Jojiro's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[A Kitty Dream]

The match of music to the game really turns what would otherwise be "just another platform puzzler" into a cute little game with lots of ambiance. I love the detail work on the characters and tiles despite the limited palette. It shows a degree of care and polish that is rare in games made for jams.

My only complaint is that the room with 5 blocks seems to be impossible. I have 2 secrets, I've managed to completely leave the map with block-hackery, I've talked to the guy who says it's been a long time since he got visitors, I've tried bringing in blocks from other screens...

Nothing is working. Is it impossible or a bug? Or am I missing something obvious? Or is it not even a trick, and I just can't solve puzzles? :(

Anyway, it's the little things that keep me playing. The puzzle elements may not be innovative, but the lines when he jumps, the puffs of smoke...it's those things that make the game scream out how polished it is, despite how understated those effects are. Truly a work of art.

And a work of frustration, for me. XD

Raiyumi responds:

Thanks. :)

Hint: The blocks don't need to stay in place. They just need to all be touching at the same time. Good luck. :)

[Panda Rush]

I'd love to see a version of this game that increased the sense of progression as you moved along. Power ups would be welcome. A plot would be welcome. The ability to finish a level would be welcome.

This has a lot of potential to grow, and could be a lot more exciting and better executed as a result. I look forward to see what you have in store for the future.

AndrewEkeren responds:

Great, thank you very much for playing and the feedback! I'm keeping a list of possible additions for a sequel.

[Defender]

It's like fighting off an Evangelion or Angel using a slingshot. The graphics is pretty phenomenal when you consider a limitation of 4 colors. If the game is also supposed to be minimalistic, it also meets that goal.

In terms of controls, I agree that a pause option, replay option, and a mute option would be welcome. They are kind of par for the course for even this sort of minimalistic game. Additionally, the use of the slingshot and the perspective/physics of it, while they made sense once I knew what to do, weren't exactly intuitive. You don't have to hold the player's hand, but at least give them rudimentary directions. For a while I thought I was supposed to be clicking on those tumbleweeds, or the cube, or something.

In terms of objectives, having levels wouldn't have hurt. You already have the engine in place, why not have several enemies that come in waves? The city could be 'rebuilt' each time or something. Having just a cube to defeat didn't seem ambitious. Especially with the odd difficulty curve. If you can't figure out the slingshot, the cube is hard, but it's actually not too difficult.

In terms of other execution points...the cube seems to be invincible while horizontally transitioning from a destroyed building to the next, and also while it is mid-pound. This seems like a bit of lazy programming or something, since logistically it shouldn't be invincible at those times. I'm also curious if the slingshot action couldn't be animated a bit better, since it's definitely got the most lazy graphics and animation with the string.

Good game, cool and unique (comparatively) gameplay idea, and slightly botched execution that still delivers a playable and quasi-challenging game.

SpringMissile responds:

Yeah, it was made in ~40 hours in total and so I was waiting on the artist for some things whilst he was waiting on me for some others. Turns out that we didn't have time by the end of the compo to ass Pause / Replay. There is a lot of lazy programming, but the cube is supposed to be invincible since it spins much faster when moving, we just didn't have time to show it was invincible, sorry! :)

[Less is More?]

A very creative submission that is in the rare genre of sandbox games. The physics engine is interesting, to say the least.

I do wish that levels were more than just box structures, even with the theme of minimalism. Minimalism should always enhance gameplay, not limit creativity or in this case level design, and I think you kind of boxed yourself in with the boxes, pun fully intended.

Also, level selection when there are levels is always good.

I want to say that due to these bits, you didn't fully meet the level of ambition and polish needed for a truly stellar game despite the creativity of the concept and the fun physics engine. Still, a neat little gem in a rare genre that is worth taking a look at.

mastornadettofernet responds:

Thanks for your feedback, well, i had to design all levels in less than 4-5 hours, and to be faithful to theme I chose a "mondrianish" style. That's also the reason for the level-editor, i know it's possible to achieve very creative things with this idea, look at the Zivs levels for example. If the game is well received an many plays it i'll consider to make a more polished sequel, maybe a smartphone/tablet version.

[Zin]

Music is nice and the game is simple, but I don't really understand the win condition. I didn't collect all the goals, and near the end I was just getting pummeled to death honestly.

Then it said I won.

Also, not sure how anything besides the music has anything to do with Zen. I don't think it's a good enough reason to claim connection to a large philosophical principle. Overall decent. Not too special or innovative, but well executed.

henrykun responds:

Thank you very much for you comment. The game was inspired by Zen using the "minimalism" philosophy, or at least what I understood about it: live in a minimalist way. My idea with the little creature was to simulate that you have to eat to live but not too much because if you do it it would be easy to get hit by the green squares, which are not good for you. The same situation occurs with the small goals that you achieve (darker green squares), you really don't need them to win but they are good because give you points (they represent greed), if you try to get all of them it's easier to get hit as well. In the end, there is only one space to be saved from the squares, if you stay small the probability to be saved is higher than being saved if you are large, That's what I tried to do, maybe I had to polish the idea a little bit, Thank you again :).

[COLORUS]

The music was actually a really good fit, and the color elimination game mechanic was a cool idea that embraced the theme of minimalism.

I wish you expressed more clearly the instructions of the game at the very beginning, as I didn't really understand why I was "choosing the wrong color" at the beginning. It was fairly intuitive, so this is a minor gripe, but it would have helped.

Grammar was kind of an issue with all sentence combinations. Again, a minor gripe, but it should be:
"You must pick your color faster" or "You must pick the color faster"
"You picked the wrong color"
"Before you start playing, I want to ask you a question...would you like to play with sound effects?"

The game itself utilizes a nice color palette that isn't too hurtful on the eyes, and the music fits well. Animation and gameplay are smooth and well-polished (not difficult to do considering the simplicity, but still worth complimenting).

I wish that it wasn't asdfg for colors though, I really do. My right hand totally would be able to help more intuitively if the order of development had been adk;sfjlgh, which encompasses the full range of the keyboard. Of course, that many colors would have been challenging to sort through, but maybe maxing out at 8 would still be doable (adk;sfjl), or 6 (asjkdl).

Great game.

JokerDenFromMR responds:

Helpful review, thanks! Suddenly somebody helps me with language.

[Oddo]

The game is boring with a lack of progression in terms of both new obstacles and in terms of powering up or feeling like there is a growth in our character. The graphics style, while interesting, needs to lend itself to the gameplay better: the squiggly nature of our character and some of the 'spew'-style obstacles makes it hard to guess where a hitbox might be.

The three achievements, if they can be called that, aren't fun and only provide a score bonus, which isn't a very high motivation compared to buying power-ups or somehow creating a different game experience. Overall, execution is decently done, the game just isn't ambitious enough to be truly entertaining. At best a time killer, at worst rather uninspired and boring.

wootra responds:

Thanks for the comments :) The achievements are missions, and they do provide a reward in coins when completed. Thanks for playing.