ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier

Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by joeberon on Friday October 22, 2021 @06:41AM (#28955576)

I personally find it's very disappointing that the game is almost entirely visually indistinct from Stardew Valley. In fact even the sound effects are identical. I understand that this saves a lot of time and money, but this feels more like bonus content or an impressive mod of SDV than really having its own new identity. I'm sure a vast majority of people are in the "don't care, this is exactly what I want" category, and I wish that were me too, but unfortunately it's just not happening for me.

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by js8 on Friday October 22, 2021 @11:19AM (#28958335)

It's kinda like saying, oh, another romantic painting, I expected some impressionism or cubism from the dude this time around.

Maybe you're focusing on the style too much, and not enough on other artistic elements. Which is understandable in the preview.

I personally enjoy Stardew Valley, and I am sure I will enjoy the Chocolatier. I think these are video games as an art form; not the ground breaking type which makes the critics drool over it, but something like a Bob Ross kitsch that you want to put into your home to make it cozier.

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by joeberon on Friday October 22, 2021 @01:09PM (#28959799)

No, not really, two romantic paintings can (and do) have totally different styles.

> Maybe you're focusing on the style too much, and not enough on other artistic elements.

Well if we look at another "artistic element" of the game, we see that it relies on the absolutely shit combat from SDV, which doesn't exactly inspire hope from the gameplay.

The point is that it's really fucking boring to get the same art style again. Why am I going to play a game that bores me just by looking at it? I want to have fun. That's what games are for.

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by floatingatoll on Friday October 22, 2021 @06:42PM (#28963648)

That reminds of another game that celebrates their polarized reviews on Steam, because 75% of players love the game and 25% of players loathe the game, and there's no in-between. I kind of like that view; I'd rather people feel most strongly about my work. Opinionated works that do resonate with me resonate far more strongly as a result of expressing an opinion.

Apparently, as we've learned today, if you're looking for variety and novelty in artistic style, you probably won't find it in the works of ConcernedApe. That's probably a very polarizing "love it or hate it" moment for quite a lot of people. From a press standpoint, best to put that out there early on, and let people form an opinion. Far better than letting them build up anticipation for a year!

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by revolvingocelot on Friday October 22, 2021 @08:02AM (#28956198)

I'm excited for the game, but I understand your position -- I don't like it either. The effect is lessened a bit, for me, by remembering that it's just the one guy doing all of this.

Plus, we don't know that the sounds/tileset aren't just placeholders to allow him to release the trailer's vertical slice! I appreciate that this is unlikely, but still! What we recognize as normal development practices don't necessarily apply to a studio of one.

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by joeberon on Friday October 22, 2021 @09:30AM (#28956957)

I think it's one of those situations where it's like, yeah I appreciate that it's just one dude, but for me as the player, that doesn't actually affect my enjoyment of the game, so there's only so much I can ignore that stuff. The problem is that I already felt "done" and moved on from SDV (actually I was never that into the game, which is also a factor to being disappointed here) and this just feels like, we're gonna get another few years of the same thing..

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by gnagatomo on Friday October 22, 2021 @11:18AM (#28958312)

For me it's a big win. SV art style is unique and feels like it came from Eric's heart. For me the improvements are clear if compared to SV, but the style is the same. And being able to enjoy the same art style in a somewhat different context is exciting.

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by joeberon on Friday October 22, 2021 @01:09PM (#28959805)

Unfortunately I found the SDV style grating and lifeless

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by rm8x on Friday October 22, 2021 @01:55PM (#28960361)

agree, it just looks to me like standard fare of the 16 bit era

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by rkangel on Friday October 22, 2021 @09:57AM (#28957230)

Don't forget that it's early. I'd be surprised if it didn't diverge more and more from looking like SDV as time progresses. It's to be expected that prototyping leverages assets that he has readily available, but then as the game's individual personality develops it will be reflected in the UI and the look and feel.

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by joeberon on Friday October 22, 2021 @10:07AM (#28957343)

People always say this about such trailers, that the game has a chance to change and probably will look totally different when it comes out, but I very rarely have found that actually to be true in the end.

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Re:ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier by tmountain on Friday October 22, 2021 @07:58AM (#28956162)

I agree with you. I loved SDV, and I will probably play this, but it looks like an expansion more than a new game.

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