Foon → Ludum Dare Explorer → LD29 → Drowning in Problems
By notch
| Category | Rank | Score | Count | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coolness | 3 | 50 | ||
| Innovation | 147 | 3.72 | ||
| Mood | 153 | 3.60 | ||
| Humor | 515 | 2.48 | ||
| Overall | 532 | 3.20 | ||
| Theme | 588 | 3.23 | ||
| Fun | 972 | 2.51 | ||
| Audio | 1061 | 1.29 | ||
| Graphics | 1256 | 1.54 |
It looked like it was going to be like candy box with more mechanics gradually being added but doesn't really go anywhere. It's interesting how you can decide to live your life, maybe spend all your time making money but I wanted to see what else can be unlocked and died fairly quickly.
You should've made it a little better visual looking :I
This is actually really great on a metal side of things.
The thought put into this game was great, and really paid of user end.
I love how its minimalistic, so its not in your face, and it just has an overall great goal to it. Life
I find it interesting, like a cross between the sims and sid meyer's civilisation.
Since you've finished early, and you are my personal hero, maybe you could play my game?
Wow. Just wow. This brought tears on my face. It was beautiful. And I am not sarcastic.
Very interesting. A bit too long in the end, but it's nice.
Got me that Bioshock Infinite ending feeling at the end a little... :)
Wow. This is somewhat inspiring. I have been stuck since the jam began, going over what languages I am familiar with and what I feel comfortable using to make a game. Most of my skill is in HTML and C++. Alhough, I have not done anything in C++ in years, not to mention that I never did deal with graphics and games back when I did do C++, so it has not been a option I have been considering for this jam. ( Even though I would love to strengthen that skill at a later point.)
For my project I have been working with Twine, but I really prefer being able to see the code and manipulate everything at a smaller level. While it is possible to edit the source of the HTML file Twine outputs there is a lot of text I do not understand, seeing as the program implements various classes, variables, etc. without the user's interaction.
Long story short, seeing this, made in Dart, has made my day. I am going to learn Dart! I do not even care if I finish my game in time for the jam. I am going to give it one heck of a try, of course, but this is going to be fun!
Thank you, for the inspiration and for what is actually a really fun and minimalist game about the human condition. I have not finished it yet, after playing for a bit I had to take a look at the code to see what was making it tick, but this is beautiful so far.
Cheers!
Beneath the surface, this is a deep game. On the surface, not much to see. Subtle use of theme.
Well done
I really like the simplicity of it, and how you can truly choose how to live your life.
I guess Depression Quest was already taken as a title.
I love how this game works; it's a really good idea. Had fun playing it.
You make great games Notch. My six year old brother is currently addicted to Minecraft and he's always begging me to help him with it because half the time he doesn't know what he's doing. Your games are quite interesting and often appeal to people of many ages.
My friends and I are currently working on a game for the jam, though we fear it might not be done by monday night, but we don't plan to quit working on it until it's done. It takes a similar approach to the theme as your game; "beneath the surface" as in a very deep game. Our game focuses more on human nature, transhumanism, and the intrinsic flaws in the idea of a utopia, while yours focuses on a human life, but the two are still similar in the respect that they are both quite deep.
At first when I started playing this, I expected something short and simple, but I quickly found out how wrong I was! This is a great game from a great developer and I'd love to see more games as creative as this.
I was confused at first, but despite its simplicity it has a lot to say. Nice little introspective game. Nobody who is depressed or is having an existential crisis should play this game, however.
Wow, great concept. I agree with trueyomic.
Wow, it's a very interesting game, and best of all, it is only 255 lines of code, this really motivates me to create a game of my own.
Interesting use of the theme. Deep game yet simple, great work!
Interesting take. I like the philosophical angle!
Cool game. I didn't understand it at first, and then I started to get the hang of it. Good work!
Interesting concept with lots of philosophical character.
Fecking the BEST! First place!
Don't really get it I'm afraid.
But it's way minimalistic.
Probably not my kind of game :-( Don't like the grinding aspect of it. Made it only to "You're a Human". No idea where it leads, but I lost interest :-(
But where are my freaking shaders man?
well paced, and thoroughly enjoyed!
Surprising. Kind of fun, but I don't see the link with the theme.
Not surprised at how awesome this turned out to be
Lost interest after clicking too much.
But I thought there was something too it in the end (because it's in dart?) but I couldn't keep on going.
awesome take on the theme, minimalist but still interesting. also a bit creepy!
Nice game, as usually
First when I saw this game I thought it's an error on the website. The game is awesome. If it has some "more" visuals I would say its really really awesome.
I really like the idea, but it takes way too long later.
This game was something new and unexpected. Great interpretation of the theme. It did what it was supposed to do perfect!
I have to be honest and say that I didn't really enjoy this. It seems like there's something cool going on in terms of what I guess could be called story, but the gameplay is ... lacking.
It feels like an idle game with the automation cut out, which is the core mechanic of all idle games.
Very interesting concept.
Simple but effective.
Falls under the "pretentious non game" category for me. No fun !
Very very deep and meaningful game.
A tear almost ran down my cheek.
I will remember this.
I like the idea but in my opinion the loading times are annoying.
I really liked this. It's about as minimalist as it gets but with a lot of attention to detail and empathy. Interesting and rewarding experience.
Very moody and thought provoking, but there isn't a very strong link to the theme.
I didn't realize for a while that I could perform multiple tasks simultaneously.
I really like this game. I really like the angle of the theme it is going at. Instead of going underground like most of the games, this game goes beneath the surface of life.
This is actually really great on a metal side of things.
The thought put into this game was great, and really paid of user end.
I love how its minimalistic, so its not in your face, and it just has an overall great goal to it. Life
Pretty nihilistic there, Notch. Nice presentation though.
Hi, this is Vector from the Victory Garden team! (posting under Solifuge's account)
Note: SPOILERS AHOY
I was really impressed with this entry. Since the theme of clicker games is "click more to get more stuff and accomplish goals," with the goal to minimize one's time investment on the way, your game furnishes an excellent deconstruction. Though at first memories and experiences provide a functional value (when the goal is growing), they soon stop providing a means to an end and are merely extraneous (when the goal is to decay).
I can actually remember, quite clearly, the moment when I chose to stop gathering memories and experiences, since I had learned that they were pointless and I was tired of clicking on things. I'd become disheartened in my attempts to enjoy formative experiences and gave up. I didn't really want to buy things or advance in my career anymore--I wanted to find out if more stuff would happen if I kept trying to fall in love, make projects, and play--but before too long I decided to just progress and get it over with. It's a game that makes you choose to kill yourself, because you'd rather do that than keep playing it.
But in theory, you could spend the rest of your life in the real world "solving" these "problems." It's just that the goal is to limit time investment. Right?
I found the experience of waiting to be forgotten exhausting. It seemingly took forever for the timer to run out, and I tabbed away because I didn't want to watch anymore--didn't want to assist at my own funeral.
And then, because I really had lost my hope somewhere along the lines that I could keep playing and something would be different, I closed the browser window and didn't try again.
Thanks for this experience. It's really... top notch ;]
Slightly depressing, but a great piece of personal work. :)
This was a cool experience, it really touched me. Nice work.
I love how you captured different stages in life
Wow. Life is complicated. Great way to show the human condition.
I love how you have to aim for bad experiences to be "more human". poetic in a sense.
I liked that one, good job
Great and innexpexted
As a game, this one is not very interesting to me, but it works well as a persiflage of our metrics-driven world. I like the "ending" a lot!
You are forgotten. [100%]
I cried.
This was amazingly introspective. Possibly the most unique take on the theme this go-round. Very impressive. I think I spent more time with this entry than I did with any other.
Interesting. And brilliant. Kudos!
But I don't want to move on :(
Really interesting innovation, not sure how this fits in with the theme to much though. Still, great job!
Good work :D
Really interesting concept ^^
My toddler was so smart he turned into the starchild from 2001.
Very neat idea. It didn't resonate too much with me personally, but I can definitely appreciate it. Wasn't sure whether to give you a high score or a low score for Theme; opted to give you a high one because it was an interesting take on the theme.
I enjoyed playing this a good bit. It is like a lot of those "clicking" games (like Candy Box or Cookie Clicker) but a nice twist on those genres. I find it interesting how compelling it is to wait to see "what's next?". I like how the text evolves in this. Cool premise for sure.
Excellent usage of Dart :)
I too, was reminded of games like cookie clicker and candy box, but this one did feel like it had more meaning than simply clicking away.
Is there a way to get some kind of "good ending"?
was a weird game but had a cool concept actually! I agree that you could have made it look nicer as it's only basic text but other than that, it could be a good start to a game
very bittersweet :-) evoked emotion just through text and percentages... good impact for such simplicity
And now I'm sad. :)
I ended up lonely, bitter and accepting and I died! I tried to not lose friends. Life is hard.
Nice game.
Interesting take on the theme and was good to see how the different steps of life appeared with their own traits.
This is very profound under its minimalistic aspect. I really enjoyed it. 5 stars for mood.
Wow, this game is really sad at the end. [spoiler]Especially the "last" click + waiting time[/spoiler]. You really know, how to make interesting games ;)
Spoilers!
Feels buddhism-inspired. Not a happy game, but we probably need more unhappy games.
(If this is in any way reflects on how you're feeling right now, hang in there!)
This game made me very happysad.
It was wonderful.
That was an amazing experience. great interpretation of the theme.
Very interesting stuff!
Very interesting!
I really enjoyed this. It felt like playing a poem.
Ran it all the way through. It was a nice text based approach, but could've had more depth
Greate variation on the theme. I like the way you simplified the life of an human being. Being forgotten is taking so long.
Good game !
Wow... Well played Notch...
To be honest I don't really get it :P
Originally and simple, but a little boring over time ;)
I love the idea, and the time waiting just gets you thinking and contemplating it all. Pretty cool. I'm just wanting to see a Driver's Licence [0%] somewhere... :p
Beautiful, sad, simple, powerful.
The need to constantly solve our problems one by one made into a simple incrementor text game, I like how as you play you become more and more overwhelmed by the variables that are added, such is life I guess.. Nice game
Really sad :(
This is a really interesting core concept. I'm not really much of a fan of being this heavily text-based, but it really made me take a look at life in a different way. It's as if a computer is running life.exe, and I'm watching the console log. Very thought-provoking, and very unique.
I just kept spamming "solve". I love candy box so I was expecting more gameplay from this.
I appreciate the experimental/philosophical side of the game, though.
Clever. Others may have found it depressing, but I laughed at the end. :D
That's... deep.
Cool. :)
Quite an interesting entry, and nothing if not innovative. There is beauty in it's simplicity, though it also restricts it in terms of scope, as it's very short and dragged out by time delays.
Sitting here while I wait to be forgotten... it was kind of hard to play as you went through it, slowly realising what you are simulating and what you are heading towards. Definitely moving in its own way
This game is very deep and makes you think about life, what's important and what's not. Only some music is missing and could enhance the mood, I think.
so deep and sad :'( many feels :') Great game! This really shows how you can make a very good game, without any graphics, but with a deep story :D
Introspective and a little depressing -_- I'm going to go think about my life now.
Cool concept :)
I enjoyed this little game more than I thought was possible. Well done, once again ;)
Since you finished so early, it'd been interesting to see you make some music though!
Maybe next time :3
Great take on the theme! Taking the mechanics that made games like candy box so popular to make a deeper game was a great idea.
I'm not really sure what to think about this? I played to the end to see where you were going with it, but I didn't really find it "fun" as such. I'm just kind of depressed now. I guess that's the point. Next time please make another game about wearing lots of hats and you have a gun that shoots tiny men, to cheer me up, thanks.
Very interesting piece of work! :)
Interesting concept - very thought provoking!
Cool game, great concept! I included it in part 10 of my Ludum Dare compilation video series, if you'd like to check it out :) http://youtu.be/vjBlRj2wHy8
This is a really interesting little game. Made me think.
Too deep for me sorry.
Ok so I played it again.
Got more into this time around.
More than the last.
Philosophical but with a bit of "random clicker thingy" attached to it.
Very interesting entry, nice job.
This is fun on a technical level, as well as how it's true to real life in how you can try to accomplish all goals but they all come at costs and challenges. Shame it's not as eye catching as previous submissions.
Pretty cool. So Hope is really the last one that dies huh.
Nice way to make a text-based, story game. Liked it.
Very nice! I thought before I played it that it would be hard to rate one of your games (you're my idol, and you brought me into the world of indie games, which I now love so much). Thankfully your game was super, so I didn't have to think too too much.
Simple, but effective. Good use of the theme and a great way to tell the story of life and how it feels to try and balance the challenges of life.
Wow, that was intense. Pretty Awesome!
Really interesting, but I don't see how it fits to the theme at all! Seeing the different choices that comes up feels like getting a glimpse into your own experiences! Thanks for that! :)
Chip, a german Computer magazine, reported about this game: http://www.chip.de/news/Drowning-in-Problems-Neues-vom-Minecraft-Macher_69509186.html
Please vote for my game:http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-29/?action=preview&uid=34033
Markus,16
I've never had a craving for a fortune cookie until I played your game... Hurry up percent counter, you're making me hungry.
I rarely feel sad after playing a Ludum Dare game. But I think that's good. We need games to feel sad sometimes.
An art game which meaning and form are very connected, and managed to make me think about life, well done !
Interesting concept and subtle implementation. Nice.
Nice game :) It reminds me Candy Box
So many needs but never the need to go to the bathroom?
Interesting idea, and it certainly has a mood in its simplicity. Feels a bit like reading a novel. As a game, it's not very challenging. You can run through it quickly by pressing tab and enter repeatedly. But as an experience, I like it.
I really liked this... and it really amazed me.
That's life, "beneath the surface"... Living it self is a problem to be solved. You try to solve it by breaking it in smalls tasks... but you'll get overwhelmed by it sooner or later. But no one tells you what to do. You choose what you need and how to get it, trying to make the most of the journey. After all, you are left with nothing by the end of it... but did you enjoy it?
I think that's what you meant...
Thank you for this amazing experience (and food for thought XD).
I like it. Thank you.
Notch so pro :0
If it had graphics it could be even more awesome
Love the story
Too bed sex doesn't gives "-Stress" too, but I do like this core state game.
Pretty pointless, to be honest, I had no fun playing it, it was just me clicking solve over again. Its a nice idea but it wasn't particularly enjoyable and doesnt relate to the theme much.
The concept was good but the game itself turned quite fast to be nothing more than pointless clicking.
kind of got it .. i think .. good effort :)
Interesting for the take on the theme and the poetic content. The gameplay was like constantly hitting "solve" without really thinking.
kinda got hooked to it without a real reason :D
If you wanted to make a depressing cookie clicker type game you did alright.
You achieved what you were going for, but it wasn't my cup of tea. Honestly I think you should have submitted this game under a different username, because I think you would have gotten more fair/honest reviews.
I know it's not supposed to be fun, it's supposed to be "meaningful" but it just felt (and I'm sorry to say this because you seem nice and everything) it felt self-congratulatory. Like you could see in your mind what articles people would write about the subtle genius of this game.
Again, idk, maybe I'm just bitter/cynical. But I think if this was a double blind review and nobody knew it was you who made this game it would be received less well.
Which obviously isn't a knock to you as a programmer, because you achieved likely exactly what you wanted to do, but I think this game is better as an idea than a game. It's just not fun (which it's not trying to be) and not insightful (which I think it is trying to be).
Sad people are sad, hopeless people are hopeless, from my specific vantage point (and it could just be my own issues) but to highlight this point through an increasingly tedious cookie clicker type game is to trivialize it, if anything, not to elevate it.
Also the calculus of it all is bogus, you have to lose friends to get experience? You have to make love/get a broken heart to stop being a teen? And with tons of friends/sex/money/stuff you get terminally depressed because your ambitions don't work?
Life is good, Notch, so why make a game that ruminates on the premise that it is otherwise? I don't get the point of this game (and "not getting the point" is not the point, other commentators who might say this).
It's not fair to other people if this is treated as groundbreaking when it would almost assuredly be overlooked if made by an unknown person. So in summary: You are a nice guy and good game developer but I truly didn't care for what you were going for with this game. (And I did watch all of the ending too)
Interesting concept, decent execution, can't help but wonder if it's autobiographical. I think I understand where you were going with this, but I'm not sure I 100% like the idea of creating leads to failure leads to bitterness leads to death and being forgotten.
I feel a little silly waiting out the last phase, but i guess i hadn't actually lost my hope after all.
Was interesting, but the end really just seemed like it was wasting time. 15 minutes of waiting doesn't really add anything to the experience.
Hey! I mentioned your game in this post- http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/2014/05/18/10-games-that-resonated-with-me/ , along with some feedback. I'd love to hear what you have to say!
Lovely idea and entry, very much enjoyed it :)
The best text game ever, you are the man Notch!!!
I think that this game really helps people to understand themselves, this game should be used in a inspectional speech, to be visually and mentally observed throughout time. :) Nice work Markus Persson.
how do jou play
Wow! Such a beautiful concept.
A friend of my, made a translation of this game to Pt-BR
http://tavolaquadrada.com.br/afogando/#
We Love this game!