Some Feedback

[inappropriately_gendered_fungus]

Okay, so I need to clarify something right off the bat. I did not realize there was a dash button for ~70% of my playtime. This made the game somewhat boring and frustrating, especially in the 3rd level.

That being said, this game NEEDS to explicitly show the controls right at the start and explain that you can jump in mid-air. The mid-air jump was crucial to me getting close to the end of the 3rd level without the dash. Having the dash made all 3 levels a breeze though.

After finishing the levels, I'm not really sure what this game is about, and I don't mean that from a narrative perspective. The level design is generally not very interesting. There aren't unique mechanics, and the best one by far is the dash. If this is intended to be a simple, breezy platformer, then I guess I get it, but it doesn't do much to stand out. I will say that I do like the aesthetics, though the lack of graphics options makes the sprites look somewhat off on my 1366x768 laptop screen. It's colorful and it's silly and that's all good.

So yeah, I'm kind of interested, and the trailer looks pretty good, but I'm not sure this will get much of a response from players beyond "well that was nice."

Let's compare to a (quite ubiquitous) staple of the platformer genre:
In Celeste, you have 3 main moves: jump, climb, and dash. This is pretty similar to the moveset in Spinch. However, In Celeste, these 3 core moves are highly versatile and are extended with many objects found throughout the game's chapters. Additionally, these moves can be used in combination to perform special techniques. Using these 3 moves, over and over again in a variety of situations is, due to the level design, actually very engaging and even rewarding. This demo feels like it's lacking unifying design principles. There's enough of a moveset to make things interesting and kind of fun, but it doesn't feel like the core of the experience. You could also supplement the basic action and movement with unique level gimmicks. The Super Mario and Donkey Kong Country series do this to great effect.

I was going to write a comparison to Sonic Mania as well, but that kind of fell apart as I was writing it.

Overall, the game just feels kind of lacking. I'll keep my eye on this one, but I hope the developers rise to the challenge of creating a unique experience, or even a highly polished one.

[inappropriately_gendered_fungus]

Also, I forgot to mention that I couldn't figure out how to access the bonus levels, if there are any. I think I found all the cousins(?)

[[AG] Buddy]

Hey, FungusDude!

Thanks for the response and all this feedback! The game is feature complete, so unfortunately we won't be making any major mechanics changes to the game. That said, you can definitely rest assured that the game has a fuller, richer experience than the demo provides. But just to answer some of your concerns, here are some thoughts:

1) There is a tutorial that shows dashing. It's a fairly core part of the experience, so it's the very first thing new players learn in the first game. Unfortunately, we couldn't fit the tutorial into the demo, so folks picking up the full game will get a better introduction to dashing.

2) Spinch lies more on that Super Mario end of the spectrum, where individual levels define mechanics that players will need to contend with in unique ways. In the jungle world, you might have to climb trees will being chased by tree spiders, so the mechanics are very focused on the verticality in the wall jumping, whereas in the ice world, platforms despawn once you hit them, so the levels emphasize precision chains of jumping where you can't afford hesitation. You always have the same moveset (jump, dash, climb) but the levels demand different tactics and strategies for you to complete them.

3) The bonus levels aren't accessible in the demo, but play a key role in the completion of the full game. Completing bonus levels will grant you special attacks during the world's boss, so they're more about the progression of gaining power before you fight the boss. For this reason, we didn't include them in the demo.

Thanks again for the feedback! I'm happy to hear Spinch is on your radar and hope you enjoy some of the stuff we'll be releasing alongside it in the future.