Violet Storm - Neon-Glow Space Shooter, Universal

[SCSGames]

Originally Posted by tops2

Well, one more thing I forgot to mention is since clearing level seems to be just surviving based on time, maybe consider adding some sort of visual and/or audio countdown to when the stage is over. Maybe flash a (transparent) 3, 2, 1..before the level ends? On pretty much all levels, its a bit jarring to be playing, then all of a sudden the level ends. This is just a nitpicking thing though.. Btw..normally I play games on the ipod without sound on..so if there was an audio countdown, I'd probably miss it. =P lol.

Thanks for the idea! We'll see what we can do.

[gunxsword]

Originally Posted by SCSGames

And you've guessed correctly, the enemies do spawn in a general area where the player is, though we do try to distance them from you so they don't spawn right on top.

We're still adding optimizations to the game. The latest build (1.12) should improve things, and we're doing more testing to see what else we can speed up.

The enemy spawn proximity to the player and slowdown are the two biggest issues I'm having with this otherwise fast paced and entertaining game.

A caffeine mode sounds pretty good . How bout naming it the 'Swarm' mode instead? Double/3x/4x enemies on screen, but half/one-third/one quarter health.

[GloBaller]

Originally Posted by SCSGames

Maybe we should add some sort of a hyper-campaign mode. Caffeine mode, maybe?


Not at the moment, though as you progress, bigger, boss-like enemies make their first appearance.


You get a new weapon when you kill an enemy carrying it (or other upgrades and powerup items). It is limited per stage, though, so you don't end up with weapons that are way too powerful for where you are in the game.

We should probably mention that we've heard the comments that want a weapons store - and we'll add one... just not to this game. We actually want to do another space shooter, probably top-down, with somewhat different gameplay, different-style levels which you can explore, and, of course, a weapons store. And possibly even a spaceship store.


Yup, the arena is pretty much endless. And you've guessed correctly, the enemies do spawn in a general area where the player is, though we do try to distance them from you so they don't spawn right on top.


Thank you. We put in a lot of work into tweaking the controls - and, again, you're right, there is a speed control on the movement pad, so the further away you touch it from the center, the faster the ship moves.


We're still adding optimizations to the game. The latest build (1.12) should improve things, and we're doing more testing to see what else we can speed up.

Thanks again for the detailed comments. Very much appreciated.

I have a question. Why is the game called "Violet" Storm? I never really understood that

Also, with the spaceship store...will it have the ability to choose the weapon you want like using laser rather than electricity or 3 bullets etc etc? And will the weapons be upgradable?

[CharredDirt]

I saw your video the other day and I must say, I'm impressed. Looks like a pretty fun and frantic game.

My only gripe and maybe it's just personal taste is that the ship looks a little plain jane rocketshipesque. Maybe more gun ports or something to spruce it up.

[SCSGames]

Originally Posted by GloBaller

I have a question. Why is the game called "Violet" Storm? I never really understood that

Well, we were looking for a cool-sounding name that at least somehow relates to the game. So "Violet" is because the color is close enough to the main color scheme of the game (sure, sure, it's actually closer to magenta, but that doesn't sound nearly as cool), and "Storm" because when you go to level 4 or 5 or 6 that's what it feels like - being caught up in a storm of enemies, bullets, explosions, and homing missiles. Just don't google this title...

Originally Posted by GloBaller

Also, with the spaceship store...will it have the ability to choose the weapon you want like using laser rather than electricity or 3 bullets etc etc? And will the weapons be upgradable?

Yup and yup. And you'll be able to rearrange them as you wish.
Here's a question, though - for that next game, would you want to be in the same visual style as this one (i.e. minimalistic glowing outlines) or use more traditionally/realistically-looking spaceships?

[SCSGames]

Originally Posted by CharredDirt

I saw your video the other day and I must say, I'm impressed. Looks like a pretty fun and frantic game.

My only gripe and maybe it's just personal taste is that the ship looks a little plain jane rocketshipesque. Maybe more gun ports or something to spruce it up.

Thanks for the compliment and the suggestion! We'll play around with the ship to see what we can do.

[SCSGames]

Originally Posted by gunxsword

The enemy spawn proximity to the player and slowdown are the two biggest issues I'm having with this otherwise fast paced and entertaining game.

We've increased that slightly. The real problem seems to be when a swarm of enemies (i.e. a formation) spawns up - sometimes, the leader of the formation is far away enough from you, but the rest of it is much closer to the player.

Originally Posted by gunxsword

A caffeine mode sounds pretty good . How bout naming it the 'Swarm' mode instead? Double/3x/4x enemies on screen, but half/one-third/one quarter health.

That's likely to come in an update. Also, you'll need a beast of a machine to handle 4x the enemies... Although iPad-3 might be able to handle it. Or a Mac, for which we'll also release a version.

[GloBaller]

[/QUOTE]Yup and yup. And you'll be able to rearrange them as you wish.
Here's a question, though - for that next game, would you want to be in the same visual style as this one (i.e. minimalistic glowing outlines) or use more traditionally/realistically-looking spaceships?[/QUOTE]

I Think more traditional looking space ships because they never end up looking as cool traditonal style ships prob because of the retina display that makes the ship look very detailed. Like Phoenix HD for example, their ships are stunning and the details are very real and in my opinion look better than glow outline spaceships. for this game I think the glow works because it is a geometry wars type game, so you wouldn't want to put in a realistic ship with geometrical enemies, it just doesn't look good.

[thedollarhunter]

Just played the latest beta via Test Flight and its great!

Love the bright colourful pew-pew geometry wars look. Controls are nice and sharpe. Plenty of different ships wizzing about and the weapons are outstanding.

Maybe I had too many other apps open but it did seem to lag a bit at first. (on iPod 4th gen)

Good luck with marketing it - that's where the fun begins
MJ

[CharredDirt]

Originally Posted by SCSGames

Thanks for the compliment and the suggestion! We'll play around with the ship to see what we can do.

Sure, I'm a bit of a mecha and spaceship fanatic/designer myself, so you can take my words with a bit of salt. Maybe others think the ship design looks great. It did remind me a tad bit of asteroids.

Oh, maybe you could switch between ships, thats always a fun mechanic. A simple sprite switch would be all that's needed.