I'm looking for iOS and OSX beta testers for my abstract boardgame: http://tot2.freeforums.net/thread/3/tot-beta-tester
You're the dev of TOT? I bought one of the game's versions before and loved it. I'm seriously considering beta testing for my Air and Yosemite OS.
Yep. That is me. Hello ColeDaddy. Thanks for buying the earlier version. And thanks for liking it. That boosts my spirit which is very low lately... This new version is very different. It is completely redesigned and built with Unity/C# instead of Corona/Lua. I actually ported it to Unity as a way to learn Unity and C#. And it's been two years since I started. A long time. The new TOT still has single-player against the AI, but only 2 AIs instead of 3 AIs as before. But this time it also has online multi-player against 1 to 3 other opponents. That's why it has taken so long. But it it not async multiplayer. Once you join a game all players have to stay in the game till the game is finished. But things are tougher now than when I released the 1st version 4 or 5 years ago. So many games flooding the market. So much so that i can't even find beta testers. This was not a problem before. Anyway, I'm at the point of seriously considering not releasing it. Especially if I can't get the multiplayer tested in a real-world condition. I don't want to release it if it is buggy then have a lot of players angry with me. Also I was not planning on releasing it as a free app. But maybe I should release it as a free app for the first few months until whatever bugs are worked out and then start charging for it. What do you think? But I hope you decide to be a beta tester. Regards, Dan
Hi Dan, Abstract boardgames as a genre appear to be a difficult sell in today's market. I could be wrong, but a quick perusal of the top 200 games doesn't list any games of this type. Personally, I'm not into the multiplayer aspect of gaming and tend to avoid games that rely on it for continued play, so this may not be for me. Also, I've been a bit gun-shy when it comes to betas as I tested for a game a few years ago and end up spending hours on the phone with Apple tech resulting in completely wiping all of my games, apps, notes, etc. At that time, iCloud was a new-fangled thing and I didn't back it up there. Anyway, I was told the issue had something to do with GameCenter being sandboxed. Can you please tell me what GCs status will be during the beta? Also, I'm not much into sales and marketing, but there may be value in releasing the game for free, soliciting feedback from the general public while simultaneously spreading the word about your game.
Hi ColeDaddy. Yeah. I agree with you about abstract games. My next game will not be one. The new TOT does not use any GameCenter or iCloud services. For multiplayer gameplay and user registration TOT uses services called AppWarp & App42 by Shephertz. All the game does is preform matchmaking and then sends commands like 'move player1's Piece2 to position X,Y' to the server which relays those commands to the other players. The reason I didn't use async is because in my experience 90% of the time those games often fall apart with one or more players not taking their turns in a timely basis. And I figured if the players don't have enough time nor dedication to play the game in one sitting then TOT is not the game for them.
I did want to add that TOT was one of the very few iOS games that was intriguing enough to pull my son into playing with me. His preferences trend towards console gaming, so to see his interest piqued and having him actually challenge (and beat) me in TOT was a form of high-praise on how well you developed the game, IMHO. Given that there are only two levels of AI for this iteration, what are the levels of difficulty?
Wow. That is nice to hear. high-praise indeed. Thanks again. As for levels of difficulty...hmmm...rather than levels of difficulty it is more like different AI personalities. One is rated 'cautious/defensive' with a difficulty level of 4 out of 10. The other AI is 'aggressive/defensive' with of difficulty level of 3 out of 10. The real challenge comes from playing other humans online. The reason the AIs are rated n out of 10 is because I planned to add more AIs in updates if (a very BIG IF) the game got popular. So I doubt I'll be adding any new AIs. As a side note. Did you know that the old version of TOT had a system where 'AI modders' could develop custom AIs, run the AIs on a server. And if that server had a public IP address, anyone in the world could challenge their AI. I wanted to build a community of 'TOT AI modders'. But that never catched on. But just for kicks I actually had a sever running on an iPad: http://youtu.be/SuQ22WuNeG8?list=UUGnPVpO3J0vRcKUj-8YFl1A And it did lead to a Professor at a university in Portugal using the AI in TOT as a basis for his student's Masters thesis.
Dan, Alas and alack, I didn't pull the trigger on signing up. I'm afraid I won't add much value to the beta since multiplayer isn't my cup of tea. Good luck with the beta. I'd recommend posting some screenshots of your game and some gameplay vid, if you have any. Perhaps you can revive your old TOT thread by posting a link to this thread to heighten visibility of your solicitation for testers.
This. I didn't sign up cause I don't have the time, however I followed the link and played a webplayer version (but I guess that is your old game). I also have little interest in multiplayer.
Destined, What made you think it's the old version? Actually it's the new one. The new one is blue, the old one is brown.
I couldn't see a 2 anywhere and I had to follow a few links to find it. Plus the fact you didn't just post the webplayer link here made me think it was old. I haven't played your game before but here is my feedback. -The timer was way too short. I spent more time trying to pick the octagon I wanted that I couldn't really apply anything but basic strategy. -I couldn't figure how to start playing (although eventually it started but I don't know what I did!) -The rotating the octagon was a pain (which was made worse by the timer) -To me it just felt like a big 0's and X's game.
I got it. Thanks for the feedback Destined. Do you think not having a timer would be an improvement? You know there is a help explaining the object of the game.
If you are going to have multiplayer you will need a timer (perhaps double the length of 30 seconds) however in single player I don't really see the point. I understood how to play, the rules were very simple. I found the help, which ended up in me not being able to start the game cause it gave me page after page of help. A quick hands on tutorial would be better. I think the game would be more engaging if the game started with lots of pieces on the board. It would give more strategy and not just be a tit for tat game.
Everyone misses that when the game starts there is a message at the very top of the screen: "Help is on - tap to turn it off". You can tap there at any time in any help screen to turn it off and get straight into the game. I have to change that to make that clear. Also there is an option in the Boards selection screen to start the game with a populated screen. So that addresses your second point. Also the few reviews I did get mentioned that game is elegant and very deep, and not just a big O's and X's game. So I'm not going to worry about that. But people don't agree n just about everything in life. http://www.edge-online.com/reviews/octagon-theory-review/ http://www.hookshotinc.com/the-octagon-theory-review/
No worries, you should post the direct link to the webplayer so others can try. I think it would work better as a physical board game.
@Destined, Thanks for your help and opinions. I did try a physical version. If you think rotating the pieces in the electronic version was fiddlely; with the physical version, just placing the pieces and attempting to do it without bumping the other pieces around, would drive you mad. It does that to me. So much so that I thought an economically feasible physical board (without indented positions to keep pieces in place) would be a failure. https://www.dropbox.com/s/h2ale40s4pslr3z/IMG_0207.JPG?dl=0 https://www.dropbox.com/s/o7gujwgzm72www5/IMG_0212.JPG?dl=0
where did you get the pieces made. They look good and chunky. I work with someone who makes boardgames for big companies (like disney) and he says the cost of materials once you take them to manufacture in China become super small. I don't know how big your market would be, your game would just be on the more hardcore boardgamers market. They have a board game version of civilization now which would be way more complex.
I had it made by an artist and board game designer who lives out in the mountains on the outskirts of Tokyo. He also makes ceramic games. He has a nice studio and also runs The Museum of Abstract Strategy Games and the monthly Abstract Board Game Society meetups once a month. http://www.nakajim.net/index.php?The%20Museum%20of%20Abstract%20Strategy%20Games https://plus.google.com/communities/109772989652071561775 I have done some research on getting boardgames made and often listen to the Funding The Dream podcast which covers Kickstarter and mainly bringing board games to the market. http://www.thegamewhisperer.com Althought it was my intention in having a physical prototype made I am just not confident enough anymore (after the dismal sales of the 1st iOS version of TOT) to invest tens of thousands of dollars to create, store, market, and sell a physical version.
BTW. I put the old TOT back on the iTunes App Store. It is free until I release the new version. It has not been updated in years. And the reason I stopped selling it in the first place was because of the shutdown of OpenFeint which my game used for achievements. But that doesn't stope the game from running: https://itunes.apple.com/jp/app/the-octagon-theory-tabletop/id506956115?l=en&mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/jp/app/the-octagon-theory/id475580556?l=en&mt=8
