I find it hard to update my games without messing with the previous features.
Players would just have to click “edit” to see features wanted to keep secret for the update, or someone would play as I’m testing something.
Would it be nice if we could lock the version of the game players see while editing, then unlock the version to update the game?
This would be a good feature to have for our games.
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I don’t get many plays or even go back to make improvements much, but I can see this as a useful feature so I agree!
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With indie, you can private or unlist your game so either no one, or users with the link can even play it. Which is helpful for editing or making games that you don’t want publicized.
I struggled with a similar issue when I was working on a game and some other user kept spoiling every single new sprite I added to the game, and I didn’t have indie at the time so It kind of ruined the point of a story game.
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So, you need indie to do this…
To be able to lock the game in a specific state, doesn’t exist, but I do like the idea. That way if a game has multiple chapters, (like Bendy and the Ink Machine or Poppy’s Playtime for example) you could lock the game after the first chapter and update it when the second is completed.
But since flowlab does have a quite small active player base, I wouldn’t expect many people to actively search through the code or play the game exactly when your editing.
To be able to unlist or private your game, you do need indie sadly. I normally add features and updates either on a separate level or in an area of the map the player is unable to reach so that way I can test them out and then add them when it’s ready. But normally I try to work on a game in secret and then release it when it’s finished. When you play test a game several times while it’s being worked on, the final update or release typically isn’t as enjoyable as if it were being played first time.
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Eh, I’m working on a survival game that I’m giving the link out of on Thursday, I have a lot of ideas for that game and also have an idea that will include the community, let them choose to add things to the game.
But there are people who look through things for different reasons and It would be less enjoyable to add a feature if everyone used already.
This way, I could make a feature a complete secret from everyone until I want the feature to be released.