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SAGE 2022 - Demo Shield Cat - SAGE 2022

Even tho the game is very short, I should state it is extremely good for what it is, the creator really overdid it.
The gameplay is very fluid and fast paced, while the combat is simple is very sastifying, and really every enemy is its own unique beast, not to mention it adds simple but clever puzzle elements.
The graphics and music are both gorgeous, the first one having very pretty and varied stages with very naturalistic colors, and with glow effects that actually don't interrupt the gameplay, the music is quite relaxing and fitting for every environment, I loved every second of it.
And the writing of course is quite funny with some serious moments here and there to contrast, all of them are well done.
One thing of notoriety is that the second boss is definitively a spike in difficulty compared to the first one, but it's not too bad once you get used to its pattern.
I don't have much to say, really I don't have any real complains, it's a competent action RPG, so good job on this one.
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Reeaally nice! Visually super gooood, gameplay is also nice! Some areas kiiinda look the same, like one forest segment looks the same as another, but nothing too bad by any means.

I kiiinda wish the game had some sort of speed setting, maybe many others do enjoy the current speed buuut I kinda kept wishing it ran at like 80-90% of what it is now, especially battles with many enemies were a bit chaotic due to fast pace and it was kiiinda difficult to follow what was going on then. Some of the platforming bits (spinning/flying to a small platform) were also a tad tricky at first, buuut I did figure that out pretty fast. Oh, and the minecart minigame thing also sufferent a touch from the speed, me and a pal I was playing the demo with also found some glitches there hah, whenever we failed a gap jump and were about to fall down we could just mash the jump button to glitchily get back up on track.

Aaalso, I do wish I could just hold down the spin button to keeep spinning, maybe an option for that? Ooor a passive upgrade one could buy, maybe with a small nerf to damage if need be? I might've just missed one if there's one, but yeah my point being that needing to mash to keep spinning was a bit ehhh. Maybe some enemies could have a shield or something that takes you out of spinning and gives you a short cooldown for when you can spin again?

Anyway, regardless of my lil gripes (which stand out only cos everything else is so amazing hah) I'm deeefinitely looking forward to the full game!
CyanSorcery
CyanSorcery
Ah, thank you for playing the game! I'm glad you had fun! Now to respond to your comments here:

On the topic of speed, there's an option in the accessibility menu which allows you to make the game run at half speed. Because of the way the game is programmed (and because it was made in Gamemaker) I can't really do speeds as precise as 80 or 90% like they do in Celeste, but that should help with trickier bits.

On the subject of the Minecart Minigame, yea there's quite a few bugs in that, but I had already spent a bunch of time on it and had to prioritize getting the demo done. They're all things I'm hoping to iron out later.

(continued)
CyanSorcery
CyanSorcery
(continued)

In regard to the hold to spin, this option is also available in the Accessibility menu. When enabled, you don't have to mash the button. However, it can also make the platforming a bit trickier, because holding the button for too long can cause Lance to spin when you don't want him to (which is why it's not enabled by default.)

Thank you for checking out my game and giving me this feedback!

edit: I forgot to mention, I was also going to make an easier stage for the Minecart challenge and have the existing one as the more advanced stage, but I didn't have time unfortunately.