2009 PGD 'Arcadia' Competition
5th July 2009 to 29th November 2009
No 'Best' Awards
Due to the low number of final entries, we won't be awarding the 'Best' awards this year, as I'm sure the winning entrants will have enough prizes anyway. The one noteable exception is of course the 'Jan Horn' award for Best Newcomer.
Final Results
| First Place |
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| NashaSOFT with Tube Runner |
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| Second Place |
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| Paul Nicholls with Day of Destruction |
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| Third Place |
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| NecroSOFT with FUR |
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| Jan Horn Award for Best Newcomer |
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| NashaSOFT with Tube Runner |
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Final Scores
| Team | Will | Traveler | Yuriy | Spirit | Total |
|---|
| NashaSOFT | 335 | 281 | 378 | 360 | 1354 |
| Paul_nicholls | 375 | 296 | 357 | 320 | 1348 |
| NecroSOFT | 370 | 315 | 336 | 247 | 1268 |
| Noeska | 135 | 138 | 233 | 35 | 541 |
| Eon Clash | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| Incendium | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| jxs | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| Leadline Software | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| Legolas | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| Lone Loner | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| Maggot stompers | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| Mirage | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| Neuronal | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| Pstudio | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
Judges Breakdowns
Will (PGD Admin)
| | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Final Scores | |
|---|
| Team | Goal 1 | Total | Goal 1 | Goal 2 | Goal 3 | Goal 4 | Goal 5 | Total | Graphics | Sound | Playability | Innovation | Total | Grand Total |
|---|
| Eon Clash | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Incendium | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| jxs | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Leadline Software | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Legolas | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Lone Loner | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Maggot stompers | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Mirage | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| NashaSOFT | 5 | 5 | 10 | 25 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 55 | 75 | 60 | 55 | 85 | 275 | 335 |
| NecroSOFT | 5 | 5 | 10 | 25 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 55 | 95 | 85 | 60 | 70 | 310 | 370 |
| Neuronal | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Noeska | 5 | 5 | 10 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 25 | 0 | 40 | 30 | 95 | 135 |
| Paul_nicholls | 5 | 5 | 10 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 45 | 75 | 80 | 80 | 90 | 325 | 375 |
| Pstudio | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
Traveler (PGD Admin)
| | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Final Scores | |
|---|
| Team | Goal 1 | Total | Goal 1 | Goal 2 | Goal 3 | Goal 4 | Goal 5 | Total | Graphics | Sound | Playability | Innovation | Total | Grand Total |
|---|
| Eon Clash | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Incendium | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| jxs | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Leadline Software | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Legolas | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Lone Loner | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Maggot stompers | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Mirage | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| NashaSOFT | 5 | 5 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 60 | 65 | 65 | 70 | 260 | 281 |
| NecroSOFT | 5 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 25 | 75 | 75 | 75 | 60 | 285 | 315 |
| Neuronal | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Noeska | 5 | 5 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 30 | 0 | 40 | 50 | 120 | 138 |
| Paul_nicholls | 5 | 5 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 26 | 60 | 65 | 75 | 65 | 265 | 296 |
| Pstudio | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
Spirit (Outer Reaches Studios)
| | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Final Scores | |
|---|
| Team | Goal 1 | Total | Goal 1 | Goal 2 | Goal 3 | Goal 4 | Goal 5 | Total | Graphics | Sound | Playability | Innovation | Total | Grand Total |
|---|
| Eon Clash | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Incendium | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| jxs | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Leadline Software | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Legolas | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Lone Loner | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Maggot stompers | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Mirage | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| NashaSOFT | 5 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 95 | 75 | 80 | 85 | 335 | 360 |
| NecroSOFT | 5 | 5 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 27 | 75 | 50 | 40 | 50 | 215 | 247 |
| Neuronal | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Noeska | 5 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 20 | 35 |
| Paul_nicholls | 5 | 5 | 10 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 40 | 70 | 85 | 60 | 60 | 275 | 320 |
| Pstudio | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
Yuriy (Ixchel Studios)
| | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Final Scores | |
|---|
| Team | Goal 1 | Total | Goal 1 | Goal 2 | Goal 3 | Goal 4 | Goal 5 | Total | Graphics | Sound | Playability | Innovation | Total | Grand Total |
|---|
| Eon Clash | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Incendium | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| jxs | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Leadline Software | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Legolas | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Lone Loner | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Maggot stompers | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Mirage | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| NashaSOFT | 5 | 5 | 10 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 90 | 70 | 95 | 85 | 340 | 378 |
| NecroSOFT | 5 | 5 | 10 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 85 | 85 | 70 | 60 | 300 | 336 |
| Neuronal | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Noeska | 5 | 5 | 10 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 50 | 10 | 60 | 80 | 200 | 233 |
| Paul_nicholls | 5 | 5 | 10 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 80 | 80 | 90 | 70 | 320 | 357 |
| Pstudio | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
Judges Comments
Will
Will is going to publish his comments in the next edition of Pascal Gamer.
Traveler
Paul Nicholls
I was definitely looking forward to this game. When previewed in the forums it reminded me somewhat of the game Asteroids. As it turns out, that impression wasn't really a bad guess. I've played my share of Asteroid games though, so please do, bring it on...
The game
The main screen is nicely presented and the background music fits well.
As probably most players would do, I immediately start to press several of the most obvious keys, spacebar, return, ctrl, etc but nothing happened. As it turns out I need to add a coin first, by pressing either the right mouse button or 'c' and then click the left mouse button. I realize this is explained in the manual, but I would have liked to see a hint on screen as well.
The game begins and I'm presented with earth surrounded by satellites. Moments later asteroids appear. I quickly target and click on each of them, and they explode. Some break into smaller pieces others do not. There are 3 kinds of asteroids: large gray, which tend to explode into two smaller pieces, medium sized yellow and tiny red ones. The red asteroids take more time to destroy but also award the most points.
The good
Overall this is a very complete game. The graphics aren't great but not bad either, sound effects are nice and there is a huge amount of levels. At my first go I think I played through at least 25-30 levels.
The bad
Day of Defense is easy. Too easy really. It felt like level 20 played exactly the same as level 1. The energy meter almost never reaches zero and even if it does, it usually isn't a problem. Earth is capable of taking quite a few hits. Sometimes asteroids collide with each other, making them move to a different direction other than to earth, thus decreasing the danger and increasing your time to act. At the end of every level all destroyed satellites as well as all damage to earth are automatically restored, basically giving you a clean sheet to start with.
During the previous competition the team behind FUR already displayed some great skills when they submitted their first entry. So when I learned they would participate again, I had some high expectations.
The game
The game comes with a setup program which lets you define some basic settings like keyboard configuration, the ability to run full screen, screen resolution, motion blur, how many cars you want on the track and even the number of tracks.
Before I run FUR, I modify some of the basic settings and save them. There's a brief loading screen and then the game starts. Some heavy, but in my opinion, fitting music begins to play in the background and a demo of the game starts to run. FUR too does not mention to the player what to do next. It says I have 0 credits, but no hint on how to add more.
Upon adding a credit, a selection panel becomes visible, allowing me to choose between a single race or the championship. After that new panels appear to select different tracks as well as three different cars.
The race begins. The countdown starts and seconds later I'm on my way for a place to the top. And that's certainly no easy thing to do as the cpu AI is putting up a nice fight. And that is where the Turbo Boost comes in. Actually it's more of a requirement to use it, because without it you probably wont make it to all the checkpoints in time. Still, you've got to use to wisely as the supply is limited.
The good
Overall FUR feels like a true racing game. The music is just right. The graphics are excellent although I would have liked to see more detail in the background. The AI of the other opponents is good enough to keep you on your toes. They don't appear to be aware of each other, so you'll probably won't see any sneaky moves. However their skill isn't perfect either, so you'll occasionally see them drive off of the track.
The bad
While it clearly shows that a lot of time has been put into FUR, I wonder if some parts could have better been left alone in favor of polishing up what it's all about. I would rather have seen better collision detection instead of three different cars. Smashing into a wall usually means a lost game, because I'm unable to recover in time to reach the next checkpoint let alone reach first place. In fact I'm better of racing off of the track because then I'll recover automatically. Auto recovery does appear somewhat buggy when several cars including yourself run of the track and spawn on top of each other.
I also feel that it could be balanced a lot more. Right now, Turbo Boost is not optional, it's a requirement to get to the checkpoints in time. And since the competition revolves around arcade, a few more bonus items to either annoy your enemies with or to increase your own chances would have been nice additions as well.
Another game I was very much looking forward to. The screenshots showing
DeleD as the editor certainly looked very interesting. But can it hold up the expectations now that we can finally play the game?
The game
The main menu is nicely presented. All options are clearly visible and I am encouraged to add a few coins in order to play. The choice to have a four coin requirement in my opinion is a bit over the top though.
A track selection menu appears, I make my choice and after a brief loading screen I'm ready to play. There's a voice counting down from three and off I go, down into the tube. I pass several coins and other items, manage to collect some too, before, seconds later, I smash into a wall. Game over.
The good.
The concept. I think it has some really great potential. Overall the screens and menus are presented nicely and to the point. The sound effects too are nicely selected and fit the game well. Graphics are not exactly great, but aren't bad either.
The bad
While the concept is great, I think it's execution is not. The tubes are very narrow and generally leave the player with very little room to react to upcoming obstacles. More often than not I crash within 15-25 seconds. The fact that some items damage you as well doesn't help either. I've found that only if I take my time and carefully maneuver between obstacles I can make it to the end.
I understand that with practice it is possible to go past the obstacles and collect as many points as possible, while maintaining a steady pace. On the other hand I also know that this game was meant to play against others and honestly, right now I don't see that happen.
Noeska
To be fair, at this point it is too early to properly review this game. Submerged clearly still is a game in very early alpha stages. It is possible to play one level, but many of the game elements, including required elements for this competition, are not yet present. The graphics obviously are placeholders and sounds are not present either. There are some basic gameplay elements, but in all it is very basic.
Conclusion
Of all games when it comes to concept and innovation Tuberunner definitely scores highest. I can easily see this evolve into a game where you race against others, jumping into other tubes, race into more open areas, collide into roadblocks (which only slow you down) and use all kinds of pickups.
In terms of graphics FUR scores best. The blur effect is nicely done and really adds to the speed effect when you turn on the speed boost.
In regards to sounds I'm torn between FUR and Tuberunner. I thought the sound effects worked best for Tuberunner, but FUR has some nice background music and equally great, although slightly fewer sound effects.
Gameplay wise DOD and FUR take the best positions. FUR gave me the pretty much everything a racing game needs. DOD is a good second despite being a bit too easy.
Overall
In my opinion FUR scores best. Overall the game is very much complete. Sure, it needs a couple tweaks here and there but in general everything is there. DOD, while easy, it too offers the complete package. Agreed, it's a relatively simple game, but simplicity is not something we have to score.
Tuberunner, while very very close to becoming second in my book, only lacks in a few areas where DOD scored a just tiny bit better.
Spirit
Negative comments:-
Lives -- Even though there were checkpoints in place, there were no extra lives to progress further into the game. It was very easy to die as well.
Continue -- There was no continue option at all.
Music -- There was no menu or in game music at all.
Sound FX -- Not enough really and they were not always working when collecting things.
Options -- There was no where to configure keys or change anything like resolution or volumes.
Levels -- There was no concept of levels and difficulty getting harder with each level.
Scores -- No Online scoreboard.
Positive comments:-
Graphics -- These were very good, a lot of effort went into these, well done indeed.
Sound FX -- The few that were put in, really did sound great, good job on them.
Menu -- The landing screen was very nice, you had the demo running in the background and the menu itself was really clear, it was easy to read and did not clash at all. It was also clear to see what you had to press to get credits, which is always good.
Control Response -- The controls felt great, just about the right kind of response you need for a game like this.
Scores -- While not an online scoreboard, it records scores and saves them for the next time you play.
Playability -- This is one of the most important things in a game, other than the speed which you could die, this game had pretty good playability.
General:-
This has great potential to be a very playable and enjoyable game. Overall this really is a great effort. It does not feel much like an arcade style game though, the only part that does, is adding credits to play in the menu. If you choose to keep developing this, i think you are on to a winner, maybe make the armour a bit stronger though so players can crash at high speed and not blow up right away, a few more bumps would be fine.
Negative comments:-
Lives -- There was no concept of lives at all.
Continue -- There was no continue option at all.
Music -- There was no menu or in game music at all.
Menu -- There was no menu, just the 2 race options when a credit was added.
Sound FX -- There were a few sounds but the quality was really lacking in them. Sorry but it was just a lot of noise.
Options -- There was nothing in game within a menu. Also no option to quit other than using alt + F4 or alt + tab and closing it that way.
Control Response -- It was lacking a lot in this area unfortunately. I tried this in all 3 cars.
Scores -- No Online scoreboard. The only time a score was recorded was after finishing a Championship race, however it does not seem to save it anywhere.
Playability -- Unfortunately this was lacking here, the movement felt a bit jerky and when slightly hitting the wall, you could end up at a full stop facing it. Was pretty hard to turn at all.
Positive comments:-
Options -- While they were not in game, at least you were able to configure the keys and resolution with a seperate tool, great job on this guys.
Graphics -- These were pretty good, the game engine has issues, but generally the graphics looked nice. The reflective surfaces added to it quite nicely as well.
Landing Screen -- The demo running when the game loaded was nice to see, it looks good and adds to the feel of the game.
General:-
While i did not like loads about the submited version of this game. I think if the engine was running a bit more smoothly and more was added to the surroundings, basically a bit more polished in several areas, this could make an absolutely fantastic racing game.
From the time i first loaded it and saw the demo running, i thought it would be a lot more enjoyable than it turned out to be, which is a shame because i personally love racing games. Like i say though, if you keep at this and finish it off, i think you would get a lot of people playing it, maybe make it for online challenges also.
Noeska
Negative comments:-
Lives -- There was no concept of lives at all.
Continue -- There was no continue option at all.
Music -- There was no menu or in game music at all.
Menu -- There was no real menu, just start and quit.
Sound FX -- There were no sounds at all
Options -- There were no options of any kind.
Background -- when moving the backround seemed to change angles as well.
Scores -- No Online scoreboard. No scores of any kind.
Graphics -- These were not very good at all. Very basic lines mostly.
Credits -- Credits were not required to play.
Playability -- There was unfortunately no real playability in this version of the game.
Positive comments:-
Control Response -- Movement was responsive.
General:-
From the design document, you had an interesting idea here with this, unfortunately though, it was nowhere near ready for a submission really. It lacks in so many areas, but at least you were one of the few that did submit, even with such a small version.
What i would like to say though, if this is your first go at making a game, i would like to say well done and keep at it. You clearly have the ability to develop and i think with practice, you will get there one day for deffinate. I do want to wish you the very best with it.
Paul Nicholls
Negative comments:-
Lives -- There was no concept of lives at all.
Menu -- There was no menu in game.
Options -- There were no options.
Variety -- Lacked different things, become the same thing all the time.
Continue -- This was infinate, it did not meet the rules to score points unfortunately.
satellites -- The game continued after all these were destroyed, maybe the option to continue should have come up and restarted the level.
Levels -- Not much happened for around 30 levels, was very slow to get going.
Positive comments:-
Scores -- There is an online scoreboard, wonderful job with this.
Continue -- While it was infinite, at least i was given the option to continue.
Graphics -- The graphics were mostly good, just the odd bits felt like they were lacking a little, but overall nice job.
Sound FX -- The sounds fit well into the game, good job on them.
Music -- Was a nice choice of music, it seemed to go well with the style of game, maybe a change after so many levels would be good.
Control Response -- The controls felt great, it was easy to move around the screen and the speed was just right.
Levels -- The game eventually got harder as the levels went by, i got to around level 43 before i tried other things.
Playability -- This deffinately has a lot of potential for much playability.
General:-
This game is the sort of thing i can sit and play for hours, it just needs a bit more variation adding, so it does not become to repetative. Overall i think this feels more like an arcade game than any other i have tried, just missing a few essential things.
Other than that, this is a great style of game and i think the potential for this is very good. Keep up the good work and well done getting this up and running. This is a great submission.
Yuriy
The four final entries all seem to have quite a potential for becoming successful commercial games. In all four entries the lack of polish in the main menu and user interface is apparent and in some cases it's difficult to figure out what to do without reading the readme. The lack of presentation is apparent: there should be at least a configuration utility and an installer. If the game has no explanation text, please, at least include a detailed readme file.
The game is responsive with solid graphics and gameplay. The main menu really needs some work and the blurry text makes the game appear much less polished. Sounds could be improved a bit and a background music would make the game more appealing.
The game looks stylish but was somewhat unresponsive on the two machines I've tried. The 3D graphics engine seems buggy with some visible glitches and weird illumination. The main menu needs more work as well as the ingame's HUD (which has meaningless text and numbers). The usage of 3D text was a nice touch. This game has a lot of potential but first it needs some serious polishing and bug fixing. Music starts about 10-20 seconds before the game starts, which is quite weird. Couldn't find a way to exit the game without the use of Alt + F4 or the help of Task Manager. :)
Noeska
The game seems to have a novel idea, but it's in infant stage. I would
really like to see this game finished. Some better graphics wouldn't
hurt. :) The hand drawn images could work if used in much more detail
(e.g. draw many pieces of waves and put them together, water bubles,
etc.) Sound and music wouldn't hurt either. :)
Paul Nicholls
The game seems solid and responsive. A main menu where you can start the
game could really help. An explanation of what's going on would be
useful as well. The game continues even after the satellites have been
destroyed. (?)
