Review Information
Game Reviewed Wick The Hot Foot (v1.2), by Yakibomb
Review Author Vitiman
Created Jun 15 2020, 11:46 PM

General Commentary and Game Overview
My lord... it's 2020 and there are still non-retro throwback fangames being made in The Games Factory? Like, the OG TGF? Christ almighty, I don't know if that's scary or incredible. As a longtime Clickteam user, the so-called "TGF aesthetic" has been a favourite of mine for quite a while now, probably going back to when I used the aging software myself.

Unfortunately, attempting to program anything but a buggy, halfway amusing mess in this has always been an exercise in frustration - something "Wick the Hot Foot" excels at, I have to regrettably inform.
 
Pros Extremely charming concept
Unique MIDI choices
Short and sweet - this is not a game that's unnecessarily dragged out
 
Cons Extremely, almost frustratingly slow-paced
The charge/burst mechanic rarely works the way it needs to
Glitches Galoreā„¢
 
Impressions
Gameplay
3 / 10
All right, so what are you doing in this game? For a whopping two levels of play, your goal is to light up all the torches and enter a door in the general area of a given level. For the third and final level, your goal is to... also light up all the torches, but this time you're doing just that and you have to avoid Mr. Mean Bad Boss Cloud Man instead of aiming for a door to unlock.

All this seems pretty simple, right? Unfortunately, Wick's biggest hurdle to overcome is just how utterly SLOW and irritating it is to control. The game introduces a charge mechanic pretty much right away, requiring you to crouch (SMB2 style) to light yourself up to fling in the cardinal directions. Unfortunately, you have to pretty much ram these buttons to even get them to work properly, and again... it's just so frustratingly un-fast that you'll be gritting your teeth trying to do some of the most basic platforming imaginable.

It's a really cute idea, but it's just not very fun to play. Thank the lord above it's only for three levels, but in that time it's absolutely aching. Not helped is the fact that all the puzzles are timing-based, right down to the last final boss. So you're going to have to think your moves well in advance - not exactly an action game, I hate to say.
 
Graphics
5 / 10
A lot of bland blocks aside, the graphics are fairly easy on the eyes and I found the palette of browns and reds to be an interesting choice for visuals! It's certainly not the greatest looking fangame I've ever seen, but it doesn't have to be. This game knows what it is, and it does the job nicely enough.
 
Sound
7 / 10
Probably the game's strongest point. Absolutely charming sounds and music on display here, with some rarely used MIDIs and amusing vocal samples for our mean boss man. Can't get enough of that sorta thing, now can I?
 
Final Words
3 / 10
Choosing to make a new game in the aging TGF software is quite the self-imposed challenge! The idea itself is very cute as well, but ideas alone cannot carry a game, even a really short one... and unfortunately, "Wick the Hot Foot" flounders pretty badly on account of its leg-dragging gameplay and proneness to glitch like no tomorrow. I commend Yakibomb for daring to bring out some retro Clickteam in this Game Maker dominant world, but next time he might want to look into a more robust static engine if he chooses to attempt a Games Factory production once more.

Comments
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Yakibomb
Jul 2 2020, 4:58 AM
Oh! I just found out about your review. Here are my thoughts.

TGF still holds a lot of charm for me, and it's unexplainable, like a kind of magic. Glad to know someone else can appreciate it!

Due to being the author, I thought the game was pretty easy. I suppose the time it took to charge the dash was my time thinking how this game is awesome. It's not.

Glitches aside, I've heard many times the charge mechanic and slow pace were definite buzzkills.

To be honest, the plan was to make Castlevania-style game. That is why it was intentionally slow, but as development continued and the heat of the deadline began to burn my eyes (due to lack of sleep), it just sort of boiled down to whatever I could muster for a 8-day Game Jam!

Among the many people that played my game and shared their criticisms, I'm grateful to hear your side because you can appreciate The Ye Olde Games Factory and what charm it holds.

Yes, it is easy to say this game sucks but you took the extra mile to tell me what went wrong, with criticism to boot!

Thanks for the review, Vitiman.
 
2 likes from: Vitiman, Q-Nova
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Vitiman
Jul 8 2020, 12:15 AM
Quote (Yakibomb on Jul 1 2020, 11:58 PM)
Oh! I just found out about your review. Here are my thoughts.

TGF still holds a lot of charm for me, and it's unexplainable, like a kind of magic. Glad to know someone else can appreciate it!

Due to being the author, I thought the game was pretty easy. I suppose the time it took to charge the dash was my time thinking how this game is awesome. It's not.

Glitches aside, I've heard many times the charge mechanic and slow pace were definite buzzkills.

To be honest, the plan was to make Castlevania-style game. That is why it was intentionally slow, but as development continued and the heat of the deadline began to burn my eyes (due to lack of sleep), it just sort of boiled down to whatever I could muster for a 8-day Game Jam!

Among the many people that played my game and shared their criticisms, I'm grateful to hear your side because you can appreciate The Ye Olde Games Factory and what charm it holds.

Yes, it is easy to say this game sucks but you took the extra mile to tell me what went wrong, with criticism to boot!

Thanks for the review, Vitiman.

Not a problem! I'm sorry if I came across as too critical or anything, but I really did find the game's flaws more evident than easy-to-ignore. That said, you've taken the critique like a champ it seems, and that much is respected and appreciated.

Yes yes, I've been prowling the site for years now reviewing a bunch of old fangames. I even tried making my own old fangame throwback last year, but it seems making anything in The Games Factory is an uphill battle. It was totally worth it in my vain attempt to pay homage, though.

The Clickteam Revolution will eventually happen, not to worry... one day. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe 3 years from now. But one day!
 
2 likes from: Yakibomb, Q-Nova
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redstone02
Nov 22 2020, 10:58 AM
Quote (Vitiman on Jul 8 2020, 12:15 AM)

The Clickteam Revolution will eventually happen, not to worry... one day. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe 3 years from now. But one day!

clickteam fusion 3 we've been waiting for you since 2017
 
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