2011 Spring Semester Playtest Session 3

The crab claw you have to do with our old control scheme to utilize the roll mechanic

For this playtest we decided to try out a new control scheme. The reason for this is because we were trying to figure out a way to get the car roll mechanic to be used without doing a form of the crab claw on the controller.

So, instead of the roll buttons being on the bumpers we decided to move them to a state change type of control. The player would now have to hold the left trigger, and use the left joystick to utilize the car roll mechanic. Due to the left trigger being used for the state change we changed the gas and break buttons to 'A' and 'X' respectively on the 360 gamepad. Boosting was moved to the 'B' button, flying was moved to the 'Y' button, and jumping was moved to the left bumper.

Player feedback was unanimous in saying that the controls were horrible, they were ingrained with the idea that the triggers should be gas and break. Most racing games do this, but our team figured that since gas in our game is not pressure sensitive we could but it on a button instead of a trigger. We discovered that the trigger buttons are meant for the most important aspect of a game, and in our case it would be the gas a break abilities. So, we changed the control scheme and will be testing it again as soon as possible.

Controls have changed to the triggers being gas and break, the left bumper being the state change to use the roll mechanic and the left thumbstick to decide which way the car rolls. The car roll mechanic is very handy in tight turning situations as well. 'A' is now boost, 'X' is jump, and 'B' is flying.

Rather than having flying act like a jet fighting game, we need to change the camera to be able to keep the track in view at all times

Other than the control scheme players had issues with the flying camera. It needs to be a bit further from the player, and it should show where the player is going to land if the car is falling. Player's also wanted some sort of indicator to tell them where they need to go. Disorientation occurs when players are in the air for long periods of time, or just get turned around. Indicators to mitigate this could be arrows on the road telling the player where to go, or a HUD element that pops up whenever the player is not going in the right direction of the track.

We also still need to create a tutorial for the game. Right now there are issues with players not knowing what the car is able to do, and players will not read control schemes unless they're forced to. So, a level that teaches the player how to play the game needs to be created and it needs to be integrated into the game. They cannot bypass it.

Now that the issues have been mentioned, testers still enjoyed the game, and they liked the announcer and wanted more from him. So, the team has created more voice over for the announcer and it has been put into the game. We'll have to see how testers respond to the responses the announcer gives.

That's about it when it comes to playtesting for this week. The team is working on all the issues as diligently as possible. Thanks for reading, I'll be continuing to write up these playtests for the rest of this semester at DigiPen.