Music volume: is it too loud, too quiet?

- The volume was fine. I like the upbeat music. 

What did you dislike and why?

- Dislike is a strong word but I wish there were more variety of enemies. 

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

- When you get hit by the enemies, the response to it seems a bit lacking. Except for the music, there wasn't anything else. Maybe the player could glitch or something? 

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

- Nope. 

Did the controls feel natural?

- Yes. 

Is the objective clear?

- Yes.

Did you feel like you were getting adequate feedback on your actions?

- The sound effects were good and provided enough feedback to the actions. 

Initial notes: First of WOW guys! I’m super impressed! I loved the beginning screen, the how to play, the gameplay this time was very improved, I even noticed the animation from whenever I would step on the radiated tiles. You guys did an amazing job and improvement from last time and I am very impressed. Round of applause!

Music volume: is it too loud, too quiet?

I think it was a little too loud. It’d be cool if it was lower or there was an option to lower the volume, but I’m not sure if it’s a big deal. I guess I can just turn down the volume on my laptop.

What did you dislike and why?

I’m not sure if I disliked much of anything this time. I still think some of the decorations, like the greyed-out consoles were a little too different, but it could be resolved with some equally-interesting but different decorations that are different from the consoles.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

I think it’s just nit-picky things now, like misspellings or more options to improve the robot. But that can be remedied pretty easily, so not to worried about it.

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

Not really, the game objective was more clearer this time around and kind of guided the player to follow a certain task instead of going around trying things that aren’t necessary.

Did the controls feel natural?

Yes, very. I liked the diagonal movement this time around. Nice job there.

Is the objective clear?

Yes, way more clearer. I think maybe the two page explanation could be condensed into one with a little less detail but can still get the message across. That way, it makes a little less confusing if you throw too much detail at the player in the beginning.

Did you feel like you were getting adequate feedback on your actions?

Yes, the controls were quite responsive and I didn’t feel frustrated or feel like anything could be different.  

Music volume: is it too loud, too quiet?
The music volume was fine

What did you dislike and why?
I wouldn't particularly say there was anything I disliked, but I think the game could really use the game flashing red when taking damage. I also think the game could use the enemies having red bullets instead of the same color as the player.

Is the objective clear?
Yes, it was very clear to attack the robots and use their points to repair those machines.

Also to note I had a game-breaking bug where when I upgraded myself I got caught somewhere after upgrading I moved down and right about 4 tiles,  then I couldn't move or shoot anymore.

-Jarek Yatsco

Hey guys! 

I'm loving the progress you made.  

The controls felt really good and responsive.   It felt like a really easy game to jump into and understand for the most part.  

I thought the music volume was good, and the sound effects fit the game well.  

I did struggle a bit understanding the workbenches.  When I'd first find one and use the action key on it, it would switch to green and cost me parts.  But then when I would try to interact with the green workbenches, it was unclear what they were doing or if they were doing anything at all.  

Besides that, I only have some very minor suggestions:

It felt like some of the collision boxes for objects on the map were a little too big, and I would unexpectedly get stuck on things I thought I was walking past.

You might want to add a return/next button to the last how to play page so people can go directly back to the main menu without clicking back through the instructions (like I said, extremely minor). 

I look forward to seeing your final project!!

Hi,

First of all, very fun game. Easy to move around and shoot, and unfortunately I didn't get to hear the game too well but that's my fault. Playing the game, I felt like I didn't know what to do. I moved around and interacted with various objects but I didn't really know why or what they did. I also didn't quite know where I was going, it was very aimless.

I also ran into a bug. I interacted with some sort of workbench that allowed upgrades when interacted with. After leaving the menu the timer stopped and I was stuck on the workbench, a softlock. Not sure what caused it but it was there, just to call attention to it. Otherwise, I had fun playing, and I would like a bit more of a clarity to things as I just jumped in without much guidance, maybe a bit of a zoom out to see more things, but overall fun game!

Before I get into answering your questions, I wanted to mention something. I really loved the tutorial! It was beautifully done and gave me exactly what I needed to begin playing the game. However, it has a few typos. Double check that.

Music Volume:

The volume was actually perfect in my mind, and totally fit the vibe y'all seem to be going for with your game. Can't say too much more on this.

Dislikes?

I will start by saying the enemy drop spread was fixed for the most part. None of the drops were getting caught on invisible hitboxes like last time, which allowed me to pick all of them up. Plus, the screws and springs in my inventory incremented properly. Really good improvement! However, the spread felt a little unnatrual because of how far some of the drops went. I also want to mention here that, even though it is the opposite of a dislike, I really liked how your artists have beautified the game. I noticed that even when I pressed both up and left, there was a sprite for facing diagonally up and left. Nice attention to detail! That's not normally seen in these types of games.

What was missing?

Adding a small walking animation to the little dude's feet would be nice but isn't 100% necessary if that's not the aesthetic you guys are going for. When it comes to the radiation, I did not have a sense of urgency while standing in it. I feel like it could damage the player faster to give the sense of urgency standing in radioactive green goo is supposed to. What did, however, increase my sense of urgency was the timer at the top. I didn't even realize it was there until there were 30 seconds left for me to complete the mission and I scrambled to find the last terminal to fix. This lack of urgency from taking damage honestly applies just as much to enemies. On top of that, the game is missing pathing for enemies. Again, if that's what you guys are going for aesthetics wise, dope, but if the enemies pathed toward the player, I feel like it would make things more hectic and fun for them.

Tried to do something and couldn't?

Open the vault door by the upgrade station, though I assume that is just a prop. There was no explanation for it at all, nor did it seem to be part of the level. If I am missing something about that door y'all are hella sneaky.

Clear Objective?

Yes, though the objective was a bit linear. I won't hold that against the game, though, because I still had fun while testing it. Plus I have no ideas on ways you could improve on it.

Controls and Feedback

Yes! Absolutely the controls feel natural. It might be nice to be able to free aim the weapon with the mouse, but otherwise I think the controls felt great. When it comes to feedback, that is where I have some issues. While I feel like I was able to control the robot just fine, I was not able to fire as quickly as I wanted to. Of course, I still never felt like I was in danger, so it wasn't that big of an issue, but I feel like the cooldown on the firing could be a bit shorter. Responsiveness to my inputs, otherwise, felt great.

Good second demo guys, overall I really enjoyed it!

Eric H.

Music volume: is it too loud, too quiet?

It is a bit loud

What did you dislike and why?

I didn’t like the music because it sounds distracting

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

Everything was awesome. What I can only think of is maybe having more parts (e.g. a yellow spring can be counted as ten normal spring, etc)

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

no

Did the controls feel natural?

yes

Is the objective clear?

Yes. It is very clear. The instruction from the opening menu helps a lot.

Did you feel like you were getting adequate feedback on your actions?

Yes.

Playtest questions:

Music volume: is it too loud, too quiet?

I think it is slightly too loud compared to the sfx, but it honestly sounds fine to me

What did you dislike and why?

I didn't like having to press back for every page in the "how to play menu" after I was done reading.  That will get really annoying as the tutorial gets longer.

I didn't like how parts would go flying across the room when I killed robots.

I would like the option to cancel repairs if we are to be stuck when repairing.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

More upgrades, if it's a feasible workload

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

I would like a way to upgrade resistance to toxic damage

Did the controls feel natural?

They did.

Is the objective clear?

Yes the red consoles and shift to green made it very clear of their statuses.  

Did you feel like you were getting adequate feedback on your actions?

Yes the sound effects really helped me understand when things were happening.  I also like the little face on the bottom left.

Music volume: is it too loud, too quiet?

Maybe a bit too loud.

What did you dislike and why?

Lack of variety in enemies and what they give was a let down since it led to the game's objective becoming very linear. Though in the time you've had to do this, the art, world and mechanics are incredible. The how to play was also very informative.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

Maybe a different enemy type for a different area?

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

Nothing

Did the controls feel natural?

Yeah they were good. Maybe add WASD?

Is the objective clear?

Yes! Explained clearly in the how to play.

Did you feel like you were getting adequate feedback on your actions?

Yes. The shooting felt a little weird though, maybe due to how slow the projectile is.

Music volume: is it too loud, too quiet?

Yes but I just changed the volue on my computer

What did you dislike and why?

I wish there was more of a mission statement, It took me 2 times of playing to find the red machines and fix them.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

No.

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

Shooting enmys that you run into.

Did the controls feel natural?

I like the 8 way derections.

Is the objective clear?

no, it took a few times of play to find out what it was.

Did you feel like you were getting adequate feedback on your actions?

I don't know the speed that the guy goes is realy fast some times and other times slow.

1. What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game? I think it would be cool to have upgraded damage resistance
2. What was your favorite mechanic? How do you think it can be improved? My favorite mechanic was the 
3. What did you dislike and why? I didn't like how the upgrades at the console didn't seem to do anything, but maybe they will feel more significant when there's more going on. The screws and springs also seem to be glitched. When I bought an upgrade with screws, then the amount of springs I had also went down. I would also like to see some sort of indicator that there are toxic areas. I didn't realize that's what they were until I saw another comment.
4. Did you feel like anything was missing and what? There wasn't any sort of big conflict (particularly a lack of nuclear meltdown), but I assume that's on the way :)
5. Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t? I wanted to loot the lockers
6. Did you find the art aesthetic to be cohesive? I enjoyed the art style and it felt cohesive to me!
7. Did the controls feel natural? I liked the movement, but the shooting felt unnatural. I would have liked it more if you shot where your mouse was or something like that, rather than where your robot was facing.

Hey guys!

1. What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game?

One upgrade I would like to see is something like thicker skin or better wiring that allows the character to take less damage and lose less health. Maybe an upgraded weapon would be nice, or one that extends and brings enemies to you.

2. What was your favorite mechanic? How can it be improved?

My favorite mechanic was the one where if you stood too long in radiation it would deplete your health and the enemies could spread the radiation. However, I was able to get to negative health values. There should definitely be a game loss screen when health gets to 0%

3. What did you dislike and why?

I disliked the fact that there seemed to be no end goal at all. There was no goal for me to get to, and what I was supposed to do was very confusing. As previously mentioned, my health/battery going to 0 didn't net me a game loss. I didn't figure out that the spacebar was used to shoot until I accidentally hit it while running around the arena, so there's another thing I didn't like. I also didn't like that upgrades didn't seem to do anything yet and getting upgrades would consume both types of upgrade material (spring and screw) even though it said it would only consume one type. It really hurt my resource management. Then again, the pickups worked the same way (picking up a screw or a spring picks up both a screw and a spring), so it is balanced that way. I would like to see enemies do something more than just roam around, but if that is what you are going for, then it fits. The most egregious thing, though, and something that has to be fixed, was the misdone bounding boxes on the walls. It really sucked that there were springs and screws on the ground that I couldn't pick up due to the fact that an invisible wall seemed to stick out from everywhere. This game would definitely be much more enjoyable if the bounding boxes were put in properly, allowing me to move throughout the map a lot more freely. I mean, it's so bad that a lot of the enemy robots would get stuck on some part of the map because they ran into a bounding box that was way too big for the item it was on.

4. What did you feel was missing and why?

I mentioned this before: some form of end-of-game and a goal to achieve. I feel like there should have been something that I could pursue while avoiding the ever-expanding radiation spots that would tell me when the game was over. As it is in its current form, unless I am missing something, the game is nothing more than run and gun over and over and over.

5. Was there something you wanted to try but couldn't?

The various lockers around the room made it seem like I could interact with them, maybe get some loot. Of course, that was not the case. I kept running around trying to find something. Again, maybe I'm missing something, so I don't want to seem too harsh, but a few lockers with hidden secrets would definitely add to the game.

6. Was the aesthetic cohesive?

This was most definitely the most enjoyable part of the game! I loved the vibe you guys went for. The way the robot turned and had different, unique faces was amazing! For the most part, everything definitely felt super clean. I admire your ability to use pixel art to capture the vibe you were going for with your aesthetic. So yeah, short answer is yes, the aesthetic was cohesive.

7. Did the controls feel natural?

Honestly, not fully. I was confused at the use of spacebar for shoot when it's usually left mouse click.  I also didn't like the lack of the ability to aim, but that's really just a nitpick. I liked the use of WASD to move, but the problem I found was that I feel like how far the character stepped was tough to figure out. Sometimes I would be able to move and pick up a drop just fine, other times I could not, even if I barely tapped the key to move the direction I wanted to. C to interact was actually quite nice, I have rarely seen it before. It was a good transition from spacebar to WASD, which I will admit seemed pretty natural.

I'd love to see the improvements you guys make to the game, it looks like it has a good start! Just needs a tweak or two.

Eric Hillmeyer

What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game?

Rapid fire for maybe a few seconds with a cooldown.

What was your favorite mechanic? How do you think it can be improved?

I liked the pickup ability and upgrade options. I think there should be more boundaries so objects don't go into out of reach areas.

What did you dislike and why?

The weapon was not accurate when firing at an enemy and would enjoy more accuracy. When I played, my character had a large hit box radius when the enemies attacked which made it questionable.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

I felt that there should be a progression bar.

Did you find the art aesthetic to be cohesive?

I think it looks great!

Did the controls feel natural?

 I also the controls to be difficult. I would have liked for the shooting to be clicks instead of spacebar.

- Alejandro Sandoval

What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game?

Health pickups, special abilities to change the shooting range/speed of the player.

What was your favorite mechanic? How do you think it can be improved?

I like the parts pick-up and upgrade abilities. Some of the parts were dropped too close to the corners/walls so I am not able to pick them up.

What did you dislike and why?

Enemies don’t really attack the player. At some points in the scene, the player cannot really shoot the enemies even when the player tried to move around the enemies.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

Maybe having the game become progressively harder will make the game more interesting.

Did you find the art aesthetic to be cohesive?

The art style is very good. It looks pretty much like a complete game.

Did the controls feel natural?

Yes. I just didn’t like how the player is blocked when moving even though he hasn’t reach the wall/objects

What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game?
To name a few, Wide bullet, rapid-fire, homing bullets, a dash,  and maybe some unique abilities like specials like freezing time or an explosion.

What was your favorite mechanic? How do you think it can be improved?

I enjoyed the shooting, but I think it might be more interesting if the shooting was locked to the grid system, but the mouse.

What did you dislike and why?
I didn't like how sometimes the parts of robots I killed got stuck in the grid of a desk or a table and I couldn't grab them.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?
Not anything that I can really think of at the moment.

Did you find the art aesthetic to be cohesive?

I thought that most of the art was cohesive except for the background elements such as the high-tech desk I think it combats the simplicity of the design of the robot a bit.

Did the controls feel natural?

It took me a while to figure out all of the controls, but I think a simple tutorial section could help.

-Jarek

Playtest Questions:

What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game?

Whenever a person buys an upgrade, there can be a visual aspect outlining the upgrade, such as a new interesting projectile or a visual cue of a new gun.

What was your favorite mechanic? How do you think it can be improved?

The ability to upgrade was nice and helped you feel rewarded for your efforts. The upgrades can be improved through UI work, showing whether upgrades have been maxed out, are in different tier levels, or even a hoverover explanation explaining what each upgrade can do for the player. I also enjoyed the creative time constraint of using a battery time limit rather than an actual timer.  

What did you dislike and why?

The most frustrating thing for me was understanding what controls did what and what the motive was in general despite reading. That can easily be remedied by a quick recap of the controls of the game that I’m supposed to know and what my game objective is.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

-Adding a count of the robots to indicate to the player progression would make a big difference. I also felt that the robot AI could be a little bit better so that they are standing up instead of flopping around. Maybe an area indicator so they can shoot in the general direction of the player will make them more intimidating. Maybe some can even explode since the game is called “Atomic Robot”.

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

I tried to find the objective of the game to complete it but what I only able to do was collect the parts by shooting the robots and finding the green upgrade machine. I wasn’t able to understand the overall game objective. This could be remedied by a quick little explanation like “Shoot all the robots within your battery life and find the green upgrade console!” to guide the player and give context

Did you find the art aesthetic to be cohesive?

Yes, the art style seemed quite effective and really gave across the environment the game is supposed to show. It also had a diversity of terrain so the environment wasn’t so boring.

Did the controls feel natural?

Yes, controls were quite intuitive with spacebar being an action button as in most games, the standard arrow keys, and the hover-commands (Press c to upgrade) to explain other non-intuitive controls.

Quick Bugs I found:

-Shot a robot multiple times and it gave a very large supply (which seemed bug-like) of parts instead of 2 at a time. - upgrade weapon power didn’t work after clicking (probably bug or needs to have aesthetic like a greyed-out option to close)

- negative percentage of battery reported

- When robots were killed next to a wall, the parts were scattered in or near the colliders so the player couldn’t get to them.

What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game?

more weapons that or abiltys like hooks to pick up things that are far from you.

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

pick up spings that were out of reach or under sprits

Did you find the art aesthetic to be cohesive?

I think this looks great. I love the look of the robot and bad guys.

Did the controls feel natural?

The movement felt too rigid and too fast would like to see 45 degree angles. 

My % went negitve don;t know if that;s  a bug.

What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game?

different styles of guns, fast or multiple bullets.

What did you dislike and why?

Did not feel like there was a concrete goal. 

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

Interact with robot enemies

Did you find the art aesthetic to be cohesive?

The art was very clean and I liked it. Maybe add a background so the unity 3D world isn't visible.  I especially was a fan of the UI.

Did the controls feel natural?

The movement felt too rigid and too fast. 

What upgrades/weapons would you like to see in the game?

Maybe some aoe affects

What was your favorite mechanic? How do you think it can be improved?

I liked using the console to access upgrades.  It kept me more in the game than looking for directions to just randomly bring up a UI upgrade tab.

What did you dislike and why?

The movement felt blocky and I was overshooting where I wanted to go.

Did you feel like anything was missing and what?

I couldn't tell how close I was getting to the end goal.

Was there something you tried to do but couldn’t?

Blow up the chairs in my way.

Did you find the art aesthetic to be cohesive?

Yes definitely.

Did the controls feel natural?

I didn't have the fine control that I would have liked.  It felt like I was moving on a grid?

Nice job so far.

Brian