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(+2)

Just saw an email this was released and gave it a shot! Took me about an hour, partially due to my confusion over the 'missing' UI (my fault) and I was distracted in another tab at a few points while waiting for resources. I will say the caveat to the feedback below is that it's all in respect to the web version, as I'm on Linux so I can't run the downloadable. On that note, thanks for implementing the web version!

First off, I do like the overall style (Though I assume the character design is a placeholder?) I appreciate the effort put into being able to customize the pixelation-- my personal favorite for a good balance of usability without headache and style is 2!

I didn't read the description, so I was pleasantly surprised by the perspective shift! I can definitely see the potential of this game. The idle/building aspect allows you to still explore and solve puzzles while still making progress.

I'm sure this won't be relevant in the full release, but in the controls part of your description, you might want to add C for the UI toggle-- I think I hit C on accident while testing the spacebar when the game loaded, and I thought I was bugged and was running around with no idea how many resources I had for a while, until I saw it in a screenshot lol. Definitely a me problem, but mentioning regardless.

Things started getting interesting when the graveyard and its contents and resources were unlocked (though I did find its resource confusing (in retrospect I think the tooltips bugged out, I couldn't see them earlier, and it makes more sense now). I still think the Faith mechanic is underdeveloped to be relevant for the demo's gameplay, but I'm glad it was here, as it did make the full game seem a lot more appealing. I hope more unique resources and resource mechanics are added!

As far as feedback goes, it's likely things due to it being early in development/a demo. The balancing for resources seems a little slow-- a few times I had to just wait around for a few minutes (expected, as it's an idle game, but for a short demo it doesn't feel great). Maybe a higher max cap for workers? Idk it wasn't that big of a deal, but it does undersell the idle mechanics a bit imo, unless that balance is just bad for demo but good for full game for other reasons. On another note, I also found the music kinda grating/repetitive after awhile, but I imagine this is also either a demo/web version thing. Additionally, while I really like the bones of the graphics (2D sprites in 3D world, pixelated, the shadows are a nice touch!), I do feel like it needs a little more... pop/punch. Something to make it stand out. I'm not really sure what it is (sorry) but I did see it as a bit generic. I think it feels like smash of stereotyped entirely separate themes (this is a graveyard area, this is a forest area, etc.) rather than a cohesive world. I'm not explaining it well. I'm not saying these areas shouldn't be totally separate, just that it might benefit from some sort of more unique style consistent throughout the zones. But I'm probably thinking too deep into that for this genre! It's still more than pleasant to look at while playing, which is more than can be said for many idle games. I would buy it even if the graphics remained as they are. Just a note. 

This, (at least from the demo, I could be totally wrong-- definitely might be while reading the Steam description? I will be curious to see how New Game+ is implemented while still retaining the exploration/sense of curiosity/wonder it seems like it could be very good at), seems like more of an exploration-puzzle game with idle/incremental mechanics, rather than the reverse. I think this is really nice! There is a sore lack of these types of games, and more shorter form (shorter in respect to the genre at least), tighter experiences. This gives you a sense of exploration/curiosity at the same time as progress regardless of how your exploration is going, which is a huge benefit. I'm really looking forward into seeing where this goes! Thanks for sharing your game!

(also, cute cat!)

First of all thanks for this long comment! I really appreciate it.

I will work on clarity ASAP. That's why playtesting is so important. You suddenly see all the shortcomings you couldn't see yourself :D I will also add more clarity to the controls.

Yes, the sprite is a placeholder and good to know what Pixelation you liked. I will change the default to 2 and then people can decide.

I also like the idea of unique ressources, but it is not fully fleshed out, which makes it a bit underwhelming. I agree with you. In general the idle gameplay needs more depth. I played a bunch of idle games myself, so I can see that there is still a lot missing :')

I do understand your point with the graphics. I also feel like there is still a bit missing, but I also need more experience in that. I already tried a bunch of things, but learning by doing :D I hope I can still improve it or at least find some kind of way to make it pop out more :D

And good point with the new-game+. I already have some ideas to work around that, but you will see it in the next bigger update when there is more gameplay to it, so new-game+ makes sense :D

So again thank you for the detailed feedback. I will work on that!

(1 edit)

Glad to help! I hope I didn't seem too critical. I was just being nitpicky because there was really nothing major that stood out to me! It's really hard to make a demo for an idle/incremental-type game imo, because they tend to be long, and demos are short, so by nature it's not easy to get a full slice of the gameplay without totally rebalancing just for the demo (usually not worth it)-- and I think this did a good job of showing what makes it unique and gives it its strengths, which is more important! (And I know what I said, but please don't stress too much about the graphics. Few people play these types of games for that, and its stylization makes it lovely already!)

Replying again because I did have a quick question I just thought of while bored at work-- I followed you because I enjoyed your other game, the 'Legend of Idle' 2D one. Is it safe to assume this is a successor/newer iteration of that? Or is it going to be a mix of the two, like an 'overworld'/map in that style with its own resources and puzzles, and then different sections where you go into the 3D style world for more in-depth puzzles/areas/resources like this demo? I was just curious if that was your eventual or original intent, because they're both fun, similar (but different enough) ideas that seem to fit well together, and your last paragraph of your reply got me curious and thinking! Probably way off base, but I had to ask (mostly so I know to stop hoping for an eventual update/release of the Legend of Idle one) ;)


(Oh and I forgot to mention, if you're looking for feedback, you could consider putting your game on Galaxy if you haven't already! Some users can be a little too harsh/entitled sometimes imo, so don't take it too much to heart, but you often get a lot of thoughful feedback as well in my experience, especially if you ask for it!)

Better be critical and saying the truth, even if it obviously hurts to hear :D But this is how one can learn and grow and this how I will develop hopefully something better with the next patch. I already worked on some stylization because of your comment, so I appreciate it ^^

I don't even know "Galaxy". I must look into it. Is some sort of community? I mean sounds good to get extra feedback, once I overworked this version.

And for The Legend of Idle - it was a little side project, because I liked the idea of a SNES Idle Type Game and wanted to see if others would like it too. It has nothing to do with this game, BUT... I want to work on it as a separate release as well, so I didn't abandon this project. There will be updates (hopefully at least one until the end of this month ^^)

Oh sorry, I should have clarified lol. I mention it because of your game's genre. Galaxy is a site dedicated primarily to idle/incremental/clicker style games. It's far more curated than itch, so it would get a lot more visibility, and feedback would primarily be from people very familiar with this style of game. Galaxy used to be mostly small personal project games, but there have been more demos recently. I think yours would fit in perfectly! I'm pretty sure you can just embed directly from itch on there, add links to your steam page, etc. I find that it's also a good resource to easily see what works and doesn't work in other people's same-genre games, how they feel to play, what makes them fun and interesting, what other people thought of certain mechanics, etc.

Galaxy.click is the web address. (can I put links in comments? If you Google "Galaxy Idle" or something like that, it's the first link, at least for me).

I'm glad to hear the other game isn't abandoned! You have really good ideas as a game dev, and I'm looking forward to seeing where these games go!

Thanks for the suggestion. I found the site and I will put my game on there as wel, once I patched the current problems :D

And thank you! Really appreciate it!