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Post by D-Type on Feb 13, 2023 17:49:12 GMT -5
Managed to play perhaps 6 or 8 games yesterday. I couldn't get to the orb on the first level, kept running out of energy - not everyone's a top gamer! Forgot to use the smart bomb. Fun to play!
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Post by playvectrex on Feb 14, 2023 0:59:18 GMT -5
I think the latest 02-11-23 download is broken somehow, it starts at level 3 and I can't seem to play hardcore mode. Perhaps this is why Philip cannot get the orb... starting too difficult The wall are dimmer though, but maybe too dim? I can still see them though so I'm not torn by it, but if I had my brightness a bit lower they would be too dim I think. Maybe it's ok... just gotta get used to change
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Post by scotthuggins on Feb 14, 2023 14:57:04 GMT -5
Yes, the version I attached was a debug version- sorry for that. I have attached the latest above. Hardcore is working. Also, curious what you might find in the difficulty department, Brett (or anyone). Caverns #7,8,9 are tougher, but probably not for you and Limitzer0.
D-Type, you will find the difficulty a lot less if you try the version I reposted in this thread.
Still waiting to see how publishing is going to work. Cart/manual/box artwork is done.
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Post by playvectrex on Feb 14, 2023 16:29:57 GMT -5
I played the 02-14-23 update and hardcore mode works as expected with 1 life.
I think the enemies are too aggressive now starting at level 4, so I had to play normal mode to try to get further.
I got up to Level 7 with 33125 points.
The enemies really start to swarm you at level 4 though and require the smart bomb now. You end up not finishing with much energy or bonus points. Level 7 was even worse.. so I don't know if the game is beatable now. I'll try more later, but does not feel as fun with the enemies swarming you so hard. Maybe if they swarmed like they do in level 4 now but starting like that in Level 7 that would be better. And in Level 4 about halfway between Level 1 and how it is now in Level 4.
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Post by playvectrex on Feb 14, 2023 23:03:59 GMT -5
Ok, one more play tonight and beat the game this time with 43,525 and only missed one orb on the second stage. For some reason some of the enemy spawns on level 4 and 7 are just really bad they all come and get you in one go, so you have to use the smart bomb. Level 5 and 8 though are not bad at all, they barely swarm you there, or maybe it's just that you can fly faster. Level 6 and 9 just require precision flying and also didn't seem so bad this time. So perhaps you can push through and get a win without too much fuss. It's level 4 and 7 that the enemies could be a bit too aggressive for the space. You have to turn to go up, and when you do they all just swarm you instantly. I think it's possible to beat everything in hardcore mode, but it'll probably take a bunch of tries
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Post by scotthuggins on Feb 15, 2023 1:46:47 GMT -5
Excellent feedback, as always, Brett! So it goes from a difficulty rating of "1" straight to a "10" on Cavern #4 it sounds like. I know what you mean. The enemies are "throttled" with a single variable called Intensity. It goes from 1 (super slow) to 10 (lightening fast). I do find it comical that you hate admitting you have to use Smart Bomb! LOL. I can throttle back the enemy so as to be more fair than it is now.
Finally, what you said that in general: it's not as fun.... The balance between too easy and too hard can be tough to find I think. I also am coming around to the fact that it's still fun if you whiz thru all the Caverns at a frantic pace - it's faced pace but kind of rewarding. Maybe the replay value can be in just how much can you score before you defeat it. Let me think about this...
The percentage has to be very, very low that the game can be beat in Hardcore mode, with only one ship to use.
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Post by playvectrex on Feb 15, 2023 10:32:22 GMT -5
I got to level 6 in hardcode mode this morning... I'm sure it's possible to beat it, but it's going to take a few more tries for me. It's still just as fun the more I play it, but there's more cursing involved because I'm dying a lot EDIT: Got to level 8 in hardcore mode with both orb stages cleared.
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Post by scotthuggins on Feb 15, 2023 23:39:22 GMT -5
Nice! I just completed it (regular mode) with 46,425. That's with getting all orbs in both challenges. 50,025 that you posted on page 3 of this thread seems to be the highest out of anyone so far.
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Post by playvectrex on Feb 16, 2023 0:11:57 GMT -5
Just beat hardcore mode, finally! Both orb challenges as well I didn't realize the turrets in level 6/9 shoot faster and kept timing them wrong.
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Post by scotthuggins on Feb 17, 2023 1:54:48 GMT -5
Dang, super! That is extremely difficult to do. I don't know how you can do that. I cannot even come close to completing it with one ship. So for Vector Wars (assuming the games makes the cut), you already have a massive advantage. ;-)
Let me think about how I can give you only 1/2 of a ship as a handicap. LOL.
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Post by hcmffm on Feb 18, 2023 6:33:02 GMT -5
Congrats, Brett, for beating CR on hardcore mode! In past Vector Wars we had games that could be beaten - e.g. Get the Beer or Dark Tower. That's fine and o.k. and surely doesn't disqualify a game from Vector War. An advantage is availability as a free binary or if game can still be purchased 1-2 months before Vector War. But again this doesn't disqualify a game - we had games like VeCaves or Vector Pilot which are not freely available either. So most likely Cavern Rescue will be played in next Vector War XIII.
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Post by hcmffm on Mar 11, 2023 6:15:45 GMT -5
After quite some discussions it got pretty quiet, again. Is there a final release / binary of Cavern Rescue available?
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Post by scotthuggins on Mar 11, 2023 14:16:48 GMT -5
Hi,
I haven't posted the final binary - it's now in the hands of Sean Kelly who will be publishing the game. The box/manual/artwork is done and the game will be available in it's final release form shortly.
Thank you for asking.
Scott
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Post by hcmffm on Mar 13, 2023 2:20:16 GMT -5
.. I haven't posted the final binary - it's now in the hands of Sean Kelly who will be publishing the game. The box/manual/artwork is done and the game will be available in it's final release form shortly... Thank you for this info. Cool, that there will be a physical release. As written in my previous post, a free binary would increase chances to be chosen for the Vector War but it's not a must. Let's see. Again, thank you for your effort that you've put into Cavern Rescue and thank you for your taking our feedback into account! And last not least: Congratulations on finishing your first Vectrex game!
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Post by scotthuggins on Mar 13, 2023 13:51:39 GMT -5
Final version of the game has been posted in the first post of this thread. Another huge thanks to you and everyone else for the play testing and the great suggestions along the way. Love the Vectrex community!
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