This archived page tracks the morning MVP playtest feedback that drove the cross-game MVP closeout.

Closeout status: all tracked implementation items in this feedback batch are complete and covered by headless smoke tests or scene-load checks where practical. Remaining work is validation/playtest and final art/audio replacement, not known MVP functionality debt.

Shared Input And Menus

Done: Controller D-pad should focus the first available option when no UI element is focused. This affects the main menu, submenus, save screens, achievements, settings, Reflecting Pool, Card Game, and other custom list surfaces.
Done: B/Back from Settings should not throw set_input_as_handled on a null viewport.
Done: Settings content should remain stable when changing window size or volume.
Done: Settings keybindings must be scrollable inside the dialog.
Done: Master/Music/Effects sliders should align cleanly with their labels.
Done: Start/Menu should consistently open and close pause/menu overlays.
Done: Select should consistently open Settings across all games.
Done: Controller face-button labels should eventually use consistent colors: A green, B red, X blue, Y yellow.
Done: Achievements should be navigable by D-pad and back out with B.

Reflecting Pool

Done: Start-menu settings and achievements should back out to the start menu.
Done: D-pad should auto-focus game options.
Done: Restart run should be available from the start/pause menu.
Done: Resource buttons must not resize when clicked.
Done: Event card layout should be title/image on the top row, then description.
Done: Choice option rows should be more compact: option text on the left and effects on the right.

Emoji Card Collector

Done: Save/main screens should auto-focus with D-pad.
Done: Bottom navigation should highlight the active tab.
Done: D-pad should navigate custom inventory/fight lists.
Done: Select should open Settings.
Done: Remove Achievements from the game main page; access achievements through the pause/start menu.
Done: Remove Home/Menu bottom navigation in favor of Start pause menu and Select settings.

Arcade Pong

Done: Pressing Start once opens the menu; pressing Start again closes it.
Done: Remove bottom Menu/Reset/Pause buttons.
Done: Move player/computer scores into a real scoreboard panel with separate score blocks and large numeric values.
Done: Scoreboard values now use red LED-style coloring.
Done: Add end-of-game popup for Win/Loss/Reset that works with controller.
Done: Add visible session wins/losses to the top scoreboard.
Done: Add Easy/Medium/Hard selection before starting a match and expose the same selection through Game Settings.
Done: Make rockets faster and flash a paddle when it is stunned by a rocket.
Done: If the match result popup is dismissed/backed out after a game ends, start a fresh match instead of leaving the game softlocked.
Done: Powerup slot labels switch back to 1/2/3 when keyboard is the most recent input, while connected controllers still hide touch controls.
Done: Add SFX event hooks for paddle hits, scoring, powerup pickup/use, rockets, stuns, and match win.
Done: Persist Arcade Pong stats and gameplay tuning so wins/losses and selected options survive scene reloads.
Done: Add reusable generated fallback SFX tones in audioManager so named sound hooks work before final audio assets are produced.
Done: Raised generated fallback audio levels so placeholder music/SFX are audible during playtests without external files.
Done: Hide the on-screen control overlay when keyboard is the active input.
Done: Move Pong wins/losses and derived stats out of the active play HUD into a Stats page on the pause menu.
Done: Compact the Pong Difficulty and Stats popups so they do not carry large vertical empty space.
Done: Fast Ball and Slow Ball now apply instant current-speed multipliers, keep their effect after use, and only show short 3-second labels.
Done: Render powerups through pong_powerup_* sprite mappings with color fallback.
Done: Tighten paddle collision with a reusable collision inset so transparent sprite padding does not count as a hit.
Done: Added placeholder WAV assets for Pong SFX, a prototype music loop, and dedicated 64x64 PNG powerup icons wired through the sprite map.
Asset TODO: Replace placeholder music/SFX and powerup icons with final polished art/audio when the art pass is ready.

Project Alchemy

Done: Save slots should show identified element count, last saved time, spell count, and gold.
Done: Tutorial/Next Step should be closeable/skippable.
Done: Next Step banner should only appear on the Game menu.
Done: Tutorial copy should explain synthesizing already researched elements.
Done: Tutorial/Next Step text should be smaller.
Done: Arena should have fewer/simple enemies for MVP.
Done: If only one or two spells are equipped, unused attack buttons should be greyed out and controller labels should compress to A or A/X.
Done: Field guide should move to the top-right of the play screen without covering the playfield.
Done: Start/Select menus should pause enemy movement and attacks.
Done: Start/Select should work from lab menu interfaces.
Done: Step delay should move camera/grid and player together; default should be 350ms.
Done: Projectiles should not double-fire.
Done: Damage should resolve when a projectile reaches its current collision target.
Done: Projectile shots should stop at the first enemy unless the spell is a beam or piercing form/modifier.
Done: Battle enemy counts should scale by half-size: 3x3 has 1-3 enemies, 4x4 has 1-4, and 5x5 has 1-5.
Done: Lab menu should open the game start/pause menu, not return directly to game selection.

Achievement Expansion

Target 10-15 achievements per game.

Done: Added a starter achievement set for all four current games so the collection screens have meaningful rows and controller navigation coverage.
Done: Added missing Pong match win/shutout counters and Project Alchemy arena/battle/adventure completion counters.
Done: Expanded current achievement lists toward the 10-15 target using real stats already generated by the MVP games:
- Pong now tracks collected/used powerups, rocket hits, Fast Ball use, Split Ball use, and completed matches.
- Card Collector now exposes battle-count milestones from wins plus losses.
- Reflecting Pool now tracks total decisions and additional round/resource milestones.
- Project Alchemy now adds more research, combat-use, arena, and defeat milestones.
Done: Added reusable batched stat events through statsManager.record_events(...) and expanded active-game hooks:
- Pong records computer points, difficulty-specific wins, and best score margin.
- Card Collector records packs opened, singles bought, rarity acquisition, cards sold, merge count, best card level, battle rewards, raids, and card losses.
- Reflecting Pool records positive-only, tradeoff, harsh tradeoff, largest recovery, and largest downside decision profiles.
- Project Alchemy records failed reactions, known crafting, spell creation, modifier/form spell usage, deconstruction, field material pickup, and reward categories.
Done: Added exact event models for the deferred achievement classes:
- Card Collector records no-damage wins and collection discovered/completed progress through the reusable collection manager.
- Reflecting Pool records rare, epic, and non-repeatable event choices.
- Project Alchemy records run damage for no-damage field clears and codex discovery completion against the reaction library.
- Pong records hard-mode shutouts as an exact challenge-run event.
Done: Added headless smoke coverage for batched stat events, collection completion helpers, challenge/collection achievement categories, and achievement summary audits.
Done: Surfaced newer progression stats in-game:
- Pong stats now include computer points, hard wins, hard shutouts, best score margin, powerups used, and rocket hits.
- Card Collector now has a compact pause-menu Stats panel for battle, economy, collection, merge, reward, and no-damage counters.
Done: Folded stats popup rendering back into the framework through a reusable statsPanel system. Pong and Card Collector now use the shared compact, scrollable stats popup renderer instead of hand-built scene-specific modals.
Done: Folded achievement unlock popup timing/cleanup into a reusable achievementNotifier queue. Reflecting Pool and Card Collector now use the shared notification path instead of duplicating async popup loops.
Done: Folded achievement collection popup rendering into a reusable achievementScreen controller. Reflecting Pool and Card Collector now use the shared themed/text-scaled/focus-ready collection overlay instead of hand-building matching popups.
Done: Expanded resultsScreenController to support compact match-result popups and migrated Arcade Pong's match complete Reset/Menu popup onto the shared result flow.
Done: Added additive save migration defaults for stats progression, collection state, and Project Alchemy run damage so older saves load into the current MVP shape cleanly.
Remaining future achievement work is content breadth: adding more authored achievement definitions after playtest identifies the most satisfying goals.