dirtofgrandeur's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Mad Princess]

Promising, and interesting, but with a few design flaws. The fact that it was so easy to destroy previously-set traps by clicking too close to them was maddening. In later levels, it could be used as a form of strategy, but I felt it clumsy either way, especially if that was intentional. Music and sound design also left a little to be desired; I didn't feel like what I was hearing meshed with what I was playing, though I'm not certain what would have been a more appropriate feel.
However, the character design was solid and the overall concept worked. I really enjoyed figuring out how each of the different traps would work in given situations. A solid effort, and fun for about 30 minutes, but I'd love to see something more polished in a similar vein. Given that the ending seemed to allow for a second game, I hope you'll take that to heart :)

[Wilt: Last Blossom]

Very good, though a little long winded. My favorite part about all of these games has been the music, and that did not disappoint at all. The boss fights took a little figuring out, but perhaps that's part of the challenge. I will say, with the final boss, that I experienced a glitch where the monster walked off the screen and I couldn't fight it. Fortunately, I found the means to kill my character so I could start over, but I worry this could undo a lot of work for others who are not so fortunate. I hope you can address it! I also hope to see more of these, though I'd like to see some new developments and new gameplay features when the time comes.

[MOON]

You really had my interest until the code screen. I simply don't understand what I'm supposed to do there, aside from flailing randomly and hoping I get somewhere. I know I can't type any words containing the letter "e" because that simply puts me back to the start of the game, which is maddening.
So, what? Are there actually clues to be found for this? Or is it all just a guessing game with no prompts or hints at all? Am I supposed to have viewed some film and movie to get the whole experience, because if that is the case, then I would have to call this a thoroughly incomplete game.

[Death Count]

Do more in this vein. It's simple, but sufficiently difficult. I feel the best arcade games are based upon simple premises that are used well. The concept was good and the platforming components were challenging. Keep at it!
Oh, and great musical choice, but I second what others have said: the sound effects are much too loud.

[Why Am I Dead]

There are lots of bugs, but this is really fun. After I got the first ending, I enjoyed the challenge of being careful to not end up the same way the second run through.
I'm curious as to how many alternate endings there are though; the second one I got gave me the impression that there are either more endings, or you're setting up for a sequel. What's the news?

Noted bugs on my run through, for reference:
If you exit with . . . Lucille, I think it was (the cop) at the end, you cannot re-enter the scene of the crime, essentially making it impossible to progress.
If you possess someone else before Cricket first talks to Ted, all of the rooms will be at least partially blacked-out, making navigation difficult.
It's possible to move around as a ghost while paused, allowing for things to get really weird.
Strange flashes would happen in all of the rooms any time I played as Orval.
I think that's about it. I feel there's one more I'm missing, but those are the ones that stood out. Most were minor and cosmetic, but the first one is a big deal.

[Stonelegs]

Brilliant idea, but there are some serious control bugs for me. Often, the player character will not budge after a jump, leaving me still and in the same place as where I began. This renders the game more or less impossible to play, so . . . points off for that.

[Apocalipseed]

Brilliant animation, brilliant design, but poor execution. Some suggestions:
Your units move way too slowly while the enemy can advance very quickly.

Many times my controls stuck and bugged out, leaving me helpless while my units either wandered off into waves of enemies, never fighting back, only to get slaughtered. Other times my mother plant couldn't eat anything or move

Sometimes the level would just span one kind of enemy incessantly from the start, be it civilians or an enormous horde of shotgun troops. If it was only civilians, I could never beat the levels because there was nothing to fight; if it was only one breed of overpowered enemy, I could never advance.

Add an indicator for what kind of enemies are spawning and give a better radar for them. Only being able to see about a fifth of the map at any time lulled me into a false sense of security.

Level up the mother plant. There should be ways to heal mid-battle, or ways to have more HP period.

Again, loved the character design and loved the concept, but the difficulty jumped very drastically and the coding seemed terrible. I do hope you revise this or make a sequel. It's not worth giving up on; it just needs a lot of polish.

[Ereban Dawn]

Wow. I'm doing incredibly well (one lantern left), then I fall into a seemingly unavoidable pit that's incredibly difficult to jump out of, only to sit in frustration as the witch swiftly darts back and forth to end my game.
Interesting concept, poor execution.

[Dark Soul]

It's a fun enough game, but does become repetitive in the end. The final boss is tough, but scarcely frightening or impossible. Lag is also an issue.
My biggest complaint is just translation though. It really hindered the notion of a plot, which was already pretty loose to begin with.

[Thimblebump's Neptune]

It is a little repetitive, but it's nice for what it is. It would have been helpful to know I could spam the dash button (--> key); that should have been mentioned in the instructions, but I don't think I caught it. Gratuitous use of the dash made the game much faster and more interesting, and helped me get all of the costumes and a great high score much more easily.