feel free to skip this version - I think it's always better to save playthroughs for versions with very clear and notable differences. this one is mostly bugfixes and overall gameplay improvements, but not a lot of content. the next version will contain new levels and enemies, and i recommend waiting for that one
to address your feedback:
>Hard Difficulty
i get what you mean, but i believe the -stats is a good starting point. i personally don't like games with difficulties that either increase health or damage, since that will either cause easy deaths with hard hitting enemies, or frustrations with healthsponge enemies. i think hardmode should be designed in terms of strategizing, where "easy" options are closed. you now need to choose between more constitution or more damagem, etc. either way, it's hard to tell since the game is still entirely "early/mid" game. the extra difficulty wont become apparent until "mid/late" game. you also aren't the only one who thought about this, so i'll tinker with the changes and see where it goes. i like your idea of different AI behaviors, though. it reminds me of changes in Serious Sam, where high difficulty would unlock enemy behaviors, which i always thought was fun.
>Ranged
i agree with you. i'm in an experimental stage, where i'm messing around with ideas like this and seeing how it changes the game. the main point i'm addressing is one that still holds true: why be melee when you can be ranged? i'm still thinking that it'll play out in a " range good early game, bad lategame" vs "melee bad early, good late" fashion due to the level design and enemy behaviors, but i want to use this time to mess around and see if anything interesting happens.
currently, the idea would be to allow the player to choose their starting weapon. that'll come with the introduction, because i too get frustrated when i want to do a wand build but the chance isn't presented to me.
>Spells
cauldron spells are really meant to be a desperation move. since there's no town/resupply, i wanted to give the player a last chance to heal if they're out of potions. it's not meant to be used unless the player is about to die.
>Price
$10 normal price, but $8 on release (2week or so discount). i'm basing it on what i'd pay for a game such as this - singleplayer, indie, with potential for issues due to a single developer -> i wouldn't pay more than 10, so 10 it is.
>Inventory
i want to make a random-spawning location similar to Golden Goblin that takes items and outputs things as a reward. another plan is for the NPCs to do something with items, but neither is started yet. it's true that there really isn't a reason to carry anything around that you aren't currently using. it's planned to change. charms are of course a staple of the genre, but i'm saving those for later once i am satisfied with how the inventory behaves normally.
>Length
The current endgame (End of Burrows 1) is about 40% of game length. all the future monsters are modeled or currently being modeled, and there isn't a lot of recycling yet. i'm hoping there will be a few extra levels soon enough, but my goals are about 6 hours for a "normal" run for players who play ARPGs, 10-15 for beginners, and 3-4 hours for "fast" players. after that, some "extra" things like timed survival, arenas, etc. therefore, the issues you mentioned (cauldron/inventory) do matter and i hope to do something about it soon.
>Endgame, NG+
i will absolutely have NG+, in the same way it is traditionally done: you spawn in level 1 with your character you beat the game with, and proceed forward through the game with levels being redone, and enemies which match the player level.
there are also things like arena/survival modes planned, since i think those would very easily be made to fit the current game. perhaps we'll see them sooner rather than later.
thanks again for your detailed feedback, your posts are always the most insightful and thought provoking feedback i receive anywhere. now that the crunch i had is over, i'm gonna take a few days off to play some DD games i didn't get around to yet
