I tried to play the game but I could not manage to cool down and accept the fact that I was playing with an invisible ball (and so rely on edge-vision to capture motion and use reflexes instead of calculated flipper kicks). Still, I managed a high score on my second try. The game definitely looks interesting but is unfortunately spoiled by the ball quality.
At times I wonder, isn't there anybody else complaining about the ball? Am I the only one who finds Farsight games almost unplayable because of this? Well, I know that my friend Marco has already emailed them and complained, just as I did, but there has been no reaction. I also wonder whether the Farsight team test the games only on a huge monitor. On my 27" iMac the ball (non)visibility is less of a problem compared to the iPad mini.
After a few plays I found myself again switching custom balls to find one that has a better visibility. I think the yellow one does best against the background, but still not good enough. As a former graphic designer I know how to defeat bad visibility. In this case the ball needs better contrast with various playfield designs. To up the contrast it needs a black outline (or a sharp dropshadow) and a good visible spotlight in one if the ball's topcorners. I am pretty sure this will improve the visibility much. Besides that, this is a great and classic pinball.
ReplyDeleteI agree 100 % with your suggestions on the ball, Marco.
ReplyDeleteA black outline and a sharply illuminated spot at the top (right or left; it probably does not make much of a difference) would change the game quality tremendously. I wouldn't care much about colour, since it would have to be optimised separately for every table.