A bit of a quibble in LOOPING; the directions guarantee a positive number, but sometimes the input (and presumably expected output) will be 0. Easy enough to work around, but it threw me for a loop at first.
Okay, so as it turns out, there's nothing special for beating the game without picking up any of the gems in the shop. I don't know why I assumed there was, I just thought there might be. There isn't.
... that took me far too long to find out.
Huh. Well, I bet the game doesn't let me crush this guard-
*Crunch*
Never mind. 5/5. 6/5 if you can add a Wilhelm scream whenever I drop a guard down a pit... I'm a cruel, cruel person.
A very fun game. The symbols, map, and some of the mechanics seem to borrow heavily from the game Antichamber (which I would very heavily recommend to anyone who enjoyed this game, by the way)- Nocity, would I be correct in thinking that you're familiar with the game?
Everyone- the makers of this game have made another entry into the series (aside from Grain of Truth, which is also wonderful). It's here: http://traderofstories.blogspot.com/
http://www.rudowscy.com/tos1/
Haha, thanks for the support! I suppose I shouldn't joke about squeals. I have not plans for a sequel to Black Bow at this time, but I am indeed working on something new. I'm creating an indie startup studio with some talented folks, and you can follow our progress here to see what's next from me...
https://www.facebook.com/thumbbustergames
As for what's next from thepeasant, I have no idea, but I bet it will be awesome.
Though it's getting downvoted for difficulty, this is not a bad game. Nothing is fundamentally wrong with the gameplay, only the pacing. The first portion of gameplay shouldn’t be the slowest- the first two or three checkpoints are much too far apart (making players replay an area after they've solved it every time they die a few screens later is a recipe for frustration), falling damage forces you to hold down shift through early levels to avoid injury, and having to repeatedly sneak through a given area is annoying, not hard.
Don’t despair! These problems are fixable, or could be fixed in a sequel. I wouldn't have written this out had I thought it a lost cause. Balance difficulty with pacing, avoid "fake" difficulty, (having to hold down shift through the whole level, replaying areas after dying, etc.) and I can see this game being rated one star higher.
TL;DR- A flawed masterpiece from a talented dev. Try to avoid frustrating/semi-unfair mechanics.
...and keep up the good work.
Thanks so much for the excellent feedback! This comment was the final piece of straw that broke the donkey's back. Our most recent update addresses many of the issues you mentioned here, as well as other's raised by the community. Check the 'Updates' tab to read all about it. Thank you again.
"I would like to purchase a security system. I assure you, money is no object if I can see results."
"Alright, sir, lets take a look at these blueprints... are these... turrets? Land mines? Is this a military facility? This may violate the geneva code..."
"No, that document doesn't apply to these rotters. They're inhuman and they must be stopped."
"...this is insane... who exactly is this system meant to deal with? Al qaeda? A foreign invasion? Door-to-door salesmen?"
"No, worse than any of those... turtles."
"...turtles... the small, slow, semiaquatic animals... turtles?!"
"Quiet. They'll hear you. Say, do you sell lasers?"
"... do you have a doctor or a caregiver I could talk to?"
"No. They're working for the turtles."
"Sir, I- is that a hammer?!"
"Yes. I use it for self-defense. Against turtles. And people who work for them."
"... take everything. Please don't hurt me."
Thank you for being so responsive to player input! You're one of the few devs that I've seen actually responding to what commenters have to say, and altering the game upon request. Great work, and keep it up!
Damage reflection is way more powerful than it has any right to be. I have a level 6 ranger who can reflect 99% of incoming damage, which seems perhaps just a bit overpowered...
In conjunction with Jeffe77's comment, I'm seeing a good number of subtle references to 1984 (the novel), such as "spear doubleplus" and "prole's clothes". That might be as much as an influence on the game as "A Clockwork Orange" is.
 "Frugal Knight"){kind=icon}
 "CiggbitCembly"){kind=icon}
 "Pawnbarian"){kind=icon}
 "Hat Wizard 2"){kind=icon}
 "The Illusory Wall"){kind=icon}
 "The Trader of Stories"){kind=icon}
 "Black Bow"){kind=icon}
 "Glean 2 Preview"){kind=icon}
 "Epic Combo!"){kind=icon}
 "Dungeons of Kong"){kind=icon}
 "Spectromancer: Gathering of Power"){kind=icon}
 "Monsters' Den: Book of Dread"){kind=icon}
 "World's End Chapter 1"){kind=icon}
 "GregManiacs"){kind=icon}
You are not the cruel one, those guys were about to shoot you! They just got what's coming to them. Thanks for playing :D