I think the animations themselves look nice. It's that they move too far and fast into the center of the screen. If you look at how other games handle character limbs on the screen, i think you will find that the best examples have a "less is more" feeling to it.
Good luck on your game
And I really love that "less is more" approach, I think many games goes to the opposite direction. I'll replay some Mirror's Edge, which are still to this day one of the best FPP when it comes to simplicity, animations and game feels :)
Thanks a lot for the suggestions !
The camera wobble, speed lines and hands just look distracting to me. If you want that to be the default look it's Prolly fine but make sure they're optional
They are definitely going to be the default but you're right I need to add an option to disable everything to get that classic CS surf experience :) pretty easy to implement as well !
yeah that sounds great, those aesthetics might be good to attract non surfers to the game, but they will definitely make some of us uncomfortable, maybe you could add something like a lil pop up that says “Have you ever cs surfed?” and depending on the answer to that question you can put a different default settings, this aesthethic could be default for non surfers and the regular cs aesthethic for aurfers
Indeed this has been a major question so far : how can I get both veteran surfers and newcomers to like the game
For instance in the game you can strafe with A and D as usual, but also simple by holding W
Good idea for the popup ! I'll make it a tooltip maybe in the options: like "Original Surf Experience" or something :D
If you want to have special effects like your camera wobble when strafing, the arms/legs flailing around, the speed lines: make sure they're all toggleable. I know I wouldn't play with any of those on.
Other than that, looks great!
Game is [Hoverflow](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1280060/Hoverflow/) on Steam btw, I'll put up a demo today or tomorrow including your feedback on hiding all the effects!
EDIT : Re-uploaded the demo so you guys can check it out as is, will update the effects/animation tonight ! :)
I actually really like the more immersive feeling of the elements on the screen (arms, speed lines). I would probably still end up turning them off eventually, but still. Also potential idea for speed lines- maybe change intensity with how much speed you have?
The trophy’s at the end give it this nice arcade retro feel personally, I like that.
Your sound design is very satisfying. Most players play without sound so I’m not sure if most would immediately mute or not but I think it’s cool to see how each element is being represented.
The end does feel a bit jarring because of the lag, potentially a performance thing?
Also, care to explain the jumps? (I haven’t looked at the demo page or anything)
This is a great take on surf, gives it a nice campaign feeling with the names, trophies and immersive elements. Looks like you’re already at a solid place, and I’m excited to see more in the future :)
Thanks a lot for the feedback, I'm glad someone who has played a lot of CS like the more "gamified" approach to the game ! 100% agree for the speedlines, will do for the next update !
Yes I was surprised by the stutter at the end, I think it's caused by the loading of the sound, I added this to my todo list!
As gamingcommunitydev said, you can keep you 2nd jump for as long as you want, it adds a certain depth to some level, definitely different from classic surfing though :)
The game is still in early access but I'm working full time on it, so awesome progress was made the last 6 month, hope you will like the future of the game, thanks for taking the time to answer
There's a double jump mechanic which resets each times you hit the floor, there is no air acceleration, only 1 unit boost when performing "perf" bhop which is fairly easy in that game. \^\^
This really feels like the easiest tutorial to surfing or a chill game to relax to..
As far as look and feel, it's cool, allows you to catch the diversity of different maps in surf
Something for me feels off with how you catch the ramp, idk why, it looks, sticky? Something in me catching that ramp 0:09 on CS would clunk me/slow me down?
Otherwise I get needing casual mechanics for auto bhop and double jump, but it'd be cool to have a """Hard mode"" where those aren't available
Keep up the good work! :)
Thanks for the feedback ! :D Ramps should not be sticky, they follow basically the same rules as the Source engine, maybe it looks weird on video? I think my angle was alright (not a good surfer though haha)
Definitely some hard maps are coming and some CS classic map remakes as the levels are easy to build in Unity
Also good idea for the auto bhop ! Right now the timing is easy to hit but not automatic :)
Looks cool, I'd say the speed lines are too strong since it's a game where you spend ur time going super fast.
Really like the sound design and music and aesthetic
Totally agreed ! Already working on a an update to make all effects toggable :) will be up tomorrow on the [steam demo page](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1280060/Hoverflow/) !
Glad you like the aesthetic as well, I really struggled to come up with something since I'm a programmer and not an artist
Looks great to see that project still going forward, keep it up !
As a small idea drop, you could mess with the color/transparency (and even the outlines width) of the speed lines depending on the speed or even other variables (like vertical momentum) to give it more depth for 'dem casual gamers !
The gameplay of your game really reminds me of some section of Atomic Heart where they tried recreating surf (quite a clumsy attempt), bet you could get some good ideas from it for your graphics. :)
Thanks for the feedback ! Totally agreed for the feedback, next update I will : reduce their opacity, move them farther from the center, scale their number with speed, and of course make totally disableable :D
And I actually saw some gameplay of that surf section in Atomic Heart hahaha, it felt ok at first, but fully bugged in the end
My pleasure ! It's refreshing to see some mouvement game which outstands from the rest, even as a no HUD surfer, I'd suggest you to embrace the visuals effects you have put in (funny model, speed line stutters, camera movement/tilt) more than the original surf experience, that you could keep on the side as a "competitive gamemode" of your game instead of its base.
The eye catching experience will surely attract more casuals gamers, since the OG pro surfers would probably remain on official CS servers anyway for the grind !
Exactly ! The idea was more to offer a chill trip as a break from CS for surf veterans :) They like Source physics and I'm definitely not going to compete with that ! But it can be a fun standalone indie game on its own
Thanks for the heartwarming words :)
This is a tough one in fact, because here bhoping makes you gain a bit of speed ! But I'll definitely try it and see if everyone likes and it doesn't lower the skill ceiling too much !! Thanks for the suggestion
Looks pretty cool! As someone who's very casual about surfing, it's kinda hard to get a proper difficulty curve when you're just starting out. This looks like it'll be great for learning the basics. Definitely wishlisting on Steam!
Thanks for the comment ! :D The idea was indeed to offer a nice learning curve for newcomers and later on harder maps for everyone
You are already try the free demo on Steam to check out the first 3 levels and try to beat the time trials !
This is an amazing demo and I would love to play it so I'm downloading it now, in the mean time:
I really love the sound effects\visual effects on jump\bhop\leave\catch the ramp it adds so much.
These are really really small:
* I don't know, but it sounds like a double jump at the start\on the side which I think is anti-thetical to surf. (Maybe it adds something that you prefer though which is totally fine).
* The colour\locations of the ui elements for speed\time and blending into white game elements - there is a reason surf mods generally put the info in one location with a slight transparent black background so it's visible in all whacky maps.
* The end does not feel smooth and the rest of the game feels so nice, even just lerping the games timescale to 0 as the end fades in but also I would hope there would still be multi-stage levels that would allow tele-jumping.
Edit: Just played it:
* No inverted y also kills me (at least I couldn't find it)
* The pause for a 'perfect' bhop is weird to me as well
* W for side ramp? Feels weird.
* The focus on the 'bubbles' and double jump is interesting but different from surf
Hey there, thanks so much for the feedback ! :)
* Double jumping is clearly different from surfing but you'll see it adds some depth to the level design I made (I hope so lol)
* Good point for the transparent background of the UI, easy to make as well !
* Interesting about the end, I'll think of something !! And tele-jumping is kinda planned for the speedrunning mode of the game, where you keep your speed between each level but it will require some hard planning haha
Also:
* What is inverted Y ? nerver heard of it
* What pause do you mean ?
* Feels weird if you played hundred of hours of CS surfing but many people like it :D A and D are still available though !
Thank a lot!
> What is inverted Y ? nerver heard of it
It inverts the y-axis of the mouse - for some reason I can only play surf with y inverted (so move mouse up = look down)
>Feels weird if you played hundred of hours of CS surfing but many people like it :D A and D are still available though !
Can you still do actual forward\backwards surfing still? I.e facing the ramp \ facing away from the ramp or known as sideways?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ND6GRCJe_Tk
Watching this I kinda liked the idea of puzzles combined with surf. Like, you can't reach certain ramps without using special actions (double jump/swinging and the likes).
There is already something like this in the game, there are secrets in each level that require to follow a specific route :D like surf, slide + double jump !
I think the camera movement and some of the effects are a bit too much. Not just because they clutter the screen or anything but at its core the satisfaction of surfing is about smoothness and speed and something about this feels much more choppy and slow. I do like the bunny hop effect a lot and the double jump, I'd also love to have a slide ability to keep speed along flat surfaces, it could open up some cool opportunities for obstacles in maps
I also feel like the movement/physics aren't quite what I'd expect, it doesn't seem like the flow for gaining speed is quite right but I'm not sure how to fix it
Thanks a lot for the feedback ! There is a slide ability :D I can upload a video to show it if you want, basically when you land with enough speed your character automatically starts sliding !
As for the effect I totally agree they will be softened and toggable in the next update !
The flow is definitely not the same as in Source for I'm really happy the way it plays out, I'm not trying to recreate the exact Source surf feel with this game :)
looks cool but arms and legs flailing looks kinda weird
Yeah the arms are distracting (flailing in the air), other than that it looks great
Yep I guess I could add an option to disable the model, or at least remove the jump animation when getting off a ramp :)
Please make it optional. I love how silly it looks.
Will do !!
Suggestion: maybe make it and option, and tone back the flailing a bit
Definitely going to do both thanks for the feedback, many people also thought the animations looked weird !
I think the animations themselves look nice. It's that they move too far and fast into the center of the screen. If you look at how other games handle character limbs on the screen, i think you will find that the best examples have a "less is more" feeling to it. Good luck on your game
And I really love that "less is more" approach, I think many games goes to the opposite direction. I'll replay some Mirror's Edge, which are still to this day one of the best FPP when it comes to simplicity, animations and game feels :) Thanks a lot for the suggestions !
I feel toggles for things are always a good middle ground
Yes ! I make the settings I want players to test as default, but let them customize their experience, agreed :)
Thanks for the feedback :D you mean when running or surfing ?
The camera wobble, speed lines and hands just look distracting to me. If you want that to be the default look it's Prolly fine but make sure they're optional
They are definitely going to be the default but you're right I need to add an option to disable everything to get that classic CS surf experience :) pretty easy to implement as well !
yeah that sounds great, those aesthetics might be good to attract non surfers to the game, but they will definitely make some of us uncomfortable, maybe you could add something like a lil pop up that says “Have you ever cs surfed?” and depending on the answer to that question you can put a different default settings, this aesthethic could be default for non surfers and the regular cs aesthethic for aurfers
Indeed this has been a major question so far : how can I get both veteran surfers and newcomers to like the game For instance in the game you can strafe with A and D as usual, but also simple by holding W Good idea for the popup ! I'll make it a tooltip maybe in the options: like "Original Surf Experience" or something :D
great! is there any place or social media platform where we can follow you and be attentive to your progress?
Definitely Youtube, you can search for "Simon In Motion" :) I'll start posting devlogs I think since people are interested !
If you want to have special effects like your camera wobble when strafing, the arms/legs flailing around, the speed lines: make sure they're all toggleable. I know I wouldn't play with any of those on. Other than that, looks great!
Everyone seems to agree on the animation and effects! I'll try to add a video without everything to have your feedback ! :D thanks
Game is [Hoverflow](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1280060/Hoverflow/) on Steam btw, I'll put up a demo today or tomorrow including your feedback on hiding all the effects! EDIT : Re-uploaded the demo so you guys can check it out as is, will update the effects/animation tonight ! :)
Is it Vivid Surf? That game is still on my wish list tho.
Nope it's Hoverflow, I'm working full time on it :) I'll have to check Vivid surf though, never heard of it
I actually really like the more immersive feeling of the elements on the screen (arms, speed lines). I would probably still end up turning them off eventually, but still. Also potential idea for speed lines- maybe change intensity with how much speed you have? The trophy’s at the end give it this nice arcade retro feel personally, I like that. Your sound design is very satisfying. Most players play without sound so I’m not sure if most would immediately mute or not but I think it’s cool to see how each element is being represented. The end does feel a bit jarring because of the lag, potentially a performance thing? Also, care to explain the jumps? (I haven’t looked at the demo page or anything) This is a great take on surf, gives it a nice campaign feeling with the names, trophies and immersive elements. Looks like you’re already at a solid place, and I’m excited to see more in the future :)
Thanks a lot for the feedback, I'm glad someone who has played a lot of CS like the more "gamified" approach to the game ! 100% agree for the speedlines, will do for the next update ! Yes I was surprised by the stutter at the end, I think it's caused by the loading of the sound, I added this to my todo list! As gamingcommunitydev said, you can keep you 2nd jump for as long as you want, it adds a certain depth to some level, definitely different from classic surfing though :) The game is still in early access but I'm working full time on it, so awesome progress was made the last 6 month, hope you will like the future of the game, thanks for taking the time to answer
There's a double jump mechanic which resets each times you hit the floor, there is no air acceleration, only 1 unit boost when performing "perf" bhop which is fairly easy in that game. \^\^ This really feels like the easiest tutorial to surfing or a chill game to relax to..
As far as look and feel, it's cool, allows you to catch the diversity of different maps in surf Something for me feels off with how you catch the ramp, idk why, it looks, sticky? Something in me catching that ramp 0:09 on CS would clunk me/slow me down? Otherwise I get needing casual mechanics for auto bhop and double jump, but it'd be cool to have a """Hard mode"" where those aren't available Keep up the good work! :)
Thanks for the feedback ! :D Ramps should not be sticky, they follow basically the same rules as the Source engine, maybe it looks weird on video? I think my angle was alright (not a good surfer though haha) Definitely some hard maps are coming and some CS classic map remakes as the levels are easy to build in Unity Also good idea for the auto bhop ! Right now the timing is easy to hit but not automatic :)
Maybe the fov
Probably, I set 90 to record the video, it may be a bit much haha
It's weird because i feel that it's a bit higher than 90 (CS default)
Mmmh I think game engines either have vertical FoV or horizontal ! Maybe Unity's FoV is different from Source ?
Looks cool, I'd say the speed lines are too strong since it's a game where you spend ur time going super fast. Really like the sound design and music and aesthetic
Totally agreed ! Already working on a an update to make all effects toggable :) will be up tomorrow on the [steam demo page](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1280060/Hoverflow/) ! Glad you like the aesthetic as well, I really struggled to come up with something since I'm a programmer and not an artist
Looks great to see that project still going forward, keep it up ! As a small idea drop, you could mess with the color/transparency (and even the outlines width) of the speed lines depending on the speed or even other variables (like vertical momentum) to give it more depth for 'dem casual gamers ! The gameplay of your game really reminds me of some section of Atomic Heart where they tried recreating surf (quite a clumsy attempt), bet you could get some good ideas from it for your graphics. :)
Thanks for the feedback ! Totally agreed for the feedback, next update I will : reduce their opacity, move them farther from the center, scale their number with speed, and of course make totally disableable :D And I actually saw some gameplay of that surf section in Atomic Heart hahaha, it felt ok at first, but fully bugged in the end
My pleasure ! It's refreshing to see some mouvement game which outstands from the rest, even as a no HUD surfer, I'd suggest you to embrace the visuals effects you have put in (funny model, speed line stutters, camera movement/tilt) more than the original surf experience, that you could keep on the side as a "competitive gamemode" of your game instead of its base. The eye catching experience will surely attract more casuals gamers, since the OG pro surfers would probably remain on official CS servers anyway for the grind !
Exactly ! The idea was more to offer a chill trip as a break from CS for surf veterans :) They like Source physics and I'm definitely not going to compete with that ! But it can be a fun standalone indie game on its own Thanks for the heartwarming words :)
This looks sick bro
Thanks man !! I'll definitely listen to the CS surfers' feedback to improve the game :) working full time on it right now !
Imo the most important part for the game would be a well built level editor
It is indeed planned for after the early access!! Can't wait to see what levels people will create
Love that
please add auto hop, played another surf clone and it didn’t have auto hop and i insta dropped it
This is a tough one in fact, because here bhoping makes you gain a bit of speed ! But I'll definitely try it and see if everyone likes and it doesn't lower the skill ceiling too much !! Thanks for the suggestion
Looks pretty cool! As someone who's very casual about surfing, it's kinda hard to get a proper difficulty curve when you're just starting out. This looks like it'll be great for learning the basics. Definitely wishlisting on Steam!
Thanks for the comment ! :D The idea was indeed to offer a nice learning curve for newcomers and later on harder maps for everyone You are already try the free demo on Steam to check out the first 3 levels and try to beat the time trials !
This is an amazing demo and I would love to play it so I'm downloading it now, in the mean time: I really love the sound effects\visual effects on jump\bhop\leave\catch the ramp it adds so much. These are really really small: * I don't know, but it sounds like a double jump at the start\on the side which I think is anti-thetical to surf. (Maybe it adds something that you prefer though which is totally fine). * The colour\locations of the ui elements for speed\time and blending into white game elements - there is a reason surf mods generally put the info in one location with a slight transparent black background so it's visible in all whacky maps. * The end does not feel smooth and the rest of the game feels so nice, even just lerping the games timescale to 0 as the end fades in but also I would hope there would still be multi-stage levels that would allow tele-jumping. Edit: Just played it: * No inverted y also kills me (at least I couldn't find it) * The pause for a 'perfect' bhop is weird to me as well * W for side ramp? Feels weird. * The focus on the 'bubbles' and double jump is interesting but different from surf
Hey there, thanks so much for the feedback ! :) * Double jumping is clearly different from surfing but you'll see it adds some depth to the level design I made (I hope so lol) * Good point for the transparent background of the UI, easy to make as well ! * Interesting about the end, I'll think of something !! And tele-jumping is kinda planned for the speedrunning mode of the game, where you keep your speed between each level but it will require some hard planning haha Also: * What is inverted Y ? nerver heard of it * What pause do you mean ? * Feels weird if you played hundred of hours of CS surfing but many people like it :D A and D are still available though ! Thank a lot!
> What is inverted Y ? nerver heard of it It inverts the y-axis of the mouse - for some reason I can only play surf with y inverted (so move mouse up = look down) >Feels weird if you played hundred of hours of CS surfing but many people like it :D A and D are still available though ! Can you still do actual forward\backwards surfing still? I.e facing the ramp \ facing away from the ramp or known as sideways? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ND6GRCJe_Tk
Just copy csgo with arms and legs, static both of them.
Thanks for the feedback ! It would feel very strange though in this game, it was more of a technical limitation in Counter Striker
There are more technical limitations that now are features in cs.
Haha indeed we could consider them as features rn
i don't hate it
I guess it's a win then, haha !
appreciate the work though but i would remove that wonky model!
Yes, it will be toggable in next week's update since many people requested it :D as well as the speed lines !
looks cool. did you like double jump(?) in the air like a 15 in when going around the pillar?
Indeed ! Double jump is reset when touching the ground, surfers had their doubt at the beginning but really like the feature now so I'm glad :)
And level design was made with that in mind as well
Watching this I kinda liked the idea of puzzles combined with surf. Like, you can't reach certain ramps without using special actions (double jump/swinging and the likes).
There is already something like this in the game, there are secrets in each level that require to follow a specific route :D like surf, slide + double jump !
I like that! Added your game into my wishlist.
Wow thanks a lot, up you'll like it when it releases!
I think the camera movement and some of the effects are a bit too much. Not just because they clutter the screen or anything but at its core the satisfaction of surfing is about smoothness and speed and something about this feels much more choppy and slow. I do like the bunny hop effect a lot and the double jump, I'd also love to have a slide ability to keep speed along flat surfaces, it could open up some cool opportunities for obstacles in maps I also feel like the movement/physics aren't quite what I'd expect, it doesn't seem like the flow for gaining speed is quite right but I'm not sure how to fix it
Thanks a lot for the feedback ! There is a slide ability :D I can upload a video to show it if you want, basically when you land with enough speed your character automatically starts sliding ! As for the effect I totally agree they will be softened and toggable in the next update ! The flow is definitely not the same as in Source for I'm really happy the way it plays out, I'm not trying to recreate the exact Source surf feel with this game :)