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| Timestamp | Since previous | Game | Steve Dragon's comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 5 02:37:46 | Flooded Caves | ♥ 1 | Very simple but very cool. I definitely think that the strength here is the addictive fun gameplay. The primary loop is satisfying and engaging. The music was nice and complemented the gameplay. The graphics were cute. Fluid simulation was interesting, almost mesmerising to watch. Overall, quite fun! | |
| Apr 5 02:55:28 | 17m 42s | Nuclear Arms 8.5er: Skeleton Survivor | ♥ 5 | Another Nuclear Arms game! Such a treat. The fully-voiced opening was awesome. Generally, a very cool game. I definitely got the feeling of slowly building up my character, becoming more complex but also more powerful, while the game-world scaled appropriately in a way that the overall challenge went up but I could still feel my strength. Some balancing issues, but that's understandable within the time constraints (specifically, the difficulty scales too quickly around the 6 minute mark, and the nuclear barrels are too powerful). I would have liked a few more varied power-ups because that feels like the main thing that keeps you going, variation and excitement in terms of powers. That, however, is an ask I make only because the existing game is so cool and I can see what more variation would bring because you've already given me a taste. So, just keep doing what you're doing! |
| Apr 5 03:02:09 | 6m 41s | Run Wacho Run | ♥ 8 | That was an interesting game. I think the strength here is definitely in the concept. The theme is fun, the art is beautiful, and the music is relatively jazzy. The execution is limited in the ways a jam-game is usually limited. I think this is a game that relies on its primary loop being snappy and replayable, and it needed fine-tuning to make it feel more...crisp. I don't know if there's a better word. Just needed to feel more polished. The animation was also a little laggy for me. Plus, the difficulty ramp feels a bit off. There's definitely a lot of potential, it's well-thought out and designed, just needs better granular execution. That said, the power-ups and theme were really great. My first game, I got immediately run-over. I genuinely laughed out loud. And, I cannot overstate this, the art looks so good! Overall, a pretty cool game! |
| Apr 5 03:23:27 | 21m 18s | fireme.club | ♥ 4 | That is such an awesome idea and the fact that you executed it is, frankly, astounding to me. The conceptual building behind the game is brilliant. It feels super breezy, but I can see all the tiny things that have gone into making this the way it is. The writing is so good! Whoever wrote the copy did such a wonderful job of capturing the very specific cheeky procrastinator feel. It does take a bit to get to grips with the controls and the set-up, but once I got the hang of it I thought it was very interesting once it got going. Bubble.io is such a fun choice. Definitely looking forward to diving deeper into this at some point! |
| Apr 5 03:33:50 | 10m 23s | Dino Defense | ♥ 1 | The dinosaur theme was such a cool idea. I think it works well, almost comically, with the placing of turrets to prevent asteroids from crashing. The turrets themselves acted like mini-checkpoints, things to aim towards that prevented it from getting stale. The turrets themselves were variant (although, I think I would've liked some graphical variance as well to set them apart). A little ways in, I realised I had boxed myself out of a lot of resources, which was so awesome because I realised the placement needed more thought than I had been putting in it. Needs some polish in places, but overall a really well-made entry. Enjoyed playing it! |
| Apr 5 13:34:45 | 10h 00m | Why Am I Here | ♥ 1 | That's a pretty decent game. You've taken the base concept of a top-down shooter and extended it with some additional quirks like the tower bosses. The primary loop feels a little off, I think it needs some polish with how the shooting actually feels. The map also lacks variation in a way that makes it less replayable, which is a problem since this is a game where you die often. That said, I think there's something to be said about how cool it feels once the initial difficulty ramp is overcome. I think the running and gunning is relatively fun. The art is simple but gets the job done. Overall, I'm glad I played it. (I couldn't figure out what the Reset thing was. I get that it's an easter egg kinda situation, but worth considering how cryptic you want it to really be) |
| Apr 5 13:55:38 | 20m 53s | Grieventide | ♥ 2 | I think you've got something really cool here, both as a jam game and as a potential full-scale project. As a jam game, I think the way it's structured is awesome. I started the game lost, then slowly discovered that there was a whole quest-thing going on. The environmental discovery of the quest through pathways and runes is something I've never seen executed so well in a jam game. There's a sense of completion here. As a full-scale project, I would love to see it pushed and developed with more attack types (that said, the simplicity does add to the enjoyment, so that would need to be reconciled), more enemy types, and some environmental storytelling. You've done some things really well. The attacking is satisfying, the art is charming, and the way you deal with health is, honesty, inspired. It looks brilliant to slowly dim it as you get closer to death. There's definitely a Don't Starve + Dark Souls feel to the overall game. There was too much firewood around for losing to be an actual concern (though I did pick up a lot of it without knowing what it did before), and the combat was not too challenging. I think that's the big criticism I'd have. The combat gets a little bland after a while. Within the super bleak theme, I think you need to give the player more in terms of combat. Either making it more mechanically challenging, or making it more puzzle-y. Different enemy types requiring different tactics. Either of those things would fit the bleak theme better than what you have now. Overall, it's a really good game! I really hope you push this to a bigger project, I would want to play a post-jam version with more story and variation. |
| Apr 5 14:24:55 | 29m 17s | Cat in the Bag | ♥ 6 | There's definitely something very cool about being a cat handing items to my human to go on adventures. On a conceptual level, it reminds me of games like Jacksmith where you aren't taking part in the action, but rather facilitating it. I love that. The art is SO GOOD. Honestly, you've conveyed the emotion and the humor so well with the art and the writing. The knight bounding up the stairs with reckless abandon made me chuckle. The gameplay itself is possibly the weak link here, but only insofar as there is so much more potential. The connection between the object chosen and the way the scenario plays out seemed a bit arbitrary at some points, and the puzzle-solving was not too satisfying as a result. I know fully how impossible it is planning out detailed decision trees and dialogue managers, but I think this game needs it to fully execute on the concept. Even in the very first encounter, why doesn't Dracula kill all the Llamas? Why do the Tiger shark and the squid soup succeed where the needle fails? Another interesting element I expected but missed was that some tools may be useful in more than one encounter. So, if I use it during the first one, I can't use it during the third. Maybe even new tools that are found in previous encounters based on how they are approached. That, however, is a criticism that comes with the selfish desire to play through a more fleshed out version. I wanna read more of your writing and play through a more expansive game where I take my human on an adventure! With more dialogue trees, more impact for my actions, more varied storylines, and endings. (Full disclosure, my human died every time. I got through three scenarios and then he fell down the stairs. Not sure if I missed an easter egg that would've kept him going, I really wanted the big man to survive) |
| Apr 5 14:42:27 | 17m 32s | Ancient Shooter | ♥ 1 | Congratulations on your first game jam! Not sure how to rate the game, for some reason the rating system isn't showing up for me... In terms of feedback, I think you started on the right track with some of this. The creepy character design really works, and the concept of being stuck on an island and having to find an exit with little to no help is quite cool. Definitely one of the games where execution needed more time. The character design is so cool, I would've loved to see animations and an environment where it fits in well. I'm guessing you didn't have the time to properly implement an exit or boat-related puzzles. The atmosphere was solid, so those would've brought it all together. A very specific complaint I have is that the environment is too same-y, so when you're swimming along the side of the wooden-like things, you sometimes can't tell you're moving at all. On a broader scale, I think the art needs more unification. It needs to fit together better. The music is dope, and the 3D audio effect made the boat feel like a lifeline I was supposed to hold on to. Maybe pushing and making it a complete game might be an interesting post-jam project, even if it is a short one with a simple win state and some puzzles. Something I'll look forward to if it ever happens. |
| Apr 5 15:00:24 | 17m 57s | Panic at the Museum | ♥ 3 | That's such an awesome game! It feels so polished and complete. You've captured perfectly a sense of whimsical panic, the classic top-down time-based puzzles become so much harder when compounded with the beats and the fire. The fact that the fire actually blocks routes and makes the game harder creates a tactical challenge. Should I spend time getting fire extinguishers that don't add to my score but buy me time and open up pathways? That's such a cool concept. The art is so charming and enjoyable, the colour scheme adds to the whole whimsical panic. The fact that I am just a hand is so fun. Lots of great decisions. The masterpieces are truly worthy of the illustrious museum. If I had to be critical, I'd say it needs more than just paintings and fire extinguishers. More power-ups, more kinds of things to collect. I can imagine a full game where you're traversing a large gallery and going to different exhibits to save different pieces that form collections, more valuable together than by themselves. As it stands, the primary loop is fun and engaging, but it does get old relatively quickly. I'm glad I played it, really cool game! |
| Apr 5 15:16:08 | 15m 44s | Pass The Torch | ♥ 2 | That was one of the moodiest games I've played. The ramping music, the super ethereal art and wind, and the way the children and old people slowly fall behind if the torch-bearer is an adult or a teen. It was a harrowing game, with a strong concept. The bleak world was interesting, the Torch and the bitter winter, I would've appreciated more worldbuilding in between stages. The persistent characters was awesome. My first playthrough, I ended up losing almost all my tribe and then slowly died out as my remaining human got old and slow. You learn and adapt in this game, which I thought was interesting. Definitely needs some work on the player-experience side of things. The primary loop is interesting, but I can see it getting a little repetitive. More interaction, more things for the player to do, more ways to make choices (maybe choosing who cares for the baby as well?), larger tribes. These are all things that would make this so much better. As is, you've nailed the mood and the feel. So much potential here! |
| Apr 5 16:33:48 | 1h 17m | ileftbehind.me | ♥ 1 | The existential dread came outta nowhere. You've done an amazing job capturing the right mood for the game. The music and the writing work so well together. The setting was so cool. Combining OpenAI and GPT with this idea of an AI stuck in a cache somewhere trying to survive. Loved it. Genuinely heartfelt. The interactions were so freaky, especially the "No, your real name" bit in the beginning. Loved the way you danced around the player and predicted how they'd interact with the bot. It boxed me in a little with the "Yes" and "No" at points, where if I replied with an "I am", it would take that as a rude non-answer. Obviously not something that can be planned for without a ludicrous amount of testing, but it's the only thing that was immersion breaking. The story itself, I think the second half is weaker than the first. The set-up is so awesome, but it kinda loses it's thread after a while. Though the message of survival and making the most of life is a beautiful one, the execution isn't the best. However, the ending is so beautiful. Forgetting my name one last time, asking for it again, then saying goodbye. I think if the middle was more cohesive, it would've been perfect. The music is so beautiful and powerful. I loved it so much. Can't wait to check out more of your work! |
| Apr 5 19:45:42 | 3h 11m | No Match | ♥ 2 | Echoing has been noted out before, this was probably one of the most polished jam games I've seen. The music, the art, the gameplay, it all comes together to make something that is very complete. It was a joy to play through, simple but challenging and after the first few rounds a couple different strategies started coalescing for me. The take on the theme was so refreshing. I think a lot of games went down a route where the games were endless. This one is 'delaying the inevitable' because the house always wins. 50 levels is insane. The hand-craftedness adds to the difficulty ramp feeling perfect. (Though I got nowhere close to 50) The only thing I can say needs adding is some quality of life stuff and balancing. Maybe music choices, art-packs to keep it fresh. The dealer could be slightly more interesting in terms of comments. But these are nitpicks. As a whole, this is a brilliant game. I loved it. |
| Apr 7 19:45:41 | 47h 59m | The Endless Night | ♥ 1 | Really cool game! I loved the art so much. It was so beautiful and charming, so well animated. Absolutely amazing. The themes and design of the game were also really interesting, I liked the way you incorporated an overarching plot idea to tie all the mechanics together. The UI and end-screen were cute and funny as well. I think the gameplay itself was a little bit underwhelming. It was great in that the challenge was enjoyable and the way it was presented was crystal clear. However, I think I just expected...more. It felt to me that it needed a larger map or more variation in terms of danger. The ramping challenge was not enough to keep it engaging within the current primary loop. That said, it was a beautiful game with some really cool concepts, mechanically and thematically. I'd love to see an expanded version! |
| Apr 7 23:32:46 | 3h 47m | 1 Man 6 Bullets | ♥ 4 | That was incredible! I love what you've done here. First off, the comics and intro are so brilliantly drawn. I absolutely adore them. The game itself is SO GOOD. The core loop is well-made, the concept reminds me a little of Yahtzee's 12th game in his game dev series, and feels like a fresh fast-paced take on the bullets-bouncing mechanic. The slowing of time is perfect. The gameplay feels challenging, catching bullets and predicting trajectories isn't easy, it feels like you've traded action-hero-wish-fulfillment for some real challenge, which I can respect. It's somewhat punchy, but if I had to criticise something that would be it. I think the art, music, and sound effects can come together a little bit better to add more oomph to the primary gameplay loop. But apart from that, I'd struggle to find something to complain about. Level design is interesting, enemy variations are fun and I see you're working on even more. All in all, a sweet game! |