About the free beta release, do you consider to release it worldwide or only in some contries like ngmoco?
I managed, but I had to vote few times. I still prefer the forum system since it also allows a more extensive feedback ... But the other system I more handy for a developer. That I agree. For the beta, also consider in which country this will be.
This beta list release will be available on all countries but for a VERY limited time since we only want a list of about 1000 testers. This is also very different from what ngmoco did with eliminate and godfinger, because they did it mostly to test their servers and we are actually looking to get some user feedback. This forum and team is still the core beta effort and the comprehensive one. The uservoice is just more suitable for massive numbers of users (which couldnt be handled manually) and allows us to see a more general view of which concerns get the highest number of votes. As to which country we don't think it matters since it will be released for a very short time (last time we put Rasta Monkey free for a couple of days it hit the #6 top free app and had about 400,000 downloads, so we believe getting a 1000 testers will not take long). Again, I want to emphasize that this thread is now becoming even more important, and every version that gets uploaded goes through here first. If you don't feel like participating in the user-voice thing, it's alright. I just thought it would give the big list a clue as to how to properly post their concerns.
I think its a great idea to open up a huge beta for people to try out the game and give feedback they can also can spread the word about the game. But well have to wait and see how many are actually reliable and help out
Thanks man! This is the reason why were going to ask them for a lot less then what I'm asking from you I think that even if only half of them actually vote, we can still get a pretty good statistical idea as to what are the main urgent problems we face.
Sorry for the late reply....i already finish 100 levels in 1 days,just got some own problem need to settle so become late pass up the testing report 1) Levels a) first please try to write down which levels did you love/hate (and why). Don’t have any level that I really love/hate, every levels are very interesting, need to think before start process the level. b) which levels were too hard/easy and should be moved to a different location pack 1-3 quite easy, pack 4 feel normal abit, pack 5 are the most hard level…. c) did you feel that the total number of levels is enough/good/great for such a game? try to explain why. I think that the levels/pack is enough and great for the first released in app store 2) Bugs life - please report any bugs you may be experiencing didn’t found any bugs….. 3) Rating system - we added some sort of in-game counter that should help explain how the star rating works. let us know what you think. I think I won’t see the explanation, will just direct start playing the game 4) more name suggestions Dance Toshi Puzzler 5)Main Objections - what are your 2 main objections/concerns with the game NOW, after playing this second build. addon option for the change of the Music or Sound, i think some player would only like to listen for the music, and not listen to the Toshi sound, so i think should addon this option....
Thanks for posting Daniel, you forgot to mention what are your 2 most major concerns with the game now...
Cool thanks, I'm glad your only concern is sound controls, I guess it means you think everything else is working for you
1) Levels: Still working hard lv 4-5 (skipped some level which I cannot passed) (1a). We love all levels. (1b). Hard: 1-13, 1-14, 2-3, 2-7, 2-8, 2-12, 2-13, 3-2, 3-7, 3-17. (I found some body said some of the level is too easy for them (hard for me) ) (1c). I think 100 levels is great. You can release more level for IAP (DLC). It will make the initial cost of the app lower. And if the player wants for levels, paid for it. Maybe 0.99 for another 50levels. (2) Main objection: Tutorial is my wishes. i.e. When there is an ice block, just pop-up what is it and how it works. (3) Only some standing at the air (posted by other in the team already), I do not found any bugs. (4) Where can I find the in-game counter? (5) I love to name it: Let's Dance (6) Wishes: It is good for different stages has different outfit of the character. How about the background? Lake, wood, forest, snow mountain, rainy, sunny, night, etc. And with a suitable background music for different background. Add ZOOM-IN and ZOOM-OUT button. It is much easy for someone like me (big finger).
Good work Roger! The in game counter is below the stars graphics inside the level. It counts the amount of shots you already released. It's funny that you all seem to choose names that have 'dance' inside. I like it, but I have a question: Don't you people think a name like this might have confused you to think that this is some kind of rhythm/music game?
Not really. I lime she is funny in the dance !! I have a question. I have no need for zooming ... But on an iPad. I wonder if the zoom is only needed on iPhone.
I guess you're right and the need to zoom is mostly an iPhone/iPod issue. If this will be a repeated major complaint in your reports we will definitely figure out a solution.
second beta sorry for the late response here goes: 1. levels (a) hate/love - 3-4,3-5 great timing concept stages 5-16 i love tushi flying 5-2 i love the stairs concept (b) hard/easy - level 1-17 - way too easy level 2-1 - hard to get 3 stars Level 2-13 - took a while to figure out. 3-10 - need to make 3 stars with less throws 3-16 took a while to get the 3 stars 3-17 took a while to figure out 3-18 too easy to it's place 3-19 need to reduce the amount of shots to get 3 stars 4-2 need to reduce 3 stars to 1 shot 4-5 need to reduce 3 stars to 4 shots 4-6 need to reduce 3 stars to 6 shots 4-7 need to reduce 3 stars to 1 shots 4-8 need to reduce 3 stars to 2 shots 4-10 need to reduce 3 stars to 4 shots 4-12 hard relatively to the previous ones 4-13 doable in 4 shots 4-16 need to reduce 3 stars to 3 shots 4-18 needs to be reduced to 5 shots. 4-19 can be reduced to 3 shots 4-20 hard 5-2 tushi drops from stage and still win. Can reduce to 4 shots. Easy 5-5 lower 3 stars to 3 shots 5-6 lower 3 stars to 2 shots. Easy 5-7 too easy. 5-12 lower 3 stars to 1 shot 5-14 need to make 3 stars in 4 shots. (c) level amount - i feel 100 levels are good for a first release 2. objections i cant help myself i have more then two a. trumpet winning music not that good, sounds as if out of beet. b. section 4 levels tushi - in the selection stages screen, toshi looks as if she is cross eyed. c. tushi Suddenly turns black? - too strange for my taste. 3. bugs a. when taking a screen shot - holding the iPhone horizontally, shows the image in vertical and vice verse. b. after wining toshi dance appears as if she is dancing on air. c. on one occasion i had tushi drown, and i still got to win the level i took some screen shots, i will send them separately. 4. disco tushi, dancing tushi, shot to dance, make me dance, tush like dancin regarding the tutorial. i feel that right now, when the 1st stage is the explanation it works quite good. i dont think there should be a screen explaing the king of cubes, it will ruin the whole finding out fun. i also dont think that a zoom option is needed. all in all, the game is progressing really nice.
High quality input, especially the specific level data - we need more info on specific levels people! Ill ask you the same question I asked the others: Don't you think that using the word 'dance' in the name might deter people who think this game is some kind of a dancing rhythm game? (like dance dance revolution for example)
1) a) Loved: 2-8, it has a nice Rube Goldberg feel to it, which I like 2-12, I just thought this one was really clever and interesting 2-19, this one was kinda like a puzzle where all the pieces had to be put together correctly in a specific order, very clever 3-5, I don't know, I just like blasting Toshi around 5-3, again, this one was just really well designed and very clever 5-6, nice little Rube Goldberg again, I like the chain reaction type levels 5-14, I love this one! At first I was pretty stumped, but when I figured it out, it was very satisfying 5-15, again, Rube Goldberg/chain reaction. I enjoy the levels that take thought, not timing. Solving them by doing things in a specific combination 5-18, again, very fun chain reaction type, blasting and sliding Hated: 2-13, this one required way too much chance. I did the same exact thing like 5 times in a row and none of them came close except the fifth with actually worked 4-18, ridiculously hard to figure out, but once I finally beat it, I really liked the solution. I guess you could say it was a hate/love relationship (I hated it first then loved it ) 5-5, I still don't know how I beat this one. It doesn't seem like there's a specific way to do it, you just keep trying until it works, and I don't like that 5-11, I really hated this one. It's just way too hard for the type of game this is, and the frustration ruins the enjoyment. The physics just don't allow it to be consistent, and it's not fun 5-19, Oh my gosh, this was my least favorite level in the entire game, so frustrating, didn't seem to have a specific, reliable way to beat it, and it just wasn't any fun other then that, I either liked or didn't care for the rest, mostly I liked them! b) which levels were too hard/easy and should be moved to a different location Too Hard: well, pretty much all the levels mentioned in the hate section were either too hard for the section they were in, or they were too hard period. Other than that, they all seemed pretty well balanced Too Easy: I did notice that some were pretty easy even though they were in the hard sections, and it might just be that I just saw the solution faster than most would, but in my opinion, I like having a few easy ones in the hard section, it helps to ease the frustration after beating a few really hard ones c) did you feel that the total number of levels is enough/good/great for such a game? try to explain why. Well, 100 levels is a really good number for any game, so yes, I think it's great for this game. Should you make more levels? Of course! You've got something great here, so why limit yourself. For the initial release though, for a couple bucks, 100 levels is solid. 2) Main Objections - what are your 2 main objections/concerns with the game NOW, after playing this second build. well, I noticed that sometimes the wooden blocks would break after only one hit, which can help with getting 3 stars, but it's not consistent or predictable, and it's messed me up a number of times. Also, when you hit the reset button, there is a bit of lag before you can do anything. It sets up the level again, but it takes a while to reset the number of stones thrown and won't let you throw until it's done so. I think this process should be a little more fluid. Even having a the screen dim while it's resetting and go away when it's ready. Well, that's about it. 3) Bugs life - please report any bugs you may be experiencing Well, I already mentioned the fact that wooden blocks sometimes break after one hit. Also, there have been times when TNT blocks would just explode randomly without being hit, and that got a little annoying. There's quite a bit of lag when transitioning to different pages on the main menu and when resetting a level. That's about all I found. 3) Rating system - we added some sort of in-game counter that should help explain how the star rating works. let us know what you think. Love the new rating system, it's helped me a ton. Another way to do it though would be to having a bar that has a Gold, Silver, and Bronze section, whenever you throw a rock, the Gold part would deplete until it got to the Silver, then it would deplete and so on. Just like with the stars, except it would give the playing a little more warning of when they will be dropped down to the next rank, without them just shooting off rocks at the beginning to test their limit and then resetting. Just a thought. 4) more name suggestions - help us with the name survey we started, and suggest a name for the game that you would find appealing and suits the game (if you love the current name, please tell us). Personally, I like the current name, but if I were to change it, Disco Rescue would be cool, or maybe Disco Physics. Well, that's about it, sorry it took so long for me to get done, I hope it was worth the wait I love the game, just wanted to throw that out there
Thats what forums, descriptions and lites are for.People can read the description or look at the screenshots or gameplay video.
Outstanding work and a great example of how a good report looks like. Lots of insights there (I will update the spreadsheet real soon...). I think I haven't done a very good job of explaining how important it is that you also tell us which levels HAVE PROBLEMS so we can fix them. For example, some of the hard levels you said looked too random in their solution, actually have 1 consistent solution, and this input of yours really helped me realize that we might just need to fix their design to make this solution pop out more. This is the best way to make sure that this game will be fun all the way through. Your insights have led me to a few new questions that all of you are welcomed to answer: 1) What would be a good price for such a game? you said a couple of dollars if I got it right. what do the rest of you feel? please try to explain why. 2) Do you think somehow including the word physics in the games name might help improve the initial appeal of the game to complete strangers who wander around the appstore looking for a game to buy? 3) what do you think about the game's difficulty in general and about the difficulty curve (too steep? not steep enough?) 3) very small question - as to the wooden blocks that break after one hit - are you sure that it's not the result of a ricochet from an earlier shot? having to play levels again is the hardest part of the game design but we have to know what works
You're totally right, especially when talking about people like you who check thoroughly before they buy something. and yet, There are a lot of people that just wander around the appstore, looking for a new game to buy, and I think they judge it first by 2 things: name & icon. We worry that some people who love physics puzzles, might be turned off because they mistakenly think that this is a dancing game genre game. This is why I also asked what you guys think about somehow inserting the word 'physics' inside the name, like in one of legowiz suggestions.
Yeah I would expect that too and I still stand by my suggestions Toshi Physics or Toshi Dance Physics Its kind of hard to incorporate the word physics with Save Toshi
