Casual Shooting Mode

[Rahorah]

When you boil down the criticism on this game, it is mainly three major issues. Technical difficulties, the amount of open online lobbies and the way to shoot.

I would count the inconsistency of the strokes at different fps to the technical difficulties which is a different matter. (I solved it by activating vsync, so I don't know to which extent this still exists.)

Your decision, how the shooting mechanism of this game should work, is questioned permanently.

Would an additional game mode with easier shooting method really destroy the game for others?
So we have classic, hard and custom mode now. Why not add a kiddy (sry) arcade, casual or whatever-it-is-called mode with different shooting? This way of shooting will only be allowed in casual or custom (by option) mode.

The alternative shooting used with a mouse would be a good start. The only thing missing is a meter to really now, how hard you will hit the ball. So give them what they want. A meter! Or what do I say ... a millimeter!! A very fine granulated scale so everybody can exactly set the power of their strokes. And add a small display for the value too. From 0 to 10 in 0.1 or 0.05 steps. And for the extra power I wanna see an 11 (without steps between 10 and 11).

It may sound like I am joking but people will probably like it. What are the thoughts of the community?



btw. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xgx4k83zzc

[Perfuse Entertainment]

Hey,

I have thought a lot about it since I am also reading the criticism. On one hand I don't want to change anything about the shooting since it is what I would want, a semi-realistic shooting method more base in real-life, more like a simulation than a casual game. I understand that this is causing issues on some pc and mice but fortunately, it is more uncommon than common.
I tried to compensate it by introducing the alternative shooting, which was mainly meant for controller usage but also without a power-bar so it is fairer compared to other users.
On the other hand, I obviously want to satisfy the majority of the people so they can have fun but not have a competitive advantage.
I don't want people hosting specific game modes to force a specific play style on everyone joining and I don't want to make it optional to give players with a power-bar an advantage.

It is an easy addition to make but one I have to think about if and how to do it.
I have however a few ideas but I am not 100% sure if I want to go down that path.

Take care,

Jonas

[TheStreamLife]

i for one very much enjoy the way it is set up. I like not having a power bar since its all feel.

[Jimtanis]

I'd second the notion of having a mode with different controls on hitting the ball too. The way it works in another popular mini golf game for myself makes a lot more sense and allows more accuracy (for me anyway). I also do like the way you have it now and see the merits of that idea, but for me personally it quite difficult to get any sort of consistency with the current control methods. Basically, you aim as and can pull the putter backwards. There is a power meter. When it is all lined up, you release the mouse button and it swings for you. Thanks for considering the idea and thanks for the game.

[Jimtanis]

For myself, controls in a game are very important. I already own the game, but as the controls stand now, I probably wouldn't play much and probably wouldn't encourage my friends to play either. I love that you can remap the controls.

[Rahorah]

This control method has been implemented a long time ago, but as far as I remember without(?) a power meter.

Go to the Options and activate "Alternative Shoot (controller)" to have a distance based power control even when playing with mouse.

[Perfuse Entertainment]

If you are hosting the server and set the game mode to easy, a power-meter will also show up when using the alternative shooting method. :)

[Jimtanis]

Thank you for the help. I for some reason had a really hard time finding how to customize a game. That said, I reinstalled the game, looked at this post, and found it. I'm excited to play now and to get my friends playing.

[UnknownMaster21]

Originally posted by Perfuse Entertainment:

If you are hosting the server and set the game mode to easy, a power-meter will also show up when using the alternative shooting method. :)

Does this power-meter be able to show on custom game modes?

[Jimtanis]

I'm not completely sure myself UKMaster. I still find the user interface to be tricky to navigate. For example, I'm not sure how to set it the game to easy. I did finally find the advanced settings mentioned above. Some additional labeling or perhaps adding something to the How To Play section would be very helpful. It might be instructive for the developer to watch a few new computer users with minimal computer experience try to setup a game and navigate the options. I know for myself, when I write software, the interface becomes simple not because I've necessarily done a good job with the UX but because I'm so used to it. I'd imagine the target audience for Mini Golf isn't computer experts (although they can enjoy it very much too). Thanks for listening :)

[Jimtanis]

okay, so "duh" for me. To find Easy, after you setup the game and select the map, use the arrows by the Game Mode until it changes to Easy. I think I expected to see that in the Custom settings. I was thinking that because I want to set it to easy but also have the ability to turn jumps on or off, etc.