Ninjkabat's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Beat Universe]

This is a well put together variation of the rhythm click game. The interface is solid, the effects give it a nice atmosphere, and the song choice is pretty darn good. I have to give it to the creator that they did a pretty good job of putting it together.

However, like most rhythm games on the site, the actual rhythm aspect of it was off. To start, the timing of the rings is usually early or late; clicking right on the beat earns you a good whereas clicking before the beat gives you a perfect. As a percussionist this ruins the game for me, since I get a better score when I play the game without sound. Another problem that I had with the rhythm set up is that many of the songs don't seem like the creators actually consulted any percussionists when they were creating their click track. Their choice of when to use 1/8th notes and when to switch it to 1/4 notes seemed arbitrary and didn't flow naturally. It's difficult to create a natural flow when you're not a percussionist though, so I'm not letting that aspect affect my overall review score.

So, all in all, a nice game. I just hope for future releases the creator does more beta testing to make sure the beats sync better with the song (try a higher frame rate) and possibly consults a percussionist to help make the tracks.

ZEGMAN responds:

Thanks for the feedback!

[Helen Keller the Game]

Poor Taste

I'm all for the comedy at a historical person's expence, but this still seems to be in poor taste. Playing the Helen Keller card in a game of apples to apples is one thing, but to go out of your way to make something like this to get a laugh just feels like you're going too far.

So, I'm giving a score I think is fitting of how long this took you.

If you were anyone but Glaiel-Gamer, this would be blammed as spam put on the portal for attention; I'm definitely ashamed that you thought posting this would be ok.

[~Shotgun~]

Not worth the coding

While I am still a supporter of using Newgrounds as your own petty attack system as much as the next user (which is to say, not at all), I still must say that this lovely little pile of cropped jpgs and hyper music is not worth the coding you put into it.

You have
-A boring concept. Let's face it: even the original Deffender got boring once the novelty wore off.
-Little to no animation. A tiny loop of one of your friends doing pelvic thrusts will hardly get you an 'A' in an arts' school.
-A muffled firing sound effect. I can't tell if you're saying "troll golf" or "frog rolf," and I'm sure any number of websites have free gun sound effects available.
-A difficulty curve that fails to entertain. I know from experience that coding is hard, but if I could understand in high school the mechanics behind writing the code for a learning tic-tac-toe algorithm, I think you can figure out a way to increase the difficulty of the game as time wears on. Even if the target got smaller, that would be something.

So, petty, immature, myspace-styled attack aside, you made one horrible game. Good job covering up that fact with your misinforming submission icon and your choice of a hyper-remix of an overused internet meme of a song. Please spend longer than one hour on your future submissions, and in return, the users of newgrounds will stop giving you such a horrible score.

Stealthily yours,
-The Ninjkabat

pwanchi responds:

Yeah this was just the only time I'm submitting something like this. Was a nice review though =)

[- CoolioBeat 2 -]

Pretty freaking awesome

Pretty solidly put together, Coolio. The Guitar Hero-esque gameplay will definitely make it popular, and your solidly put together rhythms go well with the songs.

At times, the screen shake that came with every correct hit were a little cpu consuming, and made it a little harder, but overall it's very nicely made. You made a nice selections of songs to showcase, as well, which makes it a very enjoyable experience.

[Labyrinth: The Unknown]

Way too hard

This game is far too difficult to be enjoyed by the masses. I know that it's an extention of a test that you did, but you have to think about the game play experience when your making a game. If it's no fun to play, no one will.

So, that means giving more space to maneuver, or making the missiles slower, or both. As it is, there's no way to get past the first level, at least not for an average player.

I wish I could be more specific in my constructive criticism, but I could not get past enough to have much game to critique. It was also annoying that after you die the entire opening sequence started over. That got old, fast.

[Schwarzkäppchen]

Needs to be rethought.

It was a good concept. Interesting art, good story, draws the player in. But, at the end of the day, it's a game, and the game aspect was no fun to play. I mean, the numpad issue aside, it was just way to easy to die. There was no, "whoops, my finger slipped," room at all, and that really detracted from the game playing experience. I was more worried about a frog tongue hitting me than I was about having fun at all, and that's not good in a game.

So, while I do admit that the art was stunning, you submitted a game, not an animation. Work on the gameplay so that it's actually fun, and then everyone will be blown away by your combo of art and the fun gameplay.

[Omg Invaders!]

Nice new angle

Wow, this is definitely a refreshing new twist on a timeless classic. The powerups, ability to go whereever on the screen, and briliant "explosion" animations definitely made this fun to play. When I first saw the title, I thought it would be the same old game, but I quickly learned that it wasn't.

So good job. While it's true that you won't be breaking any record scores, and probably not making it to the front page or anything, you've definitely made a game that's fun to play. And at the end of the day, that's all that matters.

TheGameHomepage responds:

Thanks :-D

[Bola]

Well made

While I recognize the gameplay concept from the classic gamehouse game, BounceOut, your submission was still very well made.

I particularly enjoyed your choice of color and of sound effect. The crystaline and glass sounding effects really gave a good atmosphere that helps to draw in the player and make the game addictive.

Anyway, I'm just trying to say that it was really solidly made. Good job.

[Music Ping]

Hmm, addictive, but for the wrong reasons

I am a very big fan of your rhythm games, but I have to say that this is my least favorite. The choice of music was great, the gameplay was innovative, and the graphics were just as smooth as your other wonderous games, but there was something a little off with this one.

I think that the majority of it is the timing issue. On all three songs, the synchronization of the light and the beat got a little off eventually, and this really led to some frustration as I had to lead the beat a little bit to line up with the lights. This might not effect most people, but as a percussionist, it really started to be bothersome to me, especially on your last level, {Rose}. I don't know if the problem arises from the way that you structured the game coding, or if the quality is just too high, but it was a definite area that could be improved on.

Another area is the nature of the notes. There were many times that I clicked on a note that was lit up, only to inadvertantly and simultaneously click on another note that overlapped with it, one that wasn't supposed to be clicked yet. I think that the problem could be fixed by having incoming notes pop up on a lower layer than the notes before it, because then you would be clicking the note that was on the screen the longest, instead of both notes at the same time. Anyway, it was just another problem that made {Rose} a very frustrating ordeal.

Now, don't get me wrong, it was an awesome game, and I enjoyed it very much. It's just that these two little problems - the synch with the music and the bug that allows you to click on two notes at once - really kept it from being one of your best games. I hope my comments have been helpful, and I hope that you can find the time to go back and fix the game up a little bit.

Thank you for reading this far
-The Ninjkabat

[Portal Load Beta]

Nice, but with a bug

It's a very nice idea, and very nicely done. The only problem is that it doesn't get the track information at all. So, I know it's a beta, but if you would be so fix that bug, and then resubmit, you would have a very nice piece of flash on your hands.

Dislexsick responds:

Yeah, i find that very odd, it used to get it, however i think NG have changed the system.

This was made earlier in the year and I resubmitted it so I could get more comments on pbolems and peoples experiences before I realease no. 2