PyWeek - Team Rambo - feedback

i hate to give a DNW, i did play an early version of this on another system with a 1280x1024 display, but the computer i'm on now is 1024x768 and i get an error! sorry you should not assume everyone has a display that can do 1280x800! i know people who play games and still swear by 800x600.

fish% python run_game.py
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "run_game.py", line 4, in <module>
main.main()
File "/home/myke/pyweek/Stringrolled/gamelib/main.py", line 17, in main
graphics = graph.init_video()
File "/home/myke/pyweek/Stringrolled/gamelib/graph.py", line 28, in init_video
graphics.screen = pygame.display.set_mode((graphics.resolution_x,graphics.resolution_y), pygame.FULLSCREEN|pygame.HWSURFACE|pygame.DOUBLEBUF, 32)
pygame.error: No video mode large enough for 1280x800

good production.

$ python run_game.py
ALSA lib pcm_dmix.c:874:(snd_pcm_dmix_open) unable to open slave
ALSA lib pcm_dmix.c:874:(snd_pcm_dmix_open) unable to open slave
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "run_game.py", line 4, in <module>
main.main()
File "/tmp/Stringrolled/gamelib/main.py", line 21, in main
mygame = game.init_game(level)
File "/tmp/Stringrolled/gamelib/game.py", line 132, in init_game
pygame.mixer.init()
pygame.error: No available audio device

A little bit frustrating to try to move the ball

I think we have a winner!

Great game. However you might want to mention that the tab key switches the character, I found it out just by mistake.

I was very impressed by how you successfully achieved a very nice retro feel, in terms of not only graphics and sounds but also difficulty. The gameplay itself is very fun and the puzzles are clever. I liked the use of alternating between two different characters to solve puzzles - in fact, it's almost like there are three characters, because the ball of yarn is just as important as the two characters. Just walked a bit away from the theme (more of a ball of yarn rather than a piece of string), but that's ok. I got stuck (due to difficulty) in the pyramid, but I might try to continue later. Amazing work.

<p>Nice retro look... Looks like a classic platformer/puzzle

Really nice game! Didn't have time to get very far as there are still other entries to mark, but not bad at all!

I like games that make you think!

Awesome! Retro! Difficult!

Well designed one.

Fun!

Retro. Hmm. Frustratingly hard to get string out of corners.

awesome! possibly my favourite game out of the lot!

I never liked games when you alternate control of actor, so the factor fun was low for me.
Solid retro game.

Until it becomes unbeatable it's a very un-stressful platformer - which I really like

This entry was great. I had to give fun "above average" and not excellent because it was too hard too early.

I like the retro appear

Wonderful! :)

Nice retro game.
Bonus point for: polish

Good times. Cute kitty kitty. Game play was fun. Thank you.

Cool game, but controls where bad :(

Awesome platformer! Especially the level design was great. I had one bug (probably?) when i jumped to roof with my cat and everything just exploded. Not sure if that's meant to happen. Other than that, great job in just one week!!

Very good fun. The switching characters mechanic works quite well, and platforming is fun, if a bit buggy. Then again, the bugs feel like they belong, as if the game belongs on an NES (a lot of those games felt a bit off as far as platform physics go). Nice job.

Finished the game -- the heart is cute. :)<br><br>
There are a few things that seem like bugs that are frustrating to say the least. That last big puzzle in the pyramid was a killer. I had to restart the game so many times to get past that one -- but I finally figured it out. It was VERY unclear that the fire at the bottom of the pyramid does NOT kill you. Despite, as you pointed out, I had to walk through it in the entrance. For some reason, my brain didn't make the connection, and I didn't remember it from the beginning.<br>
So I was yarn-rolling with the cat all across the bottom of the screen, and because the cat moves so fast, it was taking _forever_ to get anywhere. Finally I fell off accidentally, and was pleasantly surprised to find that the flames didn't kill me. So that made that part quite a bit easier. <br><br>

I really liked the difficulty in the puzzles -- the moving platform puzzle was amazing to say the least. It took me quite a while to figure out what I was supposed to do at that part. At first, I was throwing the yarn over to break the green bricks, and leaving the princess behind -- that let my cat go over and press the blue button, but then I couldn't run-and-jump over the blue spikes that would pop up, so I was toast. All told though, I finally figured out the pyramid puzzle without hints, and without putting the game down in frustration. Nicely done!<br><br>
I'm seriously impressed with the ingenuity that went into making the level and the puzzles. My wife heard the music, and the first thing she said was, "That sounds like Doukutsu". The bats totally reminded me of Doukutsu bats. Your game was certainly tough, but after you gave me the hint about being able to roll while standing on top of the yarn, it made it beatable. <br><br>

Can I just say I really liked your save mechanism, Logicow? I thought it was fantastic.
I took screenshots of two bugs -- one was a collision bug, and the other was that the perma-switches don't reset when you die. So in the event that I was able to make it to one of the perma-switches in the pyramid, when I died, it kicked me out of the pyramid. I was afraid to hit the bell, because I thought it might save my game in this broken state, and corrupt my savegame, so I purposefully didn't hit the bell (which would have made it all better). So instead, I quit the game and restarted each time. Not a huge deal -- that was the most frustrating part. I'm glad to know it wouldn't have corrupted my game -- that's certainly comforting. I seriously love the puzzles and graphics -- the physics for the cat hitting the ball are fun too.<br><br>

So in retrospect, I found your game incredibly fun. The puzzles, graphics, sound, menus, control, dual-characters, string physics, save mechanism, are all top-notch.<br>
Only frustrating parts were dying inexplicably once from jumping up into the corner of a ceiling while carrying the yarn, getting the ball stuck in the ceiling, not knowing that fire didn't kill you, and not knowing that the bells reset the permaswitches. Really, everything else was fantastic -- your tileset was great -- the attention to detail in your levels was really classy.<br><br>

Fantastic job done on the game -- despite the few glitches, I loved it. :)

Neat concept.

This was good, once I worked out how to play.

Cool game, but controlling the ball is a pain in the neck. I was already frustrated halfway into the first level, because almost every time I try to jump over the ball, I end up kicking it away. The game also did not follow the theme. A ball of yarn is not "The Length of a Piece of String". However it's apparent you put a lot of effort into the game, especially the graphics. But you'll need to make it less frustrating for it to be a really good game.

Wonderful little oldschool style game. :) Great graphics and music. Some pretty nice level design too. The controls also felt sharp. The theme was a bit non-existent though. ;)