[Feedback Request] Ball bearing

[Trebmint]

Hey all,

I've come to something of a quandry. I've been working on my game Ball Bearing for a while, which is based on a unique little game that I and many others loved way back in the mists of 8bit days.

Problem is that it uses a side-2-side bouncing motion that appears to cause some people issues. From my point of view I've attempted to minimise the scrolling and speed as much as I can without ruining what I found essential about the original, however a few people still say the same thing. Now I either ignore those people and say you either "love it or hate it" or I scrap the game now before I spend even more time, and accept that the gameplay is too flawed to be fixed.
Download: (5mb)
www.eakiah.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/ballbearing.zip
Image:
http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/3136/bbscreen23jj.jpg

Please note this game is a work in progress, not a beta. However the feel of the game is as I imagined it to be from the design. Does it make you ill / Dizzy? Can you see where you're heading adequately or does it just feel like luck? Do you feel in control of the ball? Can you ultimately see the game selling - or is it too flawed a concept?

The controls are just Up and Down cursor keys. Its meant to be a very understandable simple idea that you control the up and down movement, while the ball constantly moves left and right.

The game is Windows DX7, needs 3d hardware. (The download is about 5mb)

Anyway thanks Rob :)

[Pogacha]

Hi, I try your game, It reminds me Helium 3D (http://www.geardome.com/en/helium.php) .

I understand the gameplay and have fun with it, I found the ball control very fast and feel the presure of "learn how to play or confuse yourself", maybe the speed is a little fast for casual gamers but I think that the problem is not the gameplay really, yes it makes me both ill and dizzy, but the problem is the camera, maybe if you create a more complex camera following algorithm that takes in count the posibles ball scapes for avoid moving ping-pongly in closed room when is not needed maybe you will lower "dizzy" efects.

GL.

[electronicStar]

I think the camera shouldn't follow the ball constantly, it should move only when the ball enters the 25% outer ring of the screen.

[RohoMech]

Trebmint, first I gotta say, the music is really awesome, I played just to listen to it for a while.

But, the game does make the player a bit...dizzy...okay a lot dizzy. Pog's got some good suggestions about camera algorithms, the ping-ponging back/forth really sucks, if you can cut down on that. Alternativly, you could just zoom the camera out so the player can see the whole level...

I do think the ball moves too quick for the first level, if it sped up as levels went on that would be fine.

The mechanic itself is so-so. There's a lot of ball-motion games, the freeware one Pog suggested is sorta similiar to yours but the ball doesn't move on its own volition. You kind of have a pinball feel to your game...why not just go that direction and make a crazy pinball game?

Some other issues, I picked options and the menu items just went away...also, when the game loads up I initially get a RED screen, how about using a different color...like blue!?

Anyways, good luck on the game, I really digg the music and artstyle, but the mechanic and camera really do need work.