[quote][url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asset_flip]Warning: Asset Flip![/url][/quote]
Trick or Treat is an asset flip, what Valve calls a "fake game". The "developer", HandMade Games/LTZInc, took a template from the godawful GameMaker Studio from YoyoGames, slapped a couple of asset flipped sprites on it, and dumped the results onto Steam as a cash grab scam.
HandMade Games/LTZInc has shown a repeated pattern of ripping off GameMakerStudio templates and dumping them on Steam.
Don't believe me? Here's some other asset flips from exactly the same template, all shamelessly dumped on Steam as nasty cash grabs:
[list]
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1686880]Queen of Honor[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by Big Black Bear
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1810810]Underwater World[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by LTZInc
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1559500]Happy Halloween[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by HandMade Games
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/778590]Mountain Troll[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by IndieLip
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/782300]Unstoppable Hamster[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by IndieLip
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1879620]1000 Needles[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by LTZInc
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1691170]Virus ON[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by NL Studio
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/699550]Forest Guardian[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by OnBlind
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/739990]Lucky Panda[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by OnBlind
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/754040]Piggy Poggy Pog[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by TSS Studio
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/720470]Caveman Alive[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by Vyacheslav Shilikhin
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/709780]Crazy Scientist[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by Vyacheslav Shilikhin
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/715980]Eared Hero[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by Vyacheslav Shilikhin
[*] "[url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/860440]Goat Life[/url]", copy + pasted from the same template by Vyacheslav Shilikhin
[/list]
Look for yourself... these are all exactly the same game!
The products that result from asset flips aren't "real" games. They lack depth and content, because they're just simplistic copies of demos or tutorials. In this case, "Trick or Treat" is just a very old, very basic Construct 2 template for a simple, badly made platformer that's been reskinned lazily, and doesn't have any merit as a proper, fully fledged PC game, so a copy+paste of it can't be recommended.
Asset flips don't involve any professional game development. Sure, sometimes they may change a few cosmetic things, swap out different assets etc, but at heart it's functionally identical to the asset they're ripping off. Asset flips are an insult to both PC gamers and to professional game developers who create genuine, high quality PC games. Asset flips like this are harmful to the gaming industry and to Steam because they reduce the visibility that sincerely made indie games should have. They make it harder for gamers to find genuine games made by honest developers.
To cement the position of this asset flip as nothing but a cash grab, it was dumped onto cheap DailyIndieGame shovelware bundles on launch day. Don't reward this morally bankrupt, unethical behaviour from HandMade Games/LTZInc.
[quote][url=https://mmofallout.com/valve-bans-titles-for-review-manipulation/]Warning: Review Manipulation![/url][/quote]
This game features a number of fake positive reviews from accounts known to be in the business of review manipulation/paid reviews. They're all written in either Russian or broken English, appear almost immediately after the game launched on Steam, all have a direct Steam purchase of the game, and the accounts are used consistently to write fake reviews for asset flips and other cash grabs/scams. The "Positive" review score on this game should be disregarded due to this review manipulation.
