General thoughts
Playtime: about 10 minutes
The memory-based combat mixed with a roguelike RPG is a pretty distinctive idea. I like that you are taking something normally treated as a simple memory exercise and building an actual game around it. Though, I’m pretty bad at games like this so they’re usually very frustrating for me.
What worked well
- The memory combat hook gives the game a clear identity.
- Click-to-move feels like a natural fit for this style of game.
- I like having things like the lockpicking challenges to break up the main combat loop.
What I would change
- I would prioritize onboarding and combat clarity. The player should understand what they are supposed to memorize and how to respond almost immediately.
- I would lean harder into making level 1 feel like a true tutorial, then build the difficulty once the player understands the rules.
Overall, I think the unusual combat concept is the strongest part but I’m not sure if the mechanics are tight/legible enough yet. I would mainly focus on getting new players comfortable with it as quickly as possible.
Please consider giving my game a try, it’s browser based with a tight 2-3 minute game loop: https://barelyplayable.itch.io/blade-baes-brawl
Feedback form submissions preferred: https://forms.gle/fsJrAZDhJtP1CFXX8
Let me know if you’d like an invite to try the invite-only full alpha build :)