Smiles HD for iPad

[PoV]

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smiles-hd/id364871736

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Hey,

Just thought I'd mention I'll be releasing an iPad version of Smiles. I brought some pictures too. :)

If you're unfamiliar with Smiles, you can check out the iPhone trailer at the website:

http://www.smiles-game.com

Smiles HD is based on Smiles, but will include several changes to suit the iPad.

The biggest change that players of the original should notice is the playfield. iPhone Smiles uses a larger 8x9 playfield, and you would physically rotate the iPhone to change the way things fell. Smiles HD will actually use a smaller 8x8 playfield, and have buttons on screen for rotating. You'll still be able to physically rotate the iPad to change the fall direction (or play tall or wide if you like), but it wont be required. Comfortably grip the iPad in one hand, and tap matches with the other.

Also, due to the smaller playfield, games are shorter now. One of the bigger complaints (or rather, confusing points) of the original is that an Easy or Long Play game would always last a really long time. I don't have any fancy statistics to back this up, but roughly speaking an average Long Play game would take me 30+ minutes in iPhone Smiles, and now takes me 20+ minutes. I think this is an improvement, but I will be leaving iPhone Smiles as-is for those that prefer the original way.

Also as the name suggests, Smiles HD will feature higher resolution graphics. After all, the iPad has more resolution, so I may as well use it. :D

There's numerous other changes to the game as well. The differences between Drop and Drop+ should make a lot more sense now (Drop+ is now the "ice cracks in 4" modes). It's something I wanted to fix in the original iPhone version, but would break a lot of things. It's the kind of change that had to wait for a clean slate like an iPad version.

That's all I can think of at the moment. Now for some screenshots. Click for high resolution.

EDIT: Early shots removed. Here are some final shots. Click for full size:

http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD01.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD01.jpg) http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD05.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD05.jpg)
http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD02.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD02.jpg) http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD03.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD03.jpg) http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD04.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD04.jpg)

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EDIT: Gameplay videos. Trailer coming soon.

WcFMhFyM8fw

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[Random_Guy]

Looks very interesting, I must admit. I am yet to own the iPhone version though.

[zero144]

Out of interest, When Devs release their games as optimed iPad versions will we have to purchase them again?

[Mew2468]

Whoa, I was just going to suggest this; this looks amazing! :D

Out of interest, When Devs release their games as optimed iPad versions will we have to purchase them again?

Nobody knows for sure yet.

[ultimo]

....will include several changes to suit the iPad...
....have buttons on screen for rotating...
Am in LOVE with this game on my iPod touch....
The BEST thing tht U did was add that rotational button so tht we do not have to turn the whole thing around :)

For PpL who don't like it, read ma sig :D :p :cool:

[steamrollerstudios]

Out of interest, When Devs release their games as optimed iPad versions will we have to purchase them again? From what I understand yes. The developer has no say over this as the iPad versions will be seperate from the iPhone versions. You'll still be able to play the original version on the iPad it just won't look as nice :)

[PoV]

Out of interest, When Devs release their games as optimed iPad versions will we have to purchase them again?

For the most part, yes. Smiles is one of several iPhone apps that fall under 10 Megabytes in size. This means it can actually be downloaded over the 3G cellular network, as Apple and the Carriers imposes this restriction on us. Files larger than that need to be downloaded either by iTunes or over Wifi.

Smiles HD has larger art files in it, meaning it breaks that 10 MB limit. A piece of art that is 2x the detail takes up 4x the space. The final size of Smiles HD is somewhere around 20-25 MB. So for one, I just couldn't fit it in 10 MB. ;)

And because it's a separate version, it gives us a chance to make changes or improvements to original game, plus optimize it for the iPad experience. I think most players will appreciate what's changed.

The BEST thing tht U did was add that rotational button so tht we do not have to turn the whole thing around :)
I'm glad you like that. :D

You'll still be able to play the original version on the iPad it just won't look as nice
That's right. The iPhone originals should all still work. So if you prefer the old way and don't mind pixel scaling, or just don't feel like spending money on the same game again, you don't have to.

[slashandburn]

For the most part, yes. Smiles is one of several iPhone apps that fall under 10 Megabytes in size. This means it can actually be downloaded over the 3G cellular network, as Apple and the Carriers imposes this restriction on us. Files larger than that need to be downloaded either by iTunes or over Wifi.

Smiles HD has larger art files in it, meaning it breaks that 10 MB limit. A piece of art that is 2x the detail takes up 4x the space. The final size of Smiles HD is somewhere around 20-25 MB. So for one, I just couldn't fit it in 10 MB. ;)

And because it's a separate version, it gives us a chance to make changes or improvements to original game, plus optimize it for the iPad experience. I think most players will appreciate what's changed.


I'm glad you like that. :D


That's right. The iPhone originals should all still work. So if you prefer the old way and don't mind pixel scaling, or just don't feel like spending money on the same game again, you don't have to.
Actually the size limit is just for downloading and that only applies over the carriers network, but Apple stated that later down the line you will be able to make Hybrid/Universal binaries that will be able to run on Phone + Pad in the same file. Personally I think i'm going to have to port my TD game to iPad as a seperate game initially, unless apple releases the universal build first, but will universal binaries still be 2.2.x compatible, because I would hate to leave the 2.x crowd behind.

[bgribin]

I loved Smiles on the iPhone so I'm looking forward to seeing how this one turns out!

[PoV]

A couple "in development" shots.

I've done some extra detailing and touch-ups to the HD artwork, and added an extra layer to the background effect in Drop.

http://www.smiles-game.com/dev/NewBG.jpg

http://www.smiles-game.com/dev/Cheeks.jpg

I'm shooting for Apple's deadline. Back to that. :D

[LordGek]

Sorry if already mentioned, but what will this be sold for as it isn't going to be considered a free upgrade to the iPhone version?

[PoV]

Yeah, I guess I haven't mentioned this yet. :)

Smiles HD will launch at $4.99, but it will eventually make it's way up to $6.99. Probably by the summer.

[PoV]

NJViv_NHYjQ

After seeing the pictures, most people don't realize Smiles is also a serious arcade puzzle game. Here's a quick look at a typical round of me playing Drop at the "Normal" difficulty.

[HerbertKornfeld]

That’s a good video, in that it shows how frantic a game can get. But it fails to demonstrate a couple of the best features.

First of all, I love the sound design as it is. When you’re stringing together a long combination, the ever increasing pitch helps you to know, without looking, how well you’re doing. And it adds to the excitement. If it’s really high pitched and I can’t find something right away to continue my combo, there’s a palpable sense of anxiety that makes the game great.

Second of all, I love the fact that you can rotate the field. This helps out a lot in high-level play, and it’s essential when going for large combinations. I know that the default settings don’t require you to actually rotate the device anymore, and that this is now tied to a button. But you don’t do this at all in the video. For your next demo, I'd love to see how it works. I’m not convinced that this is better than actually rotating, but on something like the iPad, it’s probably the way to go. At least the option is still there to use actual rotation.

Here’s a couple of other things I'd like to see. With the iPad version coming as a second app, I'll be losing all of my statistics. It would be nice if there was a way to transfer them over. This might also tie into a larger request, which is that you use either Plus+ or OpenFeint. That way, we’d have competitive leaderboards, and we’d have saved highscores. And speaking of statistics, it might be nice if scores were tied to whether or not you’re using actual rotation or if you’re using buttons. I think that the buttons might make things easier, and this might skew the current scores.

And finally, I’m glad to hear of your successes with Smiles on the PC side of things, but that seems like a horrible way to play. With a mouse? No thank you. Looking forward to this version, though.

[PoV]

That’s a good video, in that it shows how frantic a game can get. But it fails to demonstrate a couple of the best features.

First of all, I love the sound design as it is. When you’re stringing together a long combination, the ever increasing pitch helps you to know, without looking, how well you’re doing. And it adds to the excitement. If it’s really high pitched and I can’t find something right away to continue my combo, there’s a palpable sense of anxiety that makes the game great.
Agreed. For the actual trailer I'll definitely need sound. Just an unfortunate limitation of my development machine doesn't let me capture audio (yet).

Second of all, I love the fact that you can rotate the field. This helps out a lot in high-level play, and it’s essential when going for large combinations. I know that the default settings don’t require you to actually rotate the device anymore, and that this is now tied to a button. But you don’t do this at all in the video. For your next demo, I'd love to see how it works. I’m not convinced that this is better than actually rotating, but on something like the iPad, it’s probably the way to go. At least the option is still there to use actual rotation.
For sure. This video was made to demonstrate exactly what you said, that a game can be frantic (despite the cutesy art style). I didn't want too much waiting around, since I often think about my rock breaking tactics. In the final trailer I'll be sure to do a little bit of everything (physical and button rotation).

Here’s a couple of other things I'd like to see. With the iPad version coming as a second app, I'll be losing all of my statistics. It would be nice if there was a way to transfer them over. This might also tie into a larger request, which is that you use either Plus+ or OpenFeint. That way, we’d have competitive leaderboards, and we’d have saved highscores. And speaking of statistics, it might be nice if scores were tied to whether or not you’re using actual rotation or if you’re using buttons. I think that the buttons might make things easier, and this might skew the current scores.
There's actually another really big change that sadly doesn't make syncing scores practical. The game actually has a smaller playfield (8x8 instead of 9x8). As a result, it's actually easier to get a higher scores on the iPhone version. Also, games in the iPad occasionally end sooner now. So unfortunately, the stats just wont mesh with each-other anymore (hence the distinct version difference). I'm in the process of re-balancing the achievements to suit the change.

Leaderboards are the #1 requested item. They wont make iPad launch, but it is something I want to see in the game too. Several friends and I are doing some private beta testing right now, and a shared score table would be reaaaally useful. I've been reluctant of much of the iPhone social solutions since they're iPhone (and iPad) only. I may just cave-in one day, but I think it'd be nice if iPad players could challenge players on the PC, the Mac, or ever other weird and wacky phones. It's just unfortunate, for the statistical reasons mentioned above, iPhone players will be all alone. :(

Also, I'd really hate to break everyone's existing stats and high score lists, switching the iPhone version to the 8x8 playfield.

And finally, I’m glad to hear of your successes with Smiles on the PC side of things, but that seems like a horrible way to play. With a mouse? No thank you. Looking forward to this version, though.
Haha, totally. The game is far nicer on a touch screen. Something funny, due to the PC stuff, I've actually got pretty good at playing on one of those laptop touch pads. Right now that's the ultimate in crippling play (at least until I add D-Pad controls). :D

[HerbertKornfeld]

I may just cave-in one day, but I think it'd be nice if iPad players could challenge players on the PC, the Mac, or ever other weird and wacky phones.

Cave. It’s not realistic to compete with other devices. Sure, the game may be the same. But do you really think that somebody playing with a mouse or a trackpad on the PC has even the slightest chance to compete with somebody on a touchscreen device? No way. The leader boards should be tied to each individual device. If you have it with all devices, it will unfairly skew toward the touchscreen devices anyway.

[Coral]

I'm really glad you are working on leader boards. At this point I think the best bet would be to use one of the established methods like Openfeint. I don't know all that that entails but it would definitely lead to increased exposure through the service itself. If I was getting an iPad I would definitely purchase this. It remains my favorite match-3 ever.

[colorsound]

Hey PoV


This has always been one of my favorites, since day one - and I have close to 1600 full games.

Where is the music in the video coming from?

Can that be added to the iPod version?
It's awesome!

Thanks


BTW - iPad version looks great!

[HerbertKornfeld]

Rereading one of your older threads (http://forums.toucharcade.com/showthread.php?t=23536), I came across this:

Yeah, having to physically turn a larger device might be a little weird. At the very least there would be rotate buttons, but what might also be cool is a multi-touch twist gesture. Place two or more fingers down, and turn the playfield like a volume knob. :) (emphasis mine)


Any chance that this’ll be making its way into the iPad version? This seems like a better way to rotate than the dedicated buttons. It would also allow you to keep the UI clean and remove the rotate buttons. And speaking of removing these buttons, I hope that they’ll disappear if you enable the feature to rotate with the accelerometer.

And touching on the fact that you’ve slimmed down the playfield to 8x8, is this due to the buttons? Could the “classic” style 9x8 grid return if the buttons are disabled?

[PoV]

Where is the music in the video coming from?
It's one of a few songs I licensed for promoting the game. I don't think I'll have time to get them in for iPad launch, but I'll be looking in to adding that and a few more songs soon.

I'm not sure if that's a typo or not, but they probably wont make it in to the iPod/iPhone version. I'm trying to keep the file size there small, and the music would push it over the limits.

Any chance that this’ll be making its way into the iPad version?
Possibly! Apple added a gesture detection feature which may do all the work for me, but it's something I'll want to personally test to see if it's right. So in other words, this wont make launch.

And touching on the fact that you’ve slimmed down the playfield to 8x8, is this due to the buttons? Could the “classic” style 9x8 grid return if the buttons are disabled?
Yes, it was slimmed down because of the buttons. If the board is going to rotate at all (either via buttons or a gesture), mathematically it's better if it's square.

Heh, I realize you'd like more of a connection between the iPhone and iPad version. The thing is, I've barely covered half the stuff that's changed. Many of the game modes have new names too (newer names than that video even). I realize not everyone will like the changes I'm making, but I'm hoping the majority do. Also the iPhone version will still continue to work on iPad if you prefer the old ways.

Speaking of buttons and turning, here's a few new shots showing how the UI adapts to the game modes and orientations.

Notably, the buttons are gone in Zen, to fit the screen better.

http://www.smiles-game.com/dev/Promo01.jpg

http://www.smiles-game.com/dev/Promo03.jpg

http://www.smiles-game.com/dev/Promo02.jpg

[medianotzu]

Wow, that's a beauty! If I get an iPad I'll be sure to pick this up since it's one of my favorite match-3s and one of the nicest games I have to look at.

[PoV]

It'll be tight, but it is looking like music will make it in for iPad submission. I'm disappointed that I didn't add this to the game sooner. It gives the game such a different feel. It feels far more complete now. :D

[PoV]

Wow! It was a late night, but I submitted Smiles HD this morning (7 AM). As expected, sound made it in, as well as many many changes and improvements over the original game. I'll be taking the rest of the weekend off (possibly making it a slight long weekend too), but next week I'll be planning and cutting together a proper trailer and press pack for the game.

Me personally, I'm very happy with the results. I think it's a huge improvement over the original, and I look forward to hearing from all of you. :D

[PoV]

Well I guess I couldn't resist doing a little something. The current 5 promo shots you'll see in iTunes and the App Store. Click for full size.

http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD01.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD01.jpg) http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD05.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD05.jpg)
http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD02.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD02.jpg) http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD03.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD03.jpg) http://www.smileshd.com/press/thumb/SmilesHD04.jpg (http://www.smileshd.com/press/jpg/SmilesHD04.jpg)

[pluto6]

Looks like this with be my 4th time buying this game. I bought smiles, then zen, then the combo to save the room...

Looks gorgeous though, and is still one of my favs, obviously...

[ZackC456]

This looks like a very fun game. If I get a chance, I may get it when I get my hands on the iPad.

[All-Eyez-On-Me]

This is gonna be pretty cool.

[PoV]

Alright! Some final gameplay videos. About as Final as I can get without an actual iPad in hand.

I'll have a proper trailer soon, but these should definitely give you a good idea what to expect.

WcFMhFyM8fw

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[HerbertKornfeld]

The videos are very nicely done. But again, I’ve got a few comments. Specifically, about the music and sound design, and also about the rotation.

First of all, I like the music that you’re using more than I though I would. I think that it works great in Zen, but I’m a bit conflicted with its use in Drop.

It’s not that I don’t like the music used in Drop. I like it fine. It’s just that the scripted ebbs and flows of the music seem to diminish the excitement generated by the contextual rising pitch of the combo. You could be in the middle of an exciting long combo, and you might be listening to a slower part of the song. And on the contrary, it could be the exciting part of the song while you’re doing nothing of note in the game. So while I think that the masses will appreciate this addition, I think that I’ll disable the music while playing Drop. I hope that’s an option.

Ideally, I think that something more interesting could be done with the music. It would be nice if it was context-sensitive. If it could get louder or faster or more exciting as the game gets more intense. There are a few examples of context-sensitive music in games, but they’re very elementary. In Super Mario, it’s nice to hear the hurry up music when your time is running out. In Zelda, the music will change when an enemy approaches, even if you haven’t yet seen them.

These examples are primitive implementations. I don’t assume that any of this comes easy. And I certainly don’t expect anything like this in your project. I’m just trying to make my case for why I’ll probably be disabling your nice new music in Drop. In Zen, though, I think it works much better, and I’ll probably leave it on. With Drop, I think that I prefer it as it was.


The new style of rotation is also interesting. It looks like it’ll work well when using it in slower-paced games. But as it is now, it seems like it’ll be hard to continue a combo through a button-press rotation. The icons all have to rotate on the screen, so they’ll be in a different place, and the animated rotation takes up precious time. My guess is that by the time all of this is done, the combo will be lost. For me, this just highlights the brilliance of the original, gravity-based implementation. I’ll continue to use this, since none of the aforementioned problems are apparent when rotating the device.

And like I mentioned earlier, I think it would be great if you could disable the onscreen rotation buttons. That way, you’d be able to fill the screen with the game, and you’d be able to lose the chrome around the playfield. This way, Drop could share the same big icons that are seen in Zen. It would be bigger touch targets in the quicker paced game, where I think that they’d be even more beneficial. And I think it would just look nicer, too.

So, anyway. These are my thinking-about-it-too-much thoughts after watching your nice new videos. I think they’re nicely done, and I hope they help you to sell a lot of copies.

And rambling aside, my favorite part is from the Drop video. Just like in your previous video, I like the mouse move of frustration™ at the end. Classic.

[PoV]

I think that I’ll disable the music while playing Drop. I hope that’s an option.
Yes, you can disable the music. Alternatively, there's a track skip button that lets you pick any of the 5 included tracks. Avalanche's music is quite funky. Or you can always listen to your own music.

Ideally, I think that something more interesting could be done with the music. It would be nice if it was context-sensitive. If it could get louder or faster or more exciting as the game gets more intense. There are a few examples of context-sensitive music in games, but they’re very elementary. In Super Mario, it’s nice to hear the hurry up music when your time is running out. In Zelda, the music will change when an enemy approaches, even if you haven’t yet seen them.

These examples are primitive implementations. I don’t assume that any of this comes easy. And I certainly don’t expect anything like this in your project. I’m just trying to make my case for why I’ll probably be disabling your nice new music in Drop. In Zen, though, I think it works much better, and I’ll probably leave it on. With Drop, I think that I prefer it as it was.
That's an interesting idea.

I've actually been thinking about doing something more with higher combos already. Adding some new reward sounds depending on the number matches involved. Changing the song or the pace isn't really practical, but along the same lines, gradually lowering the music volume as the combo gets bigger should make a difference. That will bring the chaining sounds forward, and everything should get much more intense. Then top it off with a new reward sound for our mega combo, and we're feeling way more accomplished after. I'll look in to it. :cool:

The new style of rotation is also interesting. It looks like it’ll work well when using it in slower-paced games. But as it is now, it seems like it’ll be hard to continue a combo through a button-press rotation. The icons all have to rotate on the screen, so they’ll be in a different place, and the animated rotation takes up precious time. My guess is that by the time all of this is done, the combo will be lost. For me, this just highlights the brilliance of the original, gravity-based implementation. I’ll continue to use this, since none of the aforementioned problems are apparent when rotating the device.
What could work to the buttons advantage is hovering a pinky finger over the spin button. The spin is faster than the time it takes to fall, land, and and the slight buffer time before ending a combo, so it is definitely usable. Without an iPad, it's not something I've really had a chance to tune though. Again, the disadvantage of playing with a mouse.

And like I mentioned earlier, I think it would be great if you could disable the onscreen rotation buttons. That way, you’d be able to fill the screen with the game, and you’d be able to lose the chrome around the playfield. This way, Drop could share the same big icons that are seen in Zen. It would be bigger touch targets in the quicker paced game, where I think that they’d be even more beneficial. And I think it would just look nicer, too.
Sure. I haven't decided where or how you'll disable them, but I too think it's something a player may want to do. Bigger targets are definitely useful in Drop, though playing the game tall gets you "almost" as big buttons. They are a little smaller, but again, that's means you'll want to use the rotation buttons for spinning.

And rambling aside, my favorite part is from the Drop video. Just like in your previous video, I like the mouse move of frustration™ at the end. Classic.
:D

Thanks for your feedback.

[HerbertKornfeld]

I've actually been thinking about doing something more with higher combos already. Adding some new reward sounds depending on the number matches involved. Changing the song or the pace isn't really practical, but along the same lines, gradually lowering the music volume as the combo gets bigger should make a difference. That will bring the chaining sounds forward, and everything should get much more intense. Then top it off with a new reward sound for our mega combo, and we're feeling way more accomplished after. I'll look in to it. :cool:

Nice. I was also thinking about ducking the music when the combo gets long. I think that’s a great idea.

And if you really want to get nutty, I thought that it might be interesting if the combination pitch was high enough to start breaking some of the ice. I don’t want you to do this if it makes things too easy, but I thought that it might make for an interesting gimmick. It would have to be a very rare thing, though, or only during extremely long combos. Otherwise, the combo would make the play easier as it goes along. And that certainly wouldn’t work. Just an idea.

[PoV]

And if you really want to get nutty, I thought that it might be interesting if the combination pitch was high enough to start breaking some of the ice. I don’t want you to do this if it makes things too easy, but I thought that it might make for an interesting gimmick. It would have to be a very rare thing, though, or only during extremely long combos. Otherwise, the combo would make the play easier as it goes along. And that certainly wouldn’t work. Just an idea.
Haha, yeah that would totally ruin the play balancing, but it would be fun to watch. :D

[PoV]

Smiles HD is Approved!

http://junk.mikekasprzak.com/PatternTrade/iPadLaunchTitle.png

Pending some iPad related disaster, check it out launch day on the iPad.

Woohoo!

[pluto6]

I looked the the thread but did not see - will this version have all the play modes? Drop, avalance, zen and the plus modes? Thanks.

[PoV]

Yes, although some of them have been changed slightly.

Zen and Avalanche are just like before, but everything is now on an 8x8 playfield (was 9x8).

Drop and Drop+ have been reorganized. Drop+ is now the "Ice Breaks in 4" modes. Also, Drop+ now no longer has rocks (the smaller playfield makes it hard enough). Easy is now called "Casual", Hard is now called "Quick Play", and Six is now called "Match Challenge". Long Play is still Long Play.

[PoV]

Added AppInfo to the first post... though I guess the description isn't working *shrugs*.

Edit: Fixed.

[PoV]

Wow... I just did something nuts. :eek::eek:

Smiles HD will be FREE from now until the end of iPad launch day (April 3rd)!

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smiles-hd/id364871736

Grab it now!

Heh, what have I done!! :D

[JazzFlight]

Wow... I just did something nuts. :eek::eek:

Smiles HD will be FREE from now until the end of iPad launch day (April 3rd)!

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smiles-hd/id364871736

Grab it now!

Heh, what have I done!! :D
Much appreciative! Thank you for thinking of us.

[pluto6]

OMG!! I almost bought it the other night when it first turned live. I surely appreciate the gesture.

[PoV]

Smiles HD *just* made it in to the Top 100 FREE games.

http://www.toonormal.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Free100-640x462.png

Remember, it's FREE only until the end of the day April 3rd! Regular price is $4.99.

[caltab]

congrats...Im really looking forward to playing it, I love match 3s.

[iJoe]

Why did the game jump to $5.99?

I never got a chance to get the game when it was free or $0.99. Are they looking to update the game with a different price?