I, too, really hope for d-pad (Dual-stick shooter-style) controls as well. (Perhaps a more accurate way to describe it would be classic Zelda-style controls. D-pad for move, buttons for attack and such. D-pad is much more comfortable from a common holding position than having to reach around to tap on the screen on the iPad with one hand while holding it with the other. Will await some user reviews and then consider picking it up if the launch build is solid, as it does look great other than the lack of d-pad.
One hand on the back? Sitting up I suppose then. Well one hand on the new iPad gets really tiresome no matter what. Touch to move never has worked for me. Even after almost a hundred apps with that function. And I know several of my friends and gaming-colleagues feel the same way. I was actually thinking if I should mention the "table-thing" as I half expected it to be a debate about whether or not this was fine. It isn't for a lot of players even if you have no problems. It is also a question of breaking the immersion by seeing ones hands all over the place. I quite simply hate that, and usually don't buy games anymore if they do have only that option. I will buy this though, on the quality of your back publishing catalogue and the style alone. But thanks for answering even if it wasn't the answer I was hoping for.
I love the fact that loads of people who haven't even played it are moaning about a control scheme that they haven't even tried! (tips hat to Dan) you have the patience of a saint mate!
There is a difference between moaning and politely stating a preference. With 2k plus apps, editor in chief of one of the biggest gaming sites in the Nordic region and a good feel for how a lot of gamers feel (and personally about a hundred apps with touch to move, all of which has been dropped again, apart from 5-6 turn based ones) I am not just pulling this out of my ass without any experience to back it up. It is a valid concern for an action game. Unless it by somekind of magic makes my finger 15 centimeters so I can reach all around while still holding with both hands this won't do it for me. Why not just accept that. If you are happy with touch to move then that is fine, but you have to accept that some people are not, and that calling that moaning is just bad form. Having both options would be perfect. Dan is great at answering. Patience has nothing to do with that as long as people keep a nice tone.
Damn, this looks great.. Finally something better then Samurai Sanuku, is combat more intensive later? Btw, do you know what engine they use? Anyway looks like great job, ill buy it asap and test it at least
All built in Unity. Glad you like the look of it! Hey by the way, great work on Dead Trigger. Really enjoyed that one
So... Impressions. (iPhone 4) The graphics are.. Great. Pretty damn good, I would say, even on my aging device. Aesthetically, I would say they're more pleasing than Diablo was in some respects. Mind you, aesthetically, not in terms of quality. I'm not comparing pc and iPhone graphics here. I did have some slowdown when there's a torch high on the wall in my face, or when there's lightning, a wall crumbling, three enemies scrambling up a wall and I'm getting a text, but I'm actually impressed how well it runs. The controls are probably the biggest fuss for me. They're not bad by any means, but on several occasions I end up doing the double-tap gesture when I'm rapidly tapping on screen to move my character. No big deal though. The circle gesture though... Ugh. It took me a long while to pull that off, but in the end it could be my fault. Turns out I needed to make the circle slower instead of faster... Tap to move works just fine in the game. It seems designed for it in the same way Diablo was not designed to be a third-person RPG. After you try the game, you're allowed to ask for a different control option, but a joystick would not be suitable here (imo). The IAP... Seems to be a joke. Yes, you can buy it, but I've not even considered it yet. The tutorial alone gave me about a thousand gold after I sold the equipment lying around, which was enough for me to get a decent shield. The story... So far has been told via journals you find in the world. There was an opening cutscene and from then on it was these journals that expanded on the background lore. The writing so far has been solid and actually interesting. Now, some complaints: In the first few levels, the enemies blend into the ground. If they didn't move, chances are I wouldn't even notice them. It's not THAT bad, but it is annoying. Which is actually my biggest concern, to be honest: the game feels like it would be so much better on an iPad. It's a lot better past the first area, but my sentiment about the iPad still stands. The circle gesture sucks. I can't wrap my head around it. (you can ignore this one, it's just me). The combat feels a little slow. You tap an enemy to autoattack, he attacks, it dies, you tap the next one. The game's solution is to throw more enemies at you. For balancing purposes, you have different skills, one of which is a spin that takes out several enemies around you. Overall it's absolutely fine, but I felt I should mention it anyway. I don't think it's the game's fault either, but rather the mechanic itself. I would like to be able to see again what the base stats are and do. I mean, I put it together eventually, but is there a reason I couldn't tap, say, Vengeance in the character menu and be told what it does? The explanatory screen came and went and a day later I don't remember what it does. I think I'm rambling on a bit, so I'd be better off answering questions anyone might have. Ask away! Oh, p.s. the game is pretty good overall. You should probably get it, unless you have some glaring doubts about it. Edit: Just felt like I should mention this: I don't feel like my hands get in the way. I'm not the biggest fan of tap to move, but so far at least it has worked for me.
I stated in another thread for another upcoming dungeon crawler (Project Dragon) that tap-to-move on an iPad is my preferred way to control exactly because of this. I find d-pad controls are much less comfortable for long sessions. If a game has gesture-based touch controls that can be performed with just one finger, I can comfortably hold the ipad with one hand and control it with the other regardless of whether I'm standing, sitting down, reclining, or laying down. That said, I can understand complaints people have about tap-to-move controls on the iPhone. The iPhone is much more comfortable to hold between two hands while using thumbs to control, and tap-to-move tends to obstruct a lot of the screen.
I have to agree with everything Echoseven mentioned. Circle gesture took me a while to figure it out. My additional concern is WALKING. I havent found a use for walking yet. I always try to RUN. Cant there be an option to RUN ALWAYS? Unless there is a "running stamina" being used up, walking serves no purpose unless it's on a cinematic sequence. Thanks... This game is fantastic, and is easily one of Chillingo's best, right beside Anomaly Warzone Earth.
Great impressions. Thanks a lot. Seems to be the kind of game that will bug the hell out of me. But for 2.99 I don't really mind buying just to whistle at the graphics and to support a great publisher. And to give Dan something for working on his holiday.
Yeah, like those ridiculous consoles we had 5 years ago, which were the, uh, XBox 360, PS3 and Wii... But yeah they probably shouldn't say "console quality" since most games can't even measure up to a game on the original XBox. Maybe "Computer game circa 2001 quality" is more apt.
Haha you seem to moan even more than the rest here. Though of course sometimes people go nuts. I don't really see anyone doing that here. And... Why on earth ignore a game that actually looks this amazing just because it has some mechanics we don't like? Why not comment on that and try to explain why. You can't expect to make a change without commenting (just like you did now, just perhaps a little less constructive). Ignoring Gameloft? Your loss. Personally I wouldn't want to be without N.O.V.A., Asphalt and Order & Chaos.
Downloading If I were in Chillingo, I would write in the app description you are supporting iCloud besides being universal.
