I agree with what others have said: this game really does atmosphere well, both on the surface with the view of the planet and inside the caves. The pixel art in the opening and menus is very clean too. The thematic music is a very nice touch. It would be great to see fleshed out beyond its Game Jam state. Spiralling Down could be Minetest's answer to Deep Rock Galatic.
That being said, it's not finished enough to recommend spending a great deal of time in right now. The menu screen isn't really very intitutive, it's not clear what the various elements you're collecting are or do, or what the tools are (it would be helpful if the HUD showed a descriptive name for the selected tool). Though I said I like the music, it's way too loud by default and there really could be more emphasis on sound effects, especially for drilling and such. Music transitions are a bit abrupt when moving between areas. I also got some errors related to sounds when using the acid gun (didn't know how to use it either). There were some plants that were kind of floating a few blocks off the ground that looked like they should be hanging from the ceiling. It would be good if you could pick up the lights again. The bat monsters could use some work, they're a bit laggy for me and totally overwhelming. The weird green balls also look a bit rough and clutter everything up. The game could introduce you to the hostiles in a bit more of a staggered fashion - perhaps only a handful at first, then more of them and more dangerous foes the deeper you go.
I am taking the time to give feedback here because I think the bones we have here are promising and it could be a fun game with more development.
The pixel art in the opening and menus is very clean too.
That's mostly thanks to TEMHOTAOKEAHA and Dragoni, our awesome pixel artists :)
especially for drilling
There is a sound effect for drilling, but it requires MT 5.7-dev... Should be fine as soon as 5.7 releases though. More sound FX are definitely planned long term.
There were some plants that were kind of floating a few blocks off the ground that looked like they should be hanging from the ceiling.
Hmm indeed, I'll look into this.
Hostile spawning has been limited post-submission.
Rating Scale:
1-10 for each of the 6 categories, 1 being a thumbs down, 10 being a thumbs up. Max total being 60.
Gameplay: 6 | Innovation: 8 | Graphics (Content): 7 | Music & Sound (Content): 7 | Theme: 10 | Stability: 8 |
Total: 46
I agree with what others have said: this game really does atmosphere well, both on the surface with the view of the planet and inside the caves. The pixel art in the opening and menus is very clean too. The thematic music is a very nice touch. It would be great to see fleshed out beyond its Game Jam state. Spiralling Down could be Minetest's answer to Deep Rock Galatic.
That being said, it's not finished enough to recommend spending a great deal of time in right now. The menu screen isn't really very intitutive, it's not clear what the various elements you're collecting are or do, or what the tools are (it would be helpful if the HUD showed a descriptive name for the selected tool). Though I said I like the music, it's way too loud by default and there really could be more emphasis on sound effects, especially for drilling and such. Music transitions are a bit abrupt when moving between areas. I also got some errors related to sounds when using the acid gun (didn't know how to use it either). There were some plants that were kind of floating a few blocks off the ground that looked like they should be hanging from the ceiling. It would be good if you could pick up the lights again. The bat monsters could use some work, they're a bit laggy for me and totally overwhelming. The weird green balls also look a bit rough and clutter everything up. The game could introduce you to the hostiles in a bit more of a staggered fashion - perhaps only a handful at first, then more of them and more dangerous foes the deeper you go.
I am taking the time to give feedback here because I think the bones we have here are promising and it could be a fun game with more development.
Thanks for your review.
That's mostly thanks to TEMHOTAOKEAHA and Dragoni, our awesome pixel artists :)
There is a sound effect for drilling, but it requires MT 5.7-dev... Should be fine as soon as 5.7 releases though. More sound FX are definitely planned long term.
Hmm indeed, I'll look into this.
Hostile spawning has been limited post-submission.