Yeah, I second this. Maybe have a tiny "Enable/Disable Hints" button next to the sound one in the main menu? Also, I don't know if anyone else would agree with me on this, but wouldn't it be better if the soundtrack didn't start over after every death, but instead looped?
Yep, works fine for me also....So, it's a good workaround... Would be veeeery pleased if this gets fixed anyway because usually I have my iPhone set to German
Unfortunately, the localization with the German text files only got corrupted. An mini-update is being issued along with a few other items that have been mentioned in this thread. If you go with English as the system settings, its fine. Sorry about the inconvenience and we'll get it fixed right away!
This game is awesome =O I only bought it cuz FFF was involved... And once i started playing, i stuck there on my chair, playing for 2 hours... But my question is... is it iCade compatible? (i haven't checked the info, and im not at home either)
Yeah, I'm revising my initial and hasty "awesome" to mirror your "not half bad" Yes. With Apple already exhibit an unhealthy range of controlist tendencies, I sometimes wish they'd go full SkyNet and just demand that every game submitted features Retina, multitasking (if that ever is an issue anymore), and user-moveable on-screen controls. And while they're at it, asynchronous online gameplay for all turn-based games, and real-time competitive multiplayer for the rest Speaking of controls, just as in the case of Terra Noctis, there is some sort of weird inconsistency and sluggishness to the controls that I can't quite seem to pin down. It is never there when I try to reproduce the phenomenon, but as soon as I start enjoying the game, it flitters at the periphery of my consciousness, constantly making Spellsword just a tad less enjoyable. Anyone else with a similar phantom pains?
Oh no, thats no good. If you can reproduce it, we will definitely address it. Tweaking and balancing controls is by far one of the biggest challenges... Can't be too slow, or too fast, or too light, or too heavy. Jump height, speed, gravity.... All need to constantly be adjusted.
Okay, so I'm a sucker for good pixel art, so I went ahead and bought the game. Here are my early impressions. It's probably gonna be a wall-of-text, so you've been warned. I've gone through the first 40 missions (first 2 maps) and a bit of Hot Spot as well. I also played a bit of the Endless modes. Well, first things first. Graphics are great. Kudos to the person who did all the pixel art because they are top notch. People say graphics don't make a game, but for Spellsword, it was the first thing that grabbed my attention, and playing the game with such great visuals is definitely a treat. I'd compare the gameplay to Super Crate Box, since you're pretty much killing stuff and constantly trying to collect one spell card after another. However, while Super Crate Box kept me coming back for it's simple, yet addicting and challenging gameplay as well as its tight controls, Spellsword has implemented a great mission/level up/unlocks system that keeps me playing to unlock more equipables. However, gameplay wise... I feel like Spellsword feels a little... I'm not sure. Loose? Unstructured? Overly chaotic? I really can't put my finger on it right now. I'm enjoying the missions simply because I'm a bit of a completionist and collecting and unlocking stuff as rewards after each mission feels pretty satisfying. But once all that is done (which is very soon as I only have half the 3rd map's missions left) obviously endless mode is what's left. Of course, to get the best possible score for endless means you're gonna have to grind a little bit to try and max out all your skills and get the best possible gear (which is probably the 50% dodge helmet, then all the +hearts equips since I'm guessing all the +skill cards will be obsolete once you actually max out the skills; correct me if i'm wrong). However, having tried out the endless mode (on hard), I feel like it lacks strategy and feels like a big, random, button mash. Sure you can jump and hit stuff, but sometimes enemies just come from every direction, that your best bet is to just stand still and mash the attack button over and over. Sometimes enemies just cluster in one corner and if a spell card is in that corner, you're probably gonna eat up tons of damage since there's no safe way to get there and you've run out of your current spell card. But if you just stay put, you're probably safe since sometimes the enemies just tend to stay there and decide not to do anything aside from cluster up... Right now, it's unclear to me what the endless mode scores are based on (I checked the leaderboard and saw no clear indication of how the numbers are being produced) so I can't really comment on whether the things I listed above show a flaw in game design or if the game is working as intended... But still. I know I shouldn't keep comparing this to Super Crate Box, but while both games have random elements, I feel like Super Crate Box favors skill a lot more than luck, whereas Spellsword is kind of a mixed bag... I mean, you have a helmet that gives you 50% dodge chance. I don't know how random the chance is, but if it is indeed "random" then you're gonna get lucky streaks of dodges on a good run, and that doesn't feel very skill-based. Another problem with endless mode is that it feels more like an endurance test than actual challenge. I feel like my deaths are just caused by me being impatient and jumping into a bunch of enemies rather than actually being killed when I'm struggling to stay alive. And non-impatient deaths feel extremely unfair because it's always due to a whole bunch of enemies filling up the screen non-stop and you just can't get out of the mess if you're stuck with the wrong spellcard. This is also a problem in Super Crate Box after an update that made the game easier. The normal mode became so easy that the only way you die is if you get bored/tired. Perhaps some people enjoy endurance-based endless modes, but to me, it gets tiresome very quickly. Again, this is just my early impressions and I could be wrong, but so far this is what Spellsword's endless mode has been feeling like to me. Now, on to the bugs. The game feels very buggy to me right now, though nothing game-breaking so far. Here are a few off the top of my head: 1. Small bug, but if you complete mission #20 of a certain map, and click "next" it shows a mission #21 but the objective is "null". I'm certain this isn't intended and is just a programming oversight. 2. I'm not sure if this a bug or not, but some completed missions still show the reward as "???". I've tried replaying these missions and get the same reward over again, but still the reward is listed as "???". Am I missing something? 3. The invincibility (or glass, I think) spellcard makes you invincible only for a certain duration, but the spellcard's duration at the top right corner goes on for much longer. Is this intended? I'm under the impression that the spellcard's duration at the top right should inform you how long a spellcard's effect lasts, and unless I'm mistaken, the invincibility duration is much shorter (at least pre-upgrades) than the corresponding spellcard duration shown. 4. The wind spellcard's projectile knocks enemies away, but visually, it looks extremely weird. The enemies look like they teleport from one point to another rather than being pushed back. Again, not sure if it's intended, but it sure looks buggy to me. 5. In the Hot Spot level, sometimes I jump beneath the swinging platforms, and my character somehow gets attached to the platform and is able to move below it. Iin reality, he should definitely be dropping down into the lava bit below. 6. In the Hot Spot level (might happen in other levels too, but I'm not gonna check now) enemies sometimes cluster or get stuck at the edge of the floating rock platforms up top. It looks really weird and is no way intended, is it? 7. Some missions are stupid easy because of silly enemy AI. The best example I can think of is the mission in Hot Spot where I'm supposed to survive an onslaught of bombs for 60 seconds. I decide to stand still, and since the bombs never detonate unless I attack them, they just repeatedly spawn and stay on a single spot until the end of the mission. Could possibly be intended as a clever way to let players beat the mission, and the bombs are probably a bigger issue in an actual game where enemies are coming from every direction and you have no choice but to swing your sword... But I dunno. 8. Not really a bug, but like a lot of people have mentioned, the controls don't feel right. Mainly the D-pad on the left, pressing the right arrow button feels a bit off and inaccurate to me, and doesn't always register. After a bit of time, I've gotten used to the controls, but I still feel like the controls could do with a bit more improvement. That's all I can remember for now. If EverPlay can address/clarify these issues (i.e. go through my wall-of-text and reply) then it would be greatly appreciated. Don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed my play through Spellsword so far, but right now I foresee the endless mode (which is what's left after beating all missions) being more of a grind and endurance test rather than an addictive challenge. The way the enemies and levels works feels a lot less structured than Super Crate Box (again, sorry for the comparison, but the games ARE similar) so I'm seriously doubting how skill-based the endless mode can be. Also, the game is a bit buggy, so hopefully all that gets addressed, too.
Thanks for all of the text, ChronoCat! I wish you would have been brought in as a BETA Tester! We had a few great testers, but most never said anything after testing, which isn't useful... Anyways, we will definitely address the issues that you've presented straight away. Today is dedicated to fixing up the minor issues players have and then submitting this weekend. Next week is all about content updates. More missions, more worlds, more enemies, possibly even more Game Modes. Suggestions are more than welcome for what to add next.
Really enjoy this. I kind of agree with what was said above about endless, but still a really fun game all around. One thing that sticks out for me is the precise controls. A lot of games on ios that depend on a lot of movements have me fighting a control scheme more than the actual game. This one is very fluid. Good job. This would make a crazy fun side scrolling rpg.
I just finished the missions, and I think the game is great Often I would find myself in a pinch, collect a card, clear the screen and think (and sometimes say out loud) this game is awesome! My only complaint is that on the third stage the enemies spawn from the sides without warning, and often after jumping on the side platform in order to get to the upper one I would "crash" on a spawning enemy, lose health, and sometimes even fall into the lava. Now I try to get to the upper platforms by swinging the wooden planks, I don't trust the sides I hope this game will be well maintained because I'll gladly come back to it
It is great to know you will be tweaking and spitting and polishing the controls and character movement. Most games settle for a particular set of character physics/movement characteristics from launch, and never tweak past that point. ChronoCat seems to have it down pat: The above-mentioned inaccuracy of the movement arrows, combined with the somewhat slow movement speed (and in particular, the acceleration of the first few steps) gives the player character an overall sluggish and unresponsive feel. More responsive movement arrows, combined with just a tad quicker overall movement, and in particular greater movement acceleration, would probably make the experience faaar more fluid. I think Spellsword has a potential for some nice parcour stunts and flexible, fast and acrobatic character movement, but everything about the player character's movement scheme is just a tad too slow and static. I wouldn't mind seeing an expansion of the movement characteristics and physics that made the player character overall quite a bit more jump-y, smooth, quick and athletic, to allow us to leap about the screen, perform death-defying stunts, and survive by virtue of our athleticism. (I even wouldn't mind seeing an additional tab of character traits/upgrades related to above-mentioned movement improvements, one that allow us to put rupees into movement speed, jump height, etc.)
Achievements Hi Everplay - as may have been mentioned, it seems like achievements aren't activating correctly in Spellsword. I have unlocked the "reach level 30" achievement, and the lesser level-based achievements are still locked. I think a few others aren't unlocking properly. Could you check into that, and perhaps add some sort of 're-submit achievements' button so a one-time glitch doesn't prevent future achievements from being unlocked?
Sure! Will definitely look into this. We didn't have this problem before, so not sure what it can be. We save the stats in the game so if we need to reactivate the achievements, we can.
This one looks great. Really like the art/style but reminds me heavily of a rocketcat game. Which is a good thing of course!! Hey Kepa. Are you around?
