Plasmarift's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[2nd Cycle]

This is a very good game, despite what others might say. There were no glitches and the controls, although differently set up, were solid in performance. From the beginning, I was expecting a very boring and unchallenging game (much like some of the stuff submitted by people who use Stencyl for the first time). However, as the game went on, the landscape slowly got more uneven and the eventually gaps appeared between building, posing a threat to my character. I wasn't expecting the sinking platforms and managed to get through the game by taking my time for some parts instead of trying to rush through it all. (And thank you for putting in respawn points. I probably would have quit if I had to start all over).

I understand that this was one of your first real game programming challenges so I'd expect a few things to be missing or for everyone not to like it. Music would have definitely helped to build up a mood. Perhaps a few spots of text here and there and maybe a few more animations for the buildings, but the game was good and even after reading the medal (which gives you a hint of what the ending is), I didn't expect rebirth to be quite like that. Does second cycle mean that in the story, this is the next step after death for humans or is it a willing change on the part of the main character in the game?

Very good job and I hope to see more from you in the future. If you need any help, let me know. By the way, what program did you use to make this?

Gazp responds:

Glad you enjoyed it! And yes, even if it is a very short game, without checkpoints this would be just way to frustrating for the players that are finding it to hard.
I mentioned earlier to another user, music is something that I would have loved to have on this game, but time wasn't on my side unfortunately.
One of the the goals I set to myself was to try and convey a full simple story without using any text besides the game's own title. But in some points, yes, maybe a few text would have been useful.
As for the ending, I'll explain it over PM :)
About the program I used, just Flashdevelop with Flixel as the game engine.

Thanks for playing and reviewing!

[Dark Interval]

The game is very good, but when I reached the levels with webs in them, the game started experiencing lag, making it very difficult to pass the following levels (And I'm using Google Chrome and have a good computer). I would've liked to finish it, but the fact that I have to go through all the lagging levels that I barely got through before again makes playing it too frustrating unless more saved points are added. Maybe you should add a super easy mode for the "lagging or not as skilled players" :)

Still, even with that being said, great game!

alexandervrs responds:

Are you sure the lag was not due to the web? ;) The web slows you down actually, you have to work with that. Running will make you run a little faster through the web as well.
Easy mode was planned which would remove some of the obstacles, but could not add due to the time. Perhaps after the Ludum Dare compo ends. By the way, all the levels are beatable, what could I improve perhaps could be the first time trial and error that occurs in some levels.

[Just A Trim Please]

You managed to make grass cutting fun. Congratulations! What did you use to make this?

WixGames responds:

Thanks! Adobe flash and actionscript

[C.O.R.E]

This was actually more indepth then I was expecting and this could be so far one of your greatest games. It shows a real life problem and how you can make it worse by trying to break down the materials. There are a few problems though. I start with the big ones.
- I remember going through over 20 circuit boards at an acid barrel and getting nothing in return and not being able to use the broken circuit boards in it.
- I don't know how to repair myself even though I know what I can use to do it.
- Sometimes, you can't always reach everything in the game because the character can't fit into small places.
- The attack system is a little off in direction (I had to position myself a little to the side of the enemy to land an attack), but it still works.
- You should probably have a scrambling feature for the items to make each gameplay different.
- I'm never exactly sure when the game will end when I go around a corner. I expected it to go on longer when I saw more robots in the inner area.

Still, don't let this stuff take away from the good. The music is good (you might want to fix the sudden stop in the music before it loops) and the main character reminds me of a rogue discarded iPhone so it is cool. The concept is good. The last piece of advice I have is to add a return to menu button at the end of the game. Really, really great game!

kcazingy responds:

Thanks for the feedback I worked on this game for quite a while and I'm glad to hear you liked it as for the music I noticed that to when I tested it right before I published it. But whenever I play the game as a .swf on my desktop it doesn't do it, so I am really stumped on why it suddenly stops like it does in browser. What I have been doing is taking ideas that I had for games making kinda mini flash games and seeing what people want then expanding on them as need. So I will be making, and expanding C.O.R.E so it feels a little less like a mini game and more like a full flash game. Thanks for the idea of a scrambling feature I planned to just make more maps but if I could just have 2 or 3 maps and have the items randomly generate that sounds much easier.

[Leaker]

The level design is good, but the difficulty of the game does not result from the level designs being hard to navigate: it is because the left and right movement controls are very stiff and the character does not interact with the environment like he should. What I mean by the last point can be shown in level 9. When I try to jump and go through the small hole, the character refuses to do so unless his falling and upward velocity are almost at 0 when you are lined up with the hole, which is very difficult. Even when I made it through on one occasion, I couldn't get pass the spikes because you can't control the height of your double jump (looking back, you need expert timing to get pas the spikes at the ending). The fact that I can touch sideway spikes on their sides and still die is also annoying when they could have been used as platforms.

A difficult game is not just when it is hard to beat: it has to be when the failure of a player to beat it is due to a lack of their skill, not in the limited coding of a game making program like Stencyl. Still, I don't think you have to worry about this game passing judgment. I've scene a lot of bad stuff get passed into the game portal that this should be there in no time at all! Good luck on your future projects.

snakep responds:

Hi,

maybe you are just annoyed because you didnt make it too far. Dont blame me because of it ;)

cheers
J

[Stick Jumper]

First off, do not ask people not to blam your submission. It doesn't matter how hard you worked to make it. If it isn't good enough, it shouldn't make it onto Newgrounds. Alright?

As for the game itself, you offer no instructions other than "Get to the bottom by jumping on platforms". You failed to tell players the controls, that the character could double jump, wall slide, and wall jump. There was also no backstory (though for a game like this, I can't imagine a back story running too deep so I'll let you slide).

The main character was a very good stickman drawing. His movements and jumping were very precise and his animated steps were good, but the enemy characters (if I should even consider them that) were not good. They also had a long line sticking out of their heads for no reason that couldn't be jumped on or interacted with and looked like baby fetuses. They couldn't hurt you and gave no apparent purpose to the game other than being stepping stools for the character to jump on. I also did as your one instruction commanded and jumped to the bottom platforms only to find no exit. The bottom is just a bottomless pit that restarts you if you fall into it. If I am missing something, please tell me. I'd also suggest adding music to your game or sound effects at least. You can find music to use in the Audio Portal and Stencyl probably has sound effects available for use (if not, you can probably look online for sound effects)

Right now, I don't think this game deserves to pass judgment, especially since I have come across no end to the game (although it just might for what has been passing these days). You said in the comment that you will "make better games" if we rate highly. I shouldn't have to bride you with ratings you don't deserve to get you to make better games. If you can make better games now, then do so if you wish. Earn good ratings and your own fan base if you want.

I hope you don't give up on making games though because I'd like to see what your "better games" will look like. Good luck with your future.

sebastian4ester responds:

This was my first real game and I'm only 10 yrs old and I see that I've made some mistakes. The bad guys are skeletons and they are supposed to have "health bars" above their heads. The bottom platform is supposed to be the end but I haven't figured out how to make the "WIN" ending on Stencyl yet. I'm sorry I didn't put the controls in the description and I'll fix that. I know I have made a lot of mistakes but I'm kind of learning on my own. Also, I'm hoping I don't get "Blam"med because I worked hard on this game. Thank you for your criticisms (my parents told me that you were being honest and fair).

[Ascent]

The game is very good. I can't say I agree with everything you are saying (and I believe there is a God). I don't know if it is a sin to question our origin, but we all have the right to do so. If God is the absolute truth then I'm sure He won't mind if I look into the situation myself and take my time.

As for the gameplay, I was confused at first since I wasn't told anything except for what buttons to press, but eventually, I got the hang of what I was suppose to do. I think you should allow more time because it is very easy to miss a star (especially when you are going fast or nearly pulled down by gravity), which can easily lead to your downfall, causing you to not have enough time to finish. I loved the fact that when you enter a text bubble that you slow down, allowing you to read it and advance. However, a few times I was moving too fast through the bubble that I couldn't afford to distract myself by read it. The aging sun timer was also a nice touch.

Overall, very nice game. You might want to follow up on this with a short post to explain why you made this and your reasoning because I expect very mean comments in your future. With any justice, this should make it into the game portal. I look forward to your future work!

Kolba responds:

Thank you. I think, at least for the time being, I'll let the game speak for itself, and allow players to interpret it as they wish. Though certainly I made the game to express certain issues close to heart.

[The Self-Destructive]

It's been awhile since I played this, but since I came across it again thanks you your new submission, I thought I'd write a review. The presentation of the story was the most stunning part of this game (I disagree when other commenters say this isn't a game. It's interactive and it can be won or lost so it is a game). Even the gameplay was interesting in that you needed to get the comic strips to interact with one another in order to win (although trying to activate the switch in the dark was a little annoying). I too had to use the walkthrough for even my second time playing this so it isn't easy! It is a great game though.

(Also, I am having trouble with your game "The Fanatic" that is still under judgment. I've run out of hot spots to click on to uncover more of the plot.)

AthleticDesign responds:

You know what? I wrote/designed The Self-destructive and I have trouble solving it myself after having been away from it for a while... Ok, that's a slight exaggeration but there is some truth to it.

I am looking forward to write walkthroughs to all of the levels. I hope you have solved The Fanatic by now. If not, check back later. The walkthrough will be made even if it may be a while.

[The Tapping Dead: Alice]

It's a good game, but it could do with some improvements, such as:
- music
- high score board
- a pause button

It may also help to have a slightly larger screen. I lost when there were three zombies lined up and I didn't wait a little before doing my second double jump. It might be a lot easier to see with a larger screen so I could better plan out what I would be doing next.

Still, a good game especially for your first submission here. What did you use to make it?

crazycricket responds:

Thank you.

Definitely those are some pretty good ideas.
It was made with CreateJS in 4 hours. It used the sprite sheets of our iOS/Android game.

)

[Cole Slaw]

Both the first and second game were strange, but I like strange. Great gameplay and a unique storyline.

I'm just going to take a shot here. Was the name of this game a continuation of the last, making it "Feed the Children Cole Slaw"?

DBuck-Eye responds:

I agree that strange is good :) I'm not sure I picked the name for that reason, but I've noticed that as well and I'm gonna say it's canon. I'm glad you picked up on it! :)