Polarity Critique

Polarity project page

Maxwell Forbes

  1. I like the scope of the game. I think this will be a fun and enjoyable little game to play. I've said this for other projects as well, but I'll say it again, I think that you keeping your scope small is a big advantage, and that it will let you develop more levels and refine the gameplay. Oh, and I think the story is cute too. I also thought your presentation slides were just fantastic -- you had a really unique hand-drawn, demo-integrated format that I could really dig. I also liked that you will not focus on realistic physics -- this sounds very smart to me.
  2. I don't like that I have to start the second bullet with "I don't like." There is nothing I dislike, but several things I would consider:
    • I would consider having some other sort of goal than high score. For me, there must be compelling levels, because high score along is not compelling.
    • I wonder if the professor's bubble bursts on the sides of the tubes he's travelling in? Or is it only on spikes?
    • I wonder how the story ties in -- I do like the premise, but for me it wasn't clear why this guy is floating through small etched-out chambers in a soap bubble when he's in ... CERN? Isn't that a bunch of massive tunnels? But whatever, this is not a big issue. Just might need a bit more clarification.
    • I wonder if the 2D/3D multi-plane effect is worth the effort. If you've got the time and know-how to pull it off, it would be a cute extra feature, but so far it seems like the most difficult thing you're doing, which I might save as a stretch feature if I were you.

Jonathan Merlevede

  1. I like that your proposal is very clear, with a nice game description, clear game mechanics and even controls. Some may say that the design is not very ambitious, but I see this as a plus: it seems to have the perfect scope for the game lab, and it's plenty ambitious considering you're only two.
  2. I don't like the fact that the replayability from your game comes only from a drive to break high scores. Don't take this too seriously: I had to write something here, but I don't think replayability is necessary in a game (I myself never play a game twice, and why would anyone...?).
  3. I would take care not to fall into the trap of adding more and more extra items, controls, powerups.... Your game as it is is fine, adding stuff is more likely to break the game than to make it more fun. The only thing I would consider adding, if it's somewhat possible, is a split-screen multiplayer mode without any form of player interaction. Thinking of the immensely popular game Trackmania (also no powerups/items/difficult controls/player interaction), I think this could be fun, and may or may not be worth the trouble depending on whether or not you'd run into performance trouble (I think; I have never programmed a game before, so I wouldn't really know).

Nicholas Pleschko

  1. I like your simple game idea and the visual effect of changing dimensions
  2. I dont like that your game is based on very good level design. This may be very hard and time consuming!
  3. I would also like some kind of multiplayer option. For example let the other player help you through the level by placing magnets.

Marco Zimmermann

  1. I really like the idea with the tilted walls as a kind of level preview...
  2. ... although the inclusion of this feature is somewhat arbitrary. It would be nice if you could fit it better to the theme (or your theme) somehow.
  3. I would most certainly add a ghost rider showing the highscore-ride to have an easy visual cue of how good you are in the current round (as e.g. in Mario Kart training mode).

Mattis Paulin

  1. I really like the coherence of the style. Both gameplay, graphics and story are very easy to understand and allow for a fast game immersion.
  2. I don't like the fact that you have no technical graphics or physically-based simulation part (or maybe I missed it). Having a mind-blowing effect you could show would make your game more "sellable".
  3. I would (as proposed before) add a multiplayer mode to target more gamer populations.

Pascal Spörri

  1. I like the story and your 3D projection on the 3D space. I also like the idea of having a limited amount of power.
  2. I think that designing (sufficiently many) levels is going to take a lot of work.
  3. You could replace the stars with "academic papers", since scientists like to collect them too.

Romain Prevost

  1. I like the clear concept and the idea/story of the game.
  2. I think it would be nice to have either a multiplayer mode or some generator of levels. In fact otherwise you play it a few times, and then you've seen everything that you can do, I think it's too bad.
  3. I would probably add some features for the controller because it seems that the player only press one button. For example you could control your polarity using the right stick and some kind of gravity using the left stick.

Rudolf Schreier

  1. I find it very brave to base your game concept on making a game decidedly difficult. The trend since the early 00s has been going in the diametrically opposite direction, and many players will maybe not have the patience for it.
  2. There might be a problem with low replayability due to a lack of variety in levels.
  3. It's missing something decidedly different. You're basically missing a core concept: The way you described your game, I don't see any difference to all flash games I've ever played :\.

Adrian Blumer

  1. I like the clear and simple control scheme.
  2. I'm a little concerned about variety and replay value therefore my suggestion:
  3. Introduce a level editor so Players can create challenging tracks.

Daniel Zimmermann

  1. I like the art concept of the projected higher-dimensional world.
  2. The controls might be really frustrating unless the levels are REALLY well-balanced.
  3. You will need to carefully design lots of levels. Once a level is played, the chance of replaying it could be small. I suggest giving the players a level editor.

Christian Schüller

  1. I like the alternative movement principle by switching the polarity
  2. Nothing
    • At the moment it seams that the level design is crucial which will need a lot of time!
    • I would also consider to be able to role the ball actively as addition to the polarity switching.
    • The 2D - 3D level design does not add any additional game play which would be very nice if possible. Adds additional difficulty of camera control.

Nicholas Waldin

  1. I like the humorous story behind the game.
  2. Movement by switching polarity sounds interesting, but I'm worried it might make the character hard to control. This will also make level design fairly difficult

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2024-03-28
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