So, I'm not sure if it's actually the intention or something, but I wasn't able to go through the second level because I was killed when I was trying to reach the first arrow. The problem was that when I was leaving the cell without the spike, I was killed because the spike appeared on my cell before I moved to another one. If it is intentional, then I think it's a strange decision + I have no idea how to overcome this place since I need 2 steps to go through the cell without spike.
Also, I intuitively found the R restart button, but I might imagine some people being confused and not understanding how to restart. I think a little tutorial will be enough to fix the problem.
And last, the UI with arrows was kind of overlapping and it was hard to distinguish which arrow was already mine, and which wasn't. Maybe you might consider using different colors/opacities?
But overall, I think the concept is interesting for a very good puzzle. I wish I had the opportunity to play the game more and see how its puzzles go. But still, I liked it anyways, because out of all games with swapping controls, this one was one of the smartest. Keep up working on the game to make something good out of the idea!
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DUCK TRAIL'S!!!!'s itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Originality | #410 | 3.885 | 3.885 |
| Overall | #922 | 3.385 | 3.385 |
| Fun | #1092 | 3.192 | 3.192 |
| Presentation | #1593 | 3.231 | 3.231 |
Ranked from 26 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
How does your game fit the theme?
No control of your direction
Did your team create the art for this game during the 48 hour time slot?
We created all art during the game jam
Did your team create the audio for this game during the 48 hour time slot?
We created all audio during the game jam
Comments
I get the idea and vibe of the game. It's reminiscent of certain game flavors during the prime of SNES & PS1 era. As the devs have already acknowledged on their game page description, the game has some breaking bugs that have yet to be ironed out, given time constraints of the jam. I do wish there was a better way to go back to the title screen without refreshing the entire web page, though.
The art style and overall presentational vibe go a step in the direction of games like Hoshi de Hakken!! Tamagotchi on the PS1, and the music does have a sort of upbeat cuteness that one may recall from some older Japanese titles. I'm not sure if younger audiences will get it, but it's sort of a mood. So in this regard, I feel like it stands out and did really well.
However, another part of the presentation doesn't do as well: UX/UI. As the available controls are placed without backdrop or HUD borders at the top, overlapping the play area, it is initially confusing to tell them apart from the available pick-ups in the game area. Even after understanding this, the positioning and size of the HUD arrows often obscure the play area visually, despite existing for no other reason than to inform the player which directional buttons currently work. These should probably be isolated into a HUD area that is visually distinct and non-blocking, while the game-area pick-ups could probably use a shadow and hover motion (or some equally effective visual cue to indicate that they are pick-ups).
Additionally, there is no way to know what the rest of the map layout is like until the player gets there due to camera angle and proximity. This might have been fine for an action/adventure game, but it is a rather critical design flaw for a puzzle game. If the camera could zoom out for a broader view, either whole-stage or half-stage + save points, the player can avoid being punished for not knowing unknowable info (and having to re-execute the exact steps of an earlier section of the stage).
I'm assuming that spike behavior & kill-conditions have a critical bug in them, so I'll leave that alone and assume you'll fix it when there's time. Unfortunately, because they are game-breaking and progress-inhibiting (and combined with the gripes on the UX/UI), I was unable to enjoy the game properly. Without those issues, it would be up to level/puzzle design chops, but I expect that I would have given the fun factor 3-4 stars instead.
The base concept and direction are very promising, so I do hope the team continues development on it. Gameplay-wise, it remind me a bit of creative indie titles like Nova-111. I think it is a good mix and great start for what is perhaps a larger project.
Ultimately a solid entry that I would probably have scored an overall 4 stars if the bugs and UX/UI matters had not held it back. Please fix, and nice work!
Thank you so much for the feedback! Theres a pause menu that allows you to go back to the main menu or to restart the level that will pop up if you press esc though we should have included that in the description. We are well aware about the core problems and bugs with this game and would fix them if we had enough time. For the UI layout we would definitely improve on it a little bit more post jam and add a minimap to show the layout of the map and thank you for bringing certain issues to light for us like the UI/UX layout!
-RTHiro
I enjoyed having to switch the movements. It was a smart way to easily make a puzzle that wasn't super easy. However, there seems to be an error with the spikes and it took me like 10 times to beat level 2 even though I had the correct solution. Good job though with the core ideas!
Really clever! And Cute! I like this a lot, but I had mixed results with the spikes killing me even though they should go down or I was leaving the tile and it'd still kill me. It made a lot of levels unplayable for me... I really want to see more of this playable!
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