itch.io

Such lovely words. Thank you so much.

I feel really validated that you've outlined a lot of the things I spent time thinking about and working on to try and get them right.

It sounds like you used the default control scheme where the aim is directly tied to the angle of the crank. I believe this is the best control scheme because, as you pointed out, it lets you aim the blaster before you start firing.

Anyway, it's hearing great feedback from people like you that is the real reward for making games. So thank you very much.

Wow, high praise. Thank you so much.

The levels take a long time to make, so I wasn't able to include too many. But at some point, I would like to add some more.

Thanks again for buying and enjoying our game.

Hi,

I have just released an update to the game that adds the new aiming style that you requested.

I hope you like it.

Thanks.

Thank you.

 It has already been submitted.

We are waiting for Panic to let us know if it will be added.

I understand if you prefer to wait for it to arrive there.

Hello again,

After further consideration, I think we are going to add an alternative aiming mode.

When fired, the blaster will aim in the direction the player is facing. And then the crank will move the blaster relative to that starting point.

This will be an optional, alternative firing mode that users can choose to activate.

I think I should be able to have this ready some time next week.

Hi,

Thank you for buying our game. And thanks for taking the time to give us your feedback.

Regarding the controls, 

This game is a twin-stick shooter. Dodging enemy attacks while also shooting back at them is a key feature of the genre. Any twin-stick shooter would be impossible to play if you could only attack by walking directly at enemies.

And for having the blaster begin firing in the direction you are facing when you turn it on; I believe this would also be a bad idea. The direction the blaster fires is tied directly to the direction of the crank. If the crank is pointing up, the blaster fires upwards (relative to the screen). If the relationship between the direction of the crank and the direction of the blaster was different every time you used it, I think the game would become virtually unplayable. Imagine if there was a twin-stick shooter on a console with analog sticks, and every time you tried shooting, the aiming stick's direction was changed relative to the direction you were moving when you started firing. I don't think it would work.

I'm sorry not to be receptive to your ideas, but sometimes you have to (twin-) stick to your guns.

If there are any other players reading this who have any thoughts on this topic, I would love to hear them. If more people feel the same way, then I will have to reconsider.

Obviously, I am extremely biased, but I believe the controls in the game are actually really great, and are what makes the game fun.

Regarding the sound effect.

There is a sound that sounds similar to vomiting (more of a burp though really). But that's for one of the enemy's attacks.

Is it one of the sounds for when ghosts die that you are referring to, or one of the player characters getting hurt?

Thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts. I do appreciate it.

"What if instead of the boxes giving the cars power-ups directly, they merely open up when hit, revealing the power-ups for the next car to collect."

This is a genius idea. Has this never been done before?

Hi,

It's certainly a possibility.

I want to see what players think of the game, and use that information to guide any future updates.

If extra levels are what people want, then I'll try and add a couple of new ones at some point.

The game is live.

Please let me know what you think.

Hi, thanks for buying and playing the game (twice!!!)

I don't think there is any way for me to issue a refund. I've had a look, and I don't think it is possible.

I would absolutely be willing to refund you if I could.

Sorry about that.

That's great. I'm really glad you've found it so enjoyable.

Yeah, the spinning blades are tricky. But I'm sure you'll get past them if you stick with it.

If you need some help, or want to show me some levels or anything, you can contact me by email.

Hi, I re-sent it.

Let me know if you still can't find it.

Hi, I did try to send you the tools last year.

I sent an email to the email address that you used to buy the game. I'm fairly sure it was the right address, because it was your domain name.

The address was i*****@d******.com (hopefully the revealed letters are enough for you to recognise it.)

I can send the email again if it went to your spam folder and got deleted.

My favorite Playdate game.

If you like Minesweeper, this is a must.

Hearing that makes me really happy.

Thanks a lot.

Hi,

I'm not planning to make any large updates to Bomber Panda for a while.

I do have a level creation tool for it though.

I can send it to you if you'd like to try it out.

Hello again.

It seems that itch.io doesn't have a mechanism for direct messages.

I'm fairly sure that I can work out which email address on my list of purchasers is yours.

Would you mind if I send you a download link to an updated version of the game to try?

Ok, so it might have been happening before, but nobody reported it.

It sounds like it could be related to garbage collection.

What makes you think it could be related to the music?

Would you be willing to play-test a new version before I upload it to itch?

It's not something I planned to do, because I just considered the game complete.

But I could do.

I'm trying to concentrate on my next game at the moment, but perhaps later I'll update the game with an extra set of "DLC" style levels. (For free of course.)

I don't actually have a playdate unit for testing, so I hope you don't mind if I ask you some questions.

Are you sure this didn't happen with previous builds?

That's really awesome to hear.

Thank you.

Really glad to hear that you like the game so much.

Whoops, I replied to your wrong comment. Anyway, the levels completed this run is still a good idea for my game.

really glad to hear that you like the game so much.

Yeah, a "this run" level count is a great idea.

I'll add that in.

yeah, I didn't update the pdxinfo file.

I'll do that when I have the opportunity.

Thanks.

Yeah, I should update that pdxfile.

I seem to have a problem with that.

Thanks for letting me know.

I hope you enjoy it.

Thanks for the feedback.

I updated the downloadable file.

I thought I did the pdxinfo file.

I'll address that soon.

Thanks.

EDIT: Done.