ShangXian's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[(Medals Fixed) Pokemon Encounter]

This is a really simple game that is inspired by the famous Pokemon franchise, whose two main medals are pretty easy to get: catch your first Pokemon and catch a Beedrill or a Butterfree. The last medal is more difficult to get because it's very random both the chance to get the shiny and the chance to get it after first tries (keep in mind that 1 in 8192 is a shiny Pokemon). I initially got a shiny after around 1000 tries, here the proof:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/c2a1e6cea2d8ecf15c4befcc0932cb63

But I didn't initially get the medal, I don't know if it was because the game disconnected after some time, so I decided to replay it and after 20 tries I got my shiny. I went to check in the PC and I saw I got more than one shiny XD:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/f6af28d6e24c736dd42691c16c5157eb

This time I got the medal and I am very happy, so I decided to share a small tip on how to speed up the chance to find one, hope this helps.

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Pro tip: to get the last medal which is worth 100 points you must keep searching in the grass but because the process is long and tedious and may take time due to its dependance to luck, the only thing I feel to suggest to speed up the chance to find a shiny. To do so go into the tall grass, stand at the sides of the screen and hold down the directional arrow left or right depending on which side of the screen you are, and click "run" every time a Pokemon appears until the shiny one appears.

Here the image that shows better what I mean:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/fc5927fc02054271799106099b10cea3

If you move in the grass Pokemons eventually appear but with this method you will focus the appearance only in that spot and you will notice how fast they appear. The shiny will appear first as regular Pokemon, but immediately after that a black square will surround the Pokemon and you will see the shiny variant. Throw your Pokeball and enjoy your 100 points medal.

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The music is nice and gives a nice nostalgia vibe, but mechanics are a bit wonky when moving the character and I would have preferred a more varied Pokemon encounter along with some different environment but it was a nice test game nonetheless. I've also noticed that despite muting the music, it starts up again after soon, so the best way to mute it, is clicking on the speaker symbol on the tab.

It was nice testing my patience and finding the shiny, hence my 4.5 vote despite the flaws of something more similar to a test game than a full-fledged work.

[THERE IS NO GAME]

This is not a game I had no fun not to play it. I write no review to express the no fun I had. There is no cool music that made me enjoy every bit of the game and the progression of the game itself. The pixels are not nice to look at, each of them was not worthy of my time to admire their no-existent artistic beauty. The presence of the unreliable narrator made everything no fun to experience, and the voice was not funny to listen to especially with his hints which didn't help me to go through the game. I don't have this game on Steam and even there I left no review for others to enjoy. The outro music was not powerful to appreciate especially the drums, and the high-hats in the middle part of the musical composition. I also did not like the small challenges I had to complete in order not to free the goat, especially the squirrel one. That was not my favourite for sure.

Because I didn't laugh I think I won't play it over and over since there is no game, so no real reason to spend some free time. No congratulations for this game. Since I leave no review, there is no point I keep writing now, in fact I stop and go not to play this game again!

[#Run3rd The Game]

Ok, this was one of those game that made me feel genuinely entertained while playing it, even the times I kept losing XD
I liked both the graphic, the design, gameplay, music and voice acting. I also loved the possibility to customize your cause even though I mostly opted for the ones already present in the game. I like how difficulty increases the more you gain speed. Considering that still 63 people got the final achievement I feel to share some tips on how to increase this chance that, despite it's still very difficult it's not impossible.

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The first five achievements are pretty easy to get, just increase your level and they will unlock, but to speed up the process go mainly for gold and silver medals which give you three and two points respectively. This way you will get past each level in no time, in fact I unlocked them the same day I played the game the first time. During this phase you can also start learning the patterns to avoid obstacles. When you start playing, the voice tells you that you can use every button to jump, my tip is to use the SPACEBAR because it gave me much more control on the character and the intensity of the jump especially between narrow spaces and on difficult platforms. I've noticed the game has different patterns and obstacles, some appear more frequently like these ones:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/88e05bedecb6fe55cc71afc64bf321ea

You can see the red arrows as tips to jump on them better. These are the most common types of platforms and I suggest to jump on the wider platform and avoid at all costs the smaller ones because you won't have time and space to jump. It's also interesting the path transition when you upgrade your level. It's a delicate moment since you might risk to lose and fall down in case you jump between platforms and the transition happens like in this case:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/39abb1be035b7657a0267c7eb7039ec2

Jump as soon as possible if you happen to find yourself in this type of transition which can occur sometimes, but you can try to avoid it as much as possible by collecting medals on more linear path like in this case:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/c85e810f89b59a269f8662ffe379a7b4

This is the best type of transition because you don't have to worry about the "reset" of the strength of your jump that occurs during the transition. The time delay that happens during the transition affects the power of the jump so in critical situation this can be a curse, in one case though it happened to be a blessing because I could lower the intensity of the jump in an area that might have caused me a certain loss.

Now that you have reached all main, easy achievements to get the last one you have to endure several trials and errors, it took me three days of training to finally get it but it was worth the effort. A tip I feel to share is to avoid collecting too much medals and do the opposite of what you do for getting the level-bounded achievements: go for bronze medals, silver at best. This way you can remain on lower levels and 1) learn patterns better 2) have a higher chance to reach your final goal.

Keep in mind though that the more you progress, the faster you run so this implies two things: 1) less time to jump and take decision, 2) higher jumps which become very useful for this type of platform that tends to occur at higher speeds:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/f56ef5b7a4da07e8ec71442cc40b313e

You can't see Sean simply because I made him jump very high and went off screen, but I managed to make him land on the platform circled in yellow and that it's barely visible because I took the screenshot while jumping. Don't be afraid, at that speed similar jumps can happen, while at lower speed your jumps tend to be less high.

This is another type of platform rarely seen at lower speeds but more common when you become faster and you are about to reach 20 miles:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/16ae3c8ddb46dd18ef0c0dfa9c950cb8

Again, avoid landing on small platforms and land on bigger ones that will allow you to jump fast. I had to fall down many times before memorizing the pattern.

This is a very common type of platform to jump:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/d67bcc903d2b2944a758a5661d03a401

Follow the path of the red arrow and you are able to get pat through this type of platform. The music also helped me to guide to the speed, what do I mean? When I reached 8 miles the sound of drum beats told me that I was reaching a slightly faster pace and this allowed me to adapt the area.

If you keep practicing you will eventually manage to reach and even surpass 31 miles.

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I was finally happy to have reached 31.23 miles two days ago, it was a small satisfaction for the effort put in the game. The only suggestion for the game would be a leaderboard to compare scores, but besides this I loved the game so much that I still play it over and over despite getting all the achievements because it's engaging and relaxing at the same time. I also loved the 8-bit music. Great job, keep it up!

It was a nice dive into the early 2010s games^^

[Newgrounds Pass]

This is a fun NG-based quiz game that engages you to think in some questions in order to get the right password and access next level. Despite the graphics looks a bit unpolished I still enjoyed it due to the strong early 2000s vibe it gives me. I liked the music especially Endless Handbag Loop because 1) helps to focus better on the questions (at least to me), 2) it's the official NG anthem to me where it shows the original wacky, crazy, edgy and creative nature of the site. I have to thank BlueMonday1984 if I could finish the quiz as some questions sadly rely on existing walkthroughs or a time machine to retrieve the necessary info. The only thing that made almost ragequit was the minigame at level 8. I will give you a tip to better finish it without always repeat it over and over

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You have to move the arrow in this labyrinth without touching the walls or else you will start over. Some walls are very narrow so the risk to accidentally touch it are high and I initially thought it was almost impossible to cross the narrowest parts at the end of the labyrinth, but then after some trials and errors I've noticed that only the tip of the arrow is affected. You can cross and even touch the rest of the walls with the lower part of the arrow, making it easier to pass through. Here a quick scheme no how to do it:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/2e8a209a31462b87bdb0165ab1314ce3

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Have fun, and thanks for making this little game, I enjoyed it despite almost rage quitting it XD

[Faic Button]

A nice, little, short, fun clicker game that despite the simple graphic and artstyle is enjoyable even by listening to the music alone. The music pieces are truly awesome especially "Speeding Rampage", as someone who loves heavy metal this was a nice gem to add to the game. The game is pretty simple and straightforward both in terms of gameplay and achievements except for the last one that initially gave me some time to reflect. I was even using math to try to guess what I missed when clicking but then I had this intuition. So I share here how to get it since, as the time I am writing this only 38 people got it (if we exclude me who just achieved it now):

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To get the last achievement that is not about clicking the button, just start the game and DO NOT skip the intro. After you start the game an intro sequence starts but at the same time the game funnily tricks you with the ability to already skip it to immediately start the game. Well, don't click anything and just wait for the intro to finish. It's not even that long, just wait and after a while the 25 worth points achievement unlocks. I hope this helps those who are struggling.

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Lovely game, keep it up!

[Naut Land]

I actually enjoyed a lot the physics of this platform combined with the 8 bit chiptune that accompanies the player during the levels. I like how difficulties increases as you progress, and I find them balanced. The mosti difficult task was to control precisely the kid when jumping between piranha plants and walking goombas in order to land in a safe space and avoid getting hit, but at the same time it's the part I loved the most because of its challenging nature. Once you get to know the timing and correct pressure on the arrow key, the game becomes easier to handle.

Despite this the different challenges and the fact that you have to be on the ground to swap the planet's sides keep the player focused on not losing track of what needs to be done. I liked the medals too because they functioned as a rewarding system after completing a level. The music was really enjoyable and, along with the difficulty of the levels, is one of the things I loved the most starting from the menu to each level. The graphics fits the nature of the game and its goals. One thing that made me struggle a bit, asides from certain levels, was finding the hidden golden rocket. I ever replayed each level, thinking it was in one of them but then after a potential third attempt I thought "what if it's in the menu?" and so I found it.

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To all people who are still struggling to find it, here where it is:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/242cc986507fb0d081bccb194f187ec9

After clicking start you will see this screen, click on the rocket at the bottom left corner. I know that for some it was easier but because the game immediately makes you want to try it, it's easy to forget about this small, lovely detail.

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Good job, because I had fun with the difficulty, levels, enemies, physics mechanics combined with good timing and arrow key pressure, and the music I gave it 5/5

[FL!P]

This was a short but fun game with its difficulty well balanced as the levels progress despite some levels, like 13 were more nightmarish than others. I loved how it forces the player to think a lot, retry by trials and errors, and finally reach the goal. Graphic is simple, colours are nice and despite it has been done in a week it's enjoyable enough to keep you engaged with the levels. I liked that you can select a level and the presence of medals which makes the game more interesting to try from a reward point of view. Many levels were synchronization-dependent since you played with a double or multiple version of yourself. You had to be fused with the level to see how to optimize the environment. Last level was nightmare in terms of time synchronization especially for the second stage of the boss battle. Since some people may still have problems with the last level, I share here a way to defeat it even though it's not the only, correct and true sequence of actions to perform. I experimented with different ones and this was one of those that helped me to win the battle even though this doesn't exclude the possibility you have to redo it due to time-dependent nature of some sequences. So without any further ado here the solution for the boss fight:

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The boss fight is characterized by two stages, the first one is easier once you move in time your block and avoid getting hit, so for the 1st stage here the sequence:

UP, RIGHT, UP, RIGHT, DOWN, RIGHT, UP, LEFT, UP, LEFT, DOWN, LEFT, LEFT, LEFT, UP, RIGHT, DOWN, RIGHT, DOWN, LEFT, DOWN

After you hit the first nucleus-like thing, the boss will shoot faster, hence the temporal frame is shortened and the velocity at which you move the blocks, when they must pass through them, must be high. So here the sequence of the boss's fight 2nd stage:

UP, RIGHT, DOWN, LEFT, UP, RIGHT, DOWN, LEFT, UP, LEFT, LEFT, DOWN, RIGHT, RIGHT, RIGHT, UP, RIGHT, UP RIGHT, RIGHT, UP

And now enjoy your 25 worth points medal^^

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Overall nice, fun, short game. Nice job!

[Word Play - 5 Differences]

I loved this game so much because it's one of the type of games I like the most since it's based on detail focus. It gave me some time in some levels since some differences were mere colour differences (in Tiger Wood there is a part of the sky that is dark blue and it's easy to miss it since the player is usually focused on finding smaller details) or just differences in designs, sometimes even smaller (i.e. Donkey Kong or House Wife). Other differences were plain visible before your eyes but they follow the principle of showing up to hide like in Buddy Building level.

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I liked the first and last musical tracks because they were the ones who helped me the most to stay focused. At the end I got a slight headache since I had to concentrate a lot to find them XD but I had fun. And to all people who are still struggling to find differences I prepared this image document that I share here as dump file (download it to see better and find them easily) to help you with the search, enjoy:

https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/e33695f546e093a1c55369fe0c1f2463

If you follow it you will kill two birds with one stone: you find all differences and don't make mistakes which allows you to get a 100 worthy point medal.

Only thing that sometimes can confuse the player is the presence of some glitches because some of the differences won't register if you click on the right side instead of the left.

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As always artworks and the witty word play is one of the elements I love the most about Munguia's games.

[Jawbreaker]

This was a really fun game despite after a while arm hurts or finger, depending what you were using. Music is relaxing and I found funny the possibility to change skin XD
I also liked how the thicker the layer was, the easier it was to lick it off.

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Tips:

I would recommend a tablet with the pen or a mouse alternatively because with fingers movements are slower compared with those of the mouse/tablet pen. I also suggest to perform circular movements instead of up-and-down movements because this will pay off in the inner layers where you will see how fast they will disappear.

Secret Medal:

While other medals are pretty straightforward, the secret medal is not immediately direct to think about since it's hidden. So in order to get it, lick off all layers but the yellow one (the layer before the bubble gum). Once you reached it, press B or double click to bite it and break your teeth. Now you can enjoy 100 points.

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Thank you for making a short but funny game. Maybe if you want to make a sequel you might add power-ups and different levels. It's a fun game that I would see it as a game series too unless you have already done this (I discovered this game only today). Either way, nice job!

[M-Bot The Game]

Awesome game 10/10 if I could vote 10 instead of 5 but consider this a personal 10 from me. I loved everything about it, first the drawings. Seeing Mindchamber's style blasted the level of coolness of this game by 100, then I loved the overall gameplay even if with keyboard pressing S tired a bit my poor middle finger XD but I enjoyed it nevertheless. I loved so much the music which fits perfectly both the cityscape in the background and M-Bot himself.

Before playing it I thought it was more an emulation of M-Bot moderation powers (I initially didn't read the tags to not let myself influenced) but then I was pleasantly surprised by seeing it is actually an action, shooter, horizontal flight game. I loved so much the 3D-like vibe it gives me when I move M-Bot and I see other characters coming at me (cars included), and combined with the elaborate graphics made the experience really enjoyable. Time really flew. I liked the battles against regular enemies, mini-boss and the main boss. A thing that surprised me was how the score which is also the health bar gets affected if M-Bot is hit by something (whether it's an attack, a car or a wall). When I was running through the city I didn't initially noticed that but then in the final battle I understood the connection XD

I liked so much the introduction of the main boss, it truly gave me a strong late 90s videogame vibe from Nintendo or Sega. The whole game gave me this vibe. It would be a great 3D flash game, and I would love to see other games like this or even different genres featuring the all bots with Mindchamber's style. That would be great imho. The final battle was very fun and challenging to fight and after being beaten the first time, I could learn quickly the main strategy to avoid main attacks minus the metro tram attack. That was the only one I still struggle to completely avoid, but others were easier once you noticed the pattern; stay away from cars as long as possible from their attack range, jumps a lot, and attack the attacks Co-Lab launches at you in order to send them back to him. Nice name for the boss, my mind also read it as "collab", even if the name implies some sort of science behind him. I like both the victory and defeat artworks in case you defeat or not the boss. Nice perspective in the victory artwork. When I beat him I was so happy because it was satisfying beating him after the series of attacks and dodges.

I will replay it again to get other medals and because it's honestly quite enjoyable. Great job to everyone from the programmer, the artist to M-Bot himself. You guys rule!

MindChamber responds:

Thanks for the kind words and in-depth review! we were aimg for that 90s killer instinct retro 3D rendered vibes, Im glad you caught that!