FlyingColours's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Jumping Box 3]

Underrated.

Now, contrary to what the users below have written, I do not believe this game to be original by any measure. Perhaps they were not familiar with the Flash gaming scene when Civiballs and Boombot were big names. These games don't have the same mechanics as this one, of course, but there were similar games around that time period that did. Even most of the elements, like disappearing tiles, are cookie-cutter elements that have been used for as long as we can remember.

Still, originality is not the sole factor with which I would judge a game. I think the game does offer us a good playing experience, and the time spent on this game is not time wasted. The level designs, while not crafted by a master in the art, are good. Dying after getting hit too many times and being able to jump midair are good touches as well, even if the latter might make the game a tad easier.

To conclude, no this isn't a bad game at all. I'd like to say the game has potential to be more, and it certainly has, but since this is the third instalment, I'm not sure what to expect in future episodes. With that said, the game does offer a pleasant gaming experience. For that, I give a 3.5. (The 0.5 is due to the bug where you can't move your box after you restart. I would have given a 4 otherwise.)

[The Broadenlands]

I think it's a very cute little ludum dare game. Certainly not one of those prototypes which may be on to something big, but cute nevertheless. I love the visual effects, and managed to finish the game without encountering any bugs. I loved the ending too. Thanks for the game! ^^

[Ninja Messenger]

It's a great game. You're a great artist, and not a bad programmer either. It seems to me that you were testing out the capabilities of Adobe Flash, and ended up with a game of considerable scale.

Gameplay-wise, I love your concept. It takes a bit from several genres in existence, and I totally love your game idea. Level design was great, and the animations were awesome, too. The game is bug-free as far as I've played.

The main problem with this game (and with your RPG, which I've played yesterday) is that it is unpolished. When I say unpolished, I mean that the devil's in the details. For example, none of your buttons have hover or click states. The typeface of the dynamic text boxes does not match the general atmosphere of the game. (I'd suggest you do away with their borders and background colours too.) Then there's the positioning of the achievement boxes (which was a little sloppy, let's face it), the white edge in the Game Over screen, and bitmap artefacts in the 'Opps!' (should be spelt 'Oops' BTW) screen... These are trivialities, but they really determine how pro your game looks. The game also lacks juice. Watch this NG-recommended video for more about juice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy0aCDmgnxg&feature=kp

I'll be honest and tell you that the game is not likely to receive a good rating because of the reasons above. Don't be discouraged by that! You're clearly a promising emerging dev and I hope that by polishing your games further (perhaps you can polish this game and your RPG, and reupload both), your games will reach their maximum potential.

I know all this because I've gone through the same stage as you (I've made a game similar to yours, but it's not posted on NG and I've lost the file anyway). Good luck on your game dev journey! ^^

kaizen101 responds:

Thank you! I will keep those in mind, I will do my best to become better at this, and to give more time to polished it... (though time is not in my side)

[Being-Time]

An easy 5/5 10/10 from me! It's reminiscent of Company of Myself, but it's also very unique and by no means a clone.

Mechanics - Unique, and learns from previous games like Company of Myself without imitating completely
Level design - Marvellous, with a surprise each time.
Length - Yep, that's the only thing on which I can complain. :P
Graphics - simply stunning. It's simple, and yet sophisticated - not the kind of 'programmer art' (geometric shapes) that people like me tend to draw. (cf. my first game 'Idle Not', LOL)
Music - clear influence from early music. Unique and thematic in its own right. Well done!
SFX - Not as innovative as the rest of the game, but great nevertheless!
General feel - excellent feel. The various parts of the game are woven together perfectly.

[Dungeon Crawlers!]

Since you used the same screenshot as we did, I decided to review yours first! Reading many of the reviews below, I feel many NGers can really be nicer. This happens in all game jams, so don't get discouraged by them!

The first thing is that I TOTALLY LOVE your concept! Never have I seen anything like it before. To me, having a great game idea is the hardest thing in game development, maybe even harder than fixing bugs!

The difficulty was, of course, the most important problem with your game. I suggest implementing a lives or HP system of some sort. Also, you might consider adding some wildcard tiles that go both to the top and to the bottom. Also, you shouldn't add so many obstacles in the beginning. Consider making an easy tutorial level instead of a how-to section. A tutorial level gives people the sense that they've achieved 'something', and will encourage them to KEEP PLAYING! Keep the hard levels to the middle of the game!

All in all, game jams are about prototyping new ideas or, as Austin always says, 'rapidly create video game designs and inject new ideas into the industry'. I think you've done a great job at that. Congrats! :)

[Call of 'Doody']

Finally, the poop game is come! :P

It was a nice, simple game, and there isn't much to criticise about it. The graphics were nice, if a bit lacking in variety, and the concept was certainly new. The only thing I didn't like about it was that the cars really were fast! I could stand on the edge in order to get the cars more easily, but then it would be harder to avoid the bolts. I ended up avoiding electricity for a long time without getting a single car. (I still haven't hit any cars so far.) Maybe you could start out easy and tune up the difficulty as the player progresses. All in all, great game with an awesome multitasking concept, though a tad on the difficult side!

[Pico's School 2]

Sorry for not reviewing earlier. It didn't appear in my activity feed for some reason.

Also, congrats about learning to program, Clatform. :) When I saw you and Tom on there, I thought your roles would be the other way around.

Happy April Fool's Day to both of you! This is a much better joke than mine (and also better than the zombie one in my opinion.)

Just a little bug, though: the wrench stays there after you take it. Also, you should probably disable tab.

Now to figure out the medals!

[Puzzle jumper]

Awesome game and I look forward to the next levels! The engine is solid enough, and while I think you could add more to it, it's pretty good at the current stage. You may need to add a replay button, however. That way, when the player gets stuck in a lock, the level can be restarted. Overall, a nice game and I'd like to see the next levels!

larrynachos responds:

reset button. brilliant idea! i'll work on that!

[Polstromatic]

Great game! It isn't completely innovative, but not overdone, either. The idea is great and you could certainly expand it. I won't complain about the art either. You're a programmer, but you animated the guy walking pretty well. (The menu screen could use some cleaning-up, though.) The biggest issue with the game is a technical one. The blocks go further and further away from the mouse as you drag them if the screen moves. If that issue is resolved, I'm sure your game will be very successful. Keep up the great work!

[Bearbarians]

Amazing work! The AI is clever and the game is smooth. The animations are great, and the difficulty level is set high enough for star-grabbers but low enough for most folks to manage. The interface is intuitive and the controls are nice to the player. If only I stopped jumping off platforms... Anyway, I think you were quite right when you said this was the best game you've ever made. :)