cocobeaqn,
You were probably attacked by an attack that damages all (or one) of your "benched" characters (i.e. a character in your deck that isn't in play). It's a viable game option, not a bug, unless you experienced something different.
Just so everyone knows:
Prime your intercept engines, folks—Kongregate changed servers, so Kongai should now be running faster and should be, dare I say it, lag-free. Tell your friends!
FYI, I wrote in more detail about the update in my Kongai FAQ: http://www.kongregate.com/forums/1/topics/3965?page=3#posts-142790
— Bruce
Re: "You don’t have to give something a crummy industrial backdrop and creepy music if it’s a good game."
Devil May Cry 3 had creepy music and sold pretty well. The theme isn't bad, according to my preferences, but I do feel the game does need... "something." Not sure what it is, but it does indeed feel bland. If other puzzle games use this theme, then yeah, perhaps another one would be better. But I've never played a puzzle game with this theme.
Wow, I find Jim’s comment interesting (Jim said: “I’d work on the controls though – not very intuitive.”) I doubt non-gamers would be able to make sense of the controls, but for gamers, the current control scheme seems to be a good choice. Perhaps improve the in-game instructions, and make the game instructions less wordy. I like the lack of an interface. The theme is nice, too, but kind of strange given the game context. At first I wanted better music, but it lets you concentrate, so that’s a good thing. Perhaps Kongai should have music like this, but have it resemble the Jaws theme. ;) — Bruce
re: "I think the range change fee is too high"
I'm pretty sure the game is balanced around the 50 energy range-change cost. Change that, and, to use Sirlin's wooden plank and marble analogy (that no one here will know of, heh), if you move one thing, it upsets the balance of everything else.
More detailed feedback about what situations you're having trouble with (ie. cards? rough stat counts? etc) would be helpful.
re: ongoing discussion about the timer—
I posted a good comment about why the timer is important in Sirlins forums. Find it here:
http://www.sirlin.net/forums/showthread.php?p=2365#post2365
I also made a thread where I talk about cool things like "Fast-mode Kongai". The post even has an interesting puzzle with an awesome solution if you figure it out! Find it here:
http://www.sirlin.net/forums/showthread.php?p=2368#post2368
— Bruce
I don't get the "game takes too long" comments.
When I play, I either use the minute to think or talk to my opponent, or if I am waiting for my opponent, I sit and try to guess what my opponent is doing so I can learn more about him and test my intuition, or I talk to my opponent. Sometimes I wish I had more time! (But no, 1 min is fine.)
Would a "Kongai-fast mode" be fun? Yes. But is Kongai too slow? I don't think so. Think or talk more.
- Bruce
PS. For more on this topic, see here:
http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20060222/sirlin_01.shtml
… and before you get outraged at that article (it's only part of the full perspective), please read:
http://www.sirlin.net/?p=127
jewstylekungfu,
Don't want to drag the Kongai comments too far off-topic but: Kongai is great fun for me. Playing fellow opponents, the process of self improvement, yomi (reading the mind of the opponent), landing that intercept—all fun! Kongai has great art, but that's just a facade; a surface. The rule set, and what it tests and lessons it teaches, is what's important. Eg. Street Fighter appears to be about cartoon fighting, but it teaches you some excellent life lessons.
- Bruce
Re: "also the lack of players means you have to wait ages to get a game which is i believe what they call a downward spiral…"
Indeed. I’ve been trying to get a game for hours now. No deal; no players. (A few Kongai testers are online right now, just not playing Kongai, probably confirming your downward spiral). Let’s see if (and hope!) the new servers improve the situation.
— Bruce
Re: single player AI
I wrote a follow up post with more detail about this topic here:
http://www.sirlin.net/forums/showthread.php?p=2306#post2306
It's long, but if you only read the text under the "short version" headings, it's not long at all.
— Bruce
Re: single player AI
As far as I know, the AI makes random choices. It has no mechanism that causes it to make weighted decisions.
I also agree with NorthernPolarity. AI is good for learning the interface, etc, but you will learn much more playing humans. Also, people playing multiplayer will help keep the game community lively.
In the meantime, here's a post I made about card unlocks. It's actually two posts, but you can get the gist of it by reading the first (shorter) post. This is a topic that should interest you all: http://www.sirlin.net/forums/showthread.php?t=289
In reply to those who commented about the lack of players —
I think you all bring up great points that should be genuinely considered by Kongregate. I'd like to respond to all of them, but I'll save that for a Sirlin.net forum post.
As for what Aristar mentioned about a "community forum"... to let the cat out of the bag, I've wanted to do this for weeks now. Sirlin made a Kongai forum, so I decided to take another approach to what I was planning, but I still see a dire need for a place that has a sense of community. Sirlin's forums have a different feel to them. Community is a powerful thing, and I think I can help in this regard. I'll see if I can accelerate the process. I'll respond to the points you guys covered when I get a chance. Thanks, guys.— Bruce
Perhaps it's the times I'm online, or perhaps it's the server lag, but I've noticed increasingly fewer people playing Kongai. It's only beta, yes, but if it isn't server lag or play times causing this, that's a super-bad sign for the game. It also doesn’t help that most of my Kongregate friends say, “yeah, Kongai’s great, but...” and largely seem disinterested in it. (I personally love Kongai.)
Kongai *needs* players for the game to be (A) playable, and (B) interesting. It's fun fighting good opponents who improve, and better opponents inspire you to improve, and the positive spiral continues. Without people and skilled opponents, Kongai is like a great card game deck lying there with nobody to use it—quite the waste.
If anyone has info about the lack of players, please enlighten me.
- Bruce
Re: "OK, when you hit restart do you really have to go back to the title screen?"
Indeed, the only thing tarnishing this otherwise great game.
Raitendo: Please respect people's time and let us continue from the level we failed to complete. It serves nobody to go through content we already know we can go through. See this great article for ideas: http://www.sirlin.net/archive/new-super-mario-brothers/
Other than that, I've only really good things to say about this game.
- Bruce
PS. I'm really sorry that my comments are poorly formatted, but despite my best efforts, textile fails to work nicely. It seems to just axe any code formatting you have once you reach a certain word count. Very random and strange. Not ideal.
@Minusdriver, re: ideas -
Not quite sure what point you're making, but thanks, I think. =)
IMO, relative to a context, ideas are either effective or not ("shades of gray" ideas usually aren't holistic enough). If ideas are obviously good, they should be taken on board. If they sound promising, they should be tested. In game development, business, and life, all ideas, no matter what they are, who they came from, or when they appear, are valid.
Unfortunately, it takes some forward-thinking people to resonate with what I just said; most resonate with the exacte opposite or somewhere inbetween.
Which side is best? I like to look to those who are most effective in their field—those who have exceptional results and ability—and let them guide me. Generally, you'll find those people err on the side of the mindset/beliefs I mentioned above.
— Bruce
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