Plasmarift's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Tainted Olive - Chapter 2]

I don't know why this game got only three stars coming out of judgement. It is just as good as the first one and has many new types of puzzles. It definitely deserves a better score and I hope it will go up. The only suggestion is that maybe have some different music next time or a variation of it as you don't want people feeling like they played this game before (however, the music is still good).

BlackOlive responds:

I guess we'll have to listen to your advice for the next chapter ;)

I hope one shouldn't look into the initial ratings too much, as the same thing happened to Chapter 1 - low ratings which steadily increased afterwards. Until then all we can do is bite our fingernails.

[Letter for Mimi 2]

I did like the game for its cuteness and dialogue (you made it a little less diabetic cute and weird, which is good in my tastes).
- I also liked that you could see other areas, but couldn't reach them (this actually made me a little upset as it felt like they were secrets that were out of reach, but it made it so even after you finished the game, it still contained some mystery and unexplored adventure.
- Your choice in missions in this game were pretty fun and definitely weren't always easy to figure out like the hide and seek boulder one (though repeating the boulder pushing puzzle from the first was pretty lame, sorry).
- I like the character development you did from the first game to this one for some of the characters (it is very subtle, but still noticeable).
- Thank you for including medals. That is one way to draw people to play your game (because not only do I get to have fun, but I rack up points at the same time).

Things I suggest improving on:
- Try making the next game longer and more expansive.
- the fact that the items from the previous game were carried over and not used (except for the keys) was a little disappointing (it was like getting a cool weapon and not getting the chance to use it).
- You reused a few things from your previous game, like the main character sprite and other characters (this is understandable and okay), but you made the main mission to gather huge pencils, the first thing you picked up in the first game and you used the daisy sprite from the first game for Clara (or at least I think it is the same. It looks similar). I know you made other new ones, but it is best to walk a fine line when reusing stuff because some players may get turned off by this if they feel like they are playing a rehashing of the original one.
- I'd take a look at Reaching Finality before you implement the battle system, as I think it would be a good fit for your game.

I can't think of much else to say, but that I hope your next release and this one go well. Let me know if you'd like any help with game design and sprite creations (I just started making some and have gotten decent at doing so).

kcnh responds:

Thank you for your extensive review. You were one of the first people to find the secret, good job!

The idea behind the road you could see when walking on the right part of the island was, as you mentioned, to create a feeling that there is more in the world than you can walk to at the moment. The same goes for the monsters you can see walking on Route 1. It is also good to hear that the character development came across as intended.

If I had used the same items as in the first game for the puzzles and quests, they would also have been the same (more or less): using the pickaxe to break rocks, the axe to chop trees, etc.
But you're right that they should have had at least some function in the game.

The Daisy sprite was the same as used by Clara. I decided to re-use that once since I assumed not a lot of people had found the secret in the first game.
You make a valid point about the Huge Pencils, but I think it would not have mattered much if it would say, 10 strawberries instead. The Huge Pencils allowed me to put in some jokes and it is a reference to the first game as you mentioned.

Reaching Finality has a zelda-esque combat system, my plan is to make it turn-based as in Final Fantasy 1.
Having a turn-based system will allow for a party to fight and thus create a more interaction between the player and his environment: imagine Hannah joining your party to help find her sister.
But nothing is in stone yet, so I will definitely take other systems in consideration.

For this game I tried to continue the story which was established in Letter for Mimi 1, but as that game had a bit of a lousy story, I had to make some choices about parts which I wanted to re-use.
This lead to some inconsistencies, such as that Daisy cannot be found in this game even though she mentions she will be there in Letter for Mimi 1. So, I decided to apply her sprite to a different character.

I will use your feedback for the next games I will make. :)

[Dead Hell]

Pretty cool, though it would have been cool of you to mention me in the credits for testing it out months ago. You added a good number of new enemies and boss (many with different movement and attack patterns), a very fitting soundtrack, and an interesting system for the throwing weapons and health gaining. The speed that the enemies arrive with definitely keeps the player on their feet because it makes them think about their next move (ex: if I kill this enemy and leave the tougher one, its possible another tough enemy will take its place) and the fast movement keeps the player from simply slaying through the on coming enemies with ease.

I'm usually not a fan of these types of games, but for some reason, the blend of the many different characteristics and challenges that you put in the game make it addicting and, for myself, made me feel like I was the one who messed up and could definitely do better. I look forward to your next release and hope this game will receive the attention it deserves.

x-SemAn responds:

thank)
As concerns the credits, there was very little room for all, sorry
everything was in a hurry

[Barriers]

The game is okay and touching in a way, but the sharp contrast between the characters and everything else really does not work well (they are the most detailed thing in the game and, although I've commented to someone before saying that the controlled character deserves a great detail of attention and detail, when the environment is minimalistic, the characters should probably be as well). It may have been better if you made the boy just blue and the girl pink (or you could have had both of them black with the girl wearing a bow).

The puzzles are pretty simple (a little too linear in a number of the levels as you just go from switch to button), but some of the challenges that you put in would definitely be difficult for two people to do together.

Some things I would consider adding in the future though would be:
- after having touched, little heart would float into the air from them.
- Maybe a quick transition from level to level, and after deaths.
- A way to restart the game after reaching the end.
- Put the instructions in the description or in the game itself.

Good job on your first game. I wish you luck on being a game creator.

FSt-Germain responds:

Thanks for the response. I like your idea of simplifying the characters. I will put some more thought into it and it might happen :) Lots of people have been suggesting more levels so I might try to add less linear levels. I will certainly add a way to restart the game. It never crossed my mind that someone would want to play more than once (it is a puzzle game after all, and it's no fun if you already know the puzzles). Thanks for the excellent points.

[KByte]

The games are pretty cool, but there is a problem; I'm having trouble finding a way to back out of the games once I start them. Also, are more games unlocked by getting a high score or by simply playing the games.

dgl1147 responds:

To back out of the games you have to click on the pause button and then click on the home button.
There are five playable games, the rest are under development. This isn't the final version of the game.

[A Chance to Escape]

The game would be pretty good if there wasn't a huge problem. For the moving lasers, even if you place a box over where you will hide your character to protect them from the laser, the laser can sometimes still pass through it (this happened whenever I lined up another box underneath it for the character to stand on in later levels. Also, it is extremely tough to line up your character under the protection of the box so that a sliver of the character isn't sticking out and gets hit by the laser. I'd highly suggest increasing the hitbox ratio of the laser on the boxes so that the laser is blocked for a little bit after it has already moved away from the box to account for this or to have bigger and smaller boxes in the level for better protection. Good luck in the contest.

rathetor responds:

Thanks for the feedback. Really appreciated when people are very specific about problems with the game. I'll mess around with the laser a bit more to see if I can fix this problem. At the time, it was just a small bug and nothing to worry about as I was trying to finish the game for the jam. Now that it is in the contest, I'll take extra time to polish it and make it better.

Thanks for playing.

[Decepticide]

I like the game though there are a few problems
- With the checkpoint system you just put in: if you make the elevator go up and jump off it, you can't get it to come back down. Even if you try to avoid this, your checkpoint system may set the character down one floor where the elevator will be on the floor above, forcing the player to restart the whole game. Whenever you put in an update like this, I'd suggest playing the game for an hour to make sure it works right.
- Although I don't think you can do much about it, my game freezes if I play the game for over 15 minutes so I have to keep refreshing the page to avoid this.
- For the code, do you only get one attempt before it won't allow you to do it again because when I first found the input code floor, I tried (without having seen the right code) and I couldn't input anything more)
- Some of the flowers you put right by some of the doors, forcing the player to either roll (usually into another enemy or seed pod plant or forced to stand on a yellow plant that hurts them) or take the hit and kill it, so either way, the player gets hit.

Good luck in the contest. I like having found a game that actually challenges me!

Joben7 responds:

I'm glad you like it! I'll try to answer your points as best I can.

-The checkpoints should be in a place were you always start at the top of an elevator if I placed them right, however jumping off while it goes up is a big flaw. The way it's set up it would be difficult to put in a switch on the bottom however I have an idea on how to stop people jumping out, I'll try and fix that.
-The freeze, I have no idea, hasn't happened to me yet so I have no idea on how to fix that, sorry!
-Yeah it's one attempt for the code, I need to think of a way to make it more obvious.
-Not all rooms but most with an enemy near the door are designed that if you move in just the right way you should be able to avoid getting hit. Some tips are that the seeds that chase you can't hurt you while you're rolling and the yellow bulb plants only release the poison gas if you shoot next to them.

Thanks for taking the time to review and I'll try and get on fixing some of the problems! :)

*Edit* I hopefully just fixed the elevator problem with the latest patch :)

[Hand Killer]

I'm getting a little tired of seeing "this game is a rip off" in the comments. People don't post this on platform games and tower defense games that have near the same premise and such as many others of their type, but when someone wants to make an extension to a unique game already in existence, people start screaming ripoff. I'd like to see more of these types of games so don't discourage it. Although I will say that saying that it is "inspired" by handless millionaire is a large understatement. You owe a lot more to the original author than that.

I like the idea and story behind the game and unlike handless millionaire, which I've played, the pattern sequence of the things guarding the money seems a lot more fair. Also, this seems more interesting to me. It is fun, but I have a few problems with it.

- If your mouse leaves the screen, which is very easy to do by accident since you place the money bag near the side of the screen, then it gets yanked across the screen to the left, where you will probably get your arm destroyed before you even know what happens. That's definitely not fair. Why not have it that the hand stays where it is when it leaves the screen?
- The lasers that come down from the ceiling during the game need an explanation. Is there any way to dodge them? I'm guessing that they are on a timer, indicating that you are taking too long to finish the level. In that case, why not just put a timer up on screen and when it runs out, the lasers come down.
- Why do you only let the players go to the upgrade screen once. I'd say you should set up two modes: an easy mode, where the player can go back to the store after each defeat and as long as they have enough money to buy another hand, they can continue, and a hard mode, where the player can only fail a certain number of times, maybe three times. By having this set up, you allow players to see more of your game, instead of just the first two or three levels.

Anyways, good luck with your next game.

Frozennnn responds:

Thanks nice ideas i will try to implement some. Good luck and thanks

[Playing With Letters]

Very good job. The story was excellent (I sometimes find stories in games to be generic since so many approaches have been done, but your reasoning behind why he does what he does was great), but the ending was kind of disappointing; it didn't take long to figure it out with the last clue because I was already suspecting something of the sort. A number of games have done it.

Still, you set the mood very well and the music was beautiful. The puzzles didn't seem too tough to me, but like it said in game, it varies from player to player. Great job on the game!

LucidShadowDreamer responds:

Thanks you a lot, Plasmarift!
It makes me happy that you like the story, as that is half of the game. I too find that many stories in games can feel a bit generic at times, and I know I have always loved it when I find a game where that is not the case. I guess I really lived into the character for a while, while writing this :)

Hmm. I don't know if I should reveal this... But there is actually a secret ending that less than 1% of players will find. It is so far-fetched that I didn't want to make a secret medal for it. Tell you what, if you're interested, you could PM me, and I'll tell you how to get to it :D

I'm also relieved to hear that the music was good, as I made it myself.
As for the puzzles, I guess they're not that hard if you're good at these kinds of things. However, only about 50% of the players seem to get past the "nag a ram" level so far, at most.
I think I may have made the first real level a bit too difficult compared to the other ones XD

Thanks for playing!

[GRAND ADVENTURE!]

I had a lot of fun playing it and I really liked the story. My main complaint was that I had to start from the hanging tree guy whenever I wanted to get a new ending instead of maybe starting next to the final boss door. I did have a question.
- So are there only three actual endings in this game and the last spot is the true ending that didn't make it in?

I'm sorry that you had so much trouble making the game because of programmers dropping out. If you ever need any help, just let me know. I don't have a lot of programming experience, but I'll do what I can. I can also voice act and make pixel sprite animations.

Good luck with your next game. I think you'll win an award for this one.

Emptygoddess responds:

Super nice of you to say. I don't know if i even have the last actual code build of the game though. Which is frustrating. Makes it hard to even try to finish it off ever.