Comments on: Project 2 – SHYP

By: skro

skro — Fri, 24 Oct 2014 13:02:20 +0000

Great ambiance. The walking sounds and the music that gets more dramatic as time runs out definitely create a feel of tension and urgency.

The jumping seems unnecessary, the spacebar could be used for something better. I like the models you used in the level but it’d be nice if some of them did something other than just be decoration.

The maze itself seemed to be too big to actual finish in the time given, I only found the helicopter because the timer doesn’t actually do anything when it runs out.

The camera placement is a little odd. On one hand it lends itself to the feel of confusion and urgency, but on the the other hand it is a little disorienting. Maybe consider rotating it behind the player or zooming out a tad.

Overall a good start, just could use some more actual game mechanics.

By: hedgehog

hedgehog — Fri, 24 Oct 2014 12:23:47 +0000

The feel of this game is quite good. The dark surrounding and little light makes for a scared environment and the small flashlight only enhances this feeling. The soundtrack is also very fitting for this kind of feel. Many parts of the maze look similar, making it feel like an actual maze. Small things that I like are the catching up of the camera and the bounce back when rotating left or right. I’m not sure why, but because of that and the light it feels like I’m looking for something, which is good.

Difficulty of the game is an issue. Solving the maze is incredibly hard, so possibly adding indicators every minute or so would help in finding the helicopter. For movement, it feels a bit awkward walking sideways instead of forward, especially I walk in a direction that the flashlight isn’t pointing to. I feel like a straight walk would be better. Also, having such a small jump that doesn’t affect the game seems a bit wasteful for me, possibly making space do something like a temporary sprint would be better.

By: npai

npai — Fri, 24 Oct 2014 03:23:32 +0000

I definitely liked the general atmosphere that your sounds created – the footsteps and the ambient sounds all feed into making this gloomy, paranoid, and scary feeling. The generally slow walking speed reminds me of Resident Evil games and feels right. The flashlight is a nice touch, even if it is merely cosmetic at this point. And the maze was actually pretty difficult to solve, and I liked how you sprinkled it with random things.

The addition of a timer is a nice touch, too, even though nothing happens if it runs out just yet. It makes the player feel even more tense and pressured, and that’s what you seem to be going after. And the change of music as the time gets low enough is pretty cool, too.

If I were to suggest something it would be to allow the player to look around with the mouse. I personally don’t mind an over-the-shoulder camera, but I am so used to games at least letting me pick which shoulder to look over. It just so happens that I always look over the right shoulder, so looking over the left one feels a bit disorienting to me. Other than that, it looks like some pretty solid work, so good job!

By: lion

lion — Thu, 23 Oct 2014 20:47:40 +0000

What this maze took me forever to solve! Im quite impressed with the layout.
I love how the music kicks in when the timer is about to go off, and really like the walking noise.
I think this has alot of potential, but in order for it to be fun, there needs to be less “push forward and wait until the next corner” time. Maybe make the avatar move faster? Maybe make it so obstacles arent simply decoration? Like they could swing at you, or drop onto you, and if they hit you then you loose health or start over or get a time penalty?
Really like the flashlight effect, very well done! 🙂

By: stonewall

stonewall — Thu, 23 Oct 2014 18:39:15 +0000

I really like the atmosphere of your game. The tension is really enhanced by your lighting and great choice of sounds. The layout of some of the obstacles is also really good at emphasizing the creepiness.

I think the main problem I have is that I wish there was more urgency. The time limit presents a challenge for me to beat, but as a player there’s nothing else driving me to succeed. Nothing is chasing me, nothing is happening to me if I don’t quickly escape. I just kind of meander around the maze feeling really tense. I feel like I’m only pressing forward so the game with end.

I’m not saying it’s a bad game. As I said, the atmosphere is extremely well executed and I realize the finer goal-oriented objectives were cut for time constraints. As a game feel prototype, it’s solid work.