Lovely game! I included it in my GMTK Game Jam 2019 compilation video series, if you’d like to take a look. :)
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Katame Ninja's itch.io pageResults
Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
Design | #64 | 4.312 | 4.312 |
Overall | #87 | 4.290 | 4.290 |
Adherence to the Theme | #227 | 4.390 | 4.390 |
Originality | #269 | 4.169 | 4.169 |
Ranked from 77 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Comments
First of all, delightful art assets, from sprites to music this game is a audiovisual treatand i cant stress it enough. Now that thats out of the way lets focus on what should be evaluated for this Jam.
The core gameloop is great, hoping from side to side killing enemies feels responsive and snappy while lining up your shots take skills; other stuff takes more than skill, dodging is heavily reliant on luck, the more enemies in the screen the lesser space to navigate and given that most of the time you have to jump because of a hazard is coming or not jump because an enemy is in the way you cant dodge, making for unfair difficulty, not hard dificulty, unfair.
My fix, I would make the ninja jump towards the mouse, if you want to keep the hold mechanic make the ninja go faster the longer its been hold, that would keep game challenging whilst getting rid of the unfair parts.
That problem aside the game plays like a fiddle, no bugs or quirky behaviour, great feel design with subtle screenshake and flashes and lastly each enemy telegraph in a clear manner.
Theme, only one button and the game wouldnt be the same without it.
Originality, japanese themed walljumping platformer shooter, you bet.
I hope they make a mobile version of it because it would fit the platform well, an almost perfect game this jam deserving of praise.
Thank you for your feedback!
I agree difficulty is the main issue here, specially the more enemies on screen, however I do not think jumping to the mouse would fix it (if anything is a game changer), you would have to be faster to where you aim with the mouse, its easier to press a button than to move a mouse plus now rather than sliding to go down you could jump anywhere; at the same time if the screen is full of enemies and hazards its the same deal, jumping through it feels like luck or that you have to take a hit sometimes. And if someone does not have a mouse or uses a gamepad it becomes all the more tricky.
Spawning and limiting the right amount of enemies at certain times is the way to go imo without affecting the base we've built. HP pickups and a bit of aim-help could also help.
And I hear ya on the mobile version!
Great and addictive mechanic! The graphics and sounds are polished and really nice in this game.
The only think I miss was the ability to recover some life
Wow, this was really fun. Simple idea with powerful execution make a really addictive and challenging game. The artstyle is great, controls are responsive and it plays really good. I also like how the different enemies keep you always moving, so you have to make split second decisions in order to survive. I couldn't finish the second stage, but really good job. The only small problem I had is that during the bossfight it sometimes felt like I had to take damage, but that doesn't hurt the game in any major way. Really good job! Probably the most fun I hade during the entire jam so far!
The art style and musing/sfx are perfect! It's a great and addictive game. It took me dozens "ok! one more time" til i really topped playing it. Great work!
If you may like you could checkout our game as well, we'll appreciate it :)
https://itch.io/jam/gmtk-2019/rate/461977
Amazing visuals! The game itself is quite simple, tbqh.
Check our game: https://cerosware.itch.io/one-stick-shooter
Absolutely nothing to say. Even excluding the graphics, the game is awesome and i really love the concept. It'll probably end up on Mark's video. Good job!
A gorgeous looking game with incredibly well designed enemies that not only look great but are also mechanically great. Like the umbrella yokai that floats down or the one that launches its spiky hat exposing its vulnerable head. Even sounds great too. Super impressed.
Great graphics, very fitting music and sound, I like the way you did the one button concept as well! it's a bit hard to get the hang of so maybe if the start would be a bit easier it might be more suitable for everyone
Very Good! Aesthetic is on point, the music and sounds fit into one cohesive whole, and it has a nice difficulty curve even if a part of me wishes it were easy . The music also great.
The only gripes are throwing knifes feel sluggish to throw sometimes and you can just jump offscreen into the void and just stay there for a while; ignoring everything.
Otherwise, it's excellent! It's defiantly going in the video recap, and if it isn't I'll be shocked!
This is easily one of the best games of the ENTIRE game jam!
Hell it's better than most mobile games I've recently played!
I spent a lot of time playing this and would play it again some more! Good job guys!
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Hey, we made a GMTK game too. Check it out!
tight controls. pretty hardcore game. Wish there was some way to cancel a jump sometimes, but gotta stick to the theme, of course. Great aesthetic too.
The game's pretty tricky and challenging, especially with one button but after you master it a bit, it feels so nice! The visuals are awesome as well and everything together makes an awesome game!
Wow impressive entry, the one button mechanic is really well done, i like how versatile the controls feel, a cool take on the theme, and the art and music, Gorgeous art direction and catchy tune, plus the japanese theme, i really dig it ! A bit hard though, but nothing a bit of balancing can't fix,
Other than thati had no real issues.
Awesome game Congrats !! :)
I was impressed that you captured my attention for so long with such a simple mechanic! Great job. :)
A great idea exceptionally well executed. A bit too difficult. I could only just get past the first boss and didn't beat it. Checkpoints at the end of each level and health pickups might help.
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