I will be the odd one out again and say I like it just the way it is. Agreed there is a learning curve to go through to identify all the different objects on screen, enemies vs bullets vs items for pick-up, what is safe to and what is dangerous. However bullet hell games in general are very busy with an overwhelming number of objects on screen and to me this learning curve is one part of the appeal of bullet hell games. After playing the game for a while everything becomes quite easy to identify as you get used to it, even with the abstract art style of this particular game. I do love the art style of this game and the more I play the more appreciate how well it is designed, the amount of thought that has been given to the design and level of detail that has been put in. In general the more dangerous an object is the more clearly it is defined on the screen, bullets are very clearly defined with sharp solid edges, and certain more dangerous enemies also have very solid white borders. Less dangerous objects are more transparent, such as the quickly falling enemies (sort of like small rocks falling) near the beginning of the first stage which are entirely harmless. These are subtle visual clues to bring your attention to the most important (i.e. most dangerous) objects on screen first, once you take care of those than you can pay attention to the less dangerous (less visible) objects. In keeping with this, some enemies fade in from transparent to solid before they fire bullets. So, as they become more dangerous they become more solid and your attention is guided toward them. There is also some different highlighting (red) for some enemies as you are shooting them. I am not entirely sure yet if there is any significance to the red other than simply allowing you to see and confirm your fire is hitting it's mark. I find all of these details are a part of what makes this game excellent, and I don't wish for it to be changed. Agreed it's a learning curve at the start, but for me I would prefer the learning curve and keep all these subtle details as they are in the game.
^^gotta completely agree. I love the style and colors used in the current build. I got very comfortable with the visuals after my first couple games... Turning the brightness up did help a bit in the beginning though.
I mostly disagree with the 4 posts above. You guys seems so hesitant to any kind of change. Changes which I think would be an improvement. I guess we all agree to disagree on this one. #
No, not hesitant to change. I just think the game is *great* the way it is. The shading and colouring used is fundamental to the design of the game. xjaff's post (a few posts above) explains this very well. The most obvious examples include bosses that have semi-transparent bullets/lasers spreading out, and during their transparency (so to speak), you are given sufficient time to understand what is going on and react accordingly. Once the firepower turns bright white, you know the danger has been activated! I think it's a remarkable example of visual design. On an unrelated note, it *feels* like some events are timed to the music! I could be totally wrong on this, but at the start of level 1, if you shoot the enemies right after they come onto the screen (thereby maximising the kill-score for each one), their explosion sound effects appear to be timed to the beat of the music! But I could have just been imagining it (maybe it's just coincidence?)...
Great point! I didn't mention that one in my earlier post but it is a perfect example. Interesting! I actually turned the music very low (pretty much off) early on so I could hear the sound effects, wanting to hear the refill of the homing laser gage in particular. I will have to turn the music back up and listen for this.
5th March 2015 [thread=256486][/thread] [thread=256469][/thread] [thread=256611][/thread] [thread=256475][/thread] [thread=256474][/thread][thread=256478][/thread] .Decluster - Into the Bullet Hell Has successfully been nominated for the TA Forums' Game of the Week VOTE HERE Developers, publishers or affiliates cannot vote for their own games!!
Interesting. I turned the music back up and had a go. I see what you are referring to, I am guessing it is coincidence but I can't say with certainty either way. Certainly the music is composed in keeping with each stage overall and highlights the small transitions/sub-sections within each stage (most obvious example is when the stage banner appears at the beginning of a stage the music intensifies on time with the banner appearing). Whether or not the optimal timing of certain enemy kills are actually in time with the beat of the music...I can neither confirm or deny. It would be mind blowing if it so. Perhaps if Masayuki Ito joins us again he can provide insight on the music
I hear certainly so at the start of level 1, too... but it's just coincidence. nice try! yeah, Music and some of the effects are synchronized. especially stage banner.
Thanks for the response Masayuki Ito! The more I play this game the more I enjoy it, and the more I appreciate how well it designed. Fantastic!
We're in the home stretch in this weeks poll and by my count Blokshot is currently out in front with 15 votes, with .Decluster and Blockwick 2 chasing hard on 12 and 11 votes respectively. It's a close one, folks!
Just out of curiousity, with the bullet cancel bonus that gets carried forward to each stage in a normal game, how would you implement individual level high scores? Only track a level high score if the game started from that level? I like the high score table you currently have implemented for highest scoring run on each difficulty. Another question: What does the number for the "destruction" bonus represent? Is that the number of enemies killed since the last time you lost a life? Thanks!
