Play test

2023-12-07 by JC

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We play tested in class in order to receive feedback on the games current state.

Notes:

Positive reaction to the character movement and design. Some difficult with controlling them together. It is very difficult to time the jump at the same time.
Suggestion to add an easier beginning to the level. Start with basic walking, then to jumping and then add more difficult obstacles.
Sometimes it was unclear what the player had to do as they couldn’t see what was coming up. By the time they discovered what they had to do the fog had covered the puzzle making it very difficult to complete. (By having an easier start this could be resolved).
Add sound effects and background music.
Add some sparks to the fuse boxes to give some more life. Users struggled to figure out the fuse box at first. It was not very clear that it was a door that they needed to open. This could be fixed by adding more sound effects and also maybe a slower introduction to the mechanics.
There needs to be some sort of user feedback when the door had been opened as sometimes the player was unsure if their actions had worked.
Start and end screens need to be added.
Change the death scene to something more sensitive and related to the overall theme of the game. Perhaps it says “Goodbye” and add a try again button.
Make an end scene that also matches the theme of the overall game. There should be a feeling of accomplishment and meaning. This could be by finding another life that needs to be taken care of.

From our feedback we have made further developments to our game to improve the overall experience.

Development:

The timings between needing to press a key at the same time was adjusted so that it was easier to progress.

An introduction was introduced to the level. You start out by learning how to walk together. There is some instructions which come up on screen which help the players understand what they need to do. This also introduced more of the story and gives build up for the rest of the game. Other mechanics were also introduced this way, such as, jumping and kicking the fuse boxes.

Background music was added to the the game to add to the overall atmosphere. Sound effects were added to the fuse box so that it signals to the user this is something they can interact with. A 3D sound effect was added to the game object so that the sound got louder when the player was next to it. Sounds for when the fuse box had been activated also were added. This way the player will be able to tell when they have opened a door.

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