Thoughts on criticism and independent development

Games
#1

I was browsing through my personal Facebook page I came upon a post from an indie gamedev group of which I am a member. The accompanying Facebook comment string ran the gamut of reactions, from empathetic to angry to condemnation for both the developer and the reviewer.

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​I’m not really interested in the motivations of the developer or the reviewer, the type of game, how long it was played or any of those extraneous details. When I saw the post, I thought about how I would handle this kind of situation, and what I can do to turn this kind of feedback into something useful, to myself, the reviewer, and the project as a whole.

Let’s take the review at face-value: the reviewer has purchased the game with the intent of enjoying it, and went into it with an open mind. Assuming anything else is going to negate anything useful that can be gleaned from the review. They put in a significant amount of time (4 hours is more than enough IMO) and came away unimpressed, to the point of a snarky hot taek on the game’s Steam page. 

Were it me on the receiving end, I would clearly be upset at first, but I would then have to take a critical look at the game. What’s the point of the game? Is it appealing to the audience for whom I made it? Is it a cost/playability ratio that is off? Can I get in touch with this player to see if I can get more insight? Is there any clue from the rest of the reviews as for the underlying issue?

​

Looking at the rest of the reviews, there are some consistent threads that point to improvements that could be made. The ways to re-engage with the development cycle on the game from a players perspective sounds like marketing buzz-speak, but sometimes they can be valuable. Beta testing can only tell you so much, and it’s not a substitute for real-world experience.

I would love to hear anyone elses thoughts on this. I think, as a small testcase, the above can still inform our approach to hasty criticism without alienating other players.

#2

Were you the person who marked it as ‘found this funny’ ? :slight_smile:

IMHO - Some folks can’t help themselves and just like to leave mean posts.  There will always be folks who are: trolls, short-tempered, or have something else going on in their lives that overwhelms them and makes them act the jerk in the short term.  

I think, as long as at least some reviewers leave thoughtful feedback then its a win.

PS - I find it interesting that the reviewer had no time to say anything helpful or thoughtful, but did make sure to replace the swear word with the proper number of hearts. 

PPS - Maybe the reviewer meant… “I’ve take _ hikes _ that were …” ?  Maybe s/he is an avid outdoors person who really loves  :wub:  hiking?

#3

This is just my personal opinion on this, but getting feedback early in the design phase. You should hand your game to someone and watch them play.  I doubt most indie developers can afford to do full focus groups but show it to a friend. Then show it to another and collect the feedback and apply it. Keep repeating this process until you’ve ironed out your issues and be prepared for different results too.

In the game I was working on, @roaminggamer was the first to see it. He gave me some great feedback. But one item was the game was too hard. Then I handed the game to a friend and watch him play. He never lost a life, was playing mid-levels with the weakest ship and cruising through and was playing one-handed. He never needed a powerup other than picking up the health ones. Talk about a paradox that I couldn’t reconcile. 

But I got feedback from several others that had other contradictions and finding balance in that feedback was helpful in improving the game.  I need to get back to the game and apply the feedback and then get it out for another round of testing.  But seeing someone play it in person was amazing. Your beta testers, if they are remote, can’t provide that for you.

Rob

#4

:slight_smile: I think Rob just said I’m bad at playing mobile action games!  It’s true.  I’m terrible.

#5

I think you told me in the feedback that shooters were not your specialty…

:slight_smile:

#6

I have been doing the same thing and the various feedback is interesting and diverse and sometimes contradictory.  In the end you have to decide which way you want your game to go.  Maybe start with a thought on a target audience.   10 year olds or 40 year olds?  Something like that. 

Sometimes you have to consider the source.  When I gave my game to my son.  He says he can’t complete the levels fast enough.  This is because he doesn’t want to test the game and wants to get back to watching endless Youtube videos about nothing.  But if you keep track of all the comments, you will find some common truths in there somewhere.  

#7

Were you the person who marked it as ‘found this funny’ ? :slight_smile:

IMHO - Some folks can’t help themselves and just like to leave mean posts.  There will always be folks who are: trolls, short-tempered, or have something else going on in their lives that overwhelms them and makes them act the jerk in the short term.  

I think, as long as at least some reviewers leave thoughtful feedback then its a win.

PS - I find it interesting that the reviewer had no time to say anything helpful or thoughtful, but did make sure to replace the swear word with the proper number of hearts. 

PPS - Maybe the reviewer meant… “I’ve take _ hikes _ that were …” ?  Maybe s/he is an avid outdoors person who really loves  :wub:  hiking?

#8

This is just my personal opinion on this, but getting feedback early in the design phase. You should hand your game to someone and watch them play.  I doubt most indie developers can afford to do full focus groups but show it to a friend. Then show it to another and collect the feedback and apply it. Keep repeating this process until you’ve ironed out your issues and be prepared for different results too.

In the game I was working on, @roaminggamer was the first to see it. He gave me some great feedback. But one item was the game was too hard. Then I handed the game to a friend and watch him play. He never lost a life, was playing mid-levels with the weakest ship and cruising through and was playing one-handed. He never needed a powerup other than picking up the health ones. Talk about a paradox that I couldn’t reconcile. 

But I got feedback from several others that had other contradictions and finding balance in that feedback was helpful in improving the game.  I need to get back to the game and apply the feedback and then get it out for another round of testing.  But seeing someone play it in person was amazing. Your beta testers, if they are remote, can’t provide that for you.

Rob

#9

:slight_smile: I think Rob just said I’m bad at playing mobile action games!  It’s true.  I’m terrible.

#10

I think you told me in the feedback that shooters were not your specialty…

:slight_smile:

#11

I have been doing the same thing and the various feedback is interesting and diverse and sometimes contradictory.  In the end you have to decide which way you want your game to go.  Maybe start with a thought on a target audience.   10 year olds or 40 year olds?  Something like that. 

Sometimes you have to consider the source.  When I gave my game to my son.  He says he can’t complete the levels fast enough.  This is because he doesn’t want to test the game and wants to get back to watching endless Youtube videos about nothing.  But if you keep track of all the comments, you will find some common truths in there somewhere.