MrProGamer's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Balance Of Power]

Original, simple and challenging...

Hello there Geekglue,

I must say that I'm impressed by your game. The concept is original and
fresh, at least something I haven't seen before. Your new approach makes
it very interesting to play and the way you've put this to a board game is works
perfectly. The concept has an excellent complexity level for a board game like
this. You just have to take a moment to understand its rules, but once that is
done the fun starts. (Also the music while playing really fits the game. You've
set a good mood / feeling to the game. It fits its level, style and genre.)

You've done an excellent job on explaining the rules, the combination of
pictures and short yet to-the-point text gives the player the necessary
information to understand the concept. Another plus is the interface that is
always available to the player like going back to the menu or whether to turn
the tutorial on or off. Only you can't go back to the Main Menu when you're
selecting the mode you wish to play. So the majority is very good... BUT...!

Here are some things for you to think about:

#1
There is one thing that I noticed when I thought about it for a moment. The
political setting doesn't really match with the actual game. The playing grid
represents a battlefield-like lay-out. I won't go into detail why this is caused,
contact me if you would like to know more about this sort of game design
theories. If we would visualise the game "battlefield" in the setting, we can
conclude that the political "game" as we know isn't much like this. It has some
appeal / feeling to it (so YAY), but it's not well fit for the gameplay context (NAY).

(I've done a 45 minute brainstorm on your concept setting, and believe me, there
are enough other things to use as a context to this concept! ;D And btw, I'm
not lying, I really had a 45 minute brainstorm! XD But try to think of other things
for yourself, I'm not going to make it easy for you. :P)

#2
Why should people come back and play again? What elements could increase
the game's replay value? You can set additional goals in like special modes,
or create some content for the player to unlock so he will be rewarded for
his effort. The game itself is an open game so that players can always adjust
their own type of game whenever they feel like playing again, which is good, but
you can think of ways to keep your players interested in playing again...
(Highscores is another one...)

#3
Think carefully about what you decide to add or remove from a game. For
example in your game, I find it odd why you've removed the "End Turn" function
in a 2-player game... Be sure to know what concequences it brings for the game
when you add / remove gameplay element (or other aspects). Another thing I
wish to share with you: "PROTOTYPE your game!" There's a flaw in your game
which you overlooked (while you thought it was balanced):
Blue always has the chance to move a pawn away before influence is removed.
While Red has NO chance to remove its pawn when blue tries to absorb his
influence. (If you don't get what I'm saying, try your 2-player game.) I've spotted
this: "Red moves to blue -> Blue absorbs red -> Red TRIES to absorb back ->
Blue walks away with the advantage of the last turn (so on the Blue side has
an actual advantage in the game). There are some other varieties of these kinds
of flaws in your gameplay system, so next time check your own game...
PROTOTYPE! Let others test out your system!

Please let me know what you think of this feedback. As a Game Designer by
profession I'm also still learning from YOUR feedback. If you would like more in-depth and detailed feedback about your game, or if you would like to know more about certain Game Design theories, pricinples etc.... Feel free to contact me any time. ^___^

Remember, I judge on skill level (NOT on professional level).
Keep creating things, you've done an excellent job on this one!
So don't stop, create more! And be sure to prototype alot. :P

Keep it up! Double thumbs up!
Regards,

Erik van Wees

[William and Sly]

Beautiful experience, great design...

Hey there Lucas,

I don't often give games a 9 or higher. But this one sure has proven itself
worthy. You've done a great job on the mood-set and the setting of the game.
The way how the music and the silence (with leaving nothing more than sound
effects) switched has been a great design decision for the overal mood-set.
How the music faded in was just wonderful, it really gave me that magical
feeling while playing. I was really living the fantasy and adventure in your world.

The concept worked perfectly, I also enjoyed finding those hidden pathways.
That always keeps you going for more. :P But I actually was hoping to expect
more of the game. I was hoping to unlock powers to get to area's that couldn't
be reached before (like high platforms in the sky). So I was hoping you would
take the game just one step further... Ah well, I can't have it all. ^___^"

Too bad the in-game menu was kind of hidden... These menu's must be
easy to enter and exit at all time (without actually searching for it... XD).

Also, it wasn't clear how you could achieve certain points like using the
"White Magic" for destroying these monsters. You did explain it in the beginning
of the game, but also on the very moment you receive this "White Magic" this
must be pointed out to the player so it knows THIS is the "White Magic" he has
to use to achieve the secondary goal. I also couldn't figure out another way to
obtain this power, so it seemed to me it was like a once shot goal. Please point
that out to the player, because it was a nasty disappointment to me when I
bumped into this.

The last thing that bothered me was the brief ending after you've defeated the
Boss for the final runestone. It's such a shame that a beautiful game like this
didn't get a fitting ending. =/

It's been a while that a game could move me in such a way, so mystical.
It kept my full attention all time, I even turned off the damn television the
moment I heard the music start playing and saw the world I jumped in. ^___^

It's a really good game, no doubt about it. This one's really worth a 9 to me,
But there are still some things that need improvement. The reason I give it a
9 lies more on the mood-set and overall experience of the game.

Please let me know what you think of this feedback. As a Game Designer I'm
trying to help you out so you can improve future work. If you like to receive
more in-depth feedback about your game, feel free to PM me and I shall respond
to you as soon as possible. There's more then just this feedback, believe me...

You're doing great I must say, keep it up!
Keep creating new things, experiment with different mood-sets
and game concepts. You'll get better and better. ^___^

Double thumbs up!
Regards,

Erik van Wees

Kajenx responds:

Great review, very helpful. I totally understand the criticisms, I felt like I was battling through them the whole way when I was making it and I never got all the way there. But now I have a really good base to jump from on the next game when I make it, and I'll be sure to address those problems you mentioned.

[Unfortunate Necromancer 2]

Challenging concept...

A fresh and challenging concept.
I appreciate the new aproach to the shooter concept, but it's pretty difficult.
It involves multi-tasking at a high level, even from the beginning level.
The thing that really bugged me was Thief who showed up to frequently and
too fast. Almost 50% of the money that drops is taken by the thief... The balance
with this element is still flawed.

The "Igor" gameplay element works, but it didn't work as I expected it to be.
When you send Igor to the money, it goes that way only and back which doesn't
give you the oppertunity to let him move on to the next money stack to prevent
the Thief from stealing it. One wrong mouse pointing "S" press and Igor is
useless at that moment. I expected that I could let him move to the next spot
on the moment I pressed "S" again.

Keep in mind that you should prototype these gameplay elements so you can
get rid of the possible flaws in it. I give it a 7 due to the flaws still in it and the
poor interface (yes, this is very important to a game). I still like the concept,
but I rather want you to spend some more time on working / prototyping the
concept before you publish it.

Remember, I judge on skill level (NOT on professional level). I've played some
of your other games before judging this one so I can get a better view of your
skills.

Please let me know what you think of this feedback. As a Game Designer I'm
also still learning from YOUR feedback, I'm interested if you're interested.
I'll be glad to help you out some more. ^___^

Keep creating new things, you're doing great with these concepts! ^___^
If you would like more in-depth feedback about your game or the gameplay
aspects, feel free to PM me. If you want tips about improving your game, just
ask me and I'll respond to you as soon as possible.

Doing great, thumbs up!
Regards,

Erik van Wees

[GUNROX:SuperstarBodyguard]

Funy and simple...

First of all, let me point out the good aspects of the game...

The concept works, just like the good ol' fashion arcade shooters.
The game has a good build-up along with the balance. You start out with a simple
hand gun to shoot a few enemies to get familiar (again) with the game concept.
Good choice for adding a Choice Element to the game that increases the replay
value to it. Each level, the tension rises which gives the player a new challenge
every level. This keeps the player's attention and it functions as motivation. The
player will be curious about what challenge lies within the next level... Also
getting powerful weapons (and different ones that depend on your choice)
makes it more interesting.

BUT, however... Everytime you gain a new weapon, you end up only shooting
with the the latest (powerful) one. I've tried to switch between weapons on
some points just to see if it would pay off. The weapons don't seem to have
their own advantage (and / or disadvantage) that encourages the player to
switch between his arsenal.

Too bad you stick with the same concept without trying to vary (enough) with
other gameplay elements like side challenges. If I'm correct, I did see some sort
of Bonus stage comming by "Get at least 85% Accuracy". I cleared the challenge,
but without real noticable outcome, actually I didn't know what my reward was...

Another thing on the weapons... I wander if you've prototyped the shooting
system before using it. It just didn't feel 100% correct, I missed Headshot while
I was surely convinced that I was standing right in front of them when I shot
them in the face... I noticed that the guns had a varying offset while I was aiming.
Did you find this necessary for the design? (Just as a question for yourself)
What is the additional value to the game by adding this to the game? How do
the players respond to it?

The same thing with the Weapon Upgrades... What is additional value of these
upgrades? Is the accuracy improved? What function does a Silenced weapon
have? Does it affect my accuracy? Can I remove this feature from my weapon?
These are some questions you can ask yourself as a Designer. Don't forget to
prototype your designs before you are sure about the effects of it and what
your own intention to the game is.

So the concept works, it kept my attention through the whole game. Only there
was no reason for me to play it again (not even for the other weapons)...
It was fun while it lasted, so I give it a 7.

Remember, I judge on skill level (NOT on professional level).
Keep creating new things, experiment with new concepts and be sure to
test 'em first before publishing it. =)

Please let me know what you think of this feedback. If you're interested I can
give you more in-depth feedback about the game and other tips about Game
Design if you like... Feel free to PM me anytime... ^___^

Regards,

Erik van Wees

[Hard Choices]

Keep practicing...

-------------------------------------
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--- This feedback is aimed at the original author: Tina Connolly. ---
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First of all, let me point out what I liked about it...
The music in combination with the drawings really moved me.
The mood-set was immediatly clear to me: "Sad, grimm, dark, empty and
misterious" are the keywords I can mention for my mood from playing.

Unfortunately I was also pulled out of this mood on some points. For a grimm
and sad story like this, it's a waist that it doesn't take itself seriously. The
choices were rather "funny" than "thrilling". The funny choices pulled my out
of the story setting.

On to the Narrative aspect. Don't worry, I'm perfectly capable of seeing and
experiencing the core / intention of the story. You can be more graphic and put
more feeling & lenght in the details, take your time to tell the player / reader
what's going on, describe the visual as well as the non-visual (emotions) parts.
Things like: "Then she eats you." is just too short and too straight to the point.
You can describe the process of her changing into her true form and how she
devours your flesh (and what kind of pain the character is experiencing)...
So try to work on your story-telling skills, keep practicing and you WILL become
better and better! ^___^

Also try to experiment with different modulations, color and lines. The drawings
functioned as a moodboard, which determines a great part of the experience.
I did like some contrasts with the black like how you used red in your drawings.
But for the beginning of the story, nothing has really happened yet. So you
could've started out with a dark blue/grey background for example. Then as the
story becomes more grimm, visual that as well (like darkening the background
as the story becomes more and more grimm...)

I hope you find this feedback useful enough, please let me know what you
think of it! ^___^ If you like, I can give you more tips & tricks about story telling,
modulations, experience design and more... Feel free to PM me any time you
like. ^___^

Remember, I judge on skill level... NOT on professional level. Just keep creating
new things, you will see that you'll become better. Also let others see your
work or parts of it so you can improve aspects before publishing it, that really
pays off in the final judgement. (PROTOTYPE! :D)

Don't stop, keep practicing! =)
Regards,

Erik van Wees

[Newgrounds Rumble]

Impressive work, but...

[+] Music with main menu, excellent job on the mood-set! Gave me the exciting chills, ready to rumble!
[+] Nice impact-sounds on attacks, makes you feel like giving some serious bitch-slaps that will last for weeks. :P (Also a huge plus on all the other sound effects. =D)
[+] Easy and good interface, alltime access to a menu.
[+] History Records... =) And data removal! ^___^ (+ All the other video, audio and control options! =D)
[+] Smooth animations and very good looking Character graphics.
[+] Easy & smooth controlls with cool variations in combo's
[+] 4-Player Multiplayer! Awesome!

[-] 2 vs 1 is impossible to counter attack... (Even with parrying, I've tried many times...)
[-] Block from direction is tricky for you alway get hit when in middle of 2 enemies. (Especially inconvenient on Hanks final stage)
[-] Almost all challenges have the same type of condition, defeat enemy by killing them. Could've set: "First team to collect all the ... items wins!" or "First team to get ... kills wins!" (I did like the "Survive 2 minutes" & the "Crush Allow" challenge!)
[-] Could've put more things in "Deposit" for a higher replay value. Extra's like concept art, music, 2nd outfits, etc.
[-] Too bad there's no "Handicap" option in "Versus" mode. Can make things alot more interesting or fair when you're planning a 3 to 1 match.
[-] Other options like "Pick-Up" rate or list aren't available that also effect certain challenge and player need to set a battle of how they see fit. (So there's a shortage on options for "Versus" play)
[-] Majority background art doesn't match with the quality of the Character art. It's not 100% clear (yes I have the highest quality set ON)... Be consequent in quality, don't quickly finish stuff! (This doesn't include the style differences of the artistic setting)
[-] There is NO balance in the survival mode. You won't receive any HP after a kill or the HP Pick-Up droprate is almost 0. You have no advantage that makes you last a little longer than a normal VS game. On a certain point you're just jumping around waiting for the next pick-up that could save your life or hopefully get you a kill...
(This means the "Punishment-Reward system is a bit rigged in Survival)
Actually, there is no ballance what so ever in fighting more than 1 enemy on
your own. (Except for the Henchmen)
This is actually a huge flaw in the game, it's all about balance with a fitting
challenge level when facing different conditions.
[-] Action camera can be a pain in the ass, but it does a serious action to the experience. Too bad it affects my battle overview, on some moments I can't see myself on the screen while everybody else is in the action. Every character must be visible at all time during the battle (excluding the stage fall-offs).

I hope this feedback is useful to you guys. Remember, I judge on Skill Level...
NOT on professional level. Even though it has validated itself as a full grown,
worthy game that has reached a certain professional level.

If you guys are interested in further tips or more in-depth Game Design feedback about your game OR design methods, feel free to PM me. I would
be glad to help you guys further out.

Don't forget I really enjoyed playing this game, and I'm still playing it which
means it has a high replay value already. My overall impression of the game
still stands with "AWESOME!", I like party fighters like these. ^___^
The concept works really good.

Keep up the good work you guys, just keep on creating new things. And
don't forget to prototype alot. ;)

--- Please let me know what you think of this feedback. As a Game Designer
(& Developer) I'm also still learning from other people's feedback. --- ^___^

Double thumbs up!
Regards,

Erik van Wees

[Skylocopter 2]

You caught my attention...

Even though it was pretty easy, it kept my attention in such a way that
I wanted to figure out what the next level would be. (Beat the game at first
try... :P) The concept works, but there are some things that could make it better:

As a game designer I'm not going to judge you on the music, but do keep in mind that music determines almost 50% of the player's experience. You can see
it as a mood setting device that marks the "feeling" of the game. To me it felt
like a dreamy kind of setting, but the graphics showed something different.

Moving on now... The "Economy" upgrade wasn't clear to me. I took a guess on
the Fuel Tank, but you should've mentioned it "Fuel Tank" instead of "Economy".
(Or it's some vocabulary that I'm missing... I'm a Dutchy... =}) Also the upgrade
"Speed" wasn't necessary for me because if you were going faster than this
you would be bouncing through the whole level... Imagine how frustrating THAT
would be... =P (Don't know if others found it usefull, but to me it seemed kind
of risky...)

The bouncing when you touch the outide of the screen is a little too rough.
It makes the player go bouncing between the wall and the surface which drops
the Life gauge pretty fast.

Keep in mind that every gameplay element you insert in your game has
consequences, or at least try to fit the element properly so that is has some
additional value to the game.

You could add some challenges on the side for the "hardcore gamer" so they
don't have to get bored when they think it's too easy, then they have something
to come back for at another time. =) (Called: "Replay Value")

I'm not going to bother you with interface, but when you plan on making a bigger
game it's necessary that you can access a menu at all time.

There are some other things that go a little deeper in the gameplay and
experience aspect. This is not included in my final judgement, so that people
still know what I'm talking about here. (And of course, I judge on skill level...
Not on professional level.) Feel free to PM me if you're interested in further
detailed feedback. ^___^

Allround a fun game that keeps your attention 'till the end! ^___^
So I give you a 7 on this one. =)
(Too bad I couldn't view your other games, it said that the servers weren't
responding or something. Then I could judge you more on you skill level.)

I hope this feedback is useful enough for you to improve your future work.
Keep creating games, try new things and most of all keep the joy of creating
interactive fun for others. ^___^

It's a matter of trial and error. Prototype, prototype, prototype... =)
Regards,

Erik van Wees

Oknavi responds:

I must say this is the most fantastic and in depth review I have ever recieved, the reasons our other games are down currently is because of the recent bankruptcy of a company called GameJacket which as a dev I'm sure you are familiar with. We have not yet had time to reupload but will soon. Please PM me with more feedback if you can, it is very valuable. Hopefully Skylocopter 3 will be much much much better since I am coding it from scratch. Thank you.