Blasteroid Feedback Form
Please complete the following form after playing Blasteroid. The version
of Blasteroid you have played is currently just a demo. There will be much more
work done on it before it is fully completed. The purpose of this feedback form
is to find out what is good and bad about the game so far so that changes can be
made to it before its final release. Because of this, please do not be afraid
to use criticism as the only way the game will improve is if you let me know what
you do not like about it.
1. Did you find the game: A. too easy B. about right C. too hard
2. You found the controls: A. easy to use B. alright to use C. hard to use
2a. If you answered C, what did you not like about the controls?
3. The story line was: A. humorous/interesting B. alright C. stupid/boring
4. The game was: A. fun B. alright C. boring
5. Were you confused about anything in the game at any time? Is so, please explain.
6. Were there any things that you really liked about the game? If so, please list them.
7. Were there any things that you really disliked about the game? If so, please list them.
8. Were there any others things you would like to see in the game? If so, please list them.
9. Please give any other comments you have about Blasteriod.
Play Blasteroid and give me your feedback
Author
Blasteroid is the games name. While the name sort of implies it's like Asteroids, it's more like an updated Space Invaders. Give it a try and let me know what you think. It's not fully completed, it's more like a demo. You can download the installer here, or just the files needed to play the game here (although the fonts will not show up properly unless you copy them into your C:\Windows\Fonts directory).
I'm looking for feedback of improvements to make for the final version. I've already got a bunch of things in mind, but wanna know what you guys would like to see added/changed.
Oh also, the High Scores does not currently work...I know. It will be added later.
Blasteroid only takes about 10 - 15 minutes to beat, so try to play it right through instead of just for like 2 minutes, as most of the coolest stuff comes when you reach level 2 (about 4 minutes).
Also, as a hint, when first starting the game try to kill the blue enemies first as they're the ones that'll give you a laser weapon.
If you want, here's a feedback form you can answer back for me, although you don't have to if you don't want to. But I would like a reply back with some form of feedback.
Oh, I should also note that all of the coding was done by me, except for the game engine was provided from Jim Adams' Programming Role Playing Games With DirectX. Most of the graphics and sounds were done by me, although I had to have this demo done by yesterday for my school project so some of the graphics and sounds were downloaded from the internet from different sites here and there. Also, none of the music is mine.
I probably will not be keeping any of the music that is currently in the game. If you have some music or would like to develop some for my game just send me an email or reply back to this post. Of course I would give you proper credit in the game, as well as some option to go directly to the credits for if you wanted to show it for getting a job. I was going to post this in the help wanted section, but it says that there is a zero criticism policy, and I wanted criticism for my game feedback.
And yes, I had this posted earlier under a different topic name. One guy had given my game an awful review, and although I did appreciate the contsructive feedback, I think other people weren't even trying the game because of it.
[Edited by - deadlydog on August 25, 2005 12:38:23 PM]
Author
Nobody wants to test out my game? Like it says above, you don't have to fill out that big survey if you don't want to, I'd just appreciate any feedback at all.
Thanks.
Thanks.
1. Both A and C simultaniously.
2. C.
2a. Inertia was horrible, I really couldn't control the ship for toffee. It was like wading through treacle.
3. A. Can't have too much Monkey Island™ references for me :)
4. Idea was A but the controls make me give it a C.
5. Game was explained well enough, just those pesky controls again.
6. Music was pretty good. My only gripe with it is that static hiss at the start of the information screen, it's just way too loud.
7. The inertia on the ship.
8. Powerups would be nice, they may well be in there but I just couldn't play the game long enough to see if there were any.
9.
Please don't think I'm being mean here, it's a good effort but the fundamental lack of control on the ship makes for a not so fun experience.
2. C.
2a. Inertia was horrible, I really couldn't control the ship for toffee. It was like wading through treacle.
3. A. Can't have too much Monkey Island™ references for me :)
4. Idea was A but the controls make me give it a C.
5. Game was explained well enough, just those pesky controls again.
6. Music was pretty good. My only gripe with it is that static hiss at the start of the information screen, it's just way too loud.
7. The inertia on the ship.
8. Powerups would be nice, they may well be in there but I just couldn't play the game long enough to see if there were any.
9.
- I'm not a fan of installers to test people's games so I would have appriecated a simple zip file option.
- When the installer has finished there is an option to view a .doc file, perhaps this should be a rtf instead. Not everyone has a .doc viewer on their system.
- The amount of health your ship has is way too much, I tested it and after leaving the ship in the middle of the screen I could make a cup of tea and come back to a still-alive ship.
- The hit boxes on the main menu screen appear to be functioning bizarrely, i.e. if you click anywhere but the two side icons then you will always start a game.
- Personally I would have pressing ESCAPE take you back to the main menu and have a 'quit' option on there: you've taken the time to make a menu so use it :)
Please don't think I'm being mean here, it's a good effort but the fundamental lack of control on the ship makes for a not so fun experience.
Author
This Ship is tough to control on the first level, but it's like that because once you beat each level you are able to upgrade your ship (the controls, armor, health, weapons, etc). I'm assuming you never played for more than a couple minutes so you never made it past the 1st level.
Also, yes there are powerups (currently just health recovery and more weapons). You should've got the laser weapon on the first level if you played it for more than a minute. Once you reach the 2nd and 3rd level you get a lot more.
And while the enmies are tough to kill with your starting weapon, once you get the laser weapon and other ones from killing the enemies it gets a lot easier to kill them.
Yes, I agree with you about the health. There is too much to start with, but once you reach the tougher enemies you do need it. I'll need to sort of even all of that out.
And no, I don't think you're being mean. This is exactly what I'm looking for. Things that I can improve on the game. I'll also see about using a different format for the games manual other than .doc.
Thanks. Anyone else have comments?
Also, yes there are powerups (currently just health recovery and more weapons). You should've got the laser weapon on the first level if you played it for more than a minute. Once you reach the 2nd and 3rd level you get a lot more.
And while the enmies are tough to kill with your starting weapon, once you get the laser weapon and other ones from killing the enemies it gets a lot easier to kill them.
Yes, I agree with you about the health. There is too much to start with, but once you reach the tougher enemies you do need it. I'll need to sort of even all of that out.
And no, I don't think you're being mean. This is exactly what I'm looking for. Things that I can improve on the game. I'll also see about using a different format for the games manual other than .doc.
Thanks. Anyone else have comments?
1. Did you find the game:A. too easy
2. You found the controls:A. easy to use
3. The story line was:N/A (More on that later)
4. The game was:B. alright
5. Were you confused about anything in the game at any time? Is so, please explain.
I couldn't figure out how to move the ship with the mouse (I played in windowed mode if that makes a difference).
6. Were there any things that you really liked about the game? If so, please list them.
Easy to get into.
Easy to pick up and just shoot stuff.
WINDOWED.
7. Were there any things that you really disliked about the game? If so, please list them.
Lots of weapons, but the three shot machine gun was hands down the best weapon. Once you got that, you didn't need anything else.
There wasn't a lot of destruction at first (due to weak weapon, trouble lining up shots, etc.) which is a huge downside for this type of game.
Enemy shots were difficult to dodge.
It didn't matter if you dodged enemy shots, especially after getting max armor (health never dropped below 1900).
8. Were there any others things you would like to see in the game? If so, please list them.
More varied upgrades so I have interesting choices to make.
Also, don't give me enough money to buy all of the upgrades.
9. Please give any other comments you have about Blasteriod.
The fonts didn't work for me. Maybe I have to restart my comp before it'll recognize them. In any case, I couldn't read anything.
2. You found the controls:A. easy to use
3. The story line was:N/A (More on that later)
4. The game was:B. alright
5. Were you confused about anything in the game at any time? Is so, please explain.
I couldn't figure out how to move the ship with the mouse (I played in windowed mode if that makes a difference).
6. Were there any things that you really liked about the game? If so, please list them.
Easy to get into.
Easy to pick up and just shoot stuff.
WINDOWED.
7. Were there any things that you really disliked about the game? If so, please list them.
Lots of weapons, but the three shot machine gun was hands down the best weapon. Once you got that, you didn't need anything else.
There wasn't a lot of destruction at first (due to weak weapon, trouble lining up shots, etc.) which is a huge downside for this type of game.
Enemy shots were difficult to dodge.
It didn't matter if you dodged enemy shots, especially after getting max armor (health never dropped below 1900).
8. Were there any others things you would like to see in the game? If so, please list them.
More varied upgrades so I have interesting choices to make.
Also, don't give me enough money to buy all of the upgrades.
9. Please give any other comments you have about Blasteriod.
The fonts didn't work for me. Maybe I have to restart my comp before it'll recognize them. In any case, I couldn't read anything.
1. Awesome music! Too bad you can't include it in your final game.
2. The name Blasteroid(s) has already been used by Atari in a 1986 remake of Asteroids. They probably have a copyright/or trademark on that name, so you should probably rename your game to something else.
3. You might want to add more sound effects. Especially when a enemy ship is destroyed, or your ship is destroyed. In addition to sound effects, you may want to look into adding particle effects. (something like the explosions that occur in classic games like defender, or asteriods would be cool here)
4. Have some type of status as far as how many enemy ships remain to complete a level.
5. The controls on the ship did not seem "right". You may to consider reworking the acceleration/velocity of the ship.
6. It would be nice to have some type of enemy health status, so the player could know how many times left he has to shoot the enemy. This could be accomplished by changing the color of the enemy from one light shade color to a dark shade color. I am sure there are other ways to accomplish this.
7. Also, add some background art/animation if you have time (stars, suns, moons, etc.) etc.)
8. For a 2D game this is great. I think with just a little more time and effort you could probably produce the same 2d game (but in a 3d env.). This way you could add more special effects easier (particle effects, 3d explosions, enemies that appear to fly in and out of the z axis onto the playing field, rotating 2d sprites without having to add multiple 2d sprite frames) You could probably use something like C# and managed direct 3d code to do this.
[Edited by - dtaylorjr on August 25, 2005 10:53:55 PM]
2. The name Blasteroid(s) has already been used by Atari in a 1986 remake of Asteroids. They probably have a copyright/or trademark on that name, so you should probably rename your game to something else.
3. You might want to add more sound effects. Especially when a enemy ship is destroyed, or your ship is destroyed. In addition to sound effects, you may want to look into adding particle effects. (something like the explosions that occur in classic games like defender, or asteriods would be cool here)
4. Have some type of status as far as how many enemy ships remain to complete a level.
5. The controls on the ship did not seem "right". You may to consider reworking the acceleration/velocity of the ship.
6. It would be nice to have some type of enemy health status, so the player could know how many times left he has to shoot the enemy. This could be accomplished by changing the color of the enemy from one light shade color to a dark shade color. I am sure there are other ways to accomplish this.
7. Also, add some background art/animation if you have time (stars, suns, moons, etc.) etc.)
8. For a 2D game this is great. I think with just a little more time and effort you could probably produce the same 2d game (but in a 3d env.). This way you could add more special effects easier (particle effects, 3d explosions, enemies that appear to fly in and out of the z axis onto the playing field, rotating 2d sprites without having to add multiple 2d sprite frames) You could probably use something like C# and managed direct 3d code to do this.
[Edited by - dtaylorjr on August 25, 2005 10:53:55 PM]
Author
Awesome, thanks for the feedback guys. While I do appreciate the bad feedback as well, it's nice to have some good stuff too. As for some of the comments made:
Good to know. I was already thinking of changing the name anyways since it doesn't really suite the game. But now I have an actuall excuse to do it! :)
There actually is sound effects for both of these. Right now though the Volume control on Jim Adams' sound engine doesn't seem to be working, so the volume of the music is drowning out the sound effects. I'm thinkin about using a different sound engine.
If someone wants to let me use their sound engine I'll give em credit in the credits.
Almost everyone who's posted has said this is a big issue. I find the controls alright. Of course they suck at first until you upgrade them. But since everyone is finding a problem with it, I know it's just my programmers denial keeping me from seeing what's wrong with it, so could you be more specific about exacly what's wrong with it (i.e. you don't like how it uses acceleration, it moves to slowly, it only sux at first until you upgrade it, etc).
Sorry about that, the controls say you can move the ship with the mouse, and I did have that before but I could not find a way to make the mouse controls work well and be easy to use at all, so for the time being you can only move the ship with the keyboard.
I agree, I actually had plans to have each enemies health displayed above them in a little bar, but I also like your idea of simply using different colors and shading.
I also have plans for this. Eventually I intend to even have the first level as you fighting aliens as you leave Earths orbit, so their will even be friction calculated in the movement (from wind resistance).
That would be awesome. Like a Starfox type of game. I'm not sure if I'm that advanced yet though. This is only the second game I've made, the first being a tetris clone that looks like crap as it didn't use any external pictures; just DirectX 7 polygons and colors. Maybe that will come in Blasteroid 2 perhaps.
I plan on adding about 7 more types of weapons, so once I do that the machine gun weapon won't seem like the ultimate gun....that's just for now :)
Yeah, until you get the laser weapon it's not too interesting. Maybe I'll start the game off with the player having some laser or fireball or whatever weapons already so it doesn't start off so slow...hmmm....
Yeah, it's pretty hard to dodge using the current acceleration/velocity movement. I was thinking about also have a move fast button for a short speed burst, but I'm not sure about that. What I am going to have though is a shield button so you raise your shields before getting hit, but you wouldn't be able to shoot either while your shields are up. Sorta like blocking in a fighting game.
Don't worry, I've got tons in the works. I just need the time to create the pictures. Actually adding them to the game only takes about 5 mintues with my design.
I usually like having everything possible in the game by the time I reach the last level, but I can also see the appeal of this as it would add more strategy to the game. Anyone else have an opinion on this?
If you just downloaded the game files, not the installer, you will need to actually copy the 2 font files in Data\Fonts to your C:\Windows\Fonts directory. If you use the installer it will do this for you.
Awesome guys. Thanks for the great feedback. And believe me, I have way more additions/improvements I want to make to the game in the next few months. If I have time tomorrow I'll post my big list of them and I'll see which ones people like and don't like so I'll have it out of the way before actually implementing it. For now though, I'm goin to bed! Oh, also I updated the game a little bit tonight, just little stuff like Esc taking you to the main menu and shortening the first level as I found it dragged on a bit.
[Edited by - deadlydog on August 26, 2005 1:55:36 AM]
Quote:Original post by dtaylorjr
2. The name Blasteroid(s) has already been used by Atari in a 1986 remake of Asteroids. They probably have a copyright/or trademark on that name, so you should probably rename your game to something else.
Good to know. I was already thinking of changing the name anyways since it doesn't really suite the game. But now I have an actuall excuse to do it! :)
Quote:
3. You might want to add more sound effects. Especially when a enemy ship is destroyed, or your ship is destroyed.
There actually is sound effects for both of these. Right now though the Volume control on Jim Adams' sound engine doesn't seem to be working, so the volume of the music is drowning out the sound effects. I'm thinkin about using a different sound engine.
If someone wants to let me use their sound engine I'll give em credit in the credits.
Quote:
5. The controls on the ship did not seem "right". You may to consider reworking the acceleration/velocity of the ship.
Almost everyone who's posted has said this is a big issue. I find the controls alright. Of course they suck at first until you upgrade them. But since everyone is finding a problem with it, I know it's just my programmers denial keeping me from seeing what's wrong with it, so could you be more specific about exacly what's wrong with it (i.e. you don't like how it uses acceleration, it moves to slowly, it only sux at first until you upgrade it, etc).
Quote:Original post by Way Walker
5. I couldn't figure out how to move the ship with the mouse (I played in windowed mode if that makes a difference).
Sorry about that, the controls say you can move the ship with the mouse, and I did have that before but I could not find a way to make the mouse controls work well and be easy to use at all, so for the time being you can only move the ship with the keyboard.
Quote:Original post by dtaylorjr
6. It would be nice to have some type of enemy health status, so the player could know how many times left he has to shoot the enemy. This could be accomplished by changing the color of the enemy from one light shade color to a dark shade color. I am sure there are other ways to accomplish this.
I agree, I actually had plans to have each enemies health displayed above them in a little bar, but I also like your idea of simply using different colors and shading.
Quote:
7. Also, add some background art/animation if you have time (stars, suns, moons, etc.) etc.)
I also have plans for this. Eventually I intend to even have the first level as you fighting aliens as you leave Earths orbit, so their will even be friction calculated in the movement (from wind resistance).
Quote:
8. For a 2D game this is great. I think with just a little more time and effort you could probably produce the same 2d game (but in a 3d env.). This way you could add more special effects easier (particle effects, 3d explosions, enemies that appear to fly in and out of the z axis onto the playing field, rotating 2d sprites without having to add multiple 2d sprite frames) You could probably use something like C# and managed direct 3d code to do this.
That would be awesome. Like a Starfox type of game. I'm not sure if I'm that advanced yet though. This is only the second game I've made, the first being a tetris clone that looks like crap as it didn't use any external pictures; just DirectX 7 polygons and colors. Maybe that will come in Blasteroid 2 perhaps.
Quote:Original post by Way Walker
7. Were there any things that you really disliked about the game? If so, please list them.
Lots of weapons, but the three shot machine gun was hands down the best weapon. Once you got that, you didn't need anything else.
I plan on adding about 7 more types of weapons, so once I do that the machine gun weapon won't seem like the ultimate gun....that's just for now :)
Quote:
There wasn't a lot of destruction at first (due to weak weapon, trouble lining up shots, etc.) which is a huge downside for this type of game.
Yeah, until you get the laser weapon it's not too interesting. Maybe I'll start the game off with the player having some laser or fireball or whatever weapons already so it doesn't start off so slow...hmmm....
Quote:
Enemy shots were difficult to dodge.
Yeah, it's pretty hard to dodge using the current acceleration/velocity movement. I was thinking about also have a move fast button for a short speed burst, but I'm not sure about that. What I am going to have though is a shield button so you raise your shields before getting hit, but you wouldn't be able to shoot either while your shields are up. Sorta like blocking in a fighting game.
Quote:
8. Were there any others things you would like to see in the game? If so, please list them.
More varied upgrades so I have interesting choices to make.
Don't worry, I've got tons in the works. I just need the time to create the pictures. Actually adding them to the game only takes about 5 mintues with my design.
Quote:
Also, don't give me enough money to buy all of the upgrades.
I usually like having everything possible in the game by the time I reach the last level, but I can also see the appeal of this as it would add more strategy to the game. Anyone else have an opinion on this?
Quote:
The fonts didn't work for me. Maybe I have to restart my comp before it'll recognize them. In any case, I couldn't read anything.
If you just downloaded the game files, not the installer, you will need to actually copy the 2 font files in Data\Fonts to your C:\Windows\Fonts directory. If you use the installer it will do this for you.
Awesome guys. Thanks for the great feedback. And believe me, I have way more additions/improvements I want to make to the game in the next few months. If I have time tomorrow I'll post my big list of them and I'll see which ones people like and don't like so I'll have it out of the way before actually implementing it. For now though, I'm goin to bed! Oh, also I updated the game a little bit tonight, just little stuff like Esc taking you to the main menu and shortening the first level as I found it dragged on a bit.
[Edited by - deadlydog on August 26, 2005 1:55:36 AM]
Quote:Original post by deadlydog
Awesome, thanks for the feedback guys. While I do appreciate the bad feedback as well, it's nice to have some good stuff too. As for some of the comments made:
I hope my post didn't seem too negative. I still have the game installed and I'm still shooting stuff (means I liked it).
Quote:Quote:
5. The controls on the ship did not seem "right". You may to consider reworking the acceleration/velocity of the ship.
Almost everyone who's posted has said this is a big issue. I find the controls alright. Of course they suck at first until you upgrade them. But since everyone is finding a problem with it, I know it's just my programmers denial keeping me from seeing what's wrong with it, so could you be more specific about exacly what's wrong with it (i.e. you don't like how it uses acceleration, it moves to slowly, it only sux at first until you upgrade it, etc).
I don't know how it's actually set up, but it should be fine the way it is if you start out a little better and get to upgrade to even better than before.
Quote:Quote:Original post by Way Walker
5. I couldn't figure out how to move the ship with the mouse (I played in windowed mode if that makes a difference).
Sorry about that, the controls say you can move the ship with the mouse, and I did have that before but I could not find a way to make the mouse controls work well and be easy to use at all, so for the time being you can only move the ship with the keyboard.
For this type of movement, I think keyboard is best. If you weren't so concerned with acceleration (i.e. took that aspect out) mouse would probably be best.
Quote:Quote:
7. Also, add some background art/animation if you have time (stars, suns, moons, etc.) etc.)
I also have plans for this. Eventually I intend to even have the first level as you fighting aliens as you leave Earths orbit, so their will even be friction calculated in the movement (from wind resistance).
I'm not sure wind resistance is a good idea, especially not in the first level. The player won't know the normal controls well enough to notice what's wrong. Also, I don't think it would add anything. But if you just want to have fun adding physics, by all means, go ahead, it's fun. :)
Quote:Quote:Original post by Way Walker
7. Were there any things that you really disliked about the game? If so, please list them.
Lots of weapons, but the three shot machine gun was hands down the best weapon. Once you got that, you didn't need anything else.
I plan on adding about 7 more types of weapons, so once I do that the machine gun weapon won't seem like the ultimate gun....that's just for now :)
Adding is fine, but the current weapons are completely unbalanced. Normal weapon until you get the laser, laser until you finish the first level, then nothing but three shot machine gun until you win.
Quote:Quote:
There wasn't a lot of destruction at first (due to weak weapon, trouble lining up shots, etc.) which is a huge downside for this type of game.
Yeah, until you get the laser weapon it's not too interesting. Maybe I'll start the game off with the player having some laser or fireball or whatever weapons already so it doesn't start off so slow...hmmm....
This would help a lot.
Quote:Quote:
Enemy shots were difficult to dodge.
Yeah, it's pretty hard to dodge using the current acceleration/velocity movement. I was thinking about also have a move fast button for a short speed burst, but I'm not sure about that. What I am going to have though is a shield button so you raise your shields before getting hit, but you wouldn't be able to shoot either while your shields are up. Sorta like blocking in a fighting game.
This should also come with a reduction in ship's health and/or armor because there was really no reason to dodge.
Quote:Quote:
The fonts didn't work for me. Maybe I have to restart my comp before it'll recognize them. In any case, I couldn't read anything.
If you just downloaded the game files, not the installer, you will need to actually copy the 2 font files in Data\Fonts to your C:\Windows\Fonts directory. If you use the installer it will do this for you.
I used the installer and the fonts didn't work. I didn't check to see if they were already in the fonts directory. Then I downloaded the zip file and copied them manually and it still didn't work. Realize, it might be a problem on my end. I'm using Win98SE and my computer, in general, is fussy about DirectX.
Also, I play in windowed mode and have a habit of closing the window using the x button. It doesn't seem to like that.
Author
Quote:Original post by Way WalkerQuote:Original post by deadlydog
Awesome, thanks for the feedback guys. While I do appreciate the bad feedback as well, it's nice to have some good stuff too. As for some of the comments made:
I hope my post didn't seem too negative. I still have the game installed and I'm still shooting stuff (means I liked it).
Actually I had a few posts prior to yours under a different topic that all said the game was horrible and needed to be totally reworked, but they also said they only played it for about 20 seconds which explains their reactions. What I meant to say was that your posts was one of the good ones..... you actually commented on some things you did like about it and gave me some useful feedback other than "it sucks".
Quote:Quote:Quote:
The fonts didn't work for me. Maybe I have to restart my comp before it'll recognize them. In any case, I couldn't read anything.
If you just downloaded the game files, not the installer, you will need to actually copy the 2 font files in Data\Fonts to your C:\Windows\Fonts directory. If you use the installer it will do this for you.
I used the installer and the fonts didn't work. I didn't check to see if they were already in the fonts directory. Then I downloaded the zip file and copied them manually and it still didn't work. Realize, it might be a problem on my end. I'm using Win98SE and my computer, in general, is fussy about DirectX.
Also, I play in windowed mode and have a habit of closing the window using the x button. It doesn't seem to like that.
Hmmm, well I haven't been able to test my game on Win98 myself yet, that may be the problem. And yeah, I also noticed it doesn't like closing it using the X button in Windowed mode. It's on my things to fix list.
Thanks again for the great feedback. Anyone else got anything for me?
This topic is closed to new replies.
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