Development Blog

I like that in that "review" they gave it a positive rating despite what they said.

 

Something that kind of needs to be addressed is the generic upload errors with the workshop. I pretty much gave up on updating the Vectronic Demo at this point. I have no idea if my upload speed has something to do with it or not.

 

As always, I'm looking forward to the updates. Interested to see how networking will work.

The feedback isn't bad at all. A quality filter, or moderated games by Josh that could end up higher on the list could be a good idea.

 

@reepblue. Exactly the same here. Although there comes a point where I lose interest and stop trying.

A quality filter, or moderated games by Josh that could end up higher on the list could be a good idea.

+1

The rating system is doing a pretty good job of pushing the best stuff to the top. When this goes out of early release mode it's going to amplify whatever result we are presently getting. Right now the response is "It's okay". There's nothing people are going to tell their friends they have to try.

 

Now if we keep focusing on building content for this interoperable script system, almost like a high-level game engine on top of a game engine, then I think we will be able to produce more games with higher replay value.

 

Think how addictive some simple mobile games can be.

What can we do to facilitate better and more complex games?

 

Complex games take time to make and I think most people lose interest in their game before that time can come, so right off the bat the number of people who can make a better and complex game is low. Not many people can stay interested in a game like Hayden has with Hunt for Food.

 

Add on top that most people aren't great at every aspect so making a quality game is tough for 1 person.

 

So you either wait for that 1 special person or wait for that team to get something out OR you fill in the gaps that people aren't good at. Of course this is a lot of work for you since you're basically writing 20 different game elements and hoping someone can fill the gaps and piece things together but how good can a pieced together game really be?

 

1. Maybe try describing some of the qualities you are looking for in this quality game. A checklist people can work towards.

 

2. I'd be interested to hear why you think you haven't gotten that quality and complex game yet?

 

 

 

Off the top of my head:

 

Lack of saving data (can do it but kind of hacky right now with gameplayer and most probably don't even know you can in this hacky fashion) limits complexity as most people think their game has to be pretty simple without being able to save progress.

 

Lack of a nice GUI means people spend time on their own. If we've already determined most people lose interest in their games over time then all things that take time need to be reduced. Not having a person create their own GUI helps with that.

There is a discrepancy between the quality of games that are supplied to the Game Launcher and the quality of the game that the player will be expecting. Many of the Game Launcher games are WIP and the Game Launcher audience may not be willing to overlook this. Check out this

video. Its not very complimentary about the quality of our games.

 

Josh is right to hold the official release Game Launcher until there is a better collection of games. Some form of grading system or "most popular"

is certainly needed.

The problem is, as Rick says, are single developers able to provide this quality of work on their own. I think the new paid workshop items should provide more resources for us. The new Merc is a good start. It should reduce the number of FPS games were the only enemy is the crawler.

I think there should be a specific "Demo/WIP" category for the game launcher. That way people can upload their test/demo/WIP games without people thinking that they are proper games.

And even a separate category for each tournament. That way people don't just think because there was a halloween tournament that the only games made are horror games.

Another suggestion for better quality games would be to implement a decent 2D capability. Leadwerks focuses on 3D, which is fine, but 3D is extremely difficult to create on your own. So you either end up with a nice looking game, but with no gameplay, or a game that uses stock assets, but has decent gameplay, or it just ends up looking AND playing badly. 2D is the go to for indie games (generally), and it is that way for a reason. Might be something to take into consideration

To be clear, I am really happy about the amount of games being published and the variety and creativity. It is very important that we maintain a constant flow of new titles being released, and then look at how we can start making them more engaging.

Maybe you can pick some games and ask the developer some questions like an interview, then from that other peole can ask questions and give ideas.

Game of the week maybe.

If it gets a group of people talikng about a game it will give motivation to everyone.

I hadn't really though of that josk, but that's a really good idea! I think it's hard for devs to keep motivation especially when everyone is trying to criticize them for trying (not really on this site, more of an observation of people not in game dev).

I think there should be a specific "Demo/WIP" category for the game launcher. That way people can upload their test/demo/WIP games without people thinking that they are proper games.

 

This. Please.

 

Better Categorising of games is needed too. I want to be able to choose the category of my game, not have one assigned automatically. Eg, WolfTale is listed under horror but I definitely think that Adventure or Puzzle would fit better.

 

Also, as mentioned by Brutile (and myself in the past) a category for each tournament or even just a single tournament category.