some of the staff pick choices are really poor. why are games like Grapnel(fun for about five seconds) or Hovertank(mediocre gameplay and graphically boring) on the staff picks list when far more deserving games like Ninja Guy Dan (http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/6645), Gunlimb (http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/11190) and White Land (http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/13728) are out there?

I can only give you my reasons for not choosing the three games you mentioned. Other staff members have different standards for Staff Picks.

Ninja Guy Dan : A work in progress. I don't add WIPs to Staff Choice, as I think a game should be complete before the staff endorses it. You never know when a developer is just going to stop working on it, and then you've got a game that'll never be finished.

Gunlimb : Just not my cup of tea.

White Land : Doesn't have Instant Play on the game page. Staff Picks should be compatible with Instant Play. I have chosen games in the past (like Immortal Defense) that don't work with Instant Play due to installers, but that was before Instant Play came around.

what would the criteria be for anyone wanting to get their game to be a staff pick?

Quotewhat would the criteria be for anyone wanting to get their game to be a staff pick?
It would have to be good.

OoooOOPPppps, you're right nailog, i forgot that ninja guy dan was a WIP. Personally i think gunlimb is inventive and hilarious, so i have it on my desktop. And white land doesn't work with instant play? hmm... i know the problem. You have to play white land Exec, because there are two versions. one's an editable(probably won't work with instant play) and one's an .exe. the exe instantplay works for me.

There should be posted some sort of basic criteria that shows what needs to be accomplished for a staff pick

eg

-Must be instant play compatible
-Must be completed
-A certain number of downloads?
-A certain rating?

Quotesome of the staff pick choices are really poor. why are games like Grapnel(fun for about five seconds) or Hovertank(mediocre gameplay and graphically boring) on the staff picks list when far more deserving games like Ninja Guy Dan (http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/6645), Gunlimb (http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/11190) and White Land (http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/13728) are out there?Add Avoidoid to the list. Oh, and who the hell let it be one of the four featured games?! That's wrong, Avoidoid is a crappy noobish 1945 engine with ultra-glossy objects.

I think Aces High Over Verlor island should be taken off as Staff Pick.
The game is crap. Sure, the graphics are incredibly, but it is sooooo boring, and only fun for half a second.
Same with Hover Tank 3D.

As it's been said so many times before, too many staff members pick games based purely on aesthetics. v_v

eg. Aces High Over Verlor Island, Hover Tank 3D, Avoidoid, and in my opinion Skydiver (I don't care what anyone else thinks, I found it boring!)

Then I look at games like Grapnel, and think "whoever picked that was in the right mind to do so". Simple fun, incredibly addictive, yet the graphics aren't great.

Oh well, each to their own.

Another thing. Cactus's games are all staff picks. is he a Moderator? could he be voting his own games staff picks? Protoganda, for instance, was a staff pick a day after it came out. some of his games, like fractal fighter, xwung, and the design, are fun, but burn the trash and protoganda aren't. I didn't include clean asia in any of those lists because i don't understand it. Only a few of his games are good, but they're are all staff picks.

My favourite game on the website is Clean Asia!, I love it, and Burn the Trash was good fun. I think only the former game should be a staff pick though. I don't think he's a moderator, he's just got such a good reputation for making games that staff get right onto new releases.

The best is Return to Sector 9 IMO.
The worst (none-spam game) is Aces High Over Verlor Island.

The reason that all of cactus' games are staff picks is because they are that good. I personally enjoyed protoganda and burn the trash because of their style. And no, I'm pretty sure he's not part of the team.

Staff picks are really just the games that we enjoy. There are no hard and fast criteria as Nailog has already pointed out. We're just letting you know the games we enjoy. (Admittedly games which aren't instant play won't make it onto the list anymore). Poor graphics can easily be made up for with great game play, altho it doesn't work the other way so well IMHO. Hope that helps.

It's a shame some of the other staff members don't think the same way. v_v Do you know who actually staff-picked Avoidoid?

Cactus isn't a mod...if you search members, the bar on the left has a list of mods...he's not there

QuoteCactus isn't a mod
Correct. Cactus isn't a mod.
Quotecould he be voting his own games staff picks?
He can't add his own games to the list. Suggesting he did is kind of mean, don't you think? I added Protoganda to the list, because I played it and I liked it. It was merely coincidence that I played it a day after it was added.

I also added Varia to the list for the same reason. I probably added it the same day it was uploaded.

QuoteOnly a few of his games are good, but they're are all staff picks.
I certainly don't like all of Cactus' games. But other staff members liked the other ones, so they added them to the list.

Try not to get so bent out of shape over it, BillyGoat_and_1CoolCat.

hey nailog...i've always wondered what my games need to become staff picks...i know some graphics are pretty basic, but what else would you suggest?

QuoteQuoteOnly a few of his games are good, but they're are all staff picks.
I certainly don't like all of Cactus' games. But other staff members liked the other ones, so they added them to the list.
Why not? They're all good :(

Seriously guys, stop whining and make some better games. Moping around won't get you anywhere. The YYG staff are professionals and most of them are almost twice your age. They know what they're doing (except they forgot to Staff Pick more than half of the games I've uploaded).

*wink-wink*

QuoteI think Aces High Over Verlor island should be taken off as Staff Pick.
The game is crap. Sure, the graphics are incredibly, but it is sooooo boring, and only fun for half a second.
Same with Hover Tank 3D.
I think it should be be a Staff Pick. It's great. Not everyone will like the same game, so maybe it's just not your type of game. But, that doesn't mean it shouldn't be a staff pick. To become a staff pick, a staff member has to really like it. Members can't vote/suggest to have a game as a staff pick. Why? Because only staff members make them. :) And I think Cactus makes a good point...

And Cactus, I like all your games. Or at least, the ones I played. FracFighter is my favorite. :)

I found it too bland to warrant extra attention.

Oh, and I liked most of Cactus' games. The only ones I didn't like were MSOIDS and xWUNG. Oh, and Saru Ga Daisuki was OK.

As I've sad manyatime, Clean Asia! is my fave game on the website, and why none of the staff have picked it eludes me

snide comments aside, we just don't think that all the staff pick games are staff pick worthy.

... NAL didn't like xWUNG? that was one of the best...

@ nailog, we're not really bent out of shape, just though it was a bit fast to become a staff pick.

also, does it only take one vote from a mod to make it a staff pick? if so, you should change it so that another mod has to second the motion. or maybe another "civilian user", so to speak?

@cactus, PS. - your games that we like are some of the best games on the site, But PRotoganda was just repetitive. Also, this forum was ultimately intended to hear peoples opinions on staff picks, and to suggest other worthy games. we not trying to insult anyone personally.

One thing We'd like to bring up, The noticeable lack of 3D games as staff picks...
You could always try this one... http://www.yoyogames.com/games/show/8622
Obviuosly its not finished, but in the short time of 2 1/2 research papers and "The Scarlet Letter", we'll be able to finish it before the end of the year. We have way more done than you're able to see in this demo. and we're not trying to be big-headed about this game. But we are. Why not, cactus is... *cough cough wink wink*

QuoteBut PRotoganda was just repetitive.
Minigames usually are repetitive. Just look at the number one game on the site, Grapnel. It's simplistic and repetetive, but fun nonetheless. Protoganda might be less easy to like, since it's very difficult. But if you get into it, it's quite enjoyable. I'll admit, though, that I really only made it to show that you can make 3D games that almost look as good as commercial ones (although maybe from a few years ago) with GM. Unfortunately, I couldn't make it play as good without inducing tons of lag.

As for your game, it's pretty nice, and definitely well made. But it lacks polish and the presentation is pretty rough. You should probably give the lighting functions a try. Protoganda would've looked like crap without 'em.

@Cactus: I experienced no lag whatsoever with Protoganda... :S

Quote@Cactus: I experienced no lag whatsoever with Protoganda... :S
Yes, because I optimized what was there enough for it not to lag a lot. The framerate does drop if you get far enough.

If I for instance would've wanted the bullets to be able to collide with the whole enemy, then there would've been a lot more collision checks, a lot more instances, and a lot more calculations to give the pieces decent collision masks. Which would have caused lag.