Cubic Colors - Experimental Gamedesign # 7

Alright, alright, it's another one of those.

Okay, before you lose interest halfway through, here is an important bit: This game is officially recommended by Captain_Kiyaku!

So you know its got to be good

No more need for more infos? Thought so! Download it now!
... from Kiyakus Server. Thanks, Kiyaku!
http://www.windmillgames.de/uploads/error014/CC_RC.rar - ~ 2.3 MB, rar-file.
... from the server that belongs to MichaelSchwarz! Thanks Michael!!
Click to start Download! - ~ 2.3 MB, rar-file

Still in the need for more infos, or maybe, just looking for a way to pass the time? Read on.

Remember me? No? Thats okay, it's been a while. I was the guy with those weird games, asking you to rip them apart and tell me how awful they were. You did a great job on that, and I learnt a lot about gamemaking, so I thought: let's do that again!
Cubic Colors is a puzzlegame, and it features cubes, and also, colors, maybe. I'd advise you to start with the tutorials ("How to play"), but you gamers can probably figure it out with no help as well.


start with the simpler plane puzzles

I once thought it'd be fun to, you know, sell this game, but I guess its too complex for the casual market (not too mention that it requires DirectX 9!). But its quite a nice puzzlegame for the gamer and gamedeveloper.


Try to solve the mindbending Cubic Puzzles, that bring the puzzles to the third dimension!

So now, here it is. Please play it. Then, come back and give feedback. I appreciate that very much.


After you finished a puzzle, try to solveit in Challengemode! With a timelimit and constraints on how you're allowed to move, it's a different take on the puzzlemechanic

You don't like me? Now is your chance to show me! Tell me how the story is stupid (there is none, so you'd be right!), that the graphics suck and look like they're from 1998 at most (this can be done without downloading, so its a perfect fit if you dont have much time), and that the gameplay is way too boring and confusing and also, how does one shoot!? I can't see the weapon. Tell me that I should consider adding one.
Yes, I am that desperate for feedback



But sooner or later, the fun will end, right?
Wrong! The included editor allows you and anyone else in the universe (with this game (and a computer)) to create exciting puzzles!
If you guys do that (you usually don't do these kind of things ), I will add the puzzles to the amazing PuzzleSpace!


So, what are you waiting for? Download it now! ... from Kiyakus Server. Thanks, Kiyaku!
http://www.windmillgames.de/uploads/error014/CC_RC.rar - ~ 2.3 MB, rar-file.
... from the server that belongs to MichaelSchwarz! Thanks Michael!!
Click to start Download! - ~ 2.3 MB, rar-file

The game was made with A6, which, apparently, is now dead for one year. Huh.


Now, thanks are in order! Thanks to:
- Helghast, Kiyaku, MichaelSchwarz & Turrican (in alphabetical order!) for testing and feedback
- Turrican for the graphic advice -- of which I was only able to bring a very small part to the game (Yeah, I'm a loser )
- Kiyaku, for hosting this thing, and all the other experimental games of mine. I hear he hosts them all in the same corner of his host, so the games can play together when nobody is looking.
Also, I used some of those materialeffects from the Wiki. Thanks, mysterious Wikininjas, who you choose to stay in the shadows, giving lowly gamemakers like me a chance to make my game look fancier.

And of course, thanks to all of you, especially those commenting (cough, cough)! You're all great, etc.!


(In case you want to learn more about this experiment, there is a "great" blog with more infos about past experimental games, and also nice lessons from the development of my real project, to be unveiled in THE FUTURE ™. Probably in time for you to check it on the monitor of your flying car.)

I beat every level, even the tough multicube puzzles! i love this game, it's so simple yet addictive, it reminded me on some many other games... (PSP game; cube and PIQ for examples). I didnt get into the creating of my own levels yet, but i will soon

I'm really excited about this game, i hope other people can see the commercial quality of it as well, even though there can still be a lot if stuff added... (extensive single player, possibility of level sharing [not sure if that's supported, but that would be cool, and you can create quite a fanbase this way], maybe some online highscore features :D).

anyway, keep it up, it's super-awesome!!!

regards,
Dennis

There are two things that I love about your concepts Error.
The title and the creativity of each project
There is actually not much to C&C about here except for the tuturial part, the text is sometimes not fully visible in the view frustum and in contradiction to one element that I mentioned above, the text is too monotome/simple in comparison towards the game itself ^^
But in general, top work

Cheers

Frazzle

I just finished all levels in the lowest mode.
And, I am happy that they were quite easy, at least after some trying, and getting the idea of the individual level. Thank you for that, because I am normally not very good in solving puzzles.

Design:

A very clean and professional overall look.
The sounds fit very well.

The "menu" part with the planets was a bit confusing, at least to my son.
I would like to step back further, though, to get a better overview.

What I don't like are the colors 'white' and 'gray', maybe, you could replace them with more friendly pastel colors, more or less randomly, with well chosen random ranges it could work IMO. The 'weakness' of the pastel colors should establish the difference to the important and 'strong' colors of the puzzle.
The spaceship could get a golden part instead of that white skin, and some glowing sprites at the back.

Gameplay:

The puzzles with six different planes and the camera movement were a bit stressful, although not like I experienced in Portal. (Actually, I got sick two times when playing Portal and had to quit. Just to continue the other day, of course.)

It needs more levels, because I was somehow disappointed that I couldn't continue. It is this sort of feeling when you just got the idea of it, but there are no more levels to play.

The movements and shape of the assets are convincing.

All in all, I think it has actually commercial potential. It just needs a lot of levels.

Skies, some sort of friendly colors and music are minor things that have to be added.

Very cool concept Error014. I have just started testing the game. I ran into a bug though. I attached a screen print. There is one more block to change, however as seen in the image below there are no arrows and no switch blocks.

Great game and addicting too! Very well done! .
Only thing to mention are the graphics of those pathblocks... makes it all look a littlebit messy, not giving a relaxing, "clean" feeling to it when playing. If you know what I mean . I think it's the gray color and sharp edges. It's not making me happy.

Gameplay is fantastic! The graphics and panels could be much better.

Thanks for your feedback so far, guys! I'm really happy to hear that you guys like the concept, it was kind of a gamble with this one as the final gameplay still took quite a few lines just to prototype it! ... Err, well, more than expected, anyway.

Pappenheimer,
I agree that the "PuzzleSpace" (the name is soo cheesy, I love it) can be quite confusing at times! This is one area I'd definately improve if I were to work on this further. I still like (and would keep) the idea of "unlocking" the universe as you go, and see your territory (green + gold) grow.

DC9,
thanks for the bug report! That one was tricky to find, and it took me a while to reproduce it, even when I knew where to look! I've managed to do it, but still remain clueless as to what exactly causes it (seems to be a bug with the "am-I-above-a-bottomless-pit"-recognition), but I haven't looked into it that much. If I develop this further, which is a bit unlikely, sadly, I'm definately going to adress it. Thanks again!


Everyone,
Yup, as per usual with this "Experiment", graphics tend to be more of an afterthought. I've definately learnt that they add much more than what "gameplay-is-all-graphics-are-nothing"-guys are giving them credit, which was quite the revelation! (Of course, theres a limit, so maybe its really more about the polish?)
Thanks again for the feedback, and keep it coming!
Did anyone try the editor yet? If you want your puzzles released for everyone, don't hesitate and drop me a note.

(Also: Whats up with me and overly long posts? Huh? Whats wrong with me, am I right guys??)

Is this the end of this experimental series? I... I think so!

Another bug:
I managed to get my camera into a wrong angle. It was facing to a direction as if the cube was on that side, while it was actually on another. Wasn't able to reproduce but I think it happened when I clicked the swap and tapped some keys at the right timing.

Good luck debugging he-he-he.