The Vacuum

[Jared]

I agree to some extent -- this is absolutely a game that could win a little on adding more interaction. But I still think that can be done without sacrificing the one-click interface.

I didn't say that it needed to. My point was that when you decide to go for a one-click interface you've stripped the game down to it's bare bones so you need lots of interaction to make it feel like a little more than just clicking on everything.

I am generally opposed to the single-click style, but at the moment I've been playing the new Sam & Max games, which are brilliantly designed games period.

I know that the interface argument is a controversial old chestnut, though, so we should probably just agree to disagree.

Seeing the positive response that this game's plot has gotten, I might have to go and try it again - it must pick up in the second act..

[supersnake52]

I would be very interested in a squeal to this

Something in the line of...THE VACUUMYAAAAARRRRGH!?

whoops 

By the way i think the swearing should stay, but it needs to be implemented better. "The toilet is for shitting" and "I better not fuck around with that" makes it sound like you threw it in there just for the fun.

[Laukku]

A couple of bugs/inconsistencies I found:

Spoiler

*I tried to solve the mystery as late as possible. After the stowaway-girl-whose-name-I-don't-remember gets framed by the real killer, the phone message in crew room 3 disappears and Leo behaves as if he had already listened to it. But he never did!

*When I found the empty bomb box, I first asked Crisholm about it. When I talk to Rathburn after that, the dialog option "I asked Crisholm about the grenades" seems to imply that Leo had talked to Rathburn about them earlier (which seems to be impossible BTW).

[close]

EDIT: More found:

Spoiler

When Leo has retrieved the transmitter, use the door to the stairs but refuse to leave. The go get the box and the gun. There are some illogical extra dialog options when you choose about taking the gun.

EDIT: If you choose one of the extra options, they remain in the "Really leave through the stairs?" dialog. You can choose to take the gun when you are in a completely different room! 

[close]

[Dualnames]

I sort of like the game. Reminds me a lot of 7 days a sceptic. Like the interface, most of it. Well, cool game, I'll tell you more once I get past it all.

[Makeout Patrol]

I've uploaded a patch with a few fixes and the Italian translation, so be sure to send it to all your italian friends. The first post has been updated with the correct links.

[ags_newbie]

I liked the game a lot. However, I do have some criticism.

First, most of the dialogue lacks options, the player character simply says what he is scripted to say. It would be nice to add a different opinion, or choose to reveal something or not. That brings me to my second complaint. You are bound by your character too much. Personally, if I wanted to restore power with a console I wouldn't care if I screwed something up. And it would be funny- mean, but funny, if you could decide to simply shoot everyone but yourself (with obviously bad consequences). Also I think the NPCs are too trusting and don't get angry or panicky enough.
That said, this game was great. I'm still going to try to discover the other endings. A sequel with Leanna or at least in the same universe would be nice. The graphics are a great example of how simple can look good.

[Bjyman]

Spoiler

I still cant get 9 out of 9 clues. Is there a bug?

[close]

[Makeout Patrol]

Spoiler

I still cant get 9 out of 9 clues. Is there a bug?

[close]

I've put an answer to this in the hints & tips thread for you.

[robvalue]

Really liked this game, thank you. I enjoyed the story, the multiple paths, the simple to use interface and the humour. Hope to see more from you!

[neon]

Found a review:
http://occplayer.wordpress.com/2008/08/19/something-else/

[kaputtnik]

Usual trip in space ship can turn into hardly believe adventure in the middle of the heartbeat. Can you fight with unexpected destiny and save yourself and anybody else? Sympathic adventure for everyone.

These Czech guys - adventure lovers with pure hearts and a sense for sunshine grammar. But for something not completely different: The occasional gamer is occasionally game for reviews. This time: The Vacuum

Found it first, hahah! No, actually SSH found it first.

[neon]

hmpf....

[FireOrange]

I solved the game now, but I didn`t found all dead bodys and didn`t saved the relationship. I have to play it again soon. Very nice game, I really enjoyed it.

[Gamer_V]

Me liked! Managed to save everybody, but not the relationship. Can't wait for more.

[Ubel]

Some of the dialog felt really awkward and the relationships between different characters a bit unreal.

For example

Spoiler

when the main character has to go check out the areas behind the blastdoors, his girlfriend doesn't seem the least bit worried. She actually encourages him to do this.

[close]

I think realistic social interaction between characters is quite important in this type of games.

It could have also used some more dramatic music/sound effects in the most dramatic scenes, to add to the overall atmosphere. Otherwise the audio was good, except that the looping engine sounds kinda got on my nerves after a while.

The unnecessary usage of the word "fuck" didn't appeal to me that much. I can understand it in dialogs but using it in narrative texts seems very unprofessional and it kind of breaks the atmosphere.

I did like how it didn't feel completely linear and the fact that your choices actually affected the story. That's always nice.

The simplistic graphics work well and look nice. The animating wasn't bad either.

All in all, it's not a bad game. I liked it. It just had some flaws which prevented it from being a lot better, even though it shows a lot of potential. I'd like to see more games from you in the future!

[Makeout Patrol]

Just so everyone's aware, version 1.3 is now out, and it includes a French translation by Flyingmandarine, so thanks to that guy! Now you can forward the game to all your Francophone friends and they can enjoy. I think I will send it to my friend Dexter to remind him of all the good times he had in Belgium.

Small caveat: the new one won't work with your old saves. There aren't any bugfixes or anything, so if you're still playing it and you want to keep your saves, you won't be missing anything if you don't download the new version, unless you REALLY want to play it in French for some reason.

[qptain Nemo]

Well, maybe I'm risking to be shot or kicked or whatever, but I didn't find 'Don't dig up old threads' in the rules of this forum. And this game deserves some serious praise anyway.

Because it's just so awesome. The story captured me right from the beginning to the very end and I mean it - I couldn't take a break until I finished the game. Atmosphere was so solid I think I felt this pressure, tension and sort of fear (while it wasn't horror at all) that characters should've felt being in there. And I think that's regarding the great writing of all the characters who all speak in their own style and very realistical manner and all the remarks of the main character. And also I find their behaviours to be beliveable and therefore very immersing. Mix of seriousness, simple chat and emotional outbreaks (like cursing) in dialogue provided intended realism of the characters too. The non-linearity and especially the balance between linerity and non-linearity was just sweet, almost perfect. Ability to choose only when it's needed, often just as ability to miss something - man, that's so damn great. And it was indeed the best motivation to investigate - not because I have to or because I would just get stuck without it but because of my real curiosity to know more. Should I really mention the replay value?
So I'm taking a I claim that this is one of the best designs one can meet in an adventure game. I think this game could be remade into a commercial title, it's that good. Makeout Patrol, thank you for this game and please do continue making games, they require you a lot.

[Snarky]

Hey, just played this for the AGS Awards (without those I'd miss twice as many great AGS games as I actually do), and I think it's pretty great.

Stats like 26 different endings made me put it off until the very end, because it sounds overwhelming and like you'll have to replay it over and over again to really appreciate it. However, the way in which your actions affect the outcome is so reasonable (and most of the time predictable), and features like a guide to your active goals and the summary at the end so helpful, that I didn't feel at the mercy of randomly branching paths or like I've missed big chunks of the game.

I also thought the atmosphere and immersion worked really well. Walking around a spaceship looking for dead bodies is a surefire way to rack up the tension (see also: 7 Days a Skeptic and The White Chamber), and I did have to turn on some more lights before playing further at one point. I also liked the fact that everyone worked together, made decisions together and all performed different tasks. (Though the rationale for splitting up wasn't very convincing. If you know one of you is a killer, splitting up into pairs seems like the absolutely worst possible idea.) While I was in some sense "the main character", it didn't feel like I had to do everything while everyone else just stood around, like in many other similar games.

As for the swearing, I actually really liked "I probably shouldn't fuck around with it", which sounded completely realistic and appropriate to me. "It's for shitting" seemed odd and gratuitously vulgar, though; not that it really bothered me. Since people have very different standards for expletives, it might be a good thing to make optional through an in-game setting.

Talking about that, I appreciated the customizable interface options. The layout that seems most natural/consistent to me wasn't quite available, though:

Left-click to walk, interact, or select/use an inventory item
Right-click to look (both in the main screen and in the inventory)

(Switching the buttons in the main screen gets almost this functionality, but you have to right-click to walk.)

As for the story, it was maybe a little bit too obvious. I suspected the killer right away, and there weren't really any other viable suspects at any point (my only alternative theory was some other unknown person hidden on the ship). I also didn't really feel like I got a strong sense of the other characters' personality, and had a hard time distinguishing between them (at one point I actually got confused about which woman was my girlfriend). I think character portraits would resolve at least the second part of that problem instantly, but some stronger character traits would also be an improvement. (You could of course argue that characters should at first be somewhat anonymous ciphers who are hard to keep apart, but not--in my opinion--as you get to know them.)

All in all, a great game, and I look forward to whatever you come up with next.

Oh, one final question: All of those murders were pretty gory, and at least a couple were performed close up. What did the killer do with the inevitable blood splatter on clothes?

[Makeout Patrol]

Hey, thanks for the kind words, folks! And thanks for the critique, Snarky, I'll take all of those things into account for my next game any beyond.

Oh, one final question: All of those murders were pretty gory, and at least a couple were performed close up. What did the killer do with the inevitable blood splatter on clothes?

The killer changed! There are a couple of places that you can find spare sets of clothes that belong to the killer. As for what this person did with the bloody clothes, they were devoured by a monster that was brought into creation by me not considering that while I was making the game.

[Trihan]

I see those monsters a lot in various games. ^_~