Dev Thoughts #1 - On Failure and Fixes

It's been a while since I've said much about Cloak and Dasher, so let's talk! I'm not a AAA dev, and I'm sure any PR group would tell me "don't make this post", but I think it's important to be transparent and honest with the community. So, let's talk about failure!

Early Access Launch Post-Mortem

I'm not going to lie. Sales numbers of Cloak and Dasher have been abysmal. It's embarrassing to give a real number, but to help you understand, Steam Sales have not passed 100 sales to date. People who play the game enjoy it, but I have been unable to reach an audience with this game. This has been extremely disheartening to me, if I'm being quite honest. Almost all of a game's sales come at launch, with some rare exceptions. Seeing the launch go so terribly tells me this game is never going to do well. Despite that, this game is still my baby, and I want to see it through to the end. This game WILL see a full release, it is not going to languish in Early Access forever.

The bright spot is, I believe this launch failure was due to a variety of solvable problems. So, the next logical step is to solve those problems! Believe it or not, I have been constantly working on the game since launch. I know I've not made this development very visible, but you have to understand, this experience has made me a bit gun-shy about launching any new updates. I feel like the next update needs to be perfect, or this game is going to be doomed. I know I promised new levels every month, and I really wanted to deliver on that promise. Carnivorous Caverns was my first attempt at that, and while I love that level pack and its new mechanic alot, there was NO INCREASE IN SALES from that update. I even made a decent (for me) marketing push and a nice little trailer I'm really proud of. Sadly, despite all that work, it didn't help, so that pushed me more into disheartened territory. That was when it hit me that the problems cannot just be solved with new levels. Something at the very core of this game was wrong, so I had to step back and really consider how to fix this. That's been my work for the past 4 months, so let me take you through these changes.

What Went Wrong?

You Couldn't Buy At Launch

A lot of things that went wrong were my fault, but this one I place at Steam's feet. When I clicked the "Release" button on Steam, the game store became visible, however, for some reason THERE WAS NO BUY BUTTON! I checked everywhere online for anything about this, maybe I set something wrong? Maybe it was a fixable problem? But no, it turns out it was a bug on Steam's end, and they didn't fix it until over 24 hours later, well after the game was lost in a sea of other new games. I'm not gonna lie, this sucked. This really, really sucked. Through no fault of my own, the game was buried, and anyone who had even a passing interest in the game couldn't buy it.

Adventure Mode

One of the most controversial things about Cloak and Dasher is its current Adventure Mode. At launch, it required you to complete a full set of levels (chapters) in a set amount of time, or have to start over. In retrospect, this was a TERRIBLE idea! It needlessly punished players who needed more time to complete the game, or those who just wanted to take time to learn the game's mechanics. This was changed pretty quickly after launch, allowing players to take as much time as they needed to beat a chapter. However, this was still not nearly enough.

In the next update, Adventure Mode will be reworked to be individual level based, instead of chapter based. What this means is, if you can't complete a whole chapter in one sitting, you won't be forced to play that chapter all over again, you'll be able to pick up right on the level you left off at! At the time, I had thought forcing a sort of "marathon" game session made the game interesting and unique, but in retrospect, it just discouraged people from leaving, and punished them if they came back. Now, each individual level is going to feel more impactful, and I think that's better for everyone involved. To accommodate this change, the level select menu has been completely changed. It should flow a lot smoother now and do a good job of leading the player on a path from one level to the next.

Secondly, each and every level in the game will now have gems, and by collecting all gems in a level, you'll unlock a "hard" version of that level! This approach solves two problems. It gives gems value, and it allows me to design harder levels for those who prove they are up to the challenge! This means, when the next update comes out, it will include double the number of levels of the current version, as each level will contain a hard variant! I've already completed hard levels for the first 3 chapters of the game.

Lastly, with the new adventure overhaul, each chapter will have its own "story image". I never planned on having any sort of fleshed out story for Cloak and Dasher, but it was clear from the start that I underestimated how interested people were in this world. To help that, we've decided to give the players a small story through the use of images which you get at the chapter select screen, helping you understand Cloak's journey. There will also be some subtle new story hints you can find in-game if you keep your eyes peeled!

Leaderboards

Another complaint I heard a lot of were that leaderboards did a terrible job of making you feel like you've done anything. In the past, you could only see the top player of each level and chapter, which set an unattainable goal for many, as you didn't even know where you stood! With the next update, the leaderboards have been COMPLETELY reworked. Soon, you'll be able to see exactly where you rank in each individual level, and now you'll see the top 5 scorers around the world and among your friends.

Marketing Failure

Marketing is not my forte, it never has been, and it most likely never will be. I did not market this game well enough before launch. I had hired a PR firm to help be back then, and they were not able to meet my needs. In retrospect, I should have taken more time to actually do marketing once the game was ready, but I felt a need to get the game in people's hands as soon as possible, especially before PAX. This was a mistake. Before the next update actually occurs, we'll be taking the time to make a much larger market push and get some eyes on it. We'll also be putting something together to reward those that help us get visibility on the game. More info on that to come soon!

Game Length

Many people were able to complete the entire game on launch within an hour. While it's easy to chalk this up to a lack of levels on launch, there's actually a second component to that. Nearly all of the people who completed the game for the first time in an hour completely ignored the gems, meaning they never tried the "hard" path. Looking back, it makes sense why they did this.

1. Players were not rewarded for collecting gems. The main reward was just that you'd have a "100% Completion" leaderboard rank, which most people didn't care about because the leaderboards were so bad. I believe this is fixed now by unlocking hard levels with gems, I also have something planned for collecting enough gems in the game overall... more on that later...

2. If you missed a single gem in the chapter, it was all pointless. There was no reward for getting 22/23 gems in a chapter, and if you missed one you couldn't go back. This was, sadly, a side effect of the previous "complete a full chapter" design. I believe now that players are doing Individual Levels instead, players will feel more encouraged to attempt to 100% individual levels.

I've always designed Cloak and Dasher around the idea of replayability and mastery, with the gems being the cornerstone of that. I'm hoping these changes will help reinforce that, and give players a feeling of wanting to go back and try again.

Of course, more levels will always help this as well. I'm pleased to announce that with the new Hard Mode level variants, I currently have over 50 new levels ready to go, with even more planned for this next update. Ideally, I'd like to have every single level currently in the game contain a hard mode variant.

You may be thinking "how different can a hard mode level really be? Is it worth my time?". Well, you be the judge.

Normal Mode

Hard Mode

I really want these Hard Mode levels to feel like something worth earning. They are not going to be meant for everyone, but for the right player, they should be a lot of fun, without discouraging players who are not at the "hard" level!

What Went Right?

The Game's Core Is Fun

It is very rare that I find someone who picks up the game and doesn't like it. The vast majority of players I've observed find the game at its core to be a lot of fun, and that's something that makes me very proud. With all the development time I've put into this game, I've still not gotten bored of moving around in the game. I mean, just look at my Steam Hours.

PAX

PAX was a huge success. Without a doubt, showing the game off at PAX was the proudest moment of my life. I actually got more sales through PAX than all of my Steam sales combined. People loved the game there, it was a real hit among those who tried it. I met some amazing people too, who I'm now proud to consider friends Everyone was super positive, and it was a huge energy boost to see so many people not only enjoy the game, but buy it on the spot. I mentioned Steam Sales earlier being under 100 sales. But PAX sales were actually over 100. For a little indie game with no marketing, in early access, this is absolutely amazing.

Discord

The players who've joined my Discord have been incredibly helpful. Some of them have pointed out bugs, helped me with testing, guided new gameplay features, and some have even helped promote the game themselves! It's been an absolutely amazing feeling to have people enjoy the game so much that they've told their friends to get it.

Feedback

Player feedback has reshaped the game for the better in a way I never imagined. It's hard to believe what the game has become when compared to its launch counterpart, and I can't wait to share it with all of you. The best part of Early Access has been the feedback given to me by each and every one of you. I believe it's important to listen to everyone when it comes to game design and give their thoughts a chance. Thanks to that, this game has grown into something more than the sum of its parts. Thank you to all who have helped nurture it.

The Art Is Awesome

Everyone agrees, something about the art style of Cloak and Dasher is a hit. Yokcos, the game's artist, had a clear vision for this game from the start, and he's nailed it every step of the way. I'm very thankful to have him on this project, and I can't wait for you to see the new stuff he has in store for the future!

The Music is Awesome

Nothing gets me more pumped for this game than hearing a new track composed for the game by Will Savino. The music sets the game so perfectly, and even hearing the same song on repeat over and over again at PAX, we never got bored of it.

Final Thoughts

If you stuck with me through all of this, then wow, you've earned a medal of some sort. Cloak and Dasher's journey is not complete, but it will be seen through. This is my first launched game, so there was always bound to be some missteps. I'm sure this won't be the last time I be post about failure, but each failure is just an opportunity to breed success. With a little luck, you'll be hearing more about the game's successes in the near future.

Thanks as always for the support,

Kevin Randino