Foon → Ludum Dare Explorer → LD27 → Zombie Pop!
By nthird
| Category | Rank | Score | Count | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Innovation | 246 | 3.07 | ||
| Fun | 431 | 2.56 | ||
| Theme | 431 | 2.81 | ||
| Humor | 449 | 1.73 | ||
| Overall | 496 | 2.64 | ||
| Mood | 543 | 1.95 | ||
| Graphics | 595 | 1.81 | ||
| Coolness | 1196 | 47 |
Nice premise! I like the idea of the game. I think you need something more than clicks to assess how good the player was - maybe different types of zombie that can't be clicked on or something? Check out other puzzle games for inspiration! I think this has promise though :)
Did you submit to the Jam instead of the normal competition by accident? The levels start out on a big grid, if it started on smaller levels it would make it more appealing. The popping and chain mechanic has potential.
Thanks for the comments, I updated my description to be a little clearer about what I want to do with the game and why it ended up in the jam.
Unclickable zombies sounds like a great idea @mtrc I just gotta mull it over and see how best to handle it narratively.
I can totally see how the huge grid is overwhelming at first @DaanVanYperen. I'm wondering if I need to rewrite a smaller one to start and change the sizes on everything. I think its a good size for later levels though.
Hey nthird,
any reason to not uploading this to someplace in the Internet, instead of asking for a download? That way you will get more people playing.
In linux it gives error because the filenames are case sensitive:
Failed to load resource file:///home/manuq/Descargas/LD27/Zombie%20Pop%20HTML/basicsmall.PNG
A good start that needed a bit more polish
@manuq hadn't had a chance to set up my hosting mostly. Its available now at nthird.com/zombie_pop.html Its cutting a few pixels off the right edge of the screen but it doesn't affect gameplay in any way. I'll take another look at it next time I get a chance.
Thanks for pointing out the Linux error. I changed filenames to be all lowercase so hopefully that fixes it. If you try it again let me know, I don't have a Linux machine to test on at the moment.
@wally2069 thanks, I totally agree.
The great thing about this game is that you can play at any level, but to set the best mark is still possible for hardcore gamers.
I really love the theme!
nthird don't worry about linux, web works fine.
First I thought: "I want to see zombies being inflated! I hope this guy adds some graphics!" But then the puzzle made me think, maybe is better to keep it abstract enough. Good one!
Didn't worked for me, only a white screen with the message "Script embedded in HTML". Used Chrome.
Good idea. But I fell that I would enjoy it better if it was turn based (1 second : red dot move one step forward)
@manuq I'm intending to have graphics at some point but my skills are not up to it yet. Its a high priority for after I have some more levels in place. I'm glad its still enjoyable without though :D
@xrm0 I'm getting the same thing without anything having changed on my end. I'll look into it when I get back from work and see if I can find the issue. Thanks for letting me know. In the mean time you can download the source code and just open the index.html if you're interested.
@flap That's an interesting idea. I'm toying with it being turn based where each click is a turn, having the exploded flesh (which is what that red dot would look like if I had more art skills) only move based on the turns would be interesting. I might have to mock something up and see how it plays.
This was....abstract xD
The game is working again on web for me so hopefully that fixes it for everyone else too.
Cool Idea, I think you could add something more here though. Like if you had a cap on the amount of clicks (food) you could feed the zombies that might add some more strategy. Doing that might need a pause button though... hmm... anyways, cool idea!
It definitely felt more like a click fest than a puzzle, I think the theme worked against you there. I also feel like some sort of feedback besides the timer, like sounds or screen flashing or something would help it feel less button-mashy. While the circle sizes were easy enough to distinguish by looking, some other distinction (color shape) would help get that information with a quick scan and add to the puzzle game feel. There's an idea at the core here that's worth exploring a little more though.
@DDRKirby(ISQ) heh, fair enough.
@savethejets1 I'm toying with there being an unlimited amount of food but you get stars based on how little you used. So you can still complete the level without strategy but you need strategy to get enough stars to unlock later levels.
@Empyrealhell yeah I tacked the theme on in order to make a game I wanted to make. I think it adds an interesting tension but it makes so if you don't make good progress in those first 10 seconds it gets way harder really fast. I definitely want some graphics which will hopefully make it easier to distinguish them and some animation to demonstrate the digestion if I decide to stick with it. I might pull digestion entirely and make it part of an optional challenge mode or only part of some levels.
The blood splatter on the wall. Even if it's just a red line, it looks great^^
I didn't try all of the levels, since the gameplay didn't have much variety. The idea of feeding zombies to kill them is totally anti-mainstream. No shovels, no shotguns, just raw(or rotten?) meat^^
Great stuff, especially for a first game!
@X-0r thanks! I spent a fair amount of time on the blood on the walls. Just felt important to help sell the narrative. Glad you appreciated it. I agree about the variety, I'll try to spice things up some more as I keep working on it. I'm pretty happy with how the feeding comes across. I might let the player shoot one or two in the future but feeding them until they explode is going to remain the best way to kill them for sure :D
@Katamori thanks! I'm hoping to expand it and make better games in the future. I'm super glad LD inspired me to actually start this one.
Interesting idea, could turn into something quite fun with all the ideas people are giving you here
@Lizzip Thanks, I certainly hope so.