There is no problem about the keyboard layout in this game as long as we switch the windows layout. The keyboard position is just a reference to the position of the buildings. (this doesn't mean that I was good at playing, far from it :p)
I really enjoyed the concept of moving around with all the keys of the keyboard, it made a lot a sense and created a lot of fun. However, aiming my shot with the same method was... tricky.
The art direction is nice: building, music and flying saucer are all fitting together to create a beautiful scene.
Looks great, nice audio, great concept, the controls were a bit frustrating in the beginning though, once you get over that I really liked what you guys created!
I thought the controls were unique and interesting. The aliens kill you too quickly, it's too difficult to leave a turret and jump away before you get zapped.
(Video didn't get recorded, it happens sometimes with OBS and GameMaker games, the Audio is there).
Man, the controls are frustrating. I totally get that's what you were going for... I actually had fun with the concepts but could not master it as a game nor get very far.
Wow, this really was a fun game, even though I'm terribly bad at it because I'm too nervous, but it's really innovative and different yet so simple. I really liked the tools you could use and how everything worked in the game. Really, all I have to say is congrats to all of you and keep going!
I had a message of code error after playing for about 2 min( I just understood how to move, and it happened. Anyway I like the idea and the game seems to be fun and unususal:)
Really interesting idea, though it took me a few tries before I got the hang of it. Was fun once I'd got used to it, though it's sometimes a bit difficult to judge where to aim your shots, as they move quite slowly. Nice work :-)
Once I understood what I was doing I really enjoyed myself. It was fun figuring out the main mechanic (cause for some reason I chose not to read the instructions) and you've fleshed it out quite nicely with how buildings light up when you press their respective keys. Nice work!
:alien: *GAH!* When the aliens are disembarking to the rooftops and the buildings are crumbling around you is where this game really shines. Good choice of music and sound effects. The art style was consistent, it felt like a cross between fine art and EGA mode. :grin: Although I'm a fast typist, I just could not train my brain to use the right keys. You had an H on the helipad/H-key - which was helpful - and I wish you continued that symbology for all the buildings. As for the learning curve, maybe if you started with a small subset of buildings/keys, and after each subsequent wave introduced more. Nice entry.
The game start out a bit too hard to beginner though imo. Probably there should be some "introductory" levels before the real game. Like a small subset of keys in the beginning, or a city with the whole keyboard fully visualized.
I don't really like the UFO though. Shooting them doesn't really match well with the keyboard layout, since they're not on a building, I can only shoot at their general direction, it's like shooting from one coordinate system to another, it just doesn't feel good.
Overall I think it's a very innovative entry with several potential directions to evolve. I had a good time playing it!
Clever idea for a game. The control style is very interesting, but I'm pretty terrible with it. Perhaps if it was more lenient with what qualifies as a close enough building or if there was some guide as to what keys are where it might be easier. As it is, I really like the concept but it's a bit too tricky for me to make much progress. The visuals are really nice, though. I like the details with the buildings lighting up as you press the corresponding key and the building for the H key having a helipad on top. The music and sound effects are also great. Unfortunately, the game ended up crashing with this error:
That's an innovative idea! I struggled with the controls though, as I am so used to having special keys for moving that it takes a lot of re-learning to understand which key belongs to what house. Maybe I sucked too bad, but maybe the game needs a little more polish especially when it comes to communicating to the player that they pushed an invalid key, maybe by quickly showing an overlay that indicates what key the current house belongs to.
A comment on deploying: You shouldn't export games to Installers in Game Maker, since most people on LD don't want to be bothered installing your game which could potentially leave some unwanted files behind after uninstalling it. In order to export the game properly, you have to pick File -> Create Application and then in the file dialog choose file type "single runtime executable" or "compressed application". The exe will be the least hassle for players but may cause problems with some virus scanners, so I would suggest picking the compressed application.
Could be a great typing/learning game as well. Would probably help to just label the tops of the buildings with the keys. It's cute to maneuver with them, but really hard to figure out at first and would be useful to younger audiences if they can learn from it as well. Could see it turn into a typing tutor too if the UFOs need words to type to shoot at.
Was a bit strange that I could damage the buildings trying to shoot the UFOs. I guess I didn't see the incentive to leave the turret once I figured out how to get to one, because if I didn't shoot the UFO that was coming for me, I was pretty much dead anyway. Maybe if I had health and the UFO just destroyed the turret on top?
Interesting idea! It kinda simulates a touch screen. You need some time to get used to this way of controlling things, but there is quite some potential.
GameJolt: http://gamejolt.com/games/qwercity/252122
Windows: https://www.dropbox.com/s/zgxzbi54serh3ui/QWERTcitY.zip?dl=0
GMS project: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/prjeshflixc4d7y/AADkEQhRZm0NOIVVXGMIkwM0a?dl=0