Dark Ascent

the game´s got a good idea, but IMO it needs a system to reward the player with messages for new record heights and a daily leader board

This is a long review, so skip to the bottom for my ideas on how to change the game or if I believe it is worth it! Also, for some reason it says my playtime was 13 minutes, but after playing a while, I kept the game open while writing the review so it never updated to current playtime. I've had Dark Ascent in my library for a while now. I haven't played it for very long yet, as I realize now it isn't exactly my type of game, but it isn't really a bad game. I think some core mechanics could be worked on, but overall, the idea and challenge they set out to create, is what they made, and they made a nice, cozy, sort of chill game about learning from your mistakes. No mistake you make will set you back super far, unless you die, but I can see it being enjoyable for the kind of person who likes to kick back with some music or tv or something and play this while watching. Personally, I imagined it would be more of a, get in, start as a random character, then go as far as you can kind of game, but it has a character selection mechanic, which threw me off. I tested each character out, which each has their own positive and negative stats, such as jump height, speed, how much light they emit, etc. I'm sure the dev(s) tested the game out with each character to make sure it is beatable(?) with each of them, but I could not for the life of me manage to actually get past the first layer or two of the first section without the character with the jumping enhancement. The speed and jump height play a part also into a core mechanic, dashing, which actually sort of boosts you up ever so slightly. For instance, the speed character can jump one block high, double jump two, or if he dashes while running at a wall, he can jump three. I couldn’t manage to actually get him very high, even with this mechanic. The game also has a light mechanic where you can illuminate the space around you in order to see gaps and land around you, however, it is limited, permanently, at least until you die (unless there is an item you can get to recharge them. The game wants you to learn from mistakes by learning your character and environment, which I get, but, I think this could also use some work. Other than that, the game has some nice visuals for what they set out. The backlighting of the levels looks nice, it does feel smooth and responsive, but it could use some work. So, here is what I would do (and this is not a diss at the developers. I am not an experienced developer as I have not put out a game, only worked on personal projects in the past. But I have played my fair share of these styles of games and many outside of them. I think their idea is good, but if I were to make it more enjoyable for myself here is what I would do) ======================= Change the character selection mechanic Make it so you start out with a sort of neutral character, like 2-3 jump, and get far enough to die, or reset. Once that happens, offer a selection between 2-3 characters with slightly improved stats in different categories. This would allow fun dynamic gameplay in between rounds. Or make it a gamemode or something. Personally, these game are just better when you don’t stick with the same character most of the time you play. Light mechanic Honestly, I did not get far enough to know if there is like a light recharge or something. If there isn’t I kind of get why and respect that reason, but I would personally make the mechanic hold like a maximum of 1-2 charges at a time, but give it a recharge timer, a suuuuuuper long one so you can’t just wait for recharge between jumps. This would still force memory to become part of the core mechanic of the game. And honestly, that is all. I mainly got disinterested because of the character selection system, but it is because I’m more pre-disposed to games like Rogue Legacy. But I really do think that could be an awesome mechanic in the game and would be something I might come back for. I would give this game a shot if you see my review, although long, I believe it gives a full picture of what to expect. I think it is most worth it for the price and to support the devs, so I don’t even plan on refunding. And to the devs, keep up the good work!