Game scaling / Levels

[avose]

Really, there should be levels. Perhaps a simple text file can define some levels and some bitmap files (heightmap, path, and tower positions) for each. Also, the thing with the gem mixing and area-based strength is, that it's easy to get high level stuff.

One fix would be to make the level's specify the colors involved. So, single color levels are low, two-color levels are mid, and three color levels are high. I guess the colors of the level need to tie in to gem creation so that only those colors can be spawned. Anyway, this would set a clear level/difficulty/scaling progression.

[avose]

How about the following:

Difficulty 1:

1. Blue max 64, only one effect.
2. Blue max 128, only two effects.
3. Blue max 196, only three effects.
4. Blue max 255, four effects.
   (First Red, then Green, then the above blue, for 12 total levels.)
   So,
   (r) * 4 levels
   (g) * 4 levels
   (b) * 4 levels

Then do the secondary colors:
Difficulty 2:
(r,g) * 4 levels
(r,b) * 4 levels
(g,b) * 4 levels

Do a final set of levels:
Difficulty 3:
(r,g,b) * 4 levels

[avose]

This really is the #1 issue. I mean, I could play the first (and only level) forever and get any high score I want given enough time, as there are so many towers, that once they are filled with diamond gems (whte: 255,255,255), there's just no way to lose. So, two things, we need levels that have increasing difficultly related to either number of towers on the field of number of colors the player can use, etc. Also, we may need to just tone down the power of the white gems as, from a game balance perspective, they're pretty powerful.

I think adding levels with restrictions on each level (in terms of towers present or gem colors available) would make this game much more playable.