Detailed actionable feedback

[mondsemmel]

EDIT: This in-depth feedback contains SPOILERS for game mechanics. Read at your own risk.

Hey there, I'm a curator for the Puzzle Lovers curator. Thanks for making Robot Detour, and for offering us review/playtest keys.

Some things I liked: the basic game mechanics, the new ideas introduced in each world (apart from world 4), and the level progression (1~3 unsolved levels available in each world). I did not enjoy world 4, the one with the moving obstacles.

For games I enjoy, I like to offer detailed actionable feedback. Here is my feedback on the current game, version 0.11.2. For context, I played on Steam, Windows 11. I played for 1.75h and beat the following levels: 1-14, 16-24, 28, 31-38, 40-41, 43-45, 46-53, 55-56, 58-60, 61-67, 76-77.

Bugs

• The energy source has no collider: (example from level ~56) Screenshot[i.imgur.com] -> I can't walk into it, but the cable goes straight through it.
  
• Level progression is occasionally weird: For instance, I solved level 28, which unlocked 30, but 29 is still locked: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• There's a Hints button in the menus. When I click it, it becomes green, but nothing else happens: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• Directly after navigating to a new page on the world map, the level name at the top is wrong until a new level is selected: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• There's some kind of bug with undo where it often seems to undo twice, or something? -> Gif Recording[i.imgur.com] -> Why is the game not satisfied with the first undo, but moves me backwards a second time?

General Feedback

• Progress currently doesn't automatically transfer from demo to full game. Having played the demo before the full game, that felt like a bit of a punishment. Fortunately levels are rather quick to solve once you've done so already.
  
• Many levels are very quick to solve, but feel like they have potential for more of a challenge. How about adding some kind of optional collectible to some levels? Like a star that's harder to collect than it is to reach the exit. No need to put these in every level, just where it makes sense.

UI & Movement

• I wish there were a borderless windowed mode. Since I wanted to frequently tab out of the game to provide feedback, the lengthy delay on tabbing out was annoying. And meanwhile, the windowed mode has the ugly window menu bar at the top: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• World map: It would be helpful if there were some indicator for how many levels I have to solve until I unlock the next world.
  
• I feel like the game would be super well-suited for mouse controls; after all, drawing lines is much better suited for a mouse or pen or finger on a touchpad, rather than for cursor keys or a controller thumbstick. Alternative suggestion for consideration: How about a mouse control scheme where you click on the screen and the robot pathfinds there? Not in a smart way or anything, just straightforward and fast.
  
• I like that there's a button to speed things up, but on keyboard, holding Shift while also using WASD feels a bit unpleasant. How about making the speed up a toggle?
  
• Robot movement feels a bit slow or cumbersome. I don't know how to explain it, exactly, but I feel like if you copied a bunch of neat tricks from games like Filament (another game with a similar mechanic) or Celeste (a polished platformer), like acceleration or something, then the robot would feel a lot more pleasant to move around. In any case, particularly in world 1, there are many cases where I see the solution instantly but then implementing it takes a few seconds in a way that doesn't feel particularly enjoyable. Like, 1-9 (a level where you have to flip a switch and then unwind the cable) is one prominent example.
  
• Anyway, a faster movement speed would also make it less frustrating if I make a mistake and have to undo.
  
• Or: Can we get more granularity on the speed controls? What about if I want to play constantly on 3x speed?
  
• Right now colliding with obstacles doesn't feel particularly fun. Your controls are suddenly taken away, and then you have to press the undo key manually. How about instead having some collision animation and then automatically undoing to the last safe position (or visibly rewinding the cable with a brief animation)? Anyway, dying never feels *great* in games, but I think it could feel a lot better in this game.
  
• After flipping a switch, at least in world 1, I usually have to undo/rewind a whole bunch. How about making that automatic? Like, I flip a switch, and then my cable is automatically rewound or retracted halfway or so? Or alternatively, how about giving me a "reel in" button?
  
• In world 1, when I flip the switch, there's no reason to unflip it. How about making these switches one-way switches, so you can't accidentally unflip them?

Aesthetics

• This icon is super aliased: Screenshot[i.imgur.com] -- As is this: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• The font is a bit aliased, or at least that seemed pretty noticeable on the Credits page in a 1440p resolution: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• The cable is aliased, too: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• When I collide with a spiky triangle thingie, the collision animation comes from the center of the triangle thingie, not from where it should come from, namely the point of collision: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• Undo is abrupt, with no transition animation. It would look a lot better if it was a quicker, reversed version of moving and extending the cable. Like time was rewound, or like the cable got reeled in.
  
• The game would have more personality if the energy source (this thing: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]) looked like it had a personality, too. How about making it like a bigger version of the protagonist robot, with a cable extending from its mouth? Or a cable reel, so we can see where the cable in the level comes from?
  
• World 3: Blocks moved by gears look really weird when they hit a wall: Gif Recording[i.imgur.com]
  
• Some levels (e.g. level 33) are quite empty, and would benefit from some decoration or something.
  
• Level 34: I wish this level just consisted of three alcoves instead of the part at the righthand side: Screenshot[i.imgur.com] -- I understand why that part is there, but the level would look better & more symmetrical if it wasn't.
  
• It feels incongruent that world 4 features real-time movement, but undo feels more like it's turn-based.
  
• Level 59: Fun music interlude. However, I couldn't understand any of the lyrics.

Levels

• In level 21, there are gaps in the outer walls, which makes it look like the level extends past them: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• Level 36: A few levels in world 3, like this one where I have to move gears back and forth, feel weird. Like I'm cheating, or just solving levels by moving back and forth a bit, or stumbling on the solution, or something. I wish solutions to these levels felt more purposeful and less accidental.
  
• Level 38: From earlier levels I've learned that if I surround the gear in both directions with cable, then it won't move. But here I managed to surround it once clockwise and like 5x counterclockwise, and in that situation it feels like the gear *should* more counterclockwise, but it doesn't.
  
• Level 40: Is it intentional that the post-switch part of this level can be solved like this? Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• Level 52: It feels like the switch in this level is totally superfluous.
  
• Level 53 doesn't feel like it belongs in the same genre as the rest of the game. It's not really a thinky puzzle at all. I can understand having moving obstacles if the challenge is to overcome them with clever planning, but level 53 feels more like a speedrun level than a puzzle.
  
• Level 55: Same issue as 53.
  
• Level 66: This level is a pure maze and doesn't have anything to do with the game theme, e.g. the cable is entirely irrelevant. If you want the cable to be relevant, at least restrict its length here or something.
  
• Level 13: First level with a limited cable length. It feels weird and unintuitive how the limited cable length is depicted. I'll reiterate the suggestion of a cable reel.
  
• Level 13: I don't know if this is the intended solution, but if yes, I find it unintuitive; other levels consistently taught me that I can never get through such small gaps: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• Level 27: In levels with lots of moving blocks, it would be helpful if the dashed lines more clearly explained which line belongs to which block; currently it's hard to visualize how the level will change once the blocks move: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]
  
• Level 60: This level seems to deactivate undo, i.e. collisions necessitate returning back to start. If so, I strongly recommend you reconsider that. Players do *not* like it when their undo is taken away.

Gameplay

• World 4 introduces real-time elements. This is very unexpected relative to what came before. A fraction of your less dextrous players will feel cheated that this happens, or not be able to solve these real-time challenges. (I'm not complaining for my own sake, e.g. I've finished Celeste's Farewell chapter.) I strongly recommend a) clearly mentioning this on your store page, and b) offering accessibility options so these players can finish the game, too. Or c) reconsidering the timed elements entirely.
  
• World 4: I mentioned my misgivings with the slow movement above, but the real-time elements of world 4 exacerbated them *a lot*. What felt slightly frustrating before suddenly felt *very* frustrating.
  
• Level 12: Sometimes it's hard to predict in advance which routes will be blocked by an obstacle, like here in level 12: Screenshot[i.imgur.com] -> Convoluted solution: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]

[mondsemmel]

PS: Re: whether to include timed challenges in your puzzle game, maybe the clearest argument I've heard against that kind of thing is from this video by Jonas Tyroller (he's a prolific game dev of three hit Steam games: Islanders, Will You Snail, and Thronefall): "If your game challenges multiple skills at the same time, for example puzzle-solving and timing, and just one of them is not in the flow zone, then it ruins the entire experience. For example you know how to solve the puzzle but can't complete the timing challenge. Or maybe you find the timing challenges fun but the puzzles bore you."

[Nozomu Games]

First, and I can't stress it enough: thank you so much for such detailed feedback! A lot of good finds and observations. Most critical we'll fix before release, less critical I've left on the list to do when the times will be less hectic for us.

Separate comment about dexterity part: it will be completely optional in the final game, there will be a button to skip this world if that's not your cup of tea. Removing it though won't happen: this was essential part of a successful early prototype + it provides enough unique and cool levels to be justified + it was most beloved world for a few playtesters.
I understand the intent of "keeping puzzles clean from other genres", but I don't support it :) I don't like to restrict game design possibilities and love to explore uncharted territories and new design decisions. If the choice is between "go safe" and "go risky, but try something new" I'll go the second route in 100% of the times :)
It's basically my way of doing game design, always going outside the comfort zone (of me or players), if there is even a slim chance to find something novel and amazing. And I hope some players will appreciate it. If not, as I said there will be an option to skip this specific world.

Once again, thank you so much for the feedback, and I am glad you could still enjoy the game!

[mondsemmel]

Hey there, I saw the game received an update ~today. Are there any patch notes for it?

[Nozomu Games]

None, as it feels strange to do patch notes before release, but the biggest changes are:
- added mouse controls back, as a setting
- added hints to all levels
- visual enchancements
- ability to skip arcade world
- patched a bunch of levels

[mondsemmel]

Hey there @Nozomu Games, I've now played through the full game. I enjoyed myself, so thanks for making this game! I've posted a positive curator review here.

Having played through v1.0.4, I have a bunch of additional feedback. Maybe you'll find some of it useful. (Just in case you do happen to find it particularly useful, I'd appreciate a mention in the game credits for playtesting or bug reports or general feedback or something. If not, then no worries.)

General impression

• I really like the mouse controls. I was imagining something slightly different - more like drawing the cable via the mouse, rather than controlling the robot with it - but what you've implemented here nonetheless felt way better to me than the keyboard controls. Even the Arcade world, which I'd initially disliked, became much less annoying to me once I had a control scheme I was more comfortable with. It is however somewhat awkward that these mouse controls are currently unavailable in levels that wrap.
  
• I found the overall game genuinely enjoyable. My remaining minor criticism is that a few levels are a bit fiddly (gears levels) or timing-based.

Bugs

• Controls: When you use mouse controls, you're only supposed to be moving while holding the mouse button pressed. However, if you hold the mouse button pressed and then press space to pick up a battery from a battery receptacle, then from then on the game thinks the mouse button is still pressed, and so merely moving the mouse also moves the robot along.
  
• UI: On the level select screen, click an arrow with the mouse. Then quickly, before the screen transition is finished, flick the mouse (without pressing anything) over the arrows. As a result, the game quickly flicks back to the previous world map page: Gif Recording[i.imgur.com]
  
• UI: In the hints menu, if you click the second hint before the first hint, a button appears but no hint: Gif Recording[i.imgur.com]
  
• UI / Localisation: The game says I need to press Z to undo, but I have a QWERTZ keyboard (German layout) and the game actually expects me to press Y to undo instead.
  
• Steam Overlay: Somehow pressing F12 to take a screenshot doesn't work a good chunk of the time.
  
• Bug in 88 Fusion: Gif Recording[i.imgur.com] -- There's some issue with the text in this scrolling level, where it doesn't scroll smoothly. Unfortunately hard or impossible to tell from my low-fps gif recording.

Aesthetics

• Empty battery receptacles are too dark and look like the background, not like a puzzle element to interact with. I recommend making them a bit brighter, or adding a VFX, or something else to indicate that they can be interacted.
  
• It looks a bit weird when I try to move when the cable length has run out: Gif Recording[i.imgur.com] -> There's some jittery, flashing movement.

Level design

• Level 57: This solution ignores more than a quarter of the level: Screenshot[i.imgur.com] -> Maybe the solution is unintended, or maybe that quarter should be background wall instead of part of the level.
  
• Fusion 78: I did't see the second battery receptacle for a while; these objects are so de-emphasized that it felt like part of the background.
  
• Fusion 83: There are a bunch of solutions that almost work but not quite.
  
• Fusion 85: I solved this level without interacting with the bottom right part at all: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]

Hints

• The hints feel quite cryptic. Several times I requested hints for difficult levels, then didn't understand them.
  
• Specifically, I requested hints for 39, 54 (x1), 74 (x1), 82, 83 (x1), and 88. Of those I didn't understand the solution to 39, and I didn't understand the hints to 82 and 88.

Game design

• Level progression is mostly not linear, but in a few occasions, like the following, there's only one level available: Screenshot[i.imgur.com]

[Cosmic Swimmer]

same for 39 lvl, the solution looks like brute forcing