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s-m-r
Slow-Motion Riot
Registered
04/06/2006
Points
1078
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21st November, 2011 at 22:30:09 -
Here I am proud to present to you the results for this year's Halloween Competition! There were five entrants, and each of them will earn a trophy and a review of their submission for their efforts. In addition, the winners of the Judge's Choice and People's Choice will have a dedicated host for their games for at least a year.
Without further ado, I present the competition standings...
TIED FOR THIRD PLACE, with 22 out of 40 points each: Witch Pumpkin? by PuTs, Spooky Block Breaker by Road Kill 1987, and Forbiden Mansion by eliris.
SECOND PLACE with 30 out of 40 points: Zombie Swarm by Sumo148
JUDGE'S CHOICE with 33 out of 40 points: Tirol Zombie Invasion by IamJot
PEOPLE'S CHOICE: Zombie Swarm by Sumo148
For those games posted here at TDC I'll add complete, official reviews (in the Review section) with screenshots at a later date. Meanwhile, here's some more detail about each of the entries (in no particular order)...
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s-m-r
Slow-Motion Riot
Registered
04/06/2006
Points
1078
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21st November, 2011 at 22:30:49 -
ZOMBIE SWARM by Sumo148
Spookiness: 16/20
Presentation: 14/20
Presentation: From the get-go, the game's menus and background sound evoke a very spooky atmosphere, and I was drawn to it very quickly. The end-of-game statistics have room for improvement, and there was no high score table: items that would have definitely added to the game's professionalism and all-around presentation score.
Gameplay: although I was initially impressed with the two-handed control scheme (move with one hand and aim/shoot with the other), gameplay seemed rather repetitive after a few rounds. Simply back-pedaling and shooting once a clump of enemies was together appeared to be the most effective strategy, and each new level added little variation beyond more enemies to herd and shoot. The demons were a nice touch, but when bullets eventually pass through all enemies there wasn't much added challenge as time went on.
Graphics: nice hand-drawn sprites and menu screens; if you've not seen the game yet, I recommend you check it out just for this feature. For those who like blood and gore, there's plenty to go around for you. In the shop menu screen there are some detailed weapon models, if that's your thing. For some reason, the graphics in the game reminded me of the old arcade game Chiller, even though the game isn't a shooting gallery-style game...Maybe it's the raw gore-fan quality that makes me draw this comparison.
Sound: for me, this was the highlight of the game! The background sound was immersive and added plenty of points to the "spookiness" category. Hats off to U.2. (no, I don't mean the band!) for creating the background sound. And the noise at the beginning of the demon rounds is absolutely terrifying...
Lastability: I've not seen all the weapons, so I may try the game a little more. But some bug-fixing needs to occur before I give this ol' game a more serious try.
Overall:
Strongest Point: crafting the spooky atmosphere
Weakest Point: feels quite unfinished; the game engine seems underutilitzed; crashes & bugs
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s-m-r
Slow-Motion Riot
Registered
04/06/2006
Points
1078
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21st November, 2011 at 22:31:15 -
WITCH PUMPKIN? by PuTs
Spookiness: 8/20
Presentation: 14/20
Presentation: This is an excellent first effort for Flash games for PuTs. Cute, cartoony, Halloween-themed graphics, and easy to read menus. Includes game-over and credits screens.
Gameplay: The game is a bit repetitive, with difficulty that ramps up into the stratosphere. The game requires a lot of balancing and fine-tuning, in my opinion, if there are to be repeat and/or returning players.
Graphics: These were picked up from a cartoon-graphics website, and are well-done. This is a wise choice for someone who doesn't have graphics skills of their own (in fact, I might visit there myself sometime soon). I've not seen PuTs' work in this area, but at least the game artwork looks nice.
Sound/Music: This category didn't add much to the spookiness at all, but seemed appropriate for the cartoony graphical theme. Some of the sound effects are out-of-sync with the rest of the game; you'll hear some dude yelling for some reason every once in a while, even if the player hasn't committed an error. Also, the menu and credit screens should also have background music.
Lastability: Sadly, there's not much here. If you make it to the point when the second witch appears, you won't last long at all. The game becomes very frustrating at that point. Again, some fine-tuning and game balance would be very useful in this area.
Overall:
Strongest Point: The graphical choices and frame composition are well-done.
Weakest Point: Game is very unbalanced and not spooky.
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s-m-r
Slow-Motion Riot
Registered
04/06/2006
Points
1078
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21st November, 2011 at 22:40:57 -
SPOOKY BLOCK BREAKER by Road Kill 1987
Spookiness: 6/20
Presentation: 16/20
Presentation: This is the most professionally-presented game of the bunch, hands down. Nice menu screens and layout, a high score table, fitting music, a credits screen, and a well-composed total package. Nice job here. 
Gameplay: This is a fast-clicking block-breaker game that pretty much anyone can pick up and learn quickly, complete with Halloween-inspired icons. It's very smooth and relatively bug-free, although not terribly spooky. It's appropriate for all ages, however, which is most likely what the developer was going for.
Graphics: Clean, consistent, professional, friendly, and appropriate for a casual puzzle game. The font choices were well-chosen, too. In the first few play-throughs, I was always interested in seeing what new Halloween critter would show up next.
Sound/Music: Consists of a single background tune, but it was an atmospheric, moody Halloween tune. We could use more - for example, when the Panic Button is lit, the music could take on a more urgent tone without making the game to scary for younger audiences (think Tetris Attack...). The clicks and buzzes for clicking the mouse on blocks work just fine.
Lastability: High-score addicts will come back to this game, as it is skill-based (removing points for inaccurate clicks is a nice touch that caters to the precise-clicking crowd). Games are quick, and feature graphical variety and a serious ramp-up in difficulty.
Overall:
Strongest Point: Admirable presentation quality in a casual puzzle game with light thematic element.
Weakest Point: Not much complexity to the game, and although Halloween-themed it's not very scary.
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s-m-r
Slow-Motion Riot
Registered
04/06/2006
Points
1078
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21st November, 2011 at 22:51:43 -
FORBIDEN [sic] MANSION by eliris
Spookiness: 10/20
Presentation: 12/20
Presentation: Where's the title screen, dude? Apart from that, I personally enjoyed the retro-NES/Master System quality to the game. It reminded me of playing those basic games on ColecoVision or something back in the day. It had a cool, hungry-developer-action-adventure vibe to it. The addition of a Pause menu was a nice touch.
Gameplay: This was probably the most satisfying, FUN-TO-PLAY game out of the whole bunch. It's essentially a brief puzzle-platformer with a variety of challenges. The game could seriously use some basic enemies to round out the challenge. It was a joy to move a cute little pumpkin-headed fellow around a dark castle environment.
Graphics: Retro-style may be off-putting to some who enjoy all the bells and whistles of contemporary game systems, but I enjoyed the look of this game. The basic parallaxing and ink effects were a nice touch. And the hero was the most adorable player avatar I've seen in quite some time.
Sound/Music: This was retro-themed all the way, and added some much-needed drama and atmosphere to this brief game. I liked the sound of the Pause button; it's straight out of the retro play-book.
Lastability: There's no scoring, and no real reason to come back to the game unless you are there to appreciate the retro aesthetic. An average player will have to start a few levels over again, but someone with above-average skills could finish the game in much less time than is needed to deliver a pizza.
Overall:
Strongest Point: The retro quality and thematic togetherness.
Weakest Point: Needs improved presentation - title screen, score, enemies, etc.
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s-m-r
Slow-Motion Riot
Registered
04/06/2006
Points
1078
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21st November, 2011 at 23:06:17 -
TIROL MOUNTAIN ZOMBIE INVASION by IamJot
Spookiness: 18/20
Presentation: 15/20
Presentation: Great atmosphere and possibly the spookiest game out of the whole bunch in this competition. At the same time, it has a bizarre soundtrack and visual style all its own. It stands out head-and-shoulders from the rest of the entries.
Gameplay: This is a mouse-and-keyboard-driven action-platformer, which hearkens back to pre-3D gems such as Soldat. Although the game is still in its early stages, there's a lot of potential there. The addition of dialog boxes and triggered events is a nice touch. The included level was unfinished (you can walk off the edges of the map, for example), but there were no show-stopping bugs.
Graphics: Out of all the entrants, this game has an unmatched graphical theme, with detail, style, and substance. It's a very nice look...And holy smoke - night vision goggles!!!
Sound/Music: A mysterious and bizarre Swiss folk music tune mixed with zombie groans pervades the game at all times. It's strangely horrifying, and reminds me of the most disturbing scenes of Carnival of Souls (one of my favorite classic ghost-story films). I've never really heard anything like it.
Lastability: I had my fill of the game only after several play-throughs. The game is difficult and challenging, but the fact that it is clearly unfinished is a serious mark against it.
Overall:
Strongest Point: The unforgettable, haunting-but-hilarious atmosphere crafted by the game rockets this title to the top of the list.
Weakest Point: Too bad it's not a full game!!!
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Sumo148
Super amazing fantastic user
Registered
26/01/2009
Points
530
      
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21st November, 2011 at 23:49:22 -
Just saying that there is a mochi global high score table in my game, so I'm not sure why you said there wasn't  But thanks for the review anyways! 
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PuTs
Registered
09/10/2011
Points
13
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22nd November, 2011 at 08:22:37 -
Thank you for the nice review..!
I'm already working on the winter holiday compo on newgrounds 
And also, here is some of my work with the cartoon maker: http://ykyasw.smackjeeves.com/
I've already sold a couple to some magazines..!
PuTs
PuffingThoughts.co.nr
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s-m-r
Slow-Motion Riot
Registered
04/06/2006
Points
1078
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22nd November, 2011 at 12:03:07 -
@ Sumo: I totally missed it...VERY sorry about that.
@ PuTs: congrats to you!
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eliris
Registered
14/05/2010
Points
1708
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23rd November, 2011 at 14:55:29 -
Thanks for the review!
and ugh, its only now that I realize I forgot a title screen, like seriously
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