I am now incentivized to kill as many enemies as possible to maximize my gold gain. It seems inconsistent if I one shot or two shot enemies but I had all the upgrades after level 5. During level 5 however the VIP rolled off the edge of the map because the 5th level had no guard rails like I was suddenly playing Super Monkey Ball.
It seems you have overwritten you previous build rather than creating a second download. I thought we were supposed to keep the original but I'm now unsure about it.
I think you achieved what you set out to do. Which was making it so the player isn't necessarily forced to engage with the main gameplay, but is more rewarding to do so.
The gameplay is a little easy, but only because there isn't much balance. The enemies don't scale with you, and there's a limited amount of upgrades. Having more enemies doesn't change very much. The ones that target the VIP are free kills. The ones that target you are equally free because you can hold down block and not take any damage.
The parry is not very satisfying to pull off. It's hard to visually gauge when to block in order to parry. There's no sound for blocking or parrying. There's no sound for enemies shooting. If there was audio indication this would be easier. But there's also no point in parrying either because it's not like you need that extra damage or that it does something special when you do land one. The block animation looks incredibly similar to the attack swing except it lingers.
Getting hit while blocking knocks you back, you could create more risk or peril with this mechanic. Such as parkour platforms if you get hit get knocked off. It would be interesting if not blocking a shot would void knockback so you can prevent getting pushed by trading 10 hp.
The art and animations for enemies and the character look great. I think you guys would benefit from having some sort of indication that you are blocking or got hit. I think you should add some gaurd rails to your unfinished level so the VIP doesn't roll off the side like a marble and make the void a death pit so you can restart instead of having to alt f4.
Add more upgrades. Add more enemy variation. Like maybe one you can't block because they're melee and you have to parry. Or some other variation in combat.
I personally found the game to be fairly easy. Especially after getting my first upgrade as the upgrades are very strong.
If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced?
I think more enemy health in the later levels would be great because the damage upgrade makes the game very easy. Also a stronger enemy, maybe one that goes into melee could also serve to solve this issue. Also I think it's a bit of a balancing issue that the player can block and move at the same time.
Does the parry work fine?
Yes? I see an animation to signify when I parried on time but I didn't see any advantage to parrying over just blocking.
How are the visuals?
The visuals are nice, of course I think the exit and VIP could use some textures but otherwise it looks great for a unity game.
Any bugs?
I don't think I encountered any bugs per say but my session ended because the VIP fell off the map at one point and I decided to follow it and just fell indefinitely so I think you should put a kill box below the map at some point.
Do the UI elements look fine?
The gold and level elements look fine for the game but it would be great if the health bars were more stylized to match the overall aesthetic.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop?
Maye an upgrade to the parry in some fashion or an upgrade that allows the VIP to do a small amount of damage when touching an enemy so it feels like they are engaging.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
Mostly how slow the escorted characters are but you all seem to have avoided that.
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel pretty good.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
More enemy variety would always be great but I would like to see the current enemies have a bit more of a wind up animation before they shoot because right now it seems like they fire instantly once they are in range.
I think that the game can be difficult, but there are ways to get around the difficulty. Sometimes I could just let the enemies attack the VIP first and then they would be easier to defeat as they would not be focused on me. Also, I could sometimes just block until I got close to the enemies and then kill them easily into quick hits.
If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced?
I think that having an unlockable attack could help prevent the combat from becoming too easy. This would probably require the player to have some sort of dash ability to dodge this kind of attack, and to make it fair there would need to be an indicator for when the attack is coming.
Does the parry work fine?
I thought that the parries worked, but they were hard to pull off. Maybe make the timing more lenient.
How are the visuals?
I like the visuals and the art style. I like that everything is clear and easy to see.
Any bugs?
I did not notice any bugs.
Do the UI elements look fine?
I think that the UI looks good, but there could be a little more art for the menus.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop?
I think that the shop was good.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I like when the VIP can also help fight the enemies and when I can have control over how the VIP is picking fights.
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel good and responsive.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I think that adding a way to pause would be nice. Also, I think that changing the combat camera so that it can lock on to the nearest enemy and focus on them would be a good addition if possible.
How do you feel about the game's difficulty? If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced? I think the gameplay feels easy, but the health goes down fast, so maybe a damage sound effect would help.
Does the parry work fine? I never tried the parry I just hit enemies as fast as possible so I wouldn't die
How are the visuals? The visuals were great!
Any bugs? For some reason I couldn't exit the second level, the door was spinning, but worked after I collected the gold
Do the UI elements look fine? I thought the UI elements were great too
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop? I don't think so.
How do the controls feel? Controls felt good, but I think maybe I was sliding around a little bit
What would you like to see implemented in the game? More sound effects, faster VIP, and maybe vertical levels, or just more levels would be cool!
How do you feel about the game's difficulty? The game doesn’t feel too difficult. After the first level and upgrading the attack, I was able to constantly 1 hit the monsters for the remaining levels I played.
If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced? If you just defend till you get to the enemy you can attack instantly after their attack and never take damage. Possibly a shield timer that doesn’t allow you to just hold shield.
Does the parry work fine? What was the parry supposed to do? I tried it from a distance and couldn’t get anything to happen, and tried it somewhat close. Maybe I was just doing it wrong though.
How are the visuals? The visuals of the maps are good, possibly larger or longer maps. I like the design of the character and enemy.
Any bugs? Majority of the levels I spawned in there was an enemy already there attacking me the second I spawned. So I would always instantly take damage. Also the edge of the map you can just fall off and forever fall. There is no pause/exit menu.
Do the UI elements look fine? The UI looks very basic, possibly more details on just the image and it wouldn’t need the description. Like the Heal could just be a full health bar above the Heart instead of having to read, and the +10 attack could be the attack symbol and +10 in the box, etc.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop? Maybe some weapons, or even VIP bonuses.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games? More strategy involved to make it more challenging.
How do the controls feel? The controls feel good, but the character does not stop well. It will slide for a while after the buttons are no longer pressed.
What would you like to see implemented in the game? Possibly add more enemies, but keep them out of spawn. The enemies in spawn did not give enough time to defend from. Also some obstacles that could be used, so when there are more enemies we can defend and use obstacles to attack the enemies.
The game was moderately difficult. I think the speed of enemy projectiles was pretty quick.
If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced?
If you are going for a moderately difficult game, it feels fine.
Does the parry work fine?
The parry seemed to work fine. I didn't really see the point in using it. I found it more effective to run in circles around an enemy closing in and then hit them.
How are the visuals?
The visuals are awesome. I really like the character and enemy designs and animations. I am excited to see what the vip ends up looking like.
Any bugs?
The only bug I noticed was that sometimes on the desert level, I can't jump. Also, restarting the game from the main menu causes a lot of bugs.
Do the UI elements look fine?
The UI elements look fine.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop?
I think hats for the vip was a fun idea. You can pretty easily add more damage and health upgrades and just scale enemy health and damage as the game goes on.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
They are not fun usually.
How do the controls feel?
Controls feel great, everything is very smooth.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
It was pretty easy. Nothing too challenging. I got the damage upgrade, and one shot every enemy after that. Maybe try scaling the enemies depending on the level that the player is on.
Does the parry work fine?
Its kind of hard to get to trigger but once you do it works fine. But im guessing that's the point of the parry. Maybe add a sound effect for when it works.
How are the visuals?
The visuals are pretty good. I really like the aesthetic and design of this game.
Any bugs?
I am not able to jump in the desert map / or any flat planes.
Do the UI elements look fine?
Yea they look fine, but maybe adding some more design into it would make the game feel better.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop?
Increase to the players movement speed and the VIP's movement speed.
Maybe some abilites for the VIP? like healing the player?
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel good. Maybe adding sprinting would be cool.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I really like the aesthetic and design of this game and can definitely see this being a very popular indie title. One thing that I instantly though of would be adding like a slight default blinking animation would make the main character really cool , but also i really liked the basic default face haha. I really like the forest environment and think it makes the game really interesting and pleasant to look at. I also think that the concept of escorting a vip person would be a great idea and i think the concept of trying to defend them would be a really interesting dynamic to your game. I also think that adding another level / enviornment would be very cool.
I see the outline you guys are asking but I'm just going to free form it if that's alright. I'm typically not a fan of escort missions especially for games where you have an npc tethered to you at all times. But in this case, it really didn't have that strong of a baby-sitting element from the sounds of what you were aiming for. I think it's an oversight that you don't have to bring the VIP to the end of the level. The game only cares whether or not you reach the end of the level even if the VIP is stuck in the trees at the start of the level. The game allows you to abandon your prime objective.
The controls were fine, I think you should implement a cool down or something for key presses. Spam clicking makes you attack faster than the swing animation. And you can basically b-hop if you spam space. Granted not as effectively, but going up slopes, you'd gain a lot of speed.
Speaking of which I don't understand why the game takes place in a forest. Like thematically why you and this VIP are being hunted down by the pill creatures from the roblox game Blamo doesn't make sense. The main thing about the current game is that I can see where the exit is and just wade through the trees and skip the PVE. If you don't want to have invisible walls, maybe just have literal walls and put the setting in a town where you have to escort a golf ball that has a monocle and a mustache to the bank and have all the enemies be muggers or something and put stripes on them and a bandit mask or something.
The enemies don't switch aggro which I think is strange. Because they should be focusing the VIP should they not? Every level after the first played the exact same. I think this game would work better with a ramp mechanic where the game gets harder as you pass levels rather than having each level have the same concentration of enemies. I mean yeah, you need upgrades for like health, speed, damage, all that. But also have prevention measures to make sure you can't abandon the VIP and so you can't ignore all the enemies. Overall it's a strong foundation.
I'd be more careful or at least attentive how detailed you want to make the player model given how low poly the vip and enemies are. I honestly think making everything look like pills or just slapping decals on the pill enemies to make them "different enemy classes" would be pretty funny. I don't think audio is that big of a priority for you guys, but it would be nice to have an indication on whether I get hit, or deal damage to something.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I really like the feel of the escort missions, my favorite portion of it is the pacing of it. I felt that the pacing was really good when it comes to he game and how I have to win.
I didn't have anything about the missions that I disliked, I just felt that sometimes the missions were very set on pace.
How do the controls feel?
The controls though they were a little buggy I still felt it was a fun type of controls for the game. I like the idea of having two abilities maybe.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
I felt that the environment fit the game very well. I felt everything made for the game was really good and I felt that the landscape you made was fantastic.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I would like some upgrades implemented like to maybe up the pace for the game or if your attack does more maybe you run slower or something like that, because I feel the fun of this game stems from being able to win in multiple ways. I really liked the game overall though and thought it was fun.
Here are my responses for the feedback on Fluffense.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I tend to like escort missions due to the tension and often time limits they impose, but that can also be flipped, in that when these missions can be too tedious where players must complete these missions flawlessly in order to progress.
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel fine, I was able to move easily and was able to attack enemies effectively.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
I do think the environment fits the game, however I would recommend creating some noticeable variations in the environments, as after a while it began to feel repetitive going through the levels. The consistency of the low-poly designs both in the environment and the characters works very well!
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
As stated before, I think variation in the environments could make the game feel less repetitive. I also think some music could benefit the game and create ambience in the game. Good job and continue the good work!
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I liked how the VIP felt "glued" to me, this was a ready good way to get around the worst aspect of escort missions, getting the AI to work with the player. Here he just follows you, no matter what. The downside is he would just stand there and straight up die if being shot. So making some kind of flee state may be a good idea to help prevent that.
How do the controls feel?
I like them, they were simple in the best kind of way. Easy to understand and work with. I found the explore camera better than the combat camera and would have preferred to just have that camera over the swappable ones. It gave the screen space to breathe.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
Yes! I love the oversized characters as well. I loved feeling like we were all giants doing our thing. Well, done on the levels, I would maybe make the path for the player have a little more variety, more than just straight paths and hard right or left turns.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
Audio, the game is very quiet and even some general background music would go a long way. Silent films work for a ton of reasons but silent games struggle unless they plan for that aspect. I would try to get some kind of audio in the game by the next playtest.
Great playtest guys! I loved the style and feel. Keep up the great work. I can't wait to see the finished game. :)
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
The thing i dislike about escort missions in other games is when you have to be overly conscience about how you move to avoid having the npc get stuck somewhere and then you have to back track through the mission to unstuck them. With the way the maps are made and how the pathfinding is handled i feel this is not a problem in this game which is nice.
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel nice like jumping feels a bit floaty but not too floaty. The way the camera switches also feels nice but i think the transition should be a bit faster but that's just my opinion on it.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
I really enjoyed the overall aesthetic of the game and i feel it all goes together really well. The only issue is that on the playable character I noticed an issue with the faces on the forearm of the character mesh, where I think the face normals are inverted or something.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I think the game has a solid foundation and the things that would like to see is maybe a way to block/deflect projectiles and maybe have enemies target you from further away to give the player the ability to fight from a distance. Though that might be a bit too complicated to implement in the remaining time.
Overall solid base so far and I can see what you guys are planning to add like things with the store and im very interested to see what will be in the final build.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I like escort missions where the thing being escorted has a predetermined path that only progresses when I am near (like payload escort in Overwatch). I dislike escort missions where you have to be sneaky, it never feels good.
How do the controls feel?
The controls in this game feel good if a little clunky. I think if you can only do a basic melee attack it may be better to go with a horizontal slash rather than a vertical bonk but it does make hitting the moving enemies more challenging.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
The environment is very simple but I think it does fir the game, I think the path through it could be more complicated but it does give the player enough room to dodge some of the projectiles from the enemies.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I think an aim reticle will really help players see where they are going to hit and I would like some kind of feedback that an enemy has been aggravated. Could be a sound effect or a visual cue.
I think you guys have put together a solid foundation and are in a good place to expand on the core gameplay. The simplistic characters work well and I'm not sure if you really need to upgrade them but they do need some kind of indication as to their state. I thought I was glitching out the game at first when I could just run up and kill enemies without them moving but after getting past the first level I realized that there is some kind of activation going on. I tried to go for a stealthy route after that and tried to sneak up on enemies but I don't know what is triggering them or if it is just random so that feels inconsistent. I would reduce the size of the red outlines on the enemies and player as it feels too big in the default screen size.
Great job I want to play the final build for this.
Comments
I am now incentivized to kill as many enemies as possible to maximize my gold gain. It seems inconsistent if I one shot or two shot enemies but I had all the upgrades after level 5. During level 5 however the VIP rolled off the edge of the map because the 5th level had no guard rails like I was suddenly playing Super Monkey Ball.
It seems you have overwritten you previous build rather than creating a second download. I thought we were supposed to keep the original but I'm now unsure about it.
I think you achieved what you set out to do. Which was making it so the player isn't necessarily forced to engage with the main gameplay, but is more rewarding to do so.
The gameplay is a little easy, but only because there isn't much balance. The enemies don't scale with you, and there's a limited amount of upgrades. Having more enemies doesn't change very much. The ones that target the VIP are free kills. The ones that target you are equally free because you can hold down block and not take any damage.
The parry is not very satisfying to pull off. It's hard to visually gauge when to block in order to parry. There's no sound for blocking or parrying. There's no sound for enemies shooting. If there was audio indication this would be easier. But there's also no point in parrying either because it's not like you need that extra damage or that it does something special when you do land one. The block animation looks incredibly similar to the attack swing except it lingers.
Getting hit while blocking knocks you back, you could create more risk or peril with this mechanic. Such as parkour platforms if you get hit get knocked off. It would be interesting if not blocking a shot would void knockback so you can prevent getting pushed by trading 10 hp.
The art and animations for enemies and the character look great. I think you guys would benefit from having some sort of indication that you are blocking or got hit. I think you should add some gaurd rails to your unfinished level so the VIP doesn't roll off the side like a marble and make the void a death pit so you can restart instead of having to alt f4.
Add more upgrades. Add more enemy variation. Like maybe one you can't block because they're melee and you have to parry. Or some other variation in combat.
How do you feel about the game's difficulty?
I personally found the game to be fairly easy. Especially after getting my first upgrade as the upgrades are very strong.
If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced?
I think more enemy health in the later levels would be great because the damage upgrade makes the game very easy. Also a stronger enemy, maybe one that goes into melee could also serve to solve this issue. Also I think it's a bit of a balancing issue that the player can block and move at the same time.
Does the parry work fine?
Yes? I see an animation to signify when I parried on time but I didn't see any advantage to parrying over just blocking.
How are the visuals?
The visuals are nice, of course I think the exit and VIP could use some textures but otherwise it looks great for a unity game.
Any bugs?
I don't think I encountered any bugs per say but my session ended because the VIP fell off the map at one point and I decided to follow it and just fell indefinitely so I think you should put a kill box below the map at some point.
Do the UI elements look fine?
The gold and level elements look fine for the game but it would be great if the health bars were more stylized to match the overall aesthetic.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop?
Maye an upgrade to the parry in some fashion or an upgrade that allows the VIP to do a small amount of damage when touching an enemy so it feels like they are engaging.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
Mostly how slow the escorted characters are but you all seem to have avoided that.
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel pretty good.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
More enemy variety would always be great but I would like to see the current enemies have a bit more of a wind up animation before they shoot because right now it seems like they fire instantly once they are in range.
How do you feel about the game's difficulty?
I think that the game can be difficult, but there are ways to get around the difficulty. Sometimes I could just let the enemies attack the VIP first and then they would be easier to defeat as they would not be focused on me. Also, I could sometimes just block until I got close to the enemies and then kill them easily into quick hits.
If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced?
I think that having an unlockable attack could help prevent the combat from becoming too easy. This would probably require the player to have some sort of dash ability to dodge this kind of attack, and to make it fair there would need to be an indicator for when the attack is coming.
Does the parry work fine?
I thought that the parries worked, but they were hard to pull off. Maybe make the timing more lenient.
How are the visuals?
I like the visuals and the art style. I like that everything is clear and easy to see.
Any bugs?
I did not notice any bugs.
Do the UI elements look fine?
I think that the UI looks good, but there could be a little more art for the menus.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop?
I think that the shop was good.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I like when the VIP can also help fight the enemies and when I can have control over how the VIP is picking fights.
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel good and responsive.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I think that adding a way to pause would be nice. Also, I think that changing the combat camera so that it can lock on to the nearest enemy and focus on them would be a good addition if possible.
How do you feel about the game's difficulty? If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced? I think the gameplay feels easy, but the health goes down fast, so maybe a damage sound effect would help.
Does the parry work fine? I never tried the parry I just hit enemies as fast as possible so I wouldn't die
How are the visuals? The visuals were great!
Any bugs? For some reason I couldn't exit the second level, the door was spinning, but worked after I collected the gold
Do the UI elements look fine? I thought the UI elements were great too
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop? I don't think so.
How do the controls feel? Controls felt good, but I think maybe I was sliding around a little bit
What would you like to see implemented in the game? More sound effects, faster VIP, and maybe vertical levels, or just more levels would be cool!
How do you feel about the game's difficulty? The game doesn’t feel too difficult. After the first level and upgrading the attack, I was able to constantly 1 hit the monsters for the remaining levels I played.
If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced? If you just defend till you get to the enemy you can attack instantly after their attack and never take damage. Possibly a shield timer that doesn’t allow you to just hold shield.
Does the parry work fine? What was the parry supposed to do? I tried it from a distance and couldn’t get anything to happen, and tried it somewhat close. Maybe I was just doing it wrong though.
How are the visuals? The visuals of the maps are good, possibly larger or longer maps. I like the design of the character and enemy.
Any bugs? Majority of the levels I spawned in there was an enemy already there attacking me the second I spawned. So I would always instantly take damage. Also the edge of the map you can just fall off and forever fall. There is no pause/exit menu.
Do the UI elements look fine? The UI looks very basic, possibly more details on just the image and it wouldn’t need the description. Like the Heal could just be a full health bar above the Heart instead of having to read, and the +10 attack could be the attack symbol and +10 in the box, etc.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop? Maybe some weapons, or even VIP bonuses.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games? More strategy involved to make it more challenging.
How do the controls feel? The controls feel good, but the character does not stop well. It will slide for a while after the buttons are no longer pressed.
What would you like to see implemented in the game? Possibly add more enemies, but keep them out of spawn. The enemies in spawn did not give enough time to defend from. Also some obstacles that could be used, so when there are more enemies we can defend and use obstacles to attack the enemies.
How do you feel about the game's difficulty?
The game was moderately difficult. I think the speed of enemy projectiles was pretty quick.
If it is too hard/ too easy, what do you think should be done to make it more balanced?
If you are going for a moderately difficult game, it feels fine.
Does the parry work fine?
The parry seemed to work fine. I didn't really see the point in using it. I found it more effective to run in circles around an enemy closing in and then hit them.
How are the visuals?
The visuals are awesome. I really like the character and enemy designs and animations. I am excited to see what the vip ends up looking like.
Any bugs?
The only bug I noticed was that sometimes on the desert level, I can't jump. Also, restarting the game from the main menu causes a lot of bugs.
Do the UI elements look fine?
The UI elements look fine.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop?
I think hats for the vip was a fun idea. You can pretty easily add more damage and health upgrades and just scale enemy health and damage as the game goes on.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
They are not fun usually.
How do the controls feel?
Controls feel great, everything is very smooth.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
A vip skin and maybe some more enemy variety.
How do you feel about the game's difficulty?
It was pretty easy. Nothing too challenging. I got the damage upgrade, and one shot every enemy after that. Maybe try scaling the enemies depending on the level that the player is on.
Does the parry work fine?
Its kind of hard to get to trigger but once you do it works fine. But im guessing that's the point of the parry. Maybe add a sound effect for when it works.
How are the visuals?
The visuals are pretty good. I really like the aesthetic and design of this game.
Any bugs?
I am not able to jump in the desert map / or any flat planes.
Do the UI elements look fine?
Yea they look fine, but maybe adding some more design into it would make the game feel better.
Would you like to see anything else added to the shop?
Increase to the players movement speed and the VIP's movement speed.
Maybe some abilites for the VIP? like healing the player?
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel good. Maybe adding sprinting would be cool.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
Pause menu
Background music
Sprinting
More shop items
Maybe add a door texture for the exit.
Sound effects for enemies and shooting.
Sound effects for parry.
I really like the aesthetic and design of this game and can definitely see this being a very popular indie title. One thing that I instantly though of would be adding like a slight default blinking animation would make the main character really cool , but also i really liked the basic default face haha. I really like the forest environment and think it makes the game really interesting and pleasant to look at. I also think that the concept of escorting a vip person would be a great idea and i think the concept of trying to defend them would be a really interesting dynamic to your game. I also think that adding another level / enviornment would be very cool.
I see the outline you guys are asking but I'm just going to free form it if that's alright. I'm typically not a fan of escort missions especially for games where you have an npc tethered to you at all times. But in this case, it really didn't have that strong of a baby-sitting element from the sounds of what you were aiming for. I think it's an oversight that you don't have to bring the VIP to the end of the level. The game only cares whether or not you reach the end of the level even if the VIP is stuck in the trees at the start of the level. The game allows you to abandon your prime objective.
The controls were fine, I think you should implement a cool down or something for key presses. Spam clicking makes you attack faster than the swing animation. And you can basically b-hop if you spam space. Granted not as effectively, but going up slopes, you'd gain a lot of speed.
Speaking of which I don't understand why the game takes place in a forest. Like thematically why you and this VIP are being hunted down by the pill creatures from the roblox game Blamo doesn't make sense. The main thing about the current game is that I can see where the exit is and just wade through the trees and skip the PVE. If you don't want to have invisible walls, maybe just have literal walls and put the setting in a town where you have to escort a golf ball that has a monocle and a mustache to the bank and have all the enemies be muggers or something and put stripes on them and a bandit mask or something.
The enemies don't switch aggro which I think is strange. Because they should be focusing the VIP should they not? Every level after the first played the exact same. I think this game would work better with a ramp mechanic where the game gets harder as you pass levels rather than having each level have the same concentration of enemies. I mean yeah, you need upgrades for like health, speed, damage, all that. But also have prevention measures to make sure you can't abandon the VIP and so you can't ignore all the enemies. Overall it's a strong foundation.
I'd be more careful or at least attentive how detailed you want to make the player model given how low poly the vip and enemies are. I honestly think making everything look like pills or just slapping decals on the pill enemies to make them "different enemy classes" would be pretty funny. I don't think audio is that big of a priority for you guys, but it would be nice to have an indication on whether I get hit, or deal damage to something.
Extra notes:
Maybe put some art on the main menu.
the options on the main menu closes the game.
add a pause menu while in the game.
gameplay footage if you want to watch somebody play your game
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I really like the feel of the escort missions, my favorite portion of it is the pacing of it. I felt that the pacing was really good when it comes to he game and how I have to win.
I didn't have anything about the missions that I disliked, I just felt that sometimes the missions were very set on pace.
How do the controls feel?
The controls though they were a little buggy I still felt it was a fun type of controls for the game. I like the idea of having two abilities maybe.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
I felt that the environment fit the game very well. I felt everything made for the game was really good and I felt that the landscape you made was fantastic.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I would like some upgrades implemented like to maybe up the pace for the game or if your attack does more maybe you run slower or something like that, because I feel the fun of this game stems from being able to win in multiple ways. I really liked the game overall though and thought it was fun.
Hello Fluffense team!
Here are my responses for the feedback on Fluffense.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I tend to like escort missions due to the tension and often time limits they impose, but that can also be flipped, in that when these missions can be too tedious where players must complete these missions flawlessly in order to progress.
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel fine, I was able to move easily and was able to attack enemies effectively.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
I do think the environment fits the game, however I would recommend creating some noticeable variations in the environments, as after a while it began to feel repetitive going through the levels. The consistency of the low-poly designs both in the environment and the characters works very well!
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
As stated before, I think variation in the environments could make the game feel less repetitive. I also think some music could benefit the game and create ambience in the game. Good job and continue the good work!
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I don't typically like escort mission games but I do believe you shouldn't be able to exit until the VIP makes it to the end point with you.
How do the controls feel?
the controls felt smooth and fluid, sometimes I would get stuck on a tree while moving forward.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
The environment was nice and fitting. Maybe add more variation in the hills and other foliage.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
More audio or background music would be nice and a flushed out shop
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I liked how the VIP felt "glued" to me, this was a ready good way to get around the worst aspect of escort missions, getting the AI to work with the player. Here he just follows you, no matter what. The downside is he would just stand there and straight up die if being shot. So making some kind of flee state may be a good idea to help prevent that.
How do the controls feel?
I like them, they were simple in the best kind of way. Easy to understand and work with. I found the explore camera better than the combat camera and would have preferred to just have that camera over the swappable ones. It gave the screen space to breathe.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
Yes! I love the oversized characters as well. I loved feeling like we were all giants doing our thing. Well, done on the levels, I would maybe make the path for the player have a little more variety, more than just straight paths and hard right or left turns.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
Audio, the game is very quiet and even some general background music would go a long way. Silent films work for a ton of reasons but silent games struggle unless they plan for that aspect. I would try to get some kind of audio in the game by the next playtest.
Great playtest guys! I loved the style and feel. Keep up the great work. I can't wait to see the finished game. :)
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
The thing i dislike about escort missions in other games is when you have to be overly conscience about how you move to avoid having the npc get stuck somewhere and then you have to back track through the mission to unstuck them. With the way the maps are made and how the pathfinding is handled i feel this is not a problem in this game which is nice.
How do the controls feel?
The controls feel nice like jumping feels a bit floaty but not too floaty. The way the camera switches also feels nice but i think the transition should be a bit faster but that's just my opinion on it.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
I really enjoyed the overall aesthetic of the game and i feel it all goes together really well. The only issue is that on the playable character I noticed an issue with the faces on the forearm of the character mesh, where I think the face normals are inverted or something.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I think the game has a solid foundation and the things that would like to see is maybe a way to block/deflect projectiles and maybe have enemies target you from further away to give the player the ability to fight from a distance. Though that might be a bit too complicated to implement in the remaining time.
Overall solid base so far and I can see what you guys are planning to add like things with the store and im very interested to see what will be in the final build.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I like escort missions where the thing being escorted has a predetermined path that only progresses when I am near (like payload escort in Overwatch). I dislike escort missions where you have to be sneaky, it never feels good.
How do the controls feel?
The controls in this game feel good if a little clunky. I think if you can only do a basic melee attack it may be better to go with a horizontal slash rather than a vertical bonk but it does make hitting the moving enemies more challenging.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
The environment is very simple but I think it does fir the game, I think the path through it could be more complicated but it does give the player enough room to dodge some of the projectiles from the enemies.
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
I think an aim reticle will really help players see where they are going to hit and I would like some kind of feedback that an enemy has been aggravated. Could be a sound effect or a visual cue.
I think you guys have put together a solid foundation and are in a good place to expand on the core gameplay. The simplistic characters work well and I'm not sure if you really need to upgrade them but they do need some kind of indication as to their state. I thought I was glitching out the game at first when I could just run up and kill enemies without them moving but after getting past the first level I realized that there is some kind of activation going on. I tried to go for a stealthy route after that and tried to sneak up on enemies but I don't know what is triggering them or if it is just random so that feels inconsistent. I would reduce the size of the red outlines on the enemies and player as it feels too big in the default screen size.
Great job I want to play the final build for this.
What do you like/dislike about escort missions in other games?
I don't like escort missions in general. I think this stems from bad ai in most games that results in the thing your escorting killing itself often.
How do the controls feel?
Controls feel great. Walking and jumping are smooth.
Does the environment fit the game theme?
I guess it does. I don't think the environment is super important for a game like this!
What would you like to see implemented in the game?
Maybe a fleshed-out shop?
Things I like:
I like how the game looks. The environment is nice. I really like the capsules with faces, I hope they make it into the final game in some way.
I like the simplicity. I knew what I was doing right away with no tutorial. It felt very clear.
I like the gameplay loop. The combat feels good, and I think it will get even better the more you guys work on it.
Areas for improvement:
I think the vip could be a little faster, he can drag behind often.
I think the path finding of the vip is a little wonky, he gets lost in the forest sometimes.
I think the ai of the enemies is a little wonky, sometimes they will just sit there and stare into the forest while you beat them to death.
I can just walk to the exit and win without the vip and without fighting anyone. That doesn't seem right.
Enemy projectiles are a bit small and hard to see, at least for me.
I would love to be able to buy cosmetics and items from the shop!
Overall, I think you guys have a good base and with some small changes, you could have a strong game!