Cowboy vs. Ninjas vs. Aliens (by Dead Mushroom)[Universal][5 promocodes available!]

[o0oJAKEo0o]

I like the game. It's fun but just doesn't seem like there is enough content I finished the whole thing in a couple hours. Also, it will only allow you to play with the speakers (4s) on the left side. I know it shouldn't matter what way I hold my device but it does! It's really uncomfortable. However, the insane mode that can be unlocked is pretty challenging and you earn coins everyday you go back to each level you've cleared.
I would say get it if you're in to dual sticks. If not probably pass this one up. Nothing really spectacular...

[blocc]

Hello, Promo code "If" available...?
Thanks either way.

[Drummerboycroy]

Originally Posted by o0oJAKEo0o

I like the game. It's fun but just doesn't seem like there is enough content I finished the whole thing in a couple hours. Also, it will only allow you to play with the speakers (4s) on the left side. I know it shouldn't matter what way I hold my device but it does! It's really uncomfortable. However, the insane mode that can be unlocked is pretty challenging and you earn coins everyday you go back to each level you've cleared.
I would say get it if you're in to dual sticks. If not probably pass this one up. Nothing really spectacular...

It's funny, I feel the same way about the speaker thing. I realize it probably shouldn't matter, but it makes me crazy. IDK why, but it is really hard to play with my phone "flipped over..."

I'm curious, did you find all the hidden stuff and equip/upgrade everything in a couple hours?

DBC

[punch.rockgroin]

Originally Posted by o0oJAKEo0o

I like the game. It's fun but just doesn't seem like there is enough content I finished the whole thing in a couple hours. Also, it will only allow you to play with the speakers (4s) on the left side. I know it shouldn't matter what way I hold my device but it does! It's really uncomfortable. However, the insane mode that can be unlocked is pretty challenging and you earn coins everyday you go back to each level you've cleared.
I would say get it if you're in to dual sticks. If not probably pass this one up. Nothing really spectacular...

I feel the same way, took maybe two to three hours until I beat the last stage and found all the secrets. It's not a bad game by any means, but there's just not much to it. I re-downloaded Armed Beasts after the devs turned it into a proper dual stick shooter and I'm having a lot more fun with it than with this game.

[VirtualBoyFreak]

I've been playing it for some hours now. It's a good looking dual stick shooter with above-average scenery interaction. You can break boxes, climb over railway lines, etc.

There are two currencies in the game: one achievable in game (bank notes) and the other one only through IAP (gold nuggets). The good is that none of the items are exclusive to one of the currencies. The bad is that some items might take a long time to buy with bank notes if you only want to achieve them by playing the game.

One novelty vs other DSS is the fact that you can ride several animals and even a space bike, giving more variety to the overall experience.

All in all it's a very good experience, recommended to all the fans of dual stick shooters.

[lvergani]

Originally Posted by punch.rockgroin

I feel the same way, took maybe two to three hours until I beat the last stage and found all the secrets. It's not a bad game by any means, but there's just not much to it. I re-downloaded Armed Beasts after the devs turned it into a proper dual stick shooter and I'm having a lot more fun with it than with this game.

What would make the game interesting for a longer time?
Achievements? More items or weapons? More upgrades? I would love to hear your 2 cents on this!

Originally Posted by VirtualBoyFreak

I've been playing it for some hours now. It's a good looking dual stick shooter with above-average scenery interaction. You can break boxes, climb over railway lines, etc.

There are two currencies in the game: one achievable in game (bank notes) and the other one only through IAP (gold nuggets). The good is that none of the items are exclusive to one of the currencies. The bad is that some items might take a long time to buy with bank notes if you only want to achieve them by playing the game.

One novelty vs other DSS is the fact that you can ride several animals and even a space bike, giving more variety to the overall experience.

All in all it's a very good experience, recommended to all the fans of dual stick shooters.

Thanks for your review, VirtualBoyFreak!

[punch.rockgroin]

Originally Posted by lvergani

What would make the game interesting for a longer time?
Achievements? More items or weapons? More upgrades? I would love to hear your 2 cents on this!

Hi and thanks for reading our feedback!

My main complaint is that the game feels very small. The only reason it takes more than an hour to beat is because you have to grind levels that you've already beaten in order to access the next stage.

However, I don't even mean total playtime, a game can be short and still feel big (Retrobot is a great example of such a game). What I mean is that after playing for 5 minutes I've seen everything your game has to offer. The enemies, guns and locations that come after that just don't add anything to the gameplay. New enemies come with different attack patterns, but it makes no difference because you can easily outrun them all. The guns you get later in the game are the same as the ones you get early on, plus they are very weak in comparison (e.g. a Thompson with all three upgrades still beats a Browning with two upgrades, which makes no sense considering the costs). The environments change, but it doesn't matter to the game, as all the levels except one are wide open space. All in all, there's very little sense of progression and variety.

However, it doesn't have to be like that. To give you two examples from your own game: The bank level is great, it plays very differently from the rest of the stages due to the narrow space (also it's fun to break everything). I also really like the aliens who shoot at you, they're dangerous and when you spot them you have to take them out immediately, as you can't really outrun their lasers. I believe that more elements like these would add a lot of longevity to the game. Make the environments, enemies and gun upgrades matter in some way, so the players feel that they're actually progressing through the game.

I hope my criticism doesn't come across overly harsh, as I said in my last post I don't think it's a bad game, there's just a lot of room for improvement.

Edit: Now that I think of it, I don't remember coming across any boss monsters in the game. Simply adding a few bosses could already go a long way to accomodate that lack of perceived progress.

[lvergani]

Originally Posted by punch.rockgroin

Hi and thanks for reading our feedback!

My main complaint is that the game feels very small. The only reason it takes more than an hour to beat is because you have to grind levels that you've already beaten in order to access the next stage.

However, I don't even mean total playtime, a game can be short and still feel big (Retrobot is a great example of such a game). What I mean is that after playing for 5 minutes I've seen everything your game has to offer. The enemies, guns and locations that come after that just don't add anything to the gameplay. New enemies come with different attack patterns, but it makes no difference because you can easily outrun them all. The guns you get later in the game are the same as the ones you get early on, plus they are very weak in comparison (e.g. a Thompson with all three upgrades still beats a Browning with two upgrades, which makes no sense considering the costs). The environments change, but it doesn't matter to the game, as all the levels except one are wide open space. All in all, there's very little sense of progression and variety.

However, it doesn't have to be like that. To give you two examples from your own game: The bank level is great, it plays very differently from the rest of the stages due to the narrow space (also it's fun to break everything). I also really like the aliens who shoot at you, they're dangerous and when you spot them you have to take them out immediately, as you can't really outrun their lasers. I believe that more elements like these would add a lot of longevity to the game. Make the environments, enemies and gun upgrades matter in some way, so the players feel that they're actually progressing through the game.

I hope my criticism doesn't come across overly harsh, as I said in my last post I don't think it's a bad game, there's just a lot of room for improvement.

Edit: Now that I think of it, I don't remember coming across any boss monsters in the game. Simply adding a few bosses could already go a long way to accomodate that lack of perceived progress.

Thanks for your honest feedback!
Basically, you want weapons and enemies that make you think different and 'force' you to change your strategy?

Adding bosses is a great idea!

[Germy_Wermy]

I may not be very active on this boards, but I lurk a lot. The devs were super kind to send me a promo code when I asked them, so now I am 'obliged' to write something for this game!

I was pretty excited to hear from the devs and try out the game after reading some impressions here.

After playing for an hour or so, here are my thoughts. Cowboys vs Ninjas vs Aliens (from henceforth known as CvNvA), is quite alright in terms of gameplay and graphics.

What I felt is that the gameplay is not as tight as it should be. There is a lot of potential in the game, but it is easy to run away from the enemies, and there isn't a sense of any real danger (haven't tried survival though) if you can run away from the enemies too easily. Also, it is easy to lose track of the enemies when you are running from them, and you can't see them, and suddenly they pop up beside you. I would suggest having an enemy radar that allows us to keep track of the enemies.

The controls do what they are supposed to do, but I still feel that it would be tighter. Also, the pacing of the game could afford to be slightly more frantic, and while it is quite fun to try to search out the secret weapons and keys (I haven't found a single hidden weapon yet), in my opinion, the barrels take too long to break, and this affects the pacing of the game.

There has been mention of Minigore in the thread, and I used to be a big fan of Minigore (one of my first iOS games that I played to death, but MS turned me off with their non-responsiveness and broken promises) and I thought that this game would tide me over until Minigore: Zombies is (finally) released. I went back to Minigore recently, and I was surprised that it is still really smooth, the graphics surprisingly withstood the test of time, and the pacing is still great, in my opinion.

I wouldn't compare CvNvA to Minigore, but rather to another DSS gem, Max Adventure. They are slightly different beasts though; Max Adventure is more about exploration than waves upon endless waves of enemies, and that is what CvNvA is like to me. The devs could take a leaf out of Max Adventure.

What I would like to see in CvNvA is a tighter game, in terms of controls and pacing, and more emphasis on exploration, and not just an arena style DSS.

That said, this game is not too shabby, and the developers are listening on this board, so do give CvNvA a chance if you were a fan of DSS. I am also glad that the devs didn't choose to go with zombies for the enemies!

Not that it matters, but I would give this game a 3.5/5 stars for potential and devs who are open and listen, as well as an interesting style.

Finally, a disclaimer: Everything expressed here are merely my views and opinions, so while you can disagree, it doesn't invalidate what I feel! :P