Summer Project Week 10: Feedback & Polish

06/09/21

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, my list of test subjects that I was able to observe was limited, however, I was able to enlist two of my housemates to play test the game for me. Fortunately, they were the ideal types of test subjects that I needed, as one is very familiar with the types of games that inspired the one that I created, while the other is not familiar with them. I asked both to play through the level once, after which they provided me with their initial thoughts on the experience. Then I answered if they had any questions related to the game, before letting them play through the level for a second time. After this second occasion, I interviewed each subject to find out, from their perspectives, some of the failings of the level and what could be done to help alleviate them. The corresponding findings are outlined below.

Mutual Feedback

Both test subjects enjoyed the dark, tense atmosphere that I was able to create and thought the lighting had the right balance of being mysterious and creepy, while also knowing where they were located most of the time. They also thought the mechanics were cool and wished there was more to explore, as they enjoyed using them so much. Both test subjects were slightly irritated by the performance at certain points, mainly in areas that surrounded the mirror room. However, they were able to deal with the performance after getting used to it, although both obviously wished that it would have been better. The controls for both of them felt intuitive and clear, with each button being assigned appropriately and any corresponding movement feeling natural. Interestingly, both test subjects managed to find the majority of the secrets throughout the level, including the second dagger. This was surprising to me, as I thought that the novice player would not be able to pick up certain cues when it came to the level design, but I am happy to see he managed to get two out of the three health upgrades.

Both subjects were dissatisfied with the use of the third person camera within the hub. Because the hub was the room connecting all the other ones together, they found it frustrating having to navigate through it with such a dramatic change in camera view every time they entered it. Because of this, I made the unfortunate decision to scrap it and I replaced the entire room with fixed cameras to make the game much more consistent with the rest of it. To compromise this, I decided to change the little square, where the player starts, to be in third-person. When the player takes a few steps forward that leads to the fixed cameras, the player character points out the camera and the fact that they feel they are being watched. It is a shame I had to scrap the small theme I wanted to establish, but I think this services the gameplay far more than previous builds.

Overall, both test subjects felt like the level was enhanced with the fixed camera angles as they agreed it created a unique atmosphere that was only possible through it, and both understood why I wish this type of game would still be made. In terms of the unique feedback given by each test subject, I have noted it below and outlined what I have changed to make the game a better overall experience to play.

Novice Tester Feedback

-Windows

The novice player felt that the windows, in certain sections where they played a huge role in navigating a corridor, were spaced too far apart from one another and due to the spacing in between them, they easily lost their sense of place as they did not know the location of the player character. With this in mind, I decided to add more windows, as well as make the spacing between them thin enough so that the player can still clearly see the player character, regardless of the angle.

-Doors

Doors also raised issues for this player. Even though he did not directly say anything about them when interviewed, I noticed through both of his play sessions that finding the door in certain rooms proved to be hazy. I can understand why, because as a result of using the default developer textures for the walls, floors and ceilings of the game, the doors blended in too well whenever they were placed in a dimly lit room. The feedback helped to alleviate this, as when I made the frame around each door a pure white colour, the player remarked on what a huge difference it made to navigating through the level.

-Framing

Similar to the windows issue, a couple of the fixed camera angles proved to be a problem for this tester. I took note of whenever the tester lost track of the player character and I made the necessary adjustments to make the transition between cameras seamless and to ensure that the player is always in full view of the player character. This is something that shows how important testing is. I did not find any issues when it came to all the camera angles. However, this was due to my increased knowledge of and familiarity with the game, having been the sole developer of the project, therefore I was able to always know exactly where the player character was located. By having someone, with no prior knowledge on how rooms are constructed, highlight these somewhat obscure-looking angles, it will greatly improve my understanding in an attempt to make this game as appealing to play as possible, regardless of the skill level.

-Map

Finally, the test subject requested that I add a map to the game as he got lost during his initial playthrough. Due to developing the map towards the end of creating the game, I did not attach sufficient time to make a fleshed-out map system. Instead, I opted for the same actor used to create the photograph located in the bedroom and updated the picture to be a full layout of the level itself, with each room labelled as such. This compromise pleased the novice player when I told him of its implementation and he was happy to see it in action as it made a massive impact on the tester’s navigation of the level. This was because he now had a solid foundation to draw from to make sure he knew where he was located within the level and where he was to progress to.

Veteran Tester Feedback

-Quick Turn

Since the veteran tester had played games like this before and is also a huge fan of the Resident Evil franchise, one inclusion he immediately suggested was the use of the quick turn due to choosing the tank control scheme. I agreed and I was able to implement it with ease, to make the controls of the game that bit smoother.

-Combat Feedback and Updating Animations

At the beginning, the tester remarked on how slow and stiff combat felt at certain points. He thought it was accurate and satisfying enough to engage in combat with the enemies, but on his second playthrough, he became somewhat frustrated with how sluggish the combat felt. Since then, I have updated each attack animation, for both the player and enemies, to make it half a speed faster than usual and the difference was clear. Combat now felt more intuitive and much slicker. It also made the dodge command much more useful, as now enemies felt more threatening than ever before. When I first started the project, the zombies from Resident Evil were obviously huge inspirations. In that game, the combat for both the player character and the zombies are just as slow as my combat was initially. I felt I have modernised this form of gameplay somewhat here, to make it fresh and intuitive, while also keeping the deliberateness and tension, which the original had, with faster and more involved combat. I decided to also use this opportunity to update other certain animations as well, such as the interact animation, to keep the pacing of the game consistent.

-Mirror Room

The limitations to carrying out my project did not offer me sufficient time to conduct a major overhaul of this room, and therefore I would consider this to be a failing of the level. It is supposed to be a challenge and making it difficult to navigate is part of this challenge, so to help alleviate this, I have illuminated the room somewhat, so it is more obvious where the player needs to navigate to. The test subject was not completely happy with this change, but he did agree that it helped him to navigate it better. He understood the limited time I had to make it more fleshed out and less frustrating, however, he remarked how cool it was to show off fixed cameras in this way, even though it did not reach its full potential. As a result of this, I have since cut down on the backtracking in the final stretch of the level and made where to go in the final room more obvious. This does improve the overall pacing and makes it that players no longer have to revisit the mirror room to complete the level. No doubt, this is to the relief of many players!