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10.1e — 2-Button Jam: Polish

Polish is not decoration; it is COMMUNICATION AT 60 FPS. Every juice pass is the game answering the player's unasked questions: did that work? did it matter? can I do better? Today: sound, feedback, and the 30-second first impression — nothing new, everything better.

Polish Day ~50 min

The three passes (20 min each, from the wishlist ranked in 10.1d):

  1. The 30-second first impression. A new player decides about your game in half a minute: what do they SEE first (a title screen IS your first screen — name it, color it), what do they DO first (a 5-second safe beat before the first threat — 7.5 beat 1), what do they LEARN first (your two verbs, by doing them)?
  2. Feedback on everything. Every action needs a visible/audible answer: 
    verb pressed   → input feedback  (squash, flash, sound)
verb succeeded → reward         (coin sparkle, score pop)
verb failed    → consequence   (screen edge red, shake)
score gained   → number that MOVES (not a silent int)
    The starter taught you all of this: hit flashes (8.3), coin destroy + count (2.1), phase tints (8.2). Reuse the tricks; they are yours.
  3. Sound. Three sounds minimum: an action sound (verb), a gain sound (reward), a lose sound (fail). Free sources with real licenses (9.10 rules): Kenney.nl assets, freesound.org with CC filters. A jam game with three sounds beats a silent one with twenty mechanics.

Freeze rule: last 10 minutes = NO new changes. Build (File → Build Settings), run the BUILD, not the editor. Build bugs (missing scene in build list!) are tomorrow's showcase killers — find them today.

Close of Day ~5 min

Socratic: Polish Is Communication

  1. Every polish pass answers a question the player did not ask out loud — did that work, did it matter, can I do better. Which of your three answers is still missing?
  2. Which of the effects you added tells the player something — and which one you were tempted to add would only have been decoration?
  3. Someone plays your game for 30 seconds with no explanation. What do they know by second 30, and what do they still not know?

Checkpoint — before moving on, you must be able to:

  • Show a 30-second first impression you designed
  • Give every action feedback a tester can see or hear
  • Ship three licensed sounds with credits in the repo
  • Run a frozen BUILD — not the editor — before leaving

Reference Docs

Need a deeper explanation? These pages cover the same concepts:

Next: 10.1f — 2-Button Jam: Showcase & Retro

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