Aloha everyone!
First of all, I just want to say a huge thank you for all the feedback you’ve been sharing on Gambonanza.
It’s honestly amazing, and it helps a lot more than you might think. You’re really opening my eyes on many things, so I wanted to give you some context on what I’ve learned thanks to you 👀
1️⃣ “Considered as” isn’t clear enough
Several Gambits like Pope, Anarchist, or Mini-Rook currently say things like: “Your PAWNS are now considered as ROOKS.”
The original intention was to let Pawns trigger Rook Gambits, opening new combo chains and gameplay possibilities.
However, through your feedback, it became clear that this wording can easily be interpreted as movement changes (Pawns moving like Rooks, or Rooks moving like Pawns), which is… totally understandable. That one’s on me 😅
So I’m reworking this:
👉 “CONSIDERED AS” will now be a proper keyword, 👉 with a dedicated popup explaining exactly how it works in-game.
2️⃣ About difficulty & “overpowered” combos
Some of you pointed out that certain combos feel extremely strong and could make the game too easy (I’m looking at you Thunder’s Gambit + Brave Knight’s Gambit).
That said, this is actually very close to the core vision of Gambonanza.
I want the game to be a playground for wild combos, goofy synergies, and experimentation, where breaking the game is part of the fun if you manage to pull it off.
At the same time, I’ve also seen players struggle and not manage to win a run at all, and Gambonanza is for them too!
For a bit more context:
👉 In the playtest, you were playing on PAWN difficulty, the easiest one.
In the full game:
Beating PAWN unlocks ROOK mode (higher prices, WAIT costs more, less room in the Stock, etc.)
Then KNIGHT, where the opponent plays first, Queens are removed from the shop, tiles can only be used once per run, and more…
All the way up to KING mode, which is meant to be the big spicy challenge (for reference: I haven’t beaten it myself yet 😬).
Not everyone is looking for hardcore difficulty though, and I really want to leave space for players who just enjoy experimenting and going full combo-wizard.
So the core of the game will stay roughly the same, with a few adjustments here and there (yes, Queen Ant’s Gambit, I’m looking at you 👀).
3️⃣ Bugs & overall experience feedback
I’m currently reading all your bug reports, especially ones reported on our Discord in #bugs, and feedback in #feedback, and also carefully going through the Google Form you took the time to fill in, thank you so much for that 💛
I’m moving a bit slowly, but please know that I read everything!
Your reports are super relevant and are directly helping me make the game better.
Sorry again for the number of bugs in the playtest, I’m squashing them one by one thanks to you, so really… thank you for being part of this ❤️
Once again, thank you all so much for taking the time to play the playtest, report bugs, share your thoughts, and discuss your experiences.
Seeing you engage with the game like this is honestly incredibly motivating 💛
I really hope you’re as excited as I am about what’s coming next for Gambonanza.
Your feedback is actively shaping the game, and having you along for the ride makes this whole adventure even better!
Thanks again for being here, for caring, and for helping me make Gambonanza a better (and weirder) game!
- Blukulélé