The 2014 In Review Contest Game Selection Thread

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The 2014 In Review Contest Game Selection Thread

Post by SDHawk »

What is this?

Last year there were some murmurings about the game selection process. So this year I'm opening the list up early for people to debate about what games belong on it, what games don't, etc. The thread will close in early January when the contest starts. It should be noted that this is still pretty much a dictatorship (there is no formal voting process), but the opinions of people who have participated in previous years, authors of the games, and popular opinions will be weighed more heavily than others.

Obviously 2014 isn't over yet, so any games released this month that qualify will be added to it as they are released.

If you don't know what the review contest is, it's where people compete to review every game released in a year within a short time span (usually a couple months).

List of 2014 Games

Carcere Vicis
Doom Tactics - Evil Unleashed
Dragons!
Dungeon Cards: The Flying City
Gramfeldcat Goes to the Moon
Invasion of the Mantle Dwellers.
Iron Galaxy (pre-alpha)
James Doppler's Epic Sci-Fi Fantasy Quest of....
Megaman Sprite Game
Mr. Triangle's Adventure
Okédoké! La Leyenda Mexicana
Ramble Planet
Samanthuel's Lovely Home
Slimeomancy
Spy Game
stand
T4R4D1DDL3
table
The Pumpkin Warriors
Troll Over
Winged Realm
Wizard Blocks
Zero: Secret Pasts Collide

Compilation Games (Review one, some, or all of these games as a single review)

Elephants Most Wanted (Unfinished)
Fart
Munch-Meow
Orange Monday
pH
Poot-Poot Rocket
Rogue Demo
Testuedo DEMO!!
The Location

Game Criteria:
  • * Was either released in 2014 or had a major update in 2014 (a major update is an update which contains significant new content rather than just bug fixes). This rule is more lenient when the game is old enough that it hasn't been in a review contest before.
    * Is not a tool, example, or tech demo.
    * Has enough content in it to be able to write 3 paragraphs about it.
    * Games that were made in a previous year, but weren't featured in a review contest due to not being known at the time (ie, not on the CP/SS game lists) are eligible, particularly if they've been uploaded this year. (aka the Megaman Sprite Game Rule)
Updates:

Update 1 (December 20th): Moved Elephants Most Wanted, Munch-Meow, pH, Poot-Poot Rocket, Rogue Demo, Testuedo Demo, and The Location to the optional list.
Update 2 (December 29th): Added Gramfeldcat Goes to the Moon & Samanthuel's Lovely Home. Changed Optional Games into Compilation Games and moved Fart & Orange Monday to this list.
Last edited by SDHawk on Mon Dec 29, 2014 10:27 am, edited 10 times in total.
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Post by Taco Bot »

As the owner of Elephants Most Wanted, I would like that "game" to not be included.

(and I'll hopefully have a decent demo for pH soon)
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Post by sheamkennedy »

As the owner of Fart I will say that if you want a very simple/fast game to review then go ahead and review that one. The game literally only needs to be played for about 1 minute. It can be played for a longer period of time depending how entertained you are by fart noises...
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Post by Taco Bot »

As someone who is very entertained by fart noises I will be doing a review on Fart ASAP.
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Post by kylekrack »

Stand is getting better I promise. Many more of the gameplay elements are actually there, I just have to build on them to create time for stat growth and the appropriate introduction of higher tiers of items, etc. Basically I just have to start making the first real dungeon, which shouldn't take too much time.

Other than that, I still have some menus to script that I am dreading immensely, so those may take a bit more time.

EDIT: I am currently writing an essay in German, and the temptations of game progress are inconceivable. :zombie:
Last edited by kylekrack on Wed Dec 17, 2014 2:51 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by TMC »

This is just the excuse I need to finally upload that update to Carcere Vicis I've been sitting on for half a year. Or maybe even to do some work on it.
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Post by Gizmog »

I'm disappointed to see so many people in here ashamed of their games! If you're that defensive about it, maybe you shouldn't have put it on the gamelist? But before you all delete your games, and make me look like a monster in the process, take a step back and think about what criticism should mean to you.

If you made your game to have fun, you had fun making it, and you posted your game for other people to have fun? Then you've already won and a little criticism can't take that fun away. Anything can be improved, but not everything needs to be. Take or leave the advice as you wish, but don't let it bum you out.

If you made your game to have fun, you had fun making it, and you posted your game so that you can find out how to make it better? Criticism is perfect for you! Just remember to take it with a grain of salt. There's some things you'll be able to fix, and if the spirit takes you, by all means fix it for the next guy to play. There'll be other things that are going to be a pain in the slime to fix. Don't fix 'em! Unless this is the only game you're ever going to make and you're only a few steps away from the next Final Fantasy, it just ain't worth the effort. Learn from the mistakes, make a note for next time, and move on. There's no prize for having the nicest cardboard box in the gutter.

If you posted your game 'cause you're tired of working on it, and you feel like a little recognition will help you move faster? You're an idiot! You gotta look inside you for that stuff, you gotta figure out why you're making a game you don't like and lose those parts! Not every game is gonna be fun to make, and even the best planned picnic can fall victim to rain. It happens. Don't be afraid to throw in the towel, we all saw Rocky IV and know what happens if you hesitate. Just don't forget Rocky III or Rocky Balboa, it's never too late to try again.

If you posted your game 'cause you want to get a million hits, you're probably in the wrong place. Criticism can still be your friend, we can help you polish away the ugly bits till you're left with a product almost no one will hate, but unfortunately you're probably gonna have to post your game elsewhere to find that big dumb audience you're seeking. There's no shame in that! Do it!

And as always, if you read a review and the guy writing it doesn't have anything constructive to say? :devil: To hell with him! :devil: Making something is always better than making nothing, and if you did what you set out to do, more power to you. Don't ever listen to a hater.
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Post by kylekrack »

Aagh I want to do this so bad but I also want to work on my own stuff but school is not allowing me any time :(

@Gizmog: Thanks for the pep talk. I think I kind of needed a reality check like that before I got too stressed out. And now that I think about it, the reason I posted Stand to begin with was because it's the most difficult game I've ever made, technically speaking, and I was really excited to share it.

I think one of the reasons this forum can be good for is motivation. When you know that there are people potentially downloading and playing your game, you'll be a lot more pressured to make it good (pressured in a good way). That's why I stayed up until 2 last night trying to put together some last minute fixes.

So yeah, that's what I appreciate about this. I don't know if anyone else shares that, but if you're looking for motivation, it works for me.
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Post by SDHawk »

Shifted through the games today. I've moved Elephants Most Wanted, Munch-Meow, pH, Poot-Poot Rocket, Rogue Demo, Testuedo Demo, and The Location to the optional list.

Naturally if a major update happens in the remainder of 2014 (or if people/authors want them back on there) these could conceivably go back on the main list.
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Post by SDHawk »

Added a couple more games and moved a few more. I never liked how the optional games list totally snubbed mostly-qualified games that don't have a lot to talk about, so I've changed it into the "Compilation Games" list this year. Combined they only count as one review, so people can choose how many they want to review. Ideally you might compare and contrast similar games. The idea being that there isn't enough to write 3 paragraphs about any one of these, but you might be able to get something interesting out of talking about several of them together. We'll see how it goes.
Last edited by SDHawk on Mon Dec 29, 2014 10:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by charbile »

Was just thinking about this. Haven't played an ohr game in forever!

No ideas if they should be on list or not, won't know till I know, you know? Have some guesses about them from experience, though.
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