I’m currently making a 3d platformer/puzzle game, but I have a bit of an issue. The testers so far have all had trouble determining distance between platforms. I have a link to the webplayer below:
Controls: WASD to move, 1-6 to change platform colors(1-Red, 2-Blue, 3-Yellow, 4-Green, 5-Purple, 6-Orange), mouse scroll wheel to change camera distance
My question is how can I make it easier for the player to determine the distance between platforms? I have a “shadow” under the player to help people realize when they are above a platform, but it doesn’t seem to help much.
This is an old/early build of the game so the current state is more polished, however this problem remains.
So what are everyone’s thoughts? Should the camera be changed a bit? Should there be a vertical line going down from the player, rather than just the shadow?
The camera controls just feel a bit funny. I feel like I should be moving the mouse the opposite direction in the Y. Iy’s harder than it should be to aim towards the platform.
The transparency of the platforms makes it hard to see where one begins and one ends. Try making them a bit more opaque.
Whilst the suggestions here are good and you definitely need to offer the option for invert-Y axis and sensitivity, the inherent problem with the game is its a third-person over the shoulder platformer. This makes jump timing difficult, particularly for those inexperienced in the genre.
As such it may be worth considering other methods of indicating when a user should jump. perhaps the player could glow or change colour as they progressively get closer to an edge. This might offer an additional visual feedback to the player and aid their timings of jumps.
One issue I had with the game was the use of keys 1-6 to toggle on the coloured platforms. Although a fine mechanic, I found having to stop moving in order to turn on a platform really spoilt the ‘flow’ of the game. I think it may be beneficial to revisit the overall design of the game to see if there are methods to streamline the experience and interactions. For example ( note these are rhetorical questions to get the point across )
Do you really need 6 keys/platform colours? Are there going to be times when you need to correctly choose between them? Could you get away with just two or three platform colours/keys?
Is the mouse camera control worth anything? Sure it helps line up jumps and I find myself constantly moving it around slightly in order to change my view and provide some added parallax movement to the scene in order to gauge how close to the edge of a platform I was, but it doesn’t actually do anything in terms of the gameplay mechanics, its just a fix for the awkwardness of over-the-shoulder, third person platforming.
What’s the focus of the game? Jumping or activating platforms or both? Could choosing one feature be more beneficial, i.e. activating the platforms being more important than actual jumping?
For example take the classic Temple Run. In that game they removed the need to hold a key to run forward and removed the need for camera control by making the environment and camera well designed. Could you achieve the same thing? Have the player follow a pre-determined path at a constant speed, allowing the player to focus purely on making timed jumps and activating the platforms.
@tatelax - Sorry, to activate a color you press a corresponding key. 1-Red, 2-Blue, 3-Yellow. You can only have 1 color activated at a time. I thought I put that in the first post but I must have been imagining things. Updated now. Thank you for your points though. It seems that the 3 things you listed are the general consensus.
@noisecrime - Yeah, I am aware of the drawbacks of third person platformer games. Your idea of glowing closer to edges is something I have previously considered. It would pair well if I decide to streamline the game as you mentioned (with the constant forward speed aspect). Very good questions though. Definitely some things I should look in to.
I understand your questions are rhetorical, however I wish to address one of them in particular. As you say with the mouse controlled camera, is it worth anything? The linear levels I have in the webplayer are, first of all, just development levels. Simple levels I threw together to gauge player interaction, difficulty with particular mechanics, etc. Another thing is I have been debating on whether to drop linear levels altogether in favor of larger, more “open world” type of area including hidden collectibles and such. Hopefully this will help server a larger purpose for the mouse controlled camera. I will have to do more testing to find out.