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[Feedback wanted] Cozy ticket-checking game, is day 6 too hard? (browser)

A topic by shanghaiyixing created 1 day ago Views: 84 Replies: 8
Viewing posts 1 to 6

Hi! I'm a solo developer and this is my first public playtest. Admit One is a cozy rule-checking game in the spirit of Papers, Please: you check visitors' tickets and IDs at a museum gate, with a new rule each day.

I'd really appreciate honest feedback on:

  1. Which rule was confusing, or which visitor felt unfair?
  2. Was any day too fast or too slow? (Day 6 adds time slots and a tour group, and I'm not sure about it.)
  3. Did you notice the "Inspect" button, and did it make sense?
  4. Was the first minute of the game clear without any tutorial text?

Even if you only play day 1–3, that helps a lot.

Play in the browser: https://shanghaiyixing.itch.io/admit-one

Thanks for your time! I'll reply to every comment.

Day-6 spike questions are so useful. Tip: ask testers where they first felt “this is unfair vs I’m slow” — if two people name the same rule pair, soft-teach that pair on day 5 instead of nerfing day 6 wholesale.

Thank you, that's a really useful way to frame it! "Unfair vs. I'm slow" is exactly the distinction I was missing. I'll add that question and check my logs to see which rules people get wrong most on day 6. If it's one specific pair, I'll introduce it gently on day 5 instead of making day 6 easier overall. Really appreciate it!

This is good! Though, the placement of the skip button makes me think I am just advancing dialogue one bubble, when in fact I am losing all of it. And sound is distinctly missing. 

In case it helps with getting structured feedback - I'm building Betacade, which shows how people actually play a web game: who played, how far they got, where they quit, and what they said. Might help: betacade.com

I'm happy to walk yu through it and help however I can. I'm a software engineer by trade so pretty good at smoothing out bumps.

Matt

(+1)

Thanks so much for playing and for the clear feedback!

You're right about the Skip button. It skips the whole conversation, but it sits right where a "next" button would be. I'll rename it to "Skip all", move it out of the dialogue box, and add a clear "continue" hint instead.

The missing sound is a great catch. The game does have music and sound effects, so it looks like a bug in the browser build. I'm looking into it now and will post an update when it's fixed.

Betacade sounds interesting! For this first playtest I'm keeping things simple with my own anonymous logging, but I may reach out later when I need deeper analytics. Thanks for the offer!

happy to help! I did see the tab reported it was playing audio - I just wasn’t hearing it and checked volume to no avail. It still could be a me-only thing. 

Update: new build is live!

Thanks again for the feedback, it went straight into this update:

  • Sound fixed in the browser build (it was silent for some players).
  • Skip button: it’s now “Skip all”, moved outside the dialogue box, with a clear “Continue ▸” hint.
  • Day 6: the guard now gives a tip about time slots on day 5, and the entry window is simpler (30 minutes before or after the slot).
  • Clearer rules: fewer hidden exceptions, guide dogs come with a card, and the payslip shows what you need for each rating.
  • Plus a daily rating (S–C), a year-end review, and lots of small fixes.

Play here: https://shanghaiyixing.itch.io/admit-one

I’d love to hear if day 6 feels fairer now!

The game is quite cool and interesting. I can’t really say much more, as I didn’t find any notable downsides. The visuals are very pleasing.

Hi! Played it, really nice little game.

1. Was the first minute clear without tutorial text? Yes, very easy to understand, I knew what to do right away.

2. The Inspect button is well visible, and the help at the start of the game made sure I noticed it.

The rules and the visitors never felt unfair to me, and the length of the days felt right. I lost on day 4 though, so I can't tell you about day 6, haha. Maybe the difficulty already ramps up a bit before day 6?

One suggestion: when a visitor is denied, it would be nice to see why (which rule they broke). It would help to learn from mistakes and understand the rules better, especially as they get more complex in later days.

Nice job, and good luck with the next steps!