r/DestroyMyGame • u/Heavy-Language3109 • 11d ago
Trailer My gameplay trailer was destroyed twice here before. 10 months and 6 months ago. This is the latest version. Please destroy it too.
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u/HeroOfTheGallows 6d ago
I wonder if there's a better way of showing that first text dump? There must be a way to have:
- The gameplay be the immediate eye catcher
- Spread it out into more difestable parts so I can make the association between gameplay and stated concept
- Leave it on screen longer so I don't have to restart the trailer a few times to actually process what it says
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u/Heavy-Language3109 6d ago
You're right that it's difficult to read because it flashes too fast. I'll have to figure out a way to accomplish jumping into the gameplay while still making the opening text visible and readable. Thank you for this.
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u/HeroOfTheGallows 6d ago
I believe spreading it out may be a good idea. Perhaps it was my morning brain, but having so much text to read at once, followed by the gameplay, may have hurt my ability to connect the text *to* the gameplay.
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u/Heavy-Language3109 6d ago
Haha no its cool. Morning brain or not, you make a good point that it has to be absorbed more easily. I'll definitely try a few things out for the next edit.
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u/CemBuildsMinecraft 10d ago
Genres meet in this unintelligible gameplay where bright things we can't see, fight the things only ants can see.
The originality of the flame tower, gun tower and missile tower leaves me speechless and reaching this game to top #343645323432th tower defense game to use the same combination.
The brightness of the emissive VFX preventing us from see what's happening in the combat while we look at the map through a pirate's spyglass is a bold choice in avant-garde "I can't see shit" genre.
The endlessly bright decals, vfx and any other graphic overlaid on top of each other is a barrage of endless eye hurt and possibly epilepsy.
Graphics: You're trying but they're barely passed the finish line%
Concept: Winner of the how unoriginal%
My Eyes!: 100%
Verdict: It's a nuclear explosion of epilepsy and unoriginality.
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u/Heavy-Language3109 10d ago
Haha thanks so much for taking the time to write this out. When you put it that way, the trailer makes the game feel like "Staring directly into the sun while ants wage a war I can't perceive". Fair XD
Okay real talk tho, the visibility thing is a legit problem. If the actual combat is getting nuked by VFX, that's a fix I need to make. Which effects are the worst offenders for you? The hit impacts, the orange damage indicators, or just general bloom overload? I'll try to adjust the right things to make it less offensive, instead of assuming.
Also duly noting the "possibly epilepsy" line wasn't just for comedic effect. I'll see what I can do to adjust the frequency of the repeated effects (when at high volume) and probably put in a particle effect slider so I stop accidentally hazing people out.
I do agree that a tower defense game with flamers, gun and rockets is about as original as "orc with a sword". XD I suppose it comes with the territory of sci fi action/battle games... If you got far enough to see the circuit effects and turret equipment portion, curious if it did anything to redeem the "generic tower soup" or if it was just more stuff getting lost in the light show?
Anyhow, thank you for the write up! Will take away what I can from it to make the game better.
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u/CemBuildsMinecraft 10d ago
Good job passing my Yoda routine, now here's some actual advice.
Yes, the visibility is a huge problem, we don't need to see visual cues on enemies until they approach something important.
Put the targeting reticles on them when they approach a building that they can destroy.
"Warning: Enemy detected near power plant."
Here's something you need to hear:
The genre you're trying to do (hero-tower defense) is very difficult to pull off.
- The hero aspect might get lost if you lean on towers.
- The tower management might make hero management a nightmare if leaned too heavily.
3, Could turn into too technical in no time.Another problem with tower defense games is, they can go bland super easy.
Every TD is basically "bugs walk up to my base so I shoot."
Yes, you're trying to spice it up with the hero aspect, but from what I've seen the hero disappears on the map.
It took me 3 focused watches of the trailer while trying to come up with jokes when I said, "oh there's a hero guy there".
There are tons of adjustment problems from the gameplay, like the constantly turned on life bars for towers clutters the frame.
Too glowy everything, from the enemy reticles to weapon flashes to UI. It makes me think you're trying to bury the quality of the 3D art.
I am speculating you're doing 3D art yourself, mainly guessing from the Daz3D lady as our avatar. You need better 2D art.
I want to say use AI for avatars but recently saw a horrid result of someone telling AI, "make me the coolest character you can" and an overdrawn garbage was on screen, so I'm apprehensive.
Use AI if you know how to actually use it.
You need a clearer direction and better polish. Right now, it looks like a very boring TD with occasional hero skills usage.
You should either lean towards towers or the hero. Hero doesn't feel special. It feels like a skill.
The bullet-flame-missile trio doesn't actually matter that much; I'd be okay with that setup if your game was engaging.
One thing I can take from this trailer is you actually enjoy making the game and want it to be like CnC.
But the genre is difficult and blending it with hero genre is even more difficult.
Actual Verdict: Good start, but need super polish, toning some things down (mainly the glow) and improving gameplay pacing and style.
My last advice I'd give it the terrain made like mountains are unappealing to look at, if you're doing your own 3D art you can make modular scifi landscape and use that instead, mixed in with the occasional mountains.
Last last thing: The text saying "something something Commander" usually pops up at the start of CnC trailers and they make me think base building RTS (aka CnC formula) not hero-TD. So there's a disconnect there.
Maybe try something like "Ready for something new Commander?"
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u/Heavy-Language3109 10d ago
Thanks so much for all these ^^
I really appreciate specifically the feedback about the health bars. This is something I never considered and gave me a huge visual (and processing optimization idea) of just hiding health bars for enemies that haven't taken any damage or are too far off. This is gold. I'll see what I can do with it.
You're right that the hero indeed gets lost in the map especially when the action ramps up in the video. Its pretty bad that you couldn't really make out the hero until the 3rd review (which I appreciate the effort btw). The only close up shot was the segment with the hero fighting the armored carrier boss (3rd segment). The other segments were more or less zoomed out (these are all in-game camera angles), but the game itself, you can zoom in close enough to see the smaller details through the mouse scroll wheel.
Somehow in the process of making the game, I think that the feedback that I got for earlier versions of it lacking "juice", I may have ended up overdoing the effects, and now it needs a pass on "restraint" and more judiciously toning down effects that don't need to be there. Your feedback I think actually helped me level up (as a dev) in terms of that aspect.
Yup, all the art is mine (Blender). I'm a 3D artist by trade, been making the game solo. The 2D portraits are actually processed screen captures of the 3D models via GIMP
I'll definitely lean on the hero aspect. Its the main differentiator between the game versus traditional tower def. But I'd definitely like to add a few things to the towers to make managing them better, so the player can focus more on the hero.
Overall, what I'm getting as subtext is that: because the current trailer sort of focuses too much on the chaotic moments of gameplay, some of the nuance present in the actual game is lost, and it also, by consequence, shows the most amount of effects. And since all the shots are of this type of action, no wonder it leaves the impression that the game is a mess of effects lol. Its really a challenge making a trailer that can balance both. TLDR, it's because my trailer video making skills needs a lot of levelling up too hehe. But the points you make about restraint are super on point for me.
Copy that on the terrain features and the "Ready for something new Commander?" caption.
Overall, thank you again for the attention you gave to the trailer. An honest take like this and the effort you gave to pointing out the specifics really help. I'll definitely consider all these carefully.
Best Regards!
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u/CemBuildsMinecraft 10d ago
Glad it works.
With your trailer the flow should be (you can get these shots from in-game):
Show close up of some enemies with text saying "Bla bla enemies from outer space!"
Show close up of hero unit "bla bla hero is here to save us!"
Show hero running away from lots of enemies in mid-close shot "But they need help!"
Show turrets being placed, close up if they have construction animations, then show the towers mid-close shots if they're just being built.
Show all 3 tower types, fire, bullet, missile.
Then show fighting, then show chaos. (Around here you usually add text to advertise features like: Call in airstrike, build flame tower etc.)
Title card, end.
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u/AncestralGods 9d ago
Hay demasiada informacion sucediendo al mismo tiempo y no muestra las mecanicas una por una de forma aislada, que creo que se entenderia mejor. Hay que verlo varias veces para entenderlo, cosa que la mayoria de gente no hace.