Wow, that's a beauty! If I get an iPad I'll be sure to pick this up since it's one of my favorite match-3s and one of the nicest games I have to look at.
It'll be tight, but it is looking like music will make it in for iPad submission. I'm disappointed that I didn't add this to the game sooner. It gives the game such a different feel. It feels far more complete now.
Wow! It was a late night, but I submitted Smiles HD this morning (7 AM). As expected, sound made it in, as well as many many changes and improvements over the original game. I'll be taking the rest of the weekend off (possibly making it a slight long weekend too), but next week I'll be planning and cutting together a proper trailer and press pack for the game. Me personally, I'm very happy with the results. I think it's a huge improvement over the original, and I look forward to hearing from all of you.
Well I guess I couldn't resist doing a little something. The current 5 promo shots you'll see in iTunes and the App Store. Click for full size.
Looks like this with be my 4th time buying this game. I bought smiles, then zen, then the combo to save the room... Looks gorgeous though, and is still one of my favs, obviously...
Alright! Some final gameplay videos. About as Final as I can get without an actual iPad in hand. I'll have a proper trailer soon, but these should definitely give you a good idea what to expect. Subscribe to the TouchArcade YouTube channel Subscribe to the TouchArcade YouTube channel
The videos are very nicely done. But again, Ive got a few comments. Specifically, about the music and sound design, and also about the rotation. First of all, I like the music that youre using more than I though I would. I think that it works great in Zen, but Im a bit conflicted with its use in Drop. Its not that I dont like the music used in Drop. I like it fine. Its just that the scripted ebbs and flows of the music seem to diminish the excitement generated by the contextual rising pitch of the combo. You could be in the middle of an exciting long combo, and you might be listening to a slower part of the song. And on the contrary, it could be the exciting part of the song while youre doing nothing of note in the game. So while I think that the masses will appreciate this addition, I think that Ill disable the music while playing Drop. I hope thats an option. Ideally, I think that something more interesting could be done with the music. It would be nice if it was context-sensitive. If it could get louder or faster or more exciting as the game gets more intense. There are a few examples of context-sensitive music in games, but theyre very elementary. In Super Mario, its nice to hear the hurry up music when your time is running out. In Zelda, the music will change when an enemy approaches, even if you havent yet seen them. These examples are primitive implementations. I dont assume that any of this comes easy. And I certainly dont expect anything like this in your project. Im just trying to make my case for why Ill probably be disabling your nice new music in Drop. In Zen, though, I think it works much better, and Ill probably leave it on. With Drop, I think that I prefer it as it was. The new style of rotation is also interesting. It looks like itll work well when using it in slower-paced games. But as it is now, it seems like itll be hard to continue a combo through a button-press rotation. The icons all have to rotate on the screen, so theyll be in a different place, and the animated rotation takes up precious time. My guess is that by the time all of this is done, the combo will be lost. For me, this just highlights the brilliance of the original, gravity-based implementation. Ill continue to use this, since none of the aforementioned problems are apparent when rotating the device. And like I mentioned earlier, I think it would be great if you could disable the onscreen rotation buttons. That way, youd be able to fill the screen with the game, and youd be able to lose the chrome around the playfield. This way, Drop could share the same big icons that are seen in Zen. It would be bigger touch targets in the quicker paced game, where I think that theyd be even more beneficial. And I think it would just look nicer, too. So, anyway. These are my thinking-about-it-too-much thoughts after watching your nice new videos. I think theyre nicely done, and I hope they help you to sell a lot of copies. And rambling aside, my favorite part is from the Drop video. Just like in your previous video, I like the mouse move of frustration at the end. Classic.
Yes, you can disable the music. Alternatively, there's a track skip button that lets you pick any of the 5 included tracks. Avalanche's music is quite funky. Or you can always listen to your own music. That's an interesting idea. I've actually been thinking about doing something more with higher combos already. Adding some new reward sounds depending on the number matches involved. Changing the song or the pace isn't really practical, but along the same lines, gradually lowering the music volume as the combo gets bigger should make a difference. That will bring the chaining sounds forward, and everything should get much more intense. Then top it off with a new reward sound for our mega combo, and we're feeling way more accomplished after. I'll look in to it. What could work to the buttons advantage is hovering a pinky finger over the spin button. The spin is faster than the time it takes to fall, land, and and the slight buffer time before ending a combo, so it is definitely usable. Without an iPad, it's not something I've really had a chance to tune though. Again, the disadvantage of playing with a mouse. Sure. I haven't decided where or how you'll disable them, but I too think it's something a player may want to do. Bigger targets are definitely useful in Drop, though playing the game tall gets you "almost" as big buttons. They are a little smaller, but again, that's means you'll want to use the rotation buttons for spinning. Thanks for your feedback.
Nice. I was also thinking about ducking the music when the combo gets long. I think thats a great idea. And if you really want to get nutty, I thought that it might be interesting if the combination pitch was high enough to start breaking some of the ice. I dont want you to do this if it makes things too easy, but I thought that it might make for an interesting gimmick. It would have to be a very rare thing, though, or only during extremely long combos. Otherwise, the combo would make the play easier as it goes along. And that certainly wouldnt work. Just an idea.
Smiles HD is Approved! Pending some iPad related disaster, check it out launch day on the iPad. Woohoo!
I looked the the thread but did not see - will this version have all the play modes? Drop, avalance, zen and the plus modes? Thanks.
Yes, although some of them have been changed slightly. Zen and Avalanche are just like before, but everything is now on an 8x8 playfield (was 9x8). Drop and Drop+ have been reorganized. Drop+ is now the "Ice Breaks in 4" modes. Also, Drop+ now no longer has rocks (the smaller playfield makes it hard enough). Easy is now called "Casual", Hard is now called "Quick Play", and Six is now called "Match Challenge". Long Play is still Long Play.
Added AppInfo to the first post... though I guess the description isn't working *shrugs*. Edit: Fixed.
Wow... I just did something nuts. Smiles HD will be FREE from now until the end of iPad launch day (April 3rd)! http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smiles-hd/id364871736 Grab it now! Heh, what have I done!!
Smiles HD *just* made it in to the Top 100 FREE games. Remember, it's FREE only until the end of the day April 3rd! Regular price is $4.99.
