Feedback for 0.25

[Keybounce]

Current version (I think it's 25, I don't know how to tell) logs in, displays the lobby briefly, and then crashes.

Console:

Java Plug-in 1.6.0_22
Using JRE version 1.5.0_26-b03-376-9M3263 Java HotSpot(TM) Client VM
User home directory = /Users/michaelPulpCore 0.11.6 (2010/03/13 23:55:22)
pulpcore.version: 0.11.6
pulpcore.version.date: 2010/03/13 23:55:22
pulpcore.java.vendor: Apple Inc.
pulpcore.java.version: 1.5.0_26
pulpcore.os.arch: ppc
pulpcore.os.name: Mac OS X
pulpcore.os.version: 10.5.8
pulpcore.locale.language:
pulpcore.locale.country:
pulpcore.platform: Applet
pulpcore.platform.timer: NanoTimer
pulpcore.platform.javascript: false
pulpcore.url: http://d3kqv9m0xc65zm.cloudfront.net/
pulpcore.platform.surface: BufferedImage
Stage: scene set to turborilla.pulpcore.frame.TurboScene (7377.3 KB usage, +7377.3 KB change)
App: start (7496.3 KB usage, +118.9 KB change)
Version: beta 0.23.0.0 debug level 1
Class Path: /System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM.framework/Resources/Deploy.bundle/Contents/Home/lib/deploy.jar
Library Path: .:/Library/Java/Extensions:/System/Library/Java/Extensions:/usr/lib/java
Game Home Dir: /Users/michael/Mule2
User Working Dir: /Users/michael
User Name: michael
User Home Dir: /Users/michael
Java Version: 1.5.0_26
Java Vendor: Apple Inc.
OS: Mac OS X ppc 10.5.8
Max Memory: 622 MB
Loading complete
Connecting to 109.124.134.122 port 10101
My user id: 18
Logged in as keybounce
Joined lobby 1: lobby
User list: 1 users in lobby
Game list: 0 games in progress
java.lang.ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException: 11
Shutting down

[Peter]

Thanks for the report. You were running the old webstart version (0.23) and that's why it didn't work. We've fixed so that the webstart will always download the latest version from now on. Please try again when you've got a chance. Just visit the mule 2 beta page and click the webstart link and it should work fine.

[Keybounce]

Alright, better luck this time. I managed to get a bad event on turn one, despite being the high bidder (possibly because I was the only bidder).

Good news: You now get to choose a species every turn, so picking the no food guy isn't fatal.
Not so good news: The Golumer's ability -- early start on the land grab -- isn't clear. Can you maybe have their count actually be shorter? Or show a second count at the same time?

[Keybounce]

Bad news: The high speed guy is impossible to control! Wumpus overshooting.

[Keybounce]

It is almost impossible to find the wumpus.

Ability clarification: Packers do not gain development time on food plots, so much as their timer count down is slower. In other words, they can pause on food plots, and have the timer go slower -- but even with a full timer bar on a food plot, I could not tell where the Wumpus was.

All the wumpus tones seem identical -- current mule gives a different tone per plot.

When a meteor hits the ground, there is no mark on the ground.

[Keybounce]

Acck. Twice now I have confused land grab with development. Can the land grab phase somehow be made noticeably different than the development phase? I'm trying to pick up a mule and move it, and it won't let me ... and then I realize this was land grab.

[Keybounce]

Last report for tonight: A smithore plot on the plains, with a single dot, has consistently produced zero over several turns.

[Peter]

Thanks for testing so throughly!

The Gollumer has a shorter countdown than the other players in the land rush. You can't see it when you play alone. The player with worst rank has the shortest countdown if there is no Gollumer in play. We could try to clarify that and maybe show all players countdown in the rush.

To make the Leggite more easily controlled we could reduce the speed of all characters and increase the development time. But maybe it's a risk you take when choosing the Leggite? He can build on many plots in the same turn but has a harder time catching the wampus.

The wampus is supposed to have different pitched sounds if he's at the top or at the bottom exactly like Planet Mule 1. We switched sound system recently and must add in sound pitching to get that feature.

Packers can eat food from _other players_ food plots. You can't use his ability if you play alone. Walk to another players food expoitation and press your button to get a few seconds more development time. The food plot will also produce less food.

Marks after meteors are coming as well as other missing graphics.

I agree with you that the Land Rush can be confused with Development. We should make them look more different.

We'll have a look at the smithore exploitation not producing any units. It can of course happen by chance that a plot doesn't produce in several rounds. It's a little more than 31% risk that a 1 unit exploitation produces zero units. That happening three rounds in a row is about 3% risk.

[Spoonwood]

    I'll just re-note the food and energy problems we had in the test game on March 13.  They didn't spike once the store got bought out on turn 11, but they rose early and stayed high until the store had plenty of units.  I think the speed of the leggite (which I used a bunch in the test game, if you recall), seems about right (maybe faster if anything).  That it seems more difficult to control fits, as, at least in my mind, changing plots comes as an "advanced" playing technique that takes care to execute well.

[Keybounce]

Packers can eat food from _other players_ food plots. You can't use his ability if you play alone. Walk to another players food expoitation and press your button to get a few seconds more development time. The food plot will also produce less food.

Might make sense to document this better.

Which other workers require you to actively sabotage or otherwise button press on a plot to make their effect happen?