bitsy-questions.txt

1) i'm inconsistent about whether i choose to allow comments on my games or not. a lot of my games are trying to have a certain atmosphere of sombreness or gravity that seems is at odds with having a list of gushing comments directly in eyesight before you even play the game. on the other hand i like to receive nice comments, and i know people like to give them, and also see what others are saying. i wish i could have the comments be a seperate page you have to click through to

2) if people get stuck or aren't sure if they got to an ending, it's good that they can comment that so i can write a response for everyone who might have that same confusion (shoal had an exit that wasn't so easy to read as an exit). however, when i post my game, it's done: so i'm not looking suggestions on how to improve it. i think the bitsy community are better than the wider public at appreciating the game for what it is and what it is trying to be--i'm not interested in commenters were uncomfortable because they had their expectation of what a game is challenged. i allow my games to be "rated" on itch.io because it helps discoverability on the games browser, and it allows people to leave nice comments in the review text--but the numbers are truly meaningless and some of the reviews are really bizarre in their criticism

3) 

the review that ticked me off the most is this: 
"I would never play this again. Too many words trying to have a deeper meaning. I would have preferred it to be written like a normal person was talking and not some person who sounds like they are trying to be smart when explaining something. ;-/ The art was simple and nice." 
now this a game for the gothic novel jam, in which the narrator recounts their frenzied obsession and descent into madness--and you would prefer them to be written like a normal person? leaving aside that point, the "i would prefer" sounds as if they felt entitled for the game to be tailored to them--why?

someone else commented:
"This is wonderfully, epically overblown madness"
yes, exactly!

then there's the bizarre back-handed complement: 
"I usually enjoy these bitsy games more than they deserve." 
where do you even come up with an idea of how much something deserves to be enjoyed? perhaps you just need to realise that you're consistently underestimating bitsy.

i loved this foreboding comment of a poem:
"The second time we meet here, by your game.

Your words and your works have some secret power, some connections.

Looking forward to more."
high praise, but i particularly like it because i really am trying to build a sense that there is something beneath and between the works and connects together

"I love this kind of existential horror take on creativity and art"
"This chapter is so satisfying in its melancholy and its doom. I love watching the castle warp and decay throughout these games."
"god i love this castle tileset even more this time."
i think i enjoy most the comments where people seem to identify something i was trying to do and comment on that, especially when it's something i'm doing as a whole with the larger body of work

"God this series had captivated me ever since the first entry! I can't wait to see what happens next! I replay them when I get stressed or sad and its so easy to loose myself in these worlds. Thank you so much for sharing this series!"
it's great to hear that my games have some permanence and meaning to someone beyond the single play session preceding the comment

4) i don't comment much at all. when i comment it's usually because some aspect of the game felt particulary exceptional, something that surprised me or surpassed my expectations or experience. i also comment sometimes so that the author knows that yes, someone really did play your game and like it