FutureCopLGF's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Cursed Dungeon Escape]

It's a decent little escape room puzzle game: not bad, but not particularly exciting, and especially not hard at all, as I found the puzzles to be incredibly simplistic to an almost insulting degree.

The perfect example of this is the numbered barrels. Someone's natural instinct would be to read the barrels from left to right to get the sequence of 4693. But ho ho, you've been tricked, you fool! If you look harder, you actually need to read the numbers in order based on the arrow path! If you do that, you'll see that the sequence is...4693. It's the same damn thing! Someone could get the right answer by complete mistake! The rest of the puzzles are quite similar in how blatant the answers are.

It's an ok time-waster, I suppose, being largely inoffensive, but I just didn't feel that satisfied playing this one. Many of your previous entries intrigued me a lot more, and this fails to live up to those expectations.

[Cash Clicker: With a Gun!]

Holy cow, this is really something special! I'm not one for idle clicker games because they hurt my hands and are usually quite boring and manipulative, but this one not only has an auto-clicking option to save my hands from strain, but it also saves my brain by making the gameplay be an exciting romp!

The game feels incredibly well-made in nearly all respects. Everything feels very smooth, polished, and intuitive: at no point did I suffer any confusion or encounter any glitches or bugs. The game is absolutely bursting with juicy effects that make the experience positively electric. The introduction of the gun is an intriguing hook, and the gameplay keeps my attention through threatening goals that require me to sink or swim. There are a lot of neat tricks too, like how failing to meet a goal doesn't mean instant death, but a new enemy that you can try to deal with (but is really hard to do so!)

I enjoyed the learning process of figuring out the best way to get farther and farther. For example, on my initial playthrough, I felt like the gun upgrades were a waste of money because the low amount of enemies meant I couldn't get enough money from kills to make the investment worth it, but the burst of enemies later on means you can't avoid it forever and need to be prepared. I also found that sometimes it's best to not bother purchasing multiple instances of a tier, but to just wait for the next tier instead: the UI seems to naturally push you to this strategy with its !!! signals. Fascinating stuff!

Now, not everything is perfect. If I had a few complaints, it'd be:

*I found it frustrating that I can't see the amount of items I've purchased, such as letting me see whether I've purchased 1, 2, 3, or however many shovels. It just makes it difficult to keep track of everything without that: I'm unsure whether I've dipped into one tier too many times, or whether I've purchased a tier at all.

*As mentioned, some of the design decisions felt a bit odd, such as how the gun feels really worthless for a large portion of the game until enemies get more intense, making you stick with boring clicks and passives. In a similar fashion, the ultimate giving you a cash prize feels hard to ignore as an option, which feels bad because it's so boring compared to something cool like a minigun.

Funster10123 responds:

Thank you for such thoughtful and engaging feedback! Everything that's been polished was once a sore spot, just like the game's current issues. We plan on adding QoL features and balance patches to help improve the quality of CC:WAG. Thanks for playing!

[NG BBS Awards 2024]

I always appreciate when an art collab or awards show gets creative in its presentation, and the way this puts all of the awards into the world of an escape room game is pretty neat! Since it's an escape room, people will naturally be clicking around to check for clues, leading to them naturally finding all of the awards: much more compelling than flipping through a slideshow! Very clever, and I liked finding all the achievements and secret symbols!

Now, while I do give it full points for creativity, the construction of this is pretty rough:

*I really wish the navigation was much more clear: I didn't even realize I could click on the sides of the screens to transition to other parts of the room at first! There really needs to be some arrows on the side of the screen to make it more obvious.

*Similar to above, I really wish the game would highlight objects you're hovering over. Yes, the mouse cursor does change to a hand icon, but even with that, it's never quite apparent if, say, the bookshelf you're hovering over is just one clickable object, or if you can click on the items on the shelf as well.

*You might say that a lot of the confusion above might've been avoided if I looked at the help menu, but it would've helped if I had access to the help menu within the game itself, instead of only being able to access it on the title screen where it is easily missed!

*When you open up an awards book, you can still accidently click on stuff that is behind it that you shouldn't be able to, such as the drawing of Pico that links to the supporter page. It's also a bit disappointing that you can't click on the various recipients to go to their profile and follow them or whatever.

[Level 9 Access]

Pretty neat game! I enjoy the crazy fast-paced nature of the game, what with how every level turns into absolute chaos as all sorts of obstacles and hazards get introduced: the randomness of it all really keeps you on your toes, forcing you to improvise as best as you can! I easily found myself getting hooked to the game from how bite-size the levels were and how quick it was to immediately retry upon death.

I had fun, but if I had some complaints:

*While the randomness does keep you on your toes in a fun way, it has the downside of making the game feel very repetitive and like you're not progressing: replaying a level is just as different of an experience as moving to the next level, so why bother? Yes, the levels are different from each other in their geography and do escalate in subtle ways, but it just doesn't feel that significant compared to the random events. Furthermore, the randomness calls the scoring system into question, as it can just be up to luck as to whether it gives you a series of easy events that let you do it quickly.

*Sometimes the randomness can totally screw you over, such as when the game spawned two antennas I needed to align within lava, making it impossible to do so without dying. This wasn't even a justifiable punishment from being slow and letting the lava rise too high, as the antennas were spawned way at the bottom of the screen practically where the lava started, so it felt incredibly unfair.

*Slight nitpick but I found it weird that unlocking the exit doesn't give you a message or signal like it does for every other event: you'd think it would be something to celebrate, but you can easily miss the fact that you've unlocked the door because you're too busy trying not to die!

Still had a nice time, though, and I found it an interesting alternative take on the gameplay of your previous entry, RPG MK II!

BlueEagle421 responds:

Thanks a lot for playing! I'm glad you enjoyed it :)

You are right about the scoring system - the randomness can make it very hard or very easy to get a better time, but I also find it extremely satisfying when the elements align to your favor.
Speedrunning also requires strategic approaches.
And yeah the lava has it problems and I'm still figuring out how it improve it, make it more fair for players.

Making elevator opening more noticeable is a great idea and I will try to add some cool effects to make it more clear.

It's nice to hear that you remember RPG MK. II :) I wanted to try something different this time.

I also recently updated the game with new city types, new content and movement improvements. It can delete saved data unfortunately, but just letting you in case you played the older version.

Cheers!

[GANBATTE!! ROBOCHAN - DEMO]

Hey, this is pretty neato! Definitely succeeds at emulating those retro vibes: love that classic intro, and the gameplay was very authentic, like playing some long-lost entry into the NES library! One particular aspect I enjoyed was the boss fights, which felt like they had a good assortment of moves, with their horizontal rushes that require you to move out of the way being a highlight!

There were a couple of stumbles for me, though. For one, I didn't like how when you 'advance' in the intro cutscene, it skips completely to the next card without filling out the remaining text first. Another aspect was that I felt like the game was way too easy. Now, not all retro games need to be Nintendo hard, sure, but boy did the game feel pretty unthreatening and boring without challenge!

If I have to be honest, though, the game, while kinda fun, didn't necessarily spark joy for me, being just another Megaman clone. Now, there's nothing wrong with making clones: everyone, including me, starts out by copying their favorites, and its a great way to learn and grow. But competition is fierce, and while this game is fun to play for free, without any sort of unique mechanic, clever twist, challenging gameplay, or just some certain je ne sais quoi to elevate it above just a mere copy, this just isn't anything I'd whip my wallet out for. Still, good on you for making this, and best of luck in your future endeavors!

WLCSoft responds:

Thanks! I'll keep all that in mind for my next projects.

[DON'T FLIP THE DOOM CARD]

Hey, this was great! Not only is this a very fun twist on the classic memory card game with the introduction of doom cards, but the game overall has an incredibly polished construction to it, feeling very intuitive and smooth, and with an especially charming presentation, what with its whole stylish windows 95? 98? aesthetic.

One subtle aspect that I think was done very well was the length of sessions. A lot of these types of arcade games, while fun, can overstay their welcome, turning repetitive from endlessly looping play that only ends when you eventually get bored and quit. With this however, right when I thought I was getting a tiny bit bored and considering quitting, it signaled to me that it was already the last level, which made me push forward and finish strong. It was then that the game introduced the extra modes, which immediately made me want to give them a go! Excellent pacing! A game that has the discipline to leave you hungry for more instead of stuffing you full is great.

One aspect that I found a bit confusing when playing was the whole card previewing when you select a card. I assumed it would show me the neighbors, but I could never figure out why other seemingly random cards were being shown as well. It's true that it technically explains that it also flips cards across in the instructions, but all I could remember was the picture in the instructions which only showed neighbors, so can you blame me for being a bit confused? Anyway, it didn't really get in the way of my enjoyment: just something that puzzled me for a bit!

tonyfinale responds:

always satisfying seein your big reviews on things. thanks as ever man <3

[Air Hockey League]

Wow, this was quite the journey!

Gotta admit, I didn't have the best first impression of this. Not only did I find the decision to move the mallets with the keyboard to be very awkward (c'mon, being able to use the mouse would feel so much better) but the game just felt incredibly dry: functional, sure, but without any pizazz. To me, the game just felt like a prototype of air hockey made by an amateur developer for their first project: nice as a proof of concept and as an introduction to coding, but as a complete game? I found myself quitting after only a few points from boredom.

Thankfully, I took a peek at the reviews and saw people talking about a 'twist', so I went back, played a match to completion, and whaddya know, there's a whole crazy horror segment and boss fight! To think I would've missed something as cool as this! I don't know whether to call you brave or an idiot, developer, for hiding the twist so well, but here's to you!

While the boss fight was definitely pretty cool, it wasn't perfect: it was particularly annoying how unintuitive it was to determine when the boss was able to be hit. Many times I tried to strike the boss when his head was lowering, but no, you can only hit him when he's completely finished his descent for some silly reason, despite the puck clearly being able to collide with them. Stepping back, the whole spooky twist was also a bit cliche and juvenile, the equivalent of just flailing your arms and going ooga booga: would've liked a bit more build-up and reason for it. Still, a neat experience overall despite my nitpicks!

[The Anvil Game]

Hmm...isn't this just go fish? I mean, it's novel to me as a person who doesn't play card games, but to anyone else, c'mon, who are you fooling with this anvil nonsense?

Anyway, jokes aside, it's a pretty cute little game. There was a bit of confusion at the start as the instructions didn't do a good job at explaining how to make stacks, but luckily the game's interface makes it intuitive to figure out. The gameplay is mostly luck-based, which can make it feel a bit pointless, but there was a certain subtle strategy to it where you make notes of what cards the enemy is looking for as well as when they get 'lucky' so you know what to call on them for to steal their hard work. I surprisingly got into it despite being so reluctant at first!

It's nice, but ultimately felt rather meagre and I didn't feel inclined to play again once I played once. Would've loved if it was more like a tournament where you have to work your way through multiple opponents who introduce their own quirks or new rules to keep things interesting.

[Cold]

An interesting emotional twist for an idle clicker game! It has potential...but it left me cold from how half-baked it was.

Don't get me wrong, as a fan of games like The Long Dark and Frostpunk, I love the concept of fighting against the cold and the emotional journey it can be. But this just felt so...low-effort and cheap, and I hate to say that because I know how tough it can be to make games, but I'm just trying to be honest. Call me cynical, but it reminds me of those manipulative 'game over' screens you see in arcade games like Final Fight, where the only way to save your hero is to insert more quarters: don't you try and manipulate me!

As said, it has potential and hooked me in at the start: I certainly tried to help the little guy survive for as long as I could. But as an old man with old man hands, I didn't last long, both because of the wrist pain and also because I didn't feel motivated that strongly for how cheap the game felt in its construction.

If I were to offer some advice in how to make this work better:

*I don't think it makes much sense to warm the guy up by clicking on him: what sense does jabbing him over and over make? Instead, perhaps you would warm him up by rubbing the cursor over him? Might be a bit less painful on the hands to do so. Or, perhaps you could do something else like shielding him from snowfall by blocking it with your cursor like an umbrella, or by dragging logs into a fire, or just building and tending a fire in general?

*I found it really disappointing that the temperature seems to drop at a set rate, not being affected by aspects like the sun: would be much more interesting if it was really hard to keep him warm during the night, but during the day its a bit easier, to serve as a nice break for your hands. You could even make it more of a journey by having the weather get more intense as the game goes on, causing the player to have to commit harder.

*Would be nice if the little guy would emote or react more based on his current state, to get you more attached to him. Like, if you get him up to a high temperature, maybe he could smile and shiver less, whereas if he gets low he starts getting scared and shivering violently. Could also just get spooked by changes in the weather and such.

*For a clicker game, it's a bit strange that there's no sense of progression or upgrades like there usually is. Going off of an earlier suggestion, maybe you can upgrade his campsite with blankets and a fire if you get enough clicks, and that's a necessary strategy to keep him warm enough as the game gets harder later on when the weather gets worse.

I hate to be all cynical, but this really just feels like a trick, using emotional manipulation to try and elevate a very low-effort game. The concept has merit, though, so that's why it's so disappointing to me: would love to see it revisited and done justice.

[Painter Blazer]

Hey, this is a pretty cute adventure! The gameplay gives me old-school arcade vibes both with its general presentation as well as its gameplay, which I'm a big fan of. There's also a lot of charm to this: for example, I love the cartoony aesthetics with the amusing effects for your actions like 'hop' and 'zoom' for jumping and dashing. Furthermore, it also does a lot of things to make the journey stay fresh and interesting, such as new worlds with unique mechanics, cool boss fights, and fun story cutscenes, all of which were a definite highlight for me. Nice stuff!

There were a few bumps in the road that I encountered, though:

*I found it really weird that the tutorial character gives you instructions based on the alternative control scheme (JKL) when I had the default control scheme (ZXC) selected. Perhaps it is hard-coded instead of dynamic text?

*First impressions were a bit rough due to aspects like the jump being so wimpy which made certain jumps so annoying to pull off, and the lack of any sort of interesting scoring system or tricks to pull off like combos or chains. Just has a bit of a slow start which it makes up for later as it introduces boss fights and some interesting levels and mechanics, like the balloon puzzle level.

*First impressions were further diminished when I fell down a pit and...didn't die? I was stuck with no way out and had to reset the game, causing me to have to redo a bunch of levels I already completed (including the tutorial all over again!) Quite frustrating!

*There were coins to collect, but I'm not sure what purpose they served: it didn't seem worth it to collect them since they almost all required you to have to make awkward jumps that would set you far back, having to climb back up to where you were before, wasting a lot of time.

It's a bit rough and awkward in some respects, but overall its charm won me over and made me want to keep going further, and I was impressed at how it kept evolving!

GGishere responds:

the alternate control scheme was the only control scheme before it was updated (idk why either aapi is weird with keyboards)

the coins are just for achievements for getting all of them per world