Home
I just finished playing this version a few minutes ago and all I have to say is "wow!" My mind was absolutely BLOWN when I saw the latest paintings on the walls and I said to myself, "Oh my gosh! I think I finally know what's going on!!!" If blowing players' minds after all that mystery and suspense was the effect you were going for, Salim, you got it! And I can see that there's evidently more to come.
I was also engrossed in the intervening levels. I think you did a good job in training the player in how to use the cannon before the first boss battle with the queen and the dark-robot, and that level also makes it clear that the queen has no intention of letting them go free. I must confess though that when the drawbridge came up, I was a little confused on what to do next; my otherwise straightforward path had never been barred in that manner before, and I tried shooting the gong with arrows or pushing on the drawbridge with the robot. Also, I feel like that first boss battle with the queen needs a little foreboding, maybe with a cut-scene or a smaller boss battle where it's made clear that she's controlling all these enemy robots that are trying to catch you; as it stands right now it's like she pops in out of nowhere. As epic as the boss battle was I had to die a few times before I realized I couldn't attack the dark-robot directly. I also didn't expect that the queen would stop controlling him when I stopped controlling the robot, and from my perspective it would make more sense on her part to leave her robot on while mine was off, so I didn't want to leave the girl unprotected.
The maze was also incredible, and I could see how you were trying to take advantage of forcing the girl and the robot apart, which I got a taste of previously in the "hopscotch" puzzle level. I thought though that I could use the cannons to attack the enemy robots and I kept trying to clear the way from above once the robot was in the tower, particularly in the part of the maze where the girl is stuck with enemy robots at every turn; I kept trying to lure them out in the open where I could snipe them with arrows, before I realized the best way through was to plan a path and then run for it.
I admired the beauty of the castle level and it almost reminded me of the first few minutes of Legend of Zelda. However, once again, its late middle-ages/gothic architecture of smooth grey granite doesn't seem to jive with that of the rest of the town, which appears to be of Venetian or even Turkish yellow limestone; unless of course you were trying to send the impression that there was a new order building on top of the older town and that the castle was constructed recently. I thought it was pretty artistic of you to use the mirrors upon entry to the throne room to signify that the girl and the robot are sort of one and the same entity. As for that last boss battle, after the arena-setting of the first, against what looked like the queen's ultimate henchman, this one didn't seem quite as epic, and again I didn't realize that these kamikaze robots would be able to explode over and over again, so I kept trying to shoot them with arrows at first. This was also where I realized that the queen's pose while controlling the other robots makes her look like a marionette with her trident looking like the puppeteer's stick.
The only real "bugs" I was able to discern in this version related to when the music turned on and off, particularly when I was trying to snipe enemy robots in the maze. I would walk in, the cool music would start, I'd kill one, and then the music would die out, only to start again once I moved closer into the middle of the maze again; kind of jarring. That sort of thing happens throughout the game, often when switching back and forth between the girl and the robot, and it kind of takes away from the immersion. If I may make a suggestion, I think it would be better for the danger music to activate upon entering an area known to be dangerous and then only deactivate when all of the enemy robots are defeated, and not just the ones that have seen you. On the topic of music, since I have a tendency to run everywhere, that means that I usually don't get a chance to listen to certain atmospheric pieces, so I would also like to suggest extending their zones of influence. That reminds me, I think it's a good idea that you took the music away from the bridge leading from the girl's prison to the robot; makes things feel just a little more mysterious.
I saw that my mind-blowing theory was subtly confirmed during the credits, and I felt honored to see my name there. Keep up the great work!
I was also engrossed in the intervening levels. I think you did a good job in training the player in how to use the cannon before the first boss battle with the queen and the dark-robot, and that level also makes it clear that the queen has no intention of letting them go free. I must confess though that when the drawbridge came up, I was a little confused on what to do next; my otherwise straightforward path had never been barred in that manner before, and I tried shooting the gong with arrows or pushing on the drawbridge with the robot. Also, I feel like that first boss battle with the queen needs a little foreboding, maybe with a cut-scene or a smaller boss battle where it's made clear that she's controlling all these enemy robots that are trying to catch you; as it stands right now it's like she pops in out of nowhere. As epic as the boss battle was I had to die a few times before I realized I couldn't attack the dark-robot directly. I also didn't expect that the queen would stop controlling him when I stopped controlling the robot, and from my perspective it would make more sense on her part to leave her robot on while mine was off, so I didn't want to leave the girl unprotected.
The maze was also incredible, and I could see how you were trying to take advantage of forcing the girl and the robot apart, which I got a taste of previously in the "hopscotch" puzzle level. I thought though that I could use the cannons to attack the enemy robots and I kept trying to clear the way from above once the robot was in the tower, particularly in the part of the maze where the girl is stuck with enemy robots at every turn; I kept trying to lure them out in the open where I could snipe them with arrows, before I realized the best way through was to plan a path and then run for it.
I admired the beauty of the castle level and it almost reminded me of the first few minutes of Legend of Zelda. However, once again, its late middle-ages/gothic architecture of smooth grey granite doesn't seem to jive with that of the rest of the town, which appears to be of Venetian or even Turkish yellow limestone; unless of course you were trying to send the impression that there was a new order building on top of the older town and that the castle was constructed recently. I thought it was pretty artistic of you to use the mirrors upon entry to the throne room to signify that the girl and the robot are sort of one and the same entity. As for that last boss battle, after the arena-setting of the first, against what looked like the queen's ultimate henchman, this one didn't seem quite as epic, and again I didn't realize that these kamikaze robots would be able to explode over and over again, so I kept trying to shoot them with arrows at first. This was also where I realized that the queen's pose while controlling the other robots makes her look like a marionette with her trident looking like the puppeteer's stick.
The only real "bugs" I was able to discern in this version related to when the music turned on and off, particularly when I was trying to snipe enemy robots in the maze. I would walk in, the cool music would start, I'd kill one, and then the music would die out, only to start again once I moved closer into the middle of the maze again; kind of jarring. That sort of thing happens throughout the game, often when switching back and forth between the girl and the robot, and it kind of takes away from the immersion. If I may make a suggestion, I think it would be better for the danger music to activate upon entering an area known to be dangerous and then only deactivate when all of the enemy robots are defeated, and not just the ones that have seen you. On the topic of music, since I have a tendency to run everywhere, that means that I usually don't get a chance to listen to certain atmospheric pieces, so I would also like to suggest extending their zones of influence. That reminds me, I think it's a good idea that you took the music away from the bridge leading from the girl's prison to the robot; makes things feel just a little more mysterious.
I saw that my mind-blowing theory was subtly confirmed during the credits, and I felt honored to see my name there. Keep up the great work!
