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Mossieur Patate3 years ago(+1)

The game is visually neat, and I find the action/gameplay enjoyable! :)

Some remarks:

  1. Many contributions took a classic 1-6 numbered die, and I like that you took the liberty of having your own die. (… Totally not saying that because I did the same. :o)
  2. Those tetrahedron enemies had me thinking of Pyramid Head from the Silent Hill series. I know, it’s silly. X)
  3. As for other numerous games: the WASD controls are programmed for a QWERTY layout only, instead of being layout-independent; for instance, it is not practical for my AZERTY keyboard (I am indeed an evil Frenchman ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) And seeing the names on the game page, I wonder if Rayane Félix is too, in which case, he should have told you about the keyboard thing ;))).
  4. At first, I did not realize that the roll would be oriented towards the mouse pointer; I would advise making this point clearer in the directions.
  5. I think the die’s roll would be even more practical if you had assigned it to the right mouse button! :) Especially as I came to realize it is not only useful for switching classes, but also for quick dodges. Having to use the Spacebar did cause me a bit of trouble occasionally when I needed some quick dodging action. Although that may be caused by my using the arrow keys (which means my left hand is situated rightwards) rather than the WASD keys.
  6. As for the theme: if I wanted to be nitpicky, I would say that you took only the ‘value’ aspect of the die notion and not really anything else from its specific behaviour (as your roll movement can be seen as a classic character’s forward roll), nor the randomness interpretation that some decided on. But once again, that would be to get very nitpicky for comparison reasons with other entries; I think your choice is cool. :)
  7. Out of curiosity, which framework/engine did you use to create the game? :)

I have tested another game called The High Roller (Hardly Working Inc) which reminds me of your game in its main mechanic (ie the attack type depends on the current upper side of the die), although it uses real die rotating movement to determine the configuration of the sides. It could be of interest to you. :)

Nice game anyway, I think I will reward it particularly in the ‘Enjoyment’ category, because the gameplay is very pleasant, which is not that simple to achieve. Kudos!

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Squadopus3 years ago(+1)

Thanks very much for the detailed feedback! I guess next jam we should try to have options for AZERTY layouts. Rayane Felix is just a credit for art assets that we used, they didn't actively work on the project unfortunately.

I think John would be happy to know those tetrahedron enemies spoke to you lol, he had a great time giving them a big crazy smile like that.

As for number 6, maybe I am misunderstanding you, but the "class" that you get from the dodge roll is randomized (you just cant get the same one twice in a row). Same with enemy health values, and the damage of your attacks are in a randomized range. So I had thought we managed to respect the theme of randomization, but if it didn't click with you than it likely didn't click with others and we should have worked on it more.

For our framework, we used Gamemaker studio 2! I might move to another engine eventually, but I already put so much work into this engine I'm not sure I want to learn a new system T-T

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Mossieur Patate3 years ago(+1)

Thanks for answering. :)

I guess next jam we should try to have options for AZERTY layouts.

You’re not forced to offer custom key binding, simple position-based key programming is enough. ;) I am not aware how GameMaker Studio 2 deals with this, yet many APIs offer such a feature.

As for number 6, maybe I am misunderstanding you, but the "class" that you get from the dodge roll is randomized (you just cant get the same one twice in a row). Same with enemy health values, and the damage of your attacks are in a randomized range. So I had thought we managed to respect the theme of randomization, but if it didn't click with you than it likely didn't click with others and we should have worked on it more.

My God, you are absolutely right, what was I thinking when I wrote there was no randomness?! :o I did get it for the class after a roll (as it could be troublesome not to get the class I wanted), so I have no excuse! Nonetheless, I think I did not notice the health and damage part (surely because it is more numerical and abstract).
(I did not take that wrongful remark into account when I assessed the game, fortunately. :))

I might move to another engine eventually, but I already put so much work into this engine I'm not sure I want to learn a new system T-T

It can be an interesting challenge to try a new engine/framework and then try a game jam with it (I saw that My First Game Jam is a ‘relaxed’ game jam devoted to such learning). I know PolyMars challenged himself to learn/try SDL2 during GMTK Game Jam 2020, but that’s a bit tough in my opinion. X) (I took a laid-back look at it outside of any game jam.)

As for me, I keep on learning new things and applying them (for instance, I learned Ct.js for Mini Jam 110 and managed to use it here in GMTK! Also taking a look at Bevy after learning what Rust was all about :)), but I am extremely curious (and versed in versatility) and I would understand not everyone likes it. If you manage to hone your skills at your current tools and achieve your goals, that’s great. :)

Still, a big advantage of knowing several tools / ways of doing is that you can adapt better and not be too dependent on the design (and marketing…) choices of those behind your tools. For example, if you ever want to use 3D, I think GameMaker Studio 2 cannot really help you. (While I dabbled in MonoGame and saw if I could make a 3D labyrinth game with sprites as enemies, which I could, so I have some template/base to build upon. :) I must still upload the experiment, by the way!)

I would recommend still learning just in case, even at a slow pace. It’s easier if learning is fun to you, of course. :) And the more you know, the easier it is to pick up new things.

(I should definitely stop the digressing here. XD)

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Squadopus3 years ago

I'll have to look into positional programming for keyboards with gml! I didn't realize that was a thing. Very cool!

CT.js looks really interesting! I'll have to take a look at the other tools you mentioned as well.

Doing 3D is an especially good point for trying something new, but more stuff in general is a good idea for sure. I do feel bad during the brainstorm phase of a jam having to limit some of my teams ideas based on what I already know how to do.

I have wanted to dip my toes in Unity, namely for the 3d, I think you've convinced me to get started on that before next years jam.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

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