by empatheticapathy » Tue Jul 05, 2011 4:01 am
This is a good start, and something I look forward to playing in a more completed stage.
I suppose I should also throw in my few cents:
I'd recommend you don't feel any pressure to add fetishes that are not your own. Yes, I know there's something to be said for a larger audience, but there's also something to be said for not taking the already time-consuming, tedious, and sometimes frustrating task of designing a game, and then adding that you have to write (and possibly code) things you have no interest in. All that's going to do is increase the amount of time it takes to make the game, and possibly force compromises on quality, and that's a situation where we all lose. Please don't misunderstand me: if you've got fetishes that aren't in the game, then by all means, add them until your fingers bleed from typing. But don't feel pressured to create something you won't enjoy creating; that makes everyone involved with the production suffers.
On the topic of adding new races: Personally, I'd prefer if you kept that to a minimum, or didn't include it at all. More races means you have to put more thought into the setting, and the NPCs. It also means adding more interactions and descriptions for different races (ie: If, as Madness suggested, you were to add a race that tasted better, that would mean it becomes reasonable for the player to expect different descriptions for getting eaten by any predator with a sense of taste, wherein it mentions that your eater particularly enjoyed your flavor. You'd have to do something similar for a race that tasted bad, or a race that had hard spikes somewhere on it's body, etc.) I think it would make a better game in the long run if, instead of that, you were to focus on adding enemies, locations, and interactions with the world at large. Of course, if the player just wants to customize their character, it seems like it would be a trivial task to ask questions like "What color is your hair?" or "Are you tall?" at the beginning of the game, and leave it more or less at that.
As for gameplay, I'm gonna have to go with SD and say the combat was pretty uninvolved. I'd recommend what he said, which giving the player some different things to do during combat. A few spells and items that do damage (or alter the stats of either you or your enemy) would go a long way, as would giving the enemies certain weaknesses and resistances. I'm not saying every fight has to be a chess match, but games are fun because the player can choose what to do. Giving the player more choices (within reason), and giving the choices different consequences, tends to equate to a better game.
I would also recommend an interface change. The player choices should stay in one area at all times (I would recommend putting them all near the bottom of the screen; and going from mostly empty buttons, to smaller, hyperlink-style commands. Think of the conversations in Duamutef's Glorious Vore RPG.). It would give you more room if, rather than having the stats constantly displayed on the left, they only appear if the player clicks a 'Stats' button. Of course, HP is important, and should always be visible, as should any other stats you deem particularly important, but as of this build, the rest of the stats don't need to be seen at all times.
I encountered a glitch, where, after attempting to purchase a P. Jelly and a Health Potion, the game told me I had three P. Jellies, and, after I had used one, the other two spots in my inventory just said "ERROR".
As for enemy requests, I'd like to see orcs/ogres, goblins, dryads, vampires, zombies, mermaids, lizardpeople, dullahans, and, assuming you're okay with them in your setting, anthros (of whatever type you like, though I'd like to cast a vote to ratgirls).
If you're interested in a writer, I will gladly offer my services (within reason, I still have my own game to work on, and I daresay I simply won't be able to be a primary writer, but I can always assist, maybe only writing for a few NPCs/scenarios, or just being a proofreader).