Resistance on the other hand will reduce the damage taken and chance to inflict status ailments.
> game is easy I had to, bro. The initial version of this game had:
you spawned with no gear and pots
mobs where as strong, as fast as you, were aggressive, and could immediately spawn with weapons
skills were meh(lv1) to decent(lv10) when used with no synergies, or terrible like priest skills (used to give you 3 seconds of buff for each second you channeled the spell)
Initial players didn't like it, had to make it easier.
you spawned with a sword, wand, bow (so you can choose immediately how you want to play your character, you won't have to scour for the weapon of your play style)
enemies have a penalty to Speed (so they're always slower than you)
initial levels slowly introduced new things: zone 1-1 : normal melee monsters zone 1-2 : mobs with elemental attributes zone 1-3 : mage mobs zone 1-4 : mobs with equipment and ranger mobs
Monsters grow more aggressive per passing level (fully aggressive by zone 3)
skills were buffed (specially the priest skills (1 second channeled is 10 seconds buff duration)
> it doesn't force you to learn the mechanics through difficulty I don't have the hook yet to even make players try.
> My guy was equipped with a buckler and blocked so many attacks. I should also mention that even though I stopped playing, I didn't die once. You prob had a very nice early tank build,
> I have to slowly chip at enemy health for minutes and my character barely moves. If this kind of thing is supposed to be punishing and I'm playing the game wrong, then have it be really punishing (lead to death) instead of extending combat. Nice tank, but I recommend in early game to go 70/30 (offense/defense)
> I'm not a huge fan of how the skills in the skill menu were organized. noted
> click click click It's Diablo/Poe inspired haha. And you can assign skills to other hotkeys and hold down the key.
> Things I like ... Nice, thanks for trying out my game! I hope to submit a better version of the game, even by a little, next DD!
>Blocks will reduce incoming damage to zero and protect you from status ailments. Resistance on the other hand will reduce the damage taken and chance to inflict status ailments.
My guy had like 2 res at lvl 20. Guess I got what I deserved.
>Initial players didn't like it, had to make it easier.
New sprites are nice, even if the previous ones had a certain charm to them. Interestingly enough, because everyone is much larger, things like split shots and such are more effective even without seeking projectiles now. Shops seemed to be more useful now too, I was able to buy stuff that were upgrades on top of finding stuff, while in older version I was just hoarding gold.
-encountered a bug where I think my M1 clicks registered as movement queued inputs and when I was trying to click the enemy the character just teleported around the goblin repeatedly, every second or so? even after I stopped clicking.
s
when around this area and attempting to click on bottom right, the clear area, pathfinding will get stuck on the top left corner of the nearby rectangle.
skilltree needs rework, moving between professions is very awkward. the buttons are tiny. noticing you need to press the unlock symbol and go top to bottom when unlocking skills is hard. the text in general is tiny.
otherwise the graphic design for the UI is excellent. the level and character detail is enough IMO, I'd want more variety in gameplay, enemy variety, skills doing other things besides damage amounts, actual risk when fighting(I couldn't get close to dying even once after unlocking skills while using 0 potions)
enemy ganks so I'm forced to escape using dash or use AOEs, bosses. yeah, the base systems of the game are in, feel really nice, it needs content. really promising, well done.
> M1 click bug What skill did you have assigned on M1? Maybe I can replicate the bug, see what's going on.
> when around this area and attempting to click on bottom right, the clear area, pathfinding will get stuck on the top left corner of the nearby rectangle. Were you clicking over the circled spot below? You can see that spot but the character can't, is why it's moving to the nearest place it thinks you're pointing to.
> skilltree needs rework, moving between professions is very awkward.. I'm ready to hear new ideas.
> noticing you need to press the unlock symbol and go top to bottom when unlocking skills is hard. Yes
> .. the buttons are tiny.. the text in general is tiny. I'll try to make larger buttons & text, and see if it fits.
> otherwise the graphic design for the UI is excellent. the level and character detail is enough IMO Thanks!
> I'd want more variety in gameplay, enemy variety, skills doing other things besides damage amounts, I want those too, let me cook
> actual risk when fighting(I couldn't get close to dying even once after unlocking skills while using 0 potions) I'll figure something out.
> enemy ganks so I'm forced to escape using dash or use AOEs, bosses. yeah, Yes
> the base systems of the game are in, feel really nice, it needs content. really promising, well done. Nice, I'm creeping towards new content, maybe by DD53 I'll have things working. Thanks again for playing!
M1(left click) is walking or basic attack, I was generally clicking in the visible/dark area, even more bottom right to where you marked.
regarding skill menu design, perhaps have a "return" button from a specific job tree to the main skill menu and some arrows leading between skills to indicate skill requirement.
and regarding my content suggestions, I know it takes time, this isn't to rush you, just to say I think currently the game would benefit more from content than from work on graphics.
Comments
Never tried this out, sorry, I will put it on my list.
I've spent way more time than I should've on this game. On my first playthrough I got to zone 2 and got killed. On my second playthrough I decided to do a range build, reached lvl 56 and got to zone 6. Here're my observations:
Other than that it's a solid game, I'm gonna wait for more content.
> reached lvl 56 and got to zone 6
Nice.
> skill tree issue
noted
> At first I couldn't figure out how to learn new skills, cause normally you just click on the icon and not on the tiny padlock icon
I have the thing
> too many stats
I could make Health+Endurance and make Vitality but those two just seem too different to me, but I keep this in mind.
> what does dexterity do?
Increases Hit and Block. Hit increases the likelihood of physical attacks (melee strikes and bow shots) to connect to enemies.
> Mastery skills just increase the numbers, which is also what stats do
Correct, but stats/attributes give a little bit more. Attributes give flat and multiplier values and behave in increasing returns
> And active also often just increase the numbers(full draw, quick shot, focus shot, swift shot, etc) and for most of them it's not worth investing into more than one, cause you can't combine them together.
Yes you can combine skills, that's my game, you combine compatible skills.
Full Draw + Seeking Shot + Multishot + Swift Shot + Piercing Shot + Chain Shot
> I had to backtrack a lot. Would be nice to have something like a portal scroll from Diablo 2, which creates a portal to last vendor area.
Backtrack to sell? Just pick up what seems valuable and drop lesser valuables, no inventory tetris, but we still need to inventory manage.
And I'm gonna work on Town Portals eventually, i have that listed down for a while now.
> I had a bizarre glitch, which caused the player to fire at the wrong enemy.
Did you perhaps have the [Shift] key down and clicking [M1] with an attack skill? If so it's not a bug,
Thanks for the feedback and playing my game!
Yeah, I read it, but I didn't notice the "click on" in header, so I assumed that open padlock means "this skill is not locked behind any prerequisites and can be learned".
you can combine skills, bro
After you mentioned this, I decided to check it out again, cause I tried it out before, and it didn't work, but now everything worked fine, and I spent one more hour playing the game.
Very Nice, I played for about an hour as well.
I built a fire based Arbiter/Priest/Paladin character with some frost resistance gear, and it was a nice experience. I did end up dying however, because I was relying upon the "Glory" buff to survive, and it expired in the midst of combat.
Thanks for making this, I enjoyed it.
> Herald of Fire
Nice
> skill tree
Imma rework it, bro.
> I'm quite fond of the skill tree in path of exile, you might benefit from having a look at how they link and group skills visually
How skills are clustered and makes sense together, yeah, I dig that too.
> My bags were frequently full, I returned to the start of the game part way through to sell everything once. It was a tragedy to pass up so much treasure.
just keep the more valuable ones and sell those when you reach the next respite zone lol
> equipment sprites
soon (lie)
> Having their class names match the class names in the skill tree might be interesting as well,
Good idea, those can be some nice monster encounters.
> mobs seemed like they might have been drawing from the same pool of skills as the player.
Yes, you and the mobs use the same skills and systems. Fighter is just basically Warrior+Slayer+Paladins+Warlord skills in a mob, Ranger and Mage runs the same idea.
Thanks for trying my game and the feed back!
Okay, so I played for like an hour (not sure) on the browser. I think I got to lvl 20. I only made it past one vendor and several rooms before quitting.
Things I didn't like:
1. Enemies that freeze you. It needs to be adjusted in some way. Getting frozen doesn't provide a danger, it extends the length of combat unnecessarily.
2. The game was very easy (at least for as long as I played) and it doesn't force you to learn the mechanics through difficulty. I was like lvl 6 and passed through several rooms before I used any of the game's skill and attribute mechanics when leveling. I don't think I used any skills until around the time I met the first vendor. That's because swinging your sword and running around is sufficient for a very long time. My guy was equipped with a buckler and blocked so many attacks. I should also mention that even though I stopped playing, I didn't die once.
There were a ton of situations where I would get swarmed like in the pic below but I was in no real danger. This doesn't get me killed, it's just tedious because I keep getting inflicted with the 'frozen' status effect and combat goes on for a while. Sometimes my health would go down, but then I just chug one of many potions. I have to slowly chip at enemy health for minutes and my character barely moves. If this kind of thing is supposed to be punishing and I'm playing the game wrong, then have it be really punishing (lead to death) instead of extending combat.
3. I'm not a huge fan of how the skills in the skill menu were organized.
4. I don't like to play games that involve a lot of mouse clicks for too long. I won't be too hard on you for that. Lots of people like that, so chalk that up more to personal preference.
Things I like:
1. The art and color design. Most of the menus.
2. The attribute system. I enjoy being able to move around stats to my liking.
3. The way enemies get stronger as you progress. While I complained that the enemies aren't tough enough, the progression of enemy skills is very nice. I started to get excited, waiting to see what enemies would be like in the next room. Seeing a bunch of new enemy skills so often was cool. Very good job with this, I think you are on the right track.
4. Enemy variation. There are many different types of archers, mages, and warriors, so I didn't know what would come next.
I liked your game. It might seem like I complained more than I complimented it, but that just means your game engaged me enough to really think about it. And I often complain a lot, even if I like something.
Thanks for sharing, I'm excited to see your stuff again next DD!!
> Freeze Status is annoying
Correct. You can defend against status ailments with Blocks and Resistance.
You can get flat Block value from Shield equipment, and the Faith Skill. You can further increase Block with Dexterity and Finesse modifiers. Blocks will reduce incoming damage to zero and protect you from status ailments. Resistance on the other hand will reduce the damage taken and chance to inflict status ailments.
> game is easy
I had to, bro. The initial version of this game had:
Initial players didn't like it, had to make it easier.
zone 1-1 : normal melee monsters
zone 1-2 : mobs with elemental attributes
zone 1-3 : mage mobs
zone 1-4 : mobs with equipment and ranger mobs
> it doesn't force you to learn the mechanics through difficulty
I don't have the hook yet to even make players try.
> My guy was equipped with a buckler and blocked so many attacks. I should also mention that even though I stopped playing, I didn't die once.
You prob had a very nice early tank build,
> I have to slowly chip at enemy health for minutes and my character barely moves. If this kind of thing is supposed to be punishing and I'm playing the game wrong, then have it be really punishing (lead to death) instead of extending combat.
Nice tank, but I recommend in early game to go 70/30 (offense/defense)
> I'm not a huge fan of how the skills in the skill menu were organized.
noted
> click click click
It's Diablo/Poe inspired haha. And you can assign skills to other hotkeys and hold down the key.
> Things I like ...
Nice, thanks for trying out my game! I hope to submit a better version of the game, even by a little, next DD!
>Blocks will reduce incoming damage to zero and protect you from status ailments. Resistance on the other hand will reduce the damage taken and chance to inflict status ailments.
My guy had like 2 res at lvl 20. Guess I got what I deserved.
>Initial players didn't like it, had to make it easier.
So I have the /agdg/ normies to blame.
New sprites are nice, even if the previous ones had a certain charm to them. Interestingly enough, because everyone is much larger, things like split shots and such are more effective even without seeking projectiles now. Shops seemed to be more useful now too, I was able to buy stuff that were upgrades on top of finding stuff, while in older version I was just hoarding gold.
-encountered a bug where I think my M1 clicks registered as movement queued inputs and when I was trying to click the enemy the character just teleported around the goblin repeatedly, every second or so? even after I stopped clicking.
s
when around this area and attempting to click on bottom right, the clear area, pathfinding will get stuck on the top left corner of the nearby rectangle.
skilltree needs rework, moving between professions is very awkward. the buttons are tiny. noticing you need to press the unlock symbol and go top to bottom when unlocking skills is hard. the text in general is tiny.
otherwise the graphic design for the UI is excellent. the level and character detail is enough IMO, I'd want more variety in gameplay, enemy variety, skills doing other things besides damage amounts, actual risk when fighting(I couldn't get close to dying even once after unlocking skills while using 0 potions)
enemy ganks so I'm forced to escape using dash or use AOEs, bosses. yeah, the base systems of the game are in, feel really nice, it needs content. really promising, well done.
> M1 click bug
What skill did you have assigned on M1? Maybe I can replicate the bug, see what's going on.
> when around this area and attempting to click on bottom right, the clear area, pathfinding will get stuck on the top left corner of the nearby rectangle.
Were you clicking over the circled spot below?
You can see that spot but the character can't, is why it's moving to the nearest place it thinks you're pointing to.
> skilltree needs rework, moving between professions is very awkward..
I'm ready to hear new ideas.
> noticing you need to press the unlock symbol and go top to bottom when unlocking skills is hard.
Yes
> .. the buttons are tiny.. the text in general is tiny.
I'll try to make larger buttons & text, and see if it fits.
> otherwise the graphic design for the UI is excellent. the level and character detail is enough IMO
Thanks!
> I'd want more variety in gameplay, enemy variety, skills doing other things besides damage amounts,
I want those too, let me cook
> actual risk when fighting(I couldn't get close to dying even once after unlocking skills while using 0 potions)
I'll figure something out.
> enemy ganks so I'm forced to escape using dash or use AOEs, bosses. yeah,
Yes
> the base systems of the game are in, feel really nice, it needs content. really promising, well done.
Nice, I'm creeping towards new content, maybe by DD53 I'll have things working.
Thanks again for playing!
M1(left click) is walking or basic attack, I was generally clicking in the visible/dark area, even more bottom right to where you marked.
regarding skill menu design, perhaps have a "return" button from a specific job tree to the main skill menu and some arrows leading between skills to indicate skill requirement.
and regarding my content suggestions, I know it takes time, this isn't to rush you, just to say I think currently the game would benefit more from content than from work on graphics.
I experienced a similar pathfinding issue with those little gaps like in your screen shot
Playing in browser