lordsthief's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Stonelegs 2]

I thought I'd run into a bug, until the next level used it as a game mechanic! Very charming little pixel platformer. There were a few problems, such as the breakable blocks on level 3-10 not being easily discernible from the environment, as well as a few levels that were more designed for players with the developer's level of skill at the game (rather than the player's), but overall a pretty solid game.

I will say though, the final level needs a wall on the right side of the staircase of pressure plates you need to climb.... It prevents players from jumping into a spot that they can't then jump to the next floor up from. Replaying the final "boss" isn't very fun. Also, please change "sliding" so that it only happens when the player actually has a direction key held down...

[Slice the Box]

Well executed, but even starting this game I had to ask myself: why am I even bothering to play this. There is absolutely no reason for anyone to spend any time on this whatsoever.

[Binary Boy]

No problem running it in Chrome + Win7.
Ending left me feeling as though this was unfinished, but it was entertaining up until that point, with nice audio response and aesthetics. I will say though that the pirate boss battle left be a little confused as to what to do at first - because all the cannon balls move at least a *little* when you splash them, I thought the point of the fight was to dodge-splash the cannon balls into the ship, not just to dodge until the last cannonball was fired and splash that one over.

I think the majority of the game would be more interesting if the player was forced right, rather than giving the player left-right controls, and only giving him that ability for boss fights. The lighting felt a little too random and was a little difficult to dodge, but other than those issues, game felt quite solid.

I will say though, I was disappointed it ended so suddenly. The strange distortions shortly before the end of the game left me feeling like you were introducing a story I was about to play through. And considering it might have involved the two things I most love and hate - spacetime and clowns, respectively - I was pumped. You have let me down, sir. I have no idea what story could possibly have emerged from this game, but I was very eager to find out!

Data-Fidelity responds:

I'm glad you liked the glitch graphics. Funny you felt the story beginning at the end, it felt so conclusive lifting off into space, like there was no where else to take it. Anyway, thanks for the review!

[Elf Story]

As many have said, pixel-hunting quick-time events are not the most... intuitive... way to go about things. Picking up that rock, using the stick as a crowbar, and standing up were examples of when you used good, intuitive motion interpretation to trigger player actions. I recommend gesture-based triggers over "find where to click" any day.

Additionally, there are some balance issues when fighting the ogre. There is actually no reason to dodge, as you can't dodge fast enough to avoid a blow, and your attack performs the same function while also damaging the boss. Simply waiting 2 or 3 seconds between your attacks against the ogre is enough to kill him, and it leave the fight feeling too easy. I recommend not letting the player attack until they HAVE dodged (thus staggering the ogre), and making it possible to dodge blows without preemptively guessing when the ogre will throw them. Very nice artwork and smooth, high quality animations, however, along with an overall entertaining style keep this game entertaining, however.

Now if only I could figure out how to take the SNES controller with me....
remember: quick time events are best when used to *immerse* the player in your game, not to introduce difficulty by forcing a pixel-sized hitbox hunt.

[Hungry Gamers]

lol, good god, that knife chopped down a tree to kill me.

=) probably would have been beter as an actual game, instead of an april fools joke, but eh, one of them doesn't take another 2+ months to finish.

[Swords and Potions]

Your game has potential, but it is crippled beyond forgiveness by your insistence that the player use micro-transactions to continue in the game. There is no plot, dialogue, or puzzles to make me interested enough in this game to pay for it, and even if there were, you have earned no fans by making a pay-to-win game. Go back to facebook, you're not welcome here.
The fact that I'm staring at a "we're sorry, but you've played too many in-game days. Please come back in 10 minutes or pay real world money!" is simply unacceptable. I could cringe and forgive any other fault - even the fact that despite paying full in game gold price for one of the shop upgrades, I still didn't own the stupid bookshelf unless I got friends to help me get it. Even that I could forgive, if you didn't stick me on a fracking game timer. This is the wrong way to fund a game.

[Diplon]

I made a game like this (more simple of course, given the limitations) on a TI calculator in basic, once.... good memories. The controls feel nice, but a tad too slippery - you should consider increasing the friction factor just a bit, as it will allow players more precise control. Also, consider making the enemies just a tad slower. These games always feel more entertaining when you can actually see things in time to avoid them.

uglyslug responds:

calculator programs are neat! thanks for the feedback!

[Hug Marine]

Short, but deceptively charming.

[*Flight*]

Good game - very relaxing, though the audio quality lets in some subtle screeches that get really annoying if you can hear them.

I found the "clear X in Y days" achievements quite easy, actually.... I cleared England on day 7, France on day 12 (and that's with a wasted day where I *dropped* my plane). You only need a SINGLE control purchase for the entire game. Model, Weight, and Aerodynamics are your friends. Oh, and do something about that turbulence, or it *will* kill you.

Might I recommend upgrades OTHER than the rocket? It drains precious fuel that can be better used making sure you're flying low to the ground to hit windmills (but no lower than their tops). No good for anything but a serious emergency.

[Max Mesiria Chp2 RPG]

Shows potential, but you really need to have this running at 30+ fps.... I'm fairly sure its only running at 20 right now, and that is actually quite painful to watch.
It's hard to rate the story on the little presented here, but I look forward to seeing it developed. Combat definitely hurt the game, though - it all too often felt like a pure grind, where if you'd spent the time to get just one level higher, you wouldn't have any trouble with a boss, as opposed to getting trounced without mercy. (grinding isn't fun!)