The Magic Portals of Ahsum Nimity

[RodoIC]

We have just released our new and (currently) free title: The Magic Portals of Ahsum Nimity.

http://itunes.apple.com/app/ahsum-nimity/id478005699?mt=8

In this game, you are the wizard Ahsum Nimity and you must discover which magic portals are intact and which are broken. A new, creative, artistic and scientific puzzle game with a purpose you should check out!

While you play the game, you are solving puzzles that help create scientific models of (for example) medical diagnosis or bio-informatics problems. So by playing this free game, you mean something to the world!

We are very curious to hear your feedback so we hope you'll give it a shot!

You can check out the trailer on our website: www.ahsumnimity.com

[Sanuku]

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[Sanuku]

Ahsum Nimity - HD Gameplay Trailer (iPad 2/First few Minutes of Gameplay):

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Mini - Preview:

Ahsum!

Watch the HD Gameplay Trailer -> Then Download the Game -> You will never regret it!

The hole Presentation and the Gameplay itself are something really inspiring and even i haven`t played so far very much i can already see it`s potencial.

There is absolutly no Reason to don`t get the Game if you are into Puzzle Games. Don`t worry about the Trailer, it doesn`t spoil to much since it is just the Tutorial Missions.

Still can`t believe that Rodo - Intelligent Computing made that Gem Free...

[RodoIC]

Thanks Sanuku! Glad to hear that you like our game!

Do note, that we have only made it free for a limited amount of time, so best to get it now :).

[soup]

well the video had just about convinced me....but free....downloading now :-)

[RodoIC]

well the video had just about convinced me....but free....downloading now :-)

And, Soup, do you like the game?
Thanks in advance for your feedback!

[Cromwell]

Thanks Sanuku! Glad to hear that you like our game!

Do note, that we have only made it free for a limited amount of time, so best to get it now :).

Not that I would complain, but why have you made it free? :)

[RodoIC]

Not that I would complain, but why have you made it free? :)

First and foremost, because we are collecting data for academic research. To reach statistical significance, we need many users quickly (we want ~1000 users to finish the game for the research). The faster we reach that, the faster we can draw conclusions (and possibly publish) about the results. At Rodo, our motto is "Mission over money" so we put our money where our mouth is and make the game free at least until we have collected enough data.

Secondly, as you may have noticed, the gameplay of Ahsum Nimity is unlike anything you know. We want to let people get to know it at no cost to prevent disappointed customers; after all, you can't expect what you've never seen before. Once we have a good number of AppStore reviews and possibly some reviews on blogs, we expect people to be able to know what they are buying so we feel it's safe to charge them money for it.

Thirdly, we have a strategic interest in making some noise between the ~150,000 AppStore apps. It's really difficult to get noticed, so launching for free is partly a marketing investment as well.

Hope that answers your question, let me know if you have more questions or remarks!

[RodoIC]

For your information, we have submitted update 1.0.1. to Apple, which should be available in a few days. This update contains fixes and optimizations based on the first few days of experience with Ahsum in the AppStore.

If you have more feedback and comments that we can use for coming updates, do let us know!

Changelog for update 1.0.1:
- Improved tutorial instructions for more clarity.
- Improved learning curve for better playability.
- Alerts asking for your consent are only asked once now, no means no.
- Minor graphics improvements and bug fixes.
- Decreased app size by ~50MB through optimizations

[Felonious Tub]

I know I'm probably missing something, but I just got up to the level that introduces flags, and I've got no idea what I'm doing with them. The goal is to make 60 points using only 10 tunnels but I can't seem to make any sense of using the flags. Any help?

[Cromwell]

I know I'm probably missing something, but I just got up to the level that introduces flags, and I've got no idea what I'm doing with them. The goal is to make 60 points using only 10 tunnels but I can't seem to make any sense of using the flags. Any help?

Hehe, same problem here. I have no idea what the flags are for. Maybe I should read the instructions again. Will be back after doing so!

BTW: What kind of data are you collecting? Or do you use the processing power of the iDevices in some kind of cloud computing? Like "Folding @ home" or SETI?

[RodoIC]

I know I'm probably missing something, but I just got up to the level that introduces flags, and I've got no idea what I'm doing with them. The goal is to make 60 points using only 10 tunnels but I can't seem to make any sense of using the flags. Any help?

Hehe, same problem here. I have no idea what the flags are for. Maybe I should read the instructions again. Will be back after doing so!

The goal of a flag is to fix a city's color. By fixing the color of one or more cities, you change the flashing patterns of all other cities.

For example: let's say city A and B are connected, but it's difficult to see so you're unsure what to say (and you want to be careful because there are only so many tunnels). By placing flags on other cities, you change the flashing patterns of the unflagged cities, and hence, their connectedness. Thus, placing a flag on city C could make A and B flash very independently, making it easy for you to see that placing that flag made the cities disconnected, and so it is now safe to use your tunnel and score points by saying that A and B are disconnected -- as long as that flag on city C is there.

Bottomline:
- Placing a flag can change the connectedness of other cities
- You have to play with the flags until you see changes in the flashing of other cities that make it easier to make correct decisions.
- The color at which you fix a city is picked at random. To influence the color, you can flag & unflag repeatedly until the city is fixed at the color of your choice.

As mentioned in my previous post, update 1.0.1 has already been submitted to Apple for review. In that version, among other slight optimizations, flagging is introduced more elaborately, and we have made the levels after flagging is introduced a bit easier because we saw that it become too difficult for many users there.

I think this explanation helps, but if you wait for the update I am sure things will become more clear and playable for you.


BTW: What kind of data are you collecting? Or do you use the processing power of the iDevices in some kind of cloud computing? Like "Folding @ home" or SETI?

Good question! We're not using the power of the iDevices, we're using the power of your brains :)! So it's a bit like SETI in wetware :cool:. The flashing of the cities isn't random, it's based on measurements of variables in an arbitrary domain (much like the measurements of SETI are measurements of space signals).

As you solve the puzzles and analyze the flashing of the cities, you are consciously and subconsciously analyzing the data we present to you in the puzzle. Your decisions about the connectedness of cities are stored and uploaded and help us build models of the underlying principles that generated the data. All levels you have seen so far have been especially constructed to train you at doing this job.

The final level is a Boss level, in which we really challenge you to solve the puzzle. But you'll have to discover that by yourself ;).

Let me know if you have more questions or remarks!

[RodoIC]

Dear all, I am happy to announce that update 1.0.1 has just been released in Apple's AppStore!

This version addresses the issues mentioned by Felonious Tub and Cromwell.
Thanks for your feedback!

For completeness' sake, here is the changelog of version 1.0.1:
- Improved tutorial instructions for more clarity.
- Improved learning curve for better playability.
- Alerts asking for your consent are only asked once now, no means no.
- Minor graphics improvements and bug fixes.
- Decreased app size by ~50MB through optimizations

The game is still free so if you are new to Ahsum, give it a go while you can!