Magnetic Buddies

Ok, this is a pretty simple game, but I have a lot to say.

• First off, the visual didn't bother me at all. It's clean and easy to read, that the most important thing for a puzzle game. There's only one issue reagarding readability: the goals are way too similar to the boxes. I mixed them up a few times and tried to pick up the goal...
• Once you figure out something once, doing it again isn't a puzzle anymore. This game has like 10 levels, but every level is basically the same. Spending as much time to make fewer levels, or adding a mechanic that lets you build some different levels would have made an infinitely more interesting game!
• Switching magnet sounded like a punishment. Other sounds are fine, but this one was very loud and very unpleasant.
• About switching: I don't think having two magnets is that interesting. Having one magnet able to switch side would have introduced I think more interesting levels, but also would have worked better with the theme of the jam.
• About level design: If you want the game to be a puzzle, it needs obstacles. Now, if you want to be more action oriented it could be enemies, but usually for puzzles with blocks, obstacles are walls. For your game, even if it seems like a bug, being able to occupy the same space as the box could have been used in 1 tile wide corridors that start with a corner for example. Something like that for example, which would be impossible if the magnet couldn't move on the same space as a box:
• There was also a LOT of empty space, which didn't make the puzzles harder, only longer to complete, especially with the fact that each move required a key press.
• You can use text to teach the player what to do, but you only did it at the start while I wanted to see what the game looked like, and I instantly forgot how to switch magnets, and had to restart the game. You might say this is my fault for not paying attention, but there's a lot of information at once when you start and don't even know what the game will be. It's definitely better to have text on the first level, where the player can experiment with the controls and the rules on their own.
• And finally what I'd see with this basic mechanic that could lead to interesting puzzles: as I said, only one magnet able to switch side. Attraction wouldn't be base on the side it's aiming at, but be in a straight line in all 4 directions. When you're blue, you attract every red crate in that line, but you also repulse every blue crate. Just with that, you could have some interesting levels, where you had to be in the right spot, and the proprety of the magnet would limit what moves you could make without ruining the level, leading to moments where you have to decide which move to make first etc.

Hi I played your game in stream, here is gameplay: https://youtu.be/QJG0bZJKyJU?t=3660

I think levels started repeat itself, there wasn't that much of challenge, maybe bit of variety for later levels could have made game more interesting. Maybe magnetic field, in which other gets repelled and other pulled towards (same with blocks, so you can drop one in magnetic field and automatically moves)

You seem to have spent too much time making levels and not enough time polishing. The ideas are fine, but need polish, like how the magnets move, they just jump around, but they feel like they need some smoothing of that action.

It controls well and feels solid (aside from being able to use the exit before unlocking). There are a surprising amount of levels in the game but the puzzles don't really increase in difficulty. I think a good addition would be to keep everything the same but add a few basic 16x16 enemies that move around in 16x16 increments. That way the simple puzzles would become difficult as the player is forced to maneuver around enemies. Just a thought. Anyways nice job!

There's some things to like here, it fits the duality of the jam theme, there's a lot of sound effects, and I like how the magnets can grab a block with a little bit of tolerance, like if you're next to a block but not directly facing it, you can still grab it quickly without being forced to turn completely.

I think the magnets should probably move the opposite color block, so that they kinda signify the polarity of magnets.

Also, it seems that you can advance to the next level instantly by walking through the door, even when it's closed. It doesn't prevent you from walking through.

This game has a good idea behind it, but I feel like it could've been heavily expanded on in-game -- most of the puzzles in the game are very similar to each other and don't require too much thought. I think there's also a pretty cool two-player game buried somewhere here, if you decide to expand on this game.

The concept is interesting. I found it a bit odd that you didn't need to turn the magnets to beat most of the levels. Having more blocks to move around at later levels would have given the player more of a sense of progression I think.

I think this is a start to a puzzle game, but I don't know if I would call it a puzzle game. Once you figure out the mechanics, it's pretty obvious how you're supposed to solve a puzzle when you first load into the room. This game could have absolutely benefitted from some kind of obstacle that the player would have to think through to beat the level. As it stands, the process of beating a level involves locating the positions of the magnets and boxes, then doing the same thing you've done for all the other levels.

The way you control the magnets is... bad. Not being able to hold down the button to move makes this game kind of a chore to play. I understand that this was probably the easiest way to get the grid-based movement working, but I think some extra time polishing the way the game actually feels to play can make a game a lot better.

In terms of stability, this game feels quite buggy. Pushing the block against a wall can cause some weird stuff to happen, and the magnet can also just go inside the box, trivializing levels even more than they already are.

I think the art looks pretty good. It's simple, but it gets the point across. I also appreciate that there are quite a few levels in this game. I only wish they felt different to play.

I love the clean art style that you've used here. It really helps keep everything on screen very readable. The magnet mechanic is interesting, I only wish that the levels did more with it. I don't think that any of the levels provided a unique experience from the others. A few more mechanics would have really helped to make the puzzles more interesting.