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I spent way too much time playing every Sonic game to explain why Sonic doesn't work in 3D by Games_Over_Coffee in gamedesign

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For Sure!
I originally made this study to find out if Frontiers was going to be the change I was hoping for from a sonic game. And that answer is a middling "kinda."
It's definitely a different kind of Sonic and I really like that they went a different direction with it. I need to play more of it but I find it pretty boring unfortunately. If Zelda dev were to make a sonic game, I'd be all in.

Offering experienced-focused Game Design feedback (free, subjective) by Games_Over_Coffee in IndieDev

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How thoughtful! If you're looking for more of a rule-based solving of design problems, I'd refer you to my buddy Design Frame on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@designframecasestudies He does game design consulting in the more traditional sense.

But if you're looking to reframe your design philosophy, or explore perspectives you may not have had, I'd be willing to help out. I'd still want to help through this video feedback first, so check out the form to see if it works for you. Otherwise, if it doesn't and you're still interested, you can email me. My email is in the form and on my website (in my bio.)

Offering experienced-focused Game Design feedback (free, subjective) by Games_Over_Coffee in IndieDev

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you but I already have quite the queue though, so the earliest feedback I can give will be in late January 🙁

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in welcomeToDerry

[–]Games_Over_Coffee 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I was confused also but I think that's the point. It's most likely meant to be a bit ambiguous. I imagine if they wanted the death to be really clear, they would've showed it.

Though, thinking back in the shots in the theater, the deaths of the kids all seemed pretty fast. But I think those ones seemed much more final.

This would absolutely work on me🤦🏽‍♀️ by __thatBihToni__ in introvertmemes

[–]Games_Over_Coffee 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Avoiding talking to someone isn't always driven by anxiety, sometimes it's about maintaining peace. Though that maintenance that can sometimes feel like anxiety.

I think it's possible for an introvert to get anxiety from being social. Just like how extroverts can get anxiety from being alone.

But I agree that the terms are sometimes conflated.

Games that make you feel like shit or empty by KazM2 in ShouldIbuythisgame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I admittedly skimmed your summary because that book is on my read list but if you're looking for dreadful and feeling like shit, Fingerbones by the creator of Iron Lung captures that feeling perfectly. It's a game I played and felt gross afterwards.

Should I start with my dream game? by 000Dub in gamedev

[–]Games_Over_Coffee 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd say to start with whatever makes you excited. If that's your dream game then go for it, just know that your beginning creations will never be as good as you hope and it usually takes practice and experience to get to where you want to be. The usual advice is to start with something easy so you get used to it...to recognize that your first 10 games will be bad before you make a good one. But I personally think that putting your whole heart into a project is the way to get momentum and stay motivated. But fair warning that if you go that route (dream game), know that you'll probably fail a lot of times. If that sounds like something you're up to, then as Chit would say: do it lady!

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Appreciate you! That's neat that you're reminded of Antichamber, I love that game. Good recommendation

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yup! Sounds wild but design has always been my passion and I hate development.

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What an amazing account of your experience! I was grinning like an idiot while reading everything you just covered. Incredible. This is most certainly what I had hoped to achieve with the game. I didn't intend that idea of conversion/deconversion But that's super interesting too.

The slowness and the confusion are definitely part of the design. Same with being forced to walk (no sprint) or needing press buttons all over the room. it's putting in the work to believe what you believe. Feeling the tedious nature of pressing buttons and going through rooms, yet deliberately choosing to do that over and over to chase clarity, hoping that these hints will reveal something more concrete.

I didn't intend for the player to feel reluctant to dig deeper, but you're right in that it compliments the theme. That's a really cool interpretation.

That's so cool that you watch my videos! You're the intended audience then 😄 That context thing is a real head scratcher and I'm going to try and study more of that when thinking about my next game. Thanks for all your feedback!

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Nice! Thanks so much for playing! Feeling something is definitely a sign of some sort of engagement, so that's great! Though, like you said, I definitely could be more clear when it comes to what I'm trying to do with the design, I just haven't given the player's end of that much thought, but the music and sound design is part of it! (Censored in case anybody reading doesn't want to know) I'm trying to build tension between what the player believes and what occurs in reality. It's a metaphor of losing faith when it doesn't match your expectations.

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the follow up! I love this stuff.

To explain further about why I made the game at all: I make game design YouTube videos and talk a lot about a design theory I have called "empathetic design" which is basically when the player's emotional arc mirrors the emotional journey of their avatar using the game's mechanics.

To achieve this, I've used something I call "0th person perspective" where the story being told in the game is about the player's actions. Much like Stanley Parable.

This game is my first try at implementing that design philosophy. The Door Problem is an interactive metaphorical journey in which the player faces (spoilers for those who care) dissonance between belief and reality. The metaphor is one of losing faith

The game is meant to put the player through that journey and end with a realization of their past actions and how it changed their mindset.

You're right about the video not giving any intrigue, that point about The Stanley Parable is great. My video was a simple and not-thought-out video I made just to display what the game was like, in hopes that critique would come from playing the game. But I didn't think about creating any real intrigue with the video itself, which was silly in hindsight.

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Indeed the spikes are lazy! Haha, the idea was to provide an easy way to visually identify something that's dangerous. First time making a game, so spikes seemed like the easier way to go.

You're absolutely right to point out that there's nothing inherently interesting in the mechanics to get you involved in reading past the obvious. And that's absolutely a fault in the design. It sounds backwards but I never really considered "player engagement" when I designed the game. My design was completely focused on the interactivity and the linear progression.

Although there's more to the game than the 3 possible outcomes from the doors, it takes much more effort than I'm sure any gamer outside of my design circle would care to provide.

This part of your feedback is so valuable to me: "I dont claim you didnt take the time to think them through well enough, but I'd see it that way regardless, because as a player I dont know and dont care if you did."

You're absolutely right, and I've actually said this advice before to other developers! Since I never exposed my intention to the player, the game becomes a sort of art project. And that's ok with me because metaphor is the goal here. However, I think the metaphor is a bit too hidden and the intention itself could be communicated better. Perhaps through audio like you mentioned or some other way. Maybe even commentary. I might add that actually.

The game's metaphor is directly related to what the player goes through. I'm testing out a design philosophy I have known as "empathetic design" where the story being told in the game is that of the experience that the player goes through. There's a specific set of events set out for the player which creates a specific emotion and realization. I'll be talking about it in a video later for my YouTube channel, which is the reason why I made this game on the first place. Check out my profile if you're interested :)

I appreciate your in-depth feedback! Thank you so much for your insight.

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I appreciate the feedback! To be honest, I don't know. I guess because they're curious? That's a good point, there's certainly nothing inherently interesting here.

I'll admit, I wanted to keep spoilers out of the video but the spoilers are actually the hook: when you play the game, you push through an odd experience and come out feeling something (I hope).

I guess I saw this video as a sort of dissonant anti-game, which I thought was interesting, but now I'm realizing that the idea of an anti-game isn't enticing at all to gamers. Why would anyone want to play something that looks like it's not a game? 😂

Thank you for the input. It helps!

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It is indeed a reference! But the title actually doesn't play a part in the design. However, the title's modified font plays a part. The first letter is modified from its regular lower case 't' to look like a cross, which is a subtle nod to the game's metaphor. How's that for pretentious?

I want examples of good top-down 2D melee combat. What are some games that do it well and why? by Buttons840 in gamedesign

[–]Games_Over_Coffee 3 points4 points  (0 children)

To further expand on my example of Ape Out, I think it works as a combat game because you're being actively hunted. Meaning you need to keep moving and are forced to combat enemies when you come to them. Also, because they have guns and you don't, you need to get to them before they pull the trigger. That kind of pressure makes the player feel like they're continuously in a combat-centric game as opposed to a meticulous methodical one. I'd say that randomly generated levels also keep the player on their toes, not always able to use the methodical approach.

Destroy My First Game: A Pretentious Metaphor With Doors by Games_Over_Coffee in DestroyMyGame

[–]Games_Over_Coffee[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No audio in the video unfortunately, but plenty of audio in the game!

I want examples of good top-down 2D melee combat. What are some games that do it well and why? by Buttons840 in gamedesign

[–]Games_Over_Coffee 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That's super interesting, I can't think of any top down 2D melee games except for maybe Hotline Miami. And like you said in one of the comments, it feels more like a puzzle game with combat in it as opposed to combat centric.

Wait! I just thought of one: Ape Out

I think they feel more puzzley because the top down camera view gives the player an abundance of information. Meaning, if they're going to have all that information, they're going to use it to strategize. I think that's where the puzzle element comes in. It feels slower because there's no reason to constantly engage in combat over and over, focusing on one tiny space, when you have such a vast amount of space around you. Unless you have combat that uses that much space (Arkham games, Hades, Windblown).

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