PeltastDesign's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[missed messages.]

I got three endings, the bad one, Survivor and Hope in that order. Interesting that even though I was pretty clear on what was happening with May, I still went into the bad ending. I sort of assumed I had already locked myself into it by a certain point - maybe that was true, maybe not.

As others have mentioned this is a really hard subject to get right. During the conversations with May, I could really relate to both sides. Some dialogue options seemed better or worse for different reasons, and May's reaction to them also ranged from enthusiastic to uncomfortable. But, it's really hard to say...if that means anything? There's a big difference between what someone wants to hear and what they need to hear, and when they need crucial information or just support, and when they need space or intervention, etc etc etc, and so much of that depends on the person and situation in question. Some dialogue seemed really off to me, but I could see it being appropriate in other times and for other people.

Basically, I don't think it's really possible to simulate such an intimate conversation in any small amount of time. Any story or game that does handle all of these nuances is deserving of far more than a positive Newgrounds comment, at least. Some things are bound to seem out of place. Taken in a literal way, there are lots of problems or questions that come up, but I think that the thought and feeling behind this is very clear and I really appreciated it.

That all sounded a bit more back-handed than I intended, but I truly enjoyed this. Keep going!

[MazeWard]

For others having problems with the game running slowly - I tried Chrome/Firefox/IE, but I found the most important thing was closing other things that I had running in a browser. Just having a Twitch stream open cut the game's speed in half for me.

Otherwise, this game is charming as hell. The pixel art is lovely and the gameplay is fun. Early levels do a good job introducing new mechanics organically. Impressive for a game made in such a short time frame. I understand the complaints about the player movement working in half-tiles, while most collision/mechanics work with the tiles - I think this is definitely sub-par, but I didn't find it to detract from the game too much.

My main complaint is that there's no WASD controls. Personally using the arrow keys is very awkward for me, possibly due to left-handedness or out of habit. Having WASD with attack/menu bound to other keys for the right hand would make this game waaay more playable for me.

josephbourgeois responds:

thanks for the feedback!

[I Can't Let You Go]

This game is really stylish, from all of the visual effects it has in-game, to the narrative in the description and game menu. But all of that just made the actual game-play more disappointing for me.

Others have noted the lack of check-points, which I agree is an issue. The stages have a large number of individual challenges all back to back, without any way for player to lock in their progress without completing all of them at once...and sometimes you have to back-track through the same challenges if you want a collectible in the level. While it is to some extent up to personal preference, most twitch-based games have gone the route of very short and focused challenges with check-points and areas in between, and I think that makes for far more enjoyable game-play. I like conquering a good challenge - maybe a few times. If I have to clear the same challenge a dozen times because the challenge *after* that one is what's really giving me problems, the game quickly becomes a chore. So, in this case, the longer stages without any checkpoints honestly wore down my resolve to play as I kept having to clear the same challenges I had already proven I could clear, over and over and over.

That sums up my main experience with the game. On a more trivial note, there are some design choices that I was confused by. Both the "speed up" and "teleport" arrows are introduced to the player in a way that doesn't confirm that they really understand how they can be used - the first "speed ups" are in locations where your speed has no impact on your success, and the first "teleport" is in a place where you would naturally just drop down to its end location. These don't stand in the way of playing the game, but they kind of make all of the mechanics that are introduced at the beginning blur together, since you aren't actually using them to actually clear obstacles - you're just sort of passively observing them.

Another minor note on odd design, the first level with moving hazards is timed in a way that you can't possibly clear it on the first cycle - meaning that every time you start the level, you have to wait for the hazard to slowly turn around so you can pass. And you have to do this, every, single, time, that you play the level. It isn't a huge time waiting, but it doesn't teach the player anything and is just kind of a waste of their time. I think for such an early stage, it's not a good sign for the player.

The sounds for each of the mechanics, teleporting, jumping, etc, also contrast very harshly with the ambient sounds in each stage, which honestly led me to play the game on mute.

So...at the end of the day it's a platformer, and I didn't find the platforming enjoyable at all. But it feels like there's a lot more to this game than I was able to experience, which I think is what motivates me to write this review - I truly wish I could enjoy it more. It's certainly far more visually complex than most web games I've played.