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I've been developing an iPhone game!

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jhocking:
Just made a trailer to show off the prototype of the game I've been developing:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_zfF5RM01M

Still not quite ready to post this on toucharcade and tweet about it, I want to improve the visuals a bit (draw the interface in particular) before trying to really expose this.

This is still early in development and the game is very much work-in-progress (most of the textures need to be repainted, etc.) Tell me what you think!

ADDITION: screenshot

snalin:
The basic gameplay model you are going for - switching between different characters with different skills to solve tasks - has been done before, but it's still fun, and done before is pretty much what the Iphone is about, right? It looks good, some of the gameplay elements will work brilliantly. I liked flying to get over holes and not slip on ice and being smart enough to read. As long as you can make all the characters having different skills make sense by giving all uses, and introducing a balanced number of stuff each of them can do, that'll be a big selling point.

Got some questions and feedback, though:

There was something about finding treasure. Is that going to be just for points or getting through the level, or are you introducing some RPG elements?

Will the dwarf have (as) many special abilities as the gnome and fairy, or will he just be a better fighter? I think it can be fun if you want to mix RPG and puzzle, but if you make one character better at puzzle, and one better at RPG-fighting, you're better off sticking to one character. I think the best option is for each of the characters to have strengths and weaknesses both in getting around (gaps/ice) and in fighting (different kinds of enemies). Or are you approaching this from another perspective?

Are you going to include a map or a mini-map feature? If the places the player explores are as big it looks like from the trailer, that'll be very helpful to avoid backtracking and confusion.

About that - avoid backtracking, or make it fun. And fun does not mean going through the same fights or puzzles again, it means doing something differently. A puzzle or timing puzzle that you have to do again, but backwards, thus making it a new experience, is pretty cool though.

I'm not familiar with the Iphone as a gaming platform, but is this game going to be completely based on touch screen? That might make it easy to get into, and with intuitive controls, probably a great game for a phone, but fighting might get a bit tedious if it consists of clicking on the enemy once and waiting until it goes down. Not a game breaker, but how have you planned the game controls?

That's all. It looks good, so please show more. I don't have an Iphone, so if something I've asked would be self-evident if I had one, please say so.

jhocking:
wow that feedback was more detailed than I was expecting, thanks! Now to read through all your comments carefully.


ADDITION:

--- Quote from: snalin on 23 May 2010, 14:11 ---The basic gameplay model you are going for - switching between different characters with different skills to solve tasks - has been done before, but it's still fun, and done before is pretty much what the Iphone is about, right?

--- End quote ---

Not just the iPhone, games in general. New ideas are nice, but solid implementation is more important. I'm not pretending at all that I came up with the concept of multiple characters cooperating to solve puzzles; the game is openly a mashup of Zelda and Lost Vikings.


--- Quote from: snalin on 23 May 2010, 14:11 ---There was something about finding treasure. Is that going to be just for points or getting through the level, or are you introducing some RPG elements?

--- End quote ---

Good catch! I am planning to introduce some RPG elements, although probably not very in-depth. Players can spend money in towns between levels, buying stuff like stronger hammers or new spells.


--- Quote from: snalin on 23 May 2010, 14:11 ---Will the dwarf have (as) many special abilities as the gnome and fairy, or will he just be a better fighter?

--- End quote ---

hm, I should wait until the second prototype level is done before redoing the trailer. What I'm planning to develop next includes sliding block puzzles where the dwarf is the only one strong enough to push the blocks. This is definitely an area for me to pay attention to in play testing, because you're absolutely right that the dwarf could be just an annoying appendage if I don't do it right.


--- Quote from: snalin on 23 May 2010, 14:11 ---Are you going to include a map or a mini-map feature?

--- End quote ---

I hadn't thought of that, thanks!


--- Quote from: snalin on 23 May 2010, 14:11 ---I'm not familiar with the Iphone as a gaming platform, but is this game going to be completely based on touch screen? That might make it easy to get into, and with intuitive controls, probably a great game for a phone, but fighting might get a bit tedious if it consists of clicking on the enemy once and waiting until it goes down. Not a game breaker, but how have you planned the game controls?

--- End quote ---

The controls are one lunge attack each time you tap the enemy. I'm unsure how much fighting there will be in the finished game; currently I'm not planning to have much fighting because I really want to focus more on puzzle solving. Here again however is a great point for me to keep in mind when playtesting: do people want more fighting? do people find the fighting tedious?

est:
Apart from the things that snalin has said, perhaps take a look at the different ways that games like Solomon's Keep, Underworlds and Sword of Fargoal approach controls.  For a turn-based game "touch a spot on the screen" seems to work well enough (eg: SoF), but for real-time action-based stuff the virtual thumbpad control stick and action stick (SK)/contextual action button (UW) works better in my opinion.  Solomon's Keep also has a very good toggled area map overlay feature, with a button up the top-left to show/hide it. 

Oh hey, another control scheme that might work with your game is to make the selected character static and have your finger move the terrain underneath them, like you are sliding around a picture or scrolling a page with your finger.  It's a control scheme that iPhone users already know, so it's easy to get used to.  Then it's just a case of scrolling the terrain under the player (who is always centred on the screen) and tapping on things that you want to interact with.  I know that there is already a game out that uses this control method, but I can't remember what it is called.  Something about guiding a block through a maze.  It's getting pretty rave reviews for such a simple concept.

Anyway, if you want a playtester when you get to that level of sophistication please send me a PM or something and I'll be happy to play the hell out of it and let you know if/how I break it.

est:
Also: I know it wasn't actually stated in the previous post, but hey, good work makin' an iPhone game.  I know you're still making it and everything, but if you can do it properly and at least make something that is fun to play then I'm sure people will see it & play it and perhaps buy it.

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