damdoshi 2016-08-31 15:11
There are errors when I try to unpack your file. : /
Foon → Ludum Dare Explorer → LD36 → Light of the Ancients
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There are errors when I try to unpack your file. : /
@Damboshi Try with the dropbox link, I repacked it with a different software. It works fine for me with both links so I hope it solved the problem.
Pretty good "bouncing lasers" game. I liked the "twitch" aspect where you had to get the orbs to light before your lasers are turned off by the little guardians. The artwork had a pretty cool aesthetic. There needed to be more of a delay/celebration when you succeeded so you could gloat more. Instead, it jumped really quickly to the next board.
The music was fairly appropriate for the game and was pretty enjoyable.
In all, good job!
I think there is a core flaw in the game, but it's a bit difficult to explain. I'll try!
It's an action-puzzle game as time plays a role in the success of failure of the puzzle. But here there is a mix of things that take time (orbs moving, time an orb stay lit once hit with light, guardians moving) and things that are instantaneous (rotating the sources of light, the light path being drawn, the target orbs being lit and, critically, going to the next stage once you fulfilled the winning conditions). As a result of this mix of timed and instant actions (compounded with some unpredictable instant behaviors, like where the light will go after a connect orb is hit), I would say that in most level I won and was sent to the next level before I could even understand what happened and how and why I won.
It's even worst in the later level where all planning goes through the window and you just click the orbs until, somehow, you win. This is not very satisfying!
On the up side, I don't think a lot needs to be changed to avoid this problem. Something I would try is do something like what was done in The Talos Principle, where lightning a target is not enough: it needs to be continuously lit for a certain amount of time for it to become active. As a result you can have chain reactions that, instead of being instant, allow the player to understand clearly each of their steps.
Neat puzzles! I included it in my compilation video series of Ludum Dare 36 games, if you’d like to take a look :) https://youtu.be/PNJkv1swd3I
Neat idea but a lot of times I had no idea how I solved the puzzle. The core idea is very solid but the presentation is confusing.