Exilian
Game Design and Project Resources: The Workshops Quarter => Computer Game Development - The Indie Alley => Topic started by: izark on February 27, 2017, 07:46:22 PM
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Hi! I hope to get some feedback for this hardcore programming puzzle game I developed : Mind-Machine Interface: graphics, bugs, difficulty, anything you want to talk about. Also, I wanted to gather some help to greenlight this game I made inspired by great Zachtronics games (like TIs-100) and Human Resource Machine. Vote if you think it is good enough!
Mind-Machine Interface is a programming puzzle game where you use blocks and circuit segments on a matrix to buil a program that manipulates pixels and numbers. Puzzles are hard, open ended and focus on very different ideas: Bouncing ball, sequence sorters, path finding algorithms, etc.
Videos, images, demo:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=865316285
(http://images.akamai.steamusercontent.com/ugc/91599028249154104/677707A99F9F04BBCC7D3AA923DD46E466A9F632/?interpolation=lanczos-none&output-format=jpeg&output-quality=95&fit=inside|637:358&composite-to%3D%2A%2C%2A%7C637%3A358&background-color=black)
(http://images.akamai.steamusercontent.com/ugc/91599028249154665/127F0FB3C224720697D93E2BAD4AF31A2910752E/?interpolation=lanczos-none&output-format=jpeg&output-quality=95&fit=inside|637:358&composite-to%3D%2A%2C%2A%7C637%3A358&background-color=black)
(http://images.akamai.steamusercontent.com/ugc/91599028249154906/82085C76AC8455FFC4BE0321B62B9A2D20EC0D6D/?interpolation=lanczos-none&output-format=jpeg&output-quality=95&fit=inside|637:358&composite-to%3D%2A%2C%2A%7C637%3A358&background-color=black)
(http://images.akamai.steamusercontent.com/ugc/91599028249062970/FD4E1504651777D2C6039E48DA4E9C1C19F60A38/?interpolation=lanczos-none&output-format=jpeg&output-quality=95&fit=inside|637:358&composite-to%3D%2A%2C%2A%7C637%3A358&background-color=black)
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Downloaded, greenlight upvoted, and I've been wrestling with this a lot already - just got onto the second row of exercises...
It's very good, core mechanics down pat, runs great on my computer, very smooth and looks the part. It's difficult, but in a way that I think will pitch very well to the right sort of audience/market. I suspect you might want to be quite aggressive at seeking out serious puzzle-folk though, given the complexity some of the later puzzles look like they're going to involve. I'm not a brilliant puzzle-mind, but I'm decent enough, competent head for numbers and a fair bit of experience as a programmer, and a lot of the puzzles are at the frustratingly (but rewardingly) difficult end of the spectrum for me..
A few thoughts:
- Biggest point, move the functions currently tagged to the function keys down into the main keyboard, you're not using the letter keys so use them instead. The F1/2/3 keys, especially on laptops nowadays, are often coded to extra functions and this got quite frustrating as my computer kept google searching and summoning windows help etc. This would genuinely make a pretty big gameplay difference.
- I think more could perhaps be done on the theming at least in the early stages - the slow trickle of info is nice, the creepy skull bits were a little confusing though, I wasn't sure which character in the chats was supposed to be me, and it just maybe needs a little tightening up in places.
- I really like the way the program-puzzles have a "function" (rotation, data repair, splicing, etc). That's something I really enjoyed. :)
All in all very very nice stuff, I'll definitely keep an eye on this one :)
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Downloaded, greenlight upvoted, and I've been wrestling with this a lot already - just got onto the second row of exercises...
It's very good, core mechanics down pat, runs great on my computer, very smooth and looks the part. It's difficult, but in a way that I think will pitch very well to the right sort of audience/market. I suspect you might want to be quite aggressive at seeking out serious puzzle-folk though, given the complexity some of the later puzzles look like they're going to involve. I'm not a brilliant puzzle-mind, but I'm decent enough, competent head for numbers and a fair bit of experience as a programmer, and a lot of the puzzles are at the frustratingly (but rewardingly) difficult end of the spectrum for me..
A few thoughts:
- Biggest point, move the functions currently tagged to the function keys down into the main keyboard, you're not using the letter keys so use them instead. The F1/2/3 keys, especially on laptops nowadays, are often coded to extra functions and this got quite frustrating as my computer kept google searching and summoning windows help etc. This would genuinely make a pretty big gameplay difference.
- I think more could perhaps be done on the theming at least in the early stages - the slow trickle of info is nice, the creepy skull bits were a little confusing though, I wasn't sure which character in the chats was supposed to be me, and it just maybe needs a little tightening up in places.
- I really like the way the program-puzzles have a "function" (rotation, data repair, splicing, etc). That's something I really enjoyed. :)
All in all very very nice stuff, I'll definitely keep an eye on this one :)
Thanks for he feedback! I am glad you liked it and thanks for the vote.
- I guess I will have to change the keys or add more configurations, you are right.
- The theme of the game is meant to be abstract, strange. You noticed, so it is probably a good thing :)
- If you find any bug, let me know.
- If you have any twitter, spread the word so this game can be Greenlit! Here is mine: https://twitter.com/Izarrk
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Will do!
Also, this thread was posted just in time to be in the Exilian newsletter, "Updates from the Forge": http://exilian.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=5082
So we'll be tweeting and FBing that out a few times over the next few days. :)