Post by Propel S in Gunmatic Aberration jam comments

Acerola Jam 0 » Entries » Gunmatic Aberration

Viewing post in Gunmatic Aberration jam comments

You implemented quite a lot of mechanics from the look of it - some of which are quite inventive buffs and debuffs. (Would be nice to not just get a run-killing debuff though). The controls don't feel terrible to use (at least in bullet time) and the core juggling mechanic does feel okay once you figure out the enemy behaviour. I also like the MS paint drawn graphics style. The cursor UI works in my opinion - although it is busy ( I offer no solutions).

I think the balancing totally kills your playability. Like I mentioned, some of the debuffs just straight up soft lock you (or maybe it was a bug) Even with bullet time, getting a room with 4 flying things is also certainly game over.

Congrats on the release!

Like Reply

Resharc65 days ago

Thanks for the review!

Out of curiousity, what powerup caused a softlock? I haven't experienced that myself and thought I fixed up the one powerup that could've caused it (random bullets). The missile/launch bullet should always be chargeable or reloadable, and since you can use any bullet type to damage enemies, you should be able to clear any room (even if it's slow).

Like Reply

Propel S65 days ago

yeah I am pretty sure it was random bullets. I wasn't sure to confirm, but considering its in your patch, I am more certain now. oh maybe I just didnt know how to use a secondary weapon? or something?

Like Reply

Resharc65 days ago (2 edits)

That's possible - you can swap bullet types by scrolling with the mouse wheel. They have different uses: the second type launches enemies up, the third homes in on enemies and stops them in place for a bit (or other effects, depending on your powerups). If you didn't realize that, I can 100% see how you could get soft-locked - which leads back into the main problem (mechanics not clear enough...)

If you don't have a dedicated mouse wheel, im so sorry i really shouldve added hotkeys

They also all reload differently: normally, the first bullet type is a typical reload (use all bullets, wait and get them back), second is a charge (slowly charges up while active), third is consumable (you randomly get them when killing enemies).

When you get Random Bullets, it shuffles the way you reload each bullet when you change rooms. It's kinda a debuff (as you put it), but it can allow you to use the more limited types more often - so I felt like it was balanced in that way. Plus, it adds some spice to a run 😉

Like Reply

Propel S65 days ago(+1)

gave it another go, with this new mechanic in mind. I really like the bouncing bullets - mechanics that lean into building combos feel really nice. I think indeed, it was user error.

Like Reply

itch.io

Viewing post in Gunmatic Aberration jam comments