GameClub Melodive (by Johan Gjestland)

Discussion in 'iPhone and iPad Games' started by Sanuku, Mar 6, 2013.

  1. nightc1

    nightc1 Well-Known Member

    Oct 19, 2012
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    I think you're over thinking it... but I'm only ranked 1065 right now on score and have played only a half dozen times which may place me above my gc friends (which are mostly TA regs) but far from the millions that the top players seem to have. Maybe top players would be able to exploit it but they could do that already by simply taking a snapshot of the screen (power/home combo press) then circling (home) out and opening the photos app and looking at the results. So pausing overall shouldn't really give that much of an advantage at all if the screen goes black. They can still screen shot cheat if there's any reason to do that.

    Oh and hey thanks for such a solid response. It's always cool to see a dev on here that wants to improve their game and get feedback from people that are serious about iOS gaming. I need to play more of the game before I post a review, but I intend on at least posting a review.
     
  2. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    Melodive doesn't support multitasking so the photo-exploit wouldn't work. But I think you're right saying that I am overthinking it, or it's more of an excuse really, because I never felt the need for it personally. I'll try to put it in, as I've gotten a few requests for it.

    Ok, cool, you should take your time. A lot of people have updated their reviews after playing for a few days! It's very good for me to have this community as there are some serious gamers here that's pretty fed up with the app store. So I have gotten a lot of help from toucharcade. A lot of the early reviews came from here and several first time posters stepped forward to defend the game it was standing on shaky ground after release. Also you must remember that this as mainly been in my head for the last years. The last couple of months it has been starting to feel very heavy, so it's great to know that people actually enjoy this so much that would like to discuss it. That makes it all worth it for me and it proves that I wasn't crazy spending so much time on this. It sure felt like it sometimes. :)
     
  3. Chester_Copperpot

    Nov 21, 2012
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    #343 Chester_Copperpot, Apr 1, 2013
    Last edited: Apr 1, 2013
    Understood. I don't mind a reasonable amount of grinding. I guess growing up on RPGs has something to do with that. Still, it's refreshing to see a dev with such principles.

    I think I'll gift it a couple times, but the donate button will be good for people who don't have anyone to gift the app to.
    Much appreciated. The lock screen solution will work in the interim. I had tried using the Home button, which obviously didn't work too well for pausing. :)
    I don't know if it proves your sanity, but I definitely think it was a worthwhile project. :)

    The audiobus ideas ya'll tossed around sounded pretty cool, by the way.
     
  4. b00sta

    b00sta New Member

    Apr 2, 2013
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    Hi just wanted to say this game is amazing. ive gotten my score over 10mil but im still confused by a few things.

    Does the max speed you reach have any effect on multiplying the score or should i keep at a steady pace.

    I can get over 10km to activate the bonus but what does it do?

    thanks
     
  5. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    Yes, gifting is good. Especially today, as I'm trying to break into the paid charts. Have to start from scratch again, so it's a bit nerve-wrecking. I pushed out 50k free copies, so hopefully it will lead to a few sales and hopefully some gifting. :)
     
  6. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    No max speed doesnt do anything. Mean speed and melodium is a bous multipler to the depth!

    There is no bonus, you only unlock the sequencer!

    Hope this answers you questions! :)
     
  7. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    Hello people,

    A quick update:
    Version 1.1 was downloaded 45k times when it went free, so it's now a grand total of 50k! :)

    Update 1.2 is being coded as we speak. There was some problems for the top players in the last update, as the terrain got a bit more sparse than it should (v 1.0). This means that you could run into a invisible wall, because you would fly faster than the device could generate new terrain. I apologise for that, as it should have been more tested. What you can do now if you experience this: When the game starts, wait 5 seconds before pressing start. The terrain needs to load first, usually this isn't a problem, but if you are very quick to press start and then boost a lot, you might hit the wall. This has been by main focus to fix.

    The good news is that version 1.1 was recieved better by the new players. A lot of nice reviews from all the world, just a few sour. If somebody wants to update their review in the states, I would consider it a great favor, as there is suddenly two bad reviews in a row. That's the risk you run when going free, but all in all I'm suprised by the positive response! Thank you all downloaders and reviewers! :)

    So this is what's coming in version 1.2:
    - A lot of tweeks with terrain, color and speed, all for the better, I promise.
    - New SPEED-mode with seperate leaderboard (score = metallic melodium x depth x speed)
    - Unlocked sequencer from the start!
    - Depth-indication by color of sky and metallic melodium (starts at red, ends up at red again (after doing a full cycle) at 10,000 meters)
    - Uniform density for all gravity (means a bit easier for the beginners)
    - Better horizon and sky ->easier orientation. The sky will always have some color now.

    I have tried to listen to all the requests, but it's not all that is possible at this time. But it's still not too late with requests!
     
  8. Chester_Copperpot

    Nov 21, 2012
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    Sounds awesome. I'm going to enjoy watching this game evolve. :)
     
  9. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    Thanks, it's being stress-tested right now! I will submit tomorrow. I'm real excited about this release. :)
     
  10. Candykiller

    Candykiller Well-Known Member
    Patreon Bronze

    Dec 15, 2010
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    Any idea when you plan to add new soundpacks to the game? I think different music would help to keep the game feeling fresh. Something more electronic would be my personal preference.
     
  11. nightc1

    nightc1 Well-Known Member

    Oct 19, 2012
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    Posted a 5* review. It usually takes a while for them to show. Sadly though with the update in the works that'll bump the review to the "All Versions" section but hopefully I'll remember when the update hits to update the review as well.

    Great job on the game. I see what you meant about not being able to do the screen shot trick. It's a shame the game doesn't run in the background just in the event of a phone call or just needing to take a break mid game because the wife or kids needs something.
     
  12. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    Even more elecontric? Minimalistic, or ambient? All the soundpacks will be electronic, more or less as simple sounds work the best. I have hit a bit of a snag in the production though, as different soundpacks infuences the gameplay (the picking up of Melodium). Besides it's really hard to find good sounds as they need to be very un-irritating. I went though a million iterations with the current soundpack. I am however commited to doing this, but I am rethinking my approach a bit. Instead of just sound packs, I am thinking environment packs, because the sounds give a very specific mood. Would be cool to match this up with different terrain and color combos. So I'm thinking different editions all together. I don't know if this idea makes any sense, but it would be cool to do. But I haven't decided yet. I might get it to work wihin the current framework. It's just a lot simpler to manage this though the app store with different apps than making a interface for it and re-coding the code to be as flexible as it should. I have a full-time job also, so it's hard to fit everything in. I really wish this was my only job!

    Also, I needed to finish the 1.2 first, as there is some things in 1.1 i'm not that happy with.
     
  13. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    Cool, thanks! I am actually very suprised by all the 5 star reviews, as I know this is not the most user-friendly game. :) It's excellent if you update your review as this makes it very visible. I got a few bad reviews while it was free. I should write a warning in the description:"WARNING: You need more than 5 second attention span to play this game!"

    Thanks, I really appreciate the support! Phone call is actually fine, you can also use the lock-button, no problem. That's at least something! :) Running in the background takes to much saving, loading and reconstructing. I don't even know if it's possible. I will always keep the load-time short and sweet however. I am amazed by the iphone 5, it's so quick compared to the 4s!
     
  14. drelbs

    drelbs Well-Known Member

    Jun 25, 2009
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    The folks at Big Blue Bubble have created some fantastic organic sounds for Thumpies and My Singing Monsters. Otherwise, nothing else comes to mind - light electronica is probably best with this game. It would be neat if they were instead Themes, with different ambient sounds, active sounds, and flora.
     
  15. Candykiller

    Candykiller Well-Known Member
    Patreon Bronze

    Dec 15, 2010
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    I would say that many of the current percussive sounds are quite traditional acoustic instruments such as tablas and congas. I'm thinking more obviously synthetic sounds like TR808'ish drum machine style percussion and Kraftwerk-like sequencer sounds. Or Eno-style ambient sounds. That sort of thing.
     
  16. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    Thanks for the tip. Yes, I think it should be themes. How to you feel about seperate editions. I know Melodive isn't Pokemon, but still... :)
     
  17. gjestland

    gjestland Well-Known Member

    Jan 15, 2013
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    #357 gjestland, Apr 4, 2013
    Last edited: Apr 4, 2013
    Ok, I understand. The problem is that Melodive doesn't really do music, so hard sounds get old very fast. But that might just be my sensitive ears though. I even had to remove the cowbell! :) I tried chiptune-samples once, that was horrible! Ambient is no problem though, I am working on one pack now with a musician. It's more industrial. That's what got me thinking themes.

    If there is people out there that wants to try making a sound packs, drop me a pm. I have a description for the format and a zip with all the sounds.
     
  18. Candykiller

    Candykiller Well-Known Member
    Patreon Bronze

    Dec 15, 2010
    1,418
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    Illustrator/Designer
    United Kingdom
    Brian Eno and Peter Chilvers' Scape app is a good example of generative ambient music. (I'm not overly keen on the graphics though) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zNLlKRrUVk

    I think something along these lines would work well with the visuals of Melodive.
     
  19. drelbs

    drelbs Well-Known Member

    Jun 25, 2009
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    I'd much rather have one app if it's only an environmental change.

    Will send you a PM, I'd be happy to take a crack at a sound pack. ;)
     
  20. Chester_Copperpot

    Nov 21, 2012
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    #360 Chester_Copperpot, Apr 4, 2013
    Last edited: Apr 4, 2013
    Agreed. From the end-user standpoint, a single app would be best.

    Regarding more specific sounds, have you tried any bamboo flute tones? I know that's a big generalization, but a lot of the tunings are very relaxing.

    I'll also be PMing about the sounds.

    Edit: Forgot to say that I love the idea of environmental themes. :)
     

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