Foon →
Ludum Dare Explorer →
LD38 →
Island Guard
Island Guard
By anayk
View on ldjam.com
| Category | Rank | Score | Count |
|
|---|
| Overall | 434 | 3.29 | 26 | |
| Fun | 36 | 4.00 | 26 | |
| Innovation | 431 | 3.04 | 26 | |
| Theme | 288 | 3.62 | 26 | |
| Graphics | | 2.57 | 9 | |
| Audio | 466 | 2.41 | 26 | |
| Humor | | 2.60 | 7 | |
| Mood | 554 | 2.90 | 23 | |
Comments
2017-04-28 10:41
Nice little game! I think there was a nice discussion on IRC already but I'll quickly comment anyway.
I like the idea that the island is getting smaller and smaller. I had to dash around the island to try to reach the boats with the short weapon range. Fortunately, the powerups extended the range a bit.
The player could move along the beaches rather than getting stuck. Also, I guess a that a notification is needed for destroying an enemy as it is clear anyway and hides other notifications. This game needs furious clicking, though. :D But I'm not sure which would be a better way as auto-fire could be a bit boring as well.
I got score 2400!
anayk
2017-04-28 16:50
@tegu Thanks! I put a limit on the weapon because otherwise there wouldn't be any real reason for the player to move around the island (as someone on the IRC chat pointed out).
And true, the "destroyed an enemy" notification doesn't really convey much and hide other important powerup notifs, so I will remove that.
I will add better player movement (so it doesn't get stuck) also.
Auto-fire will make it too easy I guess, as there is no limit to bullets, reloading, etc.
And, great score, btw!
rombus
2017-04-29 17:07
Great game here man! I love the game mechanic, got me addicted.
I whish you could map the fire to space bar though
Keep it up!
anayk
2017-04-29 17:11
@rombus Thanks, I will do that.
jk5000
2017-04-29 18:23
The idea for the game is perhaps a bit simple, but I love playing this kind of simple games. The sound effects and graphics is also super simple, but it all fits the game very well. I would have liked some music for this game.
I had by the way absolute no issue with the player movement.
Well done.
erdiizgi
2017-04-29 21:21
This was much more fun than I expected. Game has a small size, this also encouraged me to download. Maybe you should consider this as a mobile game with more abilities and power ups. I would kill time with a game like this. Good like. Congrats with your first entry.
I like the idea of the shrinking island. However, I feel like there could have been a bit more variety of enemies. Movement also became tough when the island was small. WASD controls would have felt better overall. In the end it came down to clicking speed, which actually got a little bit painful on my hands :P As some others have said, autofire could be boring, but I think with a really powerful sound it could still feel great.
The art style is nice and simple, which is good. Very easy to tell what is going on and the colors have a nice appeal to them.
Good work.
anayk
2017-04-30 02:34
@jk5000 Thanks! I was going to put some background music but didn't get time.
anayk
2017-04-30 02:38
@erdiizgi Thank you! One my friends also suggested about making and android version, so I am already thinking of it. I guess I will make one. :smiley:
anayk
2017-04-30 02:52
@terracottafrog Thanks! I was planning to add some variety, like some healers or something but didn't find time. As @tegu suggested, what if player could move along the beach rather than getting stuck and automatically find it's way towards the mouse click? Then, the controls will remain smooth even after the island becomes very small. Auto-fire...hmm...Maybe some auto-fire powerup to give limited time auto-fire? That would be a great survival weapon.
The game graphics is too plain but other than that the game is great
anayk
2017-04-30 03:31
@kristian-david Thanks! I don't know how to draw graphics, so I just drew whatever I could.
Great work on programming those collisions! I like being able to shoot at enemies while moving across the island. Right-click once, get a few boats as you drive past. It's the little details that make it fun. The island getting smaller is interesting, but it mostly means that you have less and less moving around and more shooting towards the end. I'm gonna make my clicking finger sore, here! Personally, going for high-scores can be fun but I usually prefer games that have some sort of attainable ending (as opposed to being overwhelmed by infinitely increasing numbers of boats). Overall, it's a pretty fun game regardless.
anayk
2017-04-30 07:26
@connorses Thanks, Maybe I can make levels also? So, there will be variety of weapons, enemies, powerups, etc. And each level will come with waves, etc. Hmm.. good idea
Simple and in theme. I like the easy-get gameplay.
angiemon
2017-04-30 10:19
looks like a really nice tower defense game! but sadly I cant play it, mac here :( I recommend also providing a web link because then you get more people to play it :)
querk
2017-04-30 10:22
Graphics and music are not bad, but idea is great. my record is 1820, Thanks for an hour of fun , good job and great game: D (sorry for my bad english)
Really nice game. I love it :D
anayk
2017-04-30 12:02
@homineludens @querk @neurohacker Thanks!
anayk
2017-04-30 12:04
@angiemon I made the game with SFML/C++, so unfortunately I don't have a web version.
npizzle1
2017-04-30 13:06
fun to play and addictive too! i liked this game ;)
fingamer
2017-04-30 13:13
It was a fun little time killer game! Nice job.
Fun little game. It gave my clicking finger a good workout :D
Can't really find a lot to criticise... the bullets could be a different colour (it's maybe a bit too similar to the colour of the beach) For the movement, I think it would be better if you could have the player follow the mouse while you're right clicking - that would make the movement feel a bit more fluid.
Other than that, I really liked the shrinking island mechanic, and the difficulty progression is very good. Will give this one a good rating on gameplay!
anayk
2017-04-30 16:30
@stoemason I did notice that the bullets aren't quite visible, I don't know why that's happening, I will improve the graphic. Yeah, that would be a good idea for smooth player movement, I will see. Thanks for your feedback!
anayk
2017-04-30 16:30
@npizzle1 @fingamer Thanks!
Fun game! It was addicting and satisfying to destroy ships, although sometimes I felt impossible to go fast enough to destroy every ship, and more variation in the game would have been nice, but overall, the simple yet fun gameplay made me thoroughly enjoy it. Great job!
I got 2540 :D
Pros: I think it was addictive when i got busy clicking mouse button rapidly and watching out for the direction where the enemy came at the same time :} I like the idea most that the island gets smaller when attacked.
Cons: The first time when I opened the game I thought it was frozen :( as it showed no response like a background music or a graphic effect to tell the player the game had started, until the player aware of the first enemy.
Please rate my game: https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/38/may-i-come-in
Very Cool. Managed to get up to 2480 points :smile:
I like the island destruction a lot!
In the end I had to start clicking with my other hand, there we so many it started hurting my wrist D:
I did feel like the enemies were taking way too long to kill especially with how many were on the screen.
If there was like a Day/Night thing, where you build up the island or upgrade during the day, and the onslaught of enemies come during the night. that would be a nice addition and a chance to deal with all those enemies.
When I played your game I just imagined that boats was langoliers. That's why they was eating my world.
It was challenging to play with a laptop touchpad, but I made it to ~1200 points.
Fun game, addictive gameplay :smiley:
- The Gameplay is very good. - Handling the spawn rate of enemy is not that good because you cant survive for long time - GAme theme according to the theme small world is very good - Overall i really had a fun playing this game
jk5000
2017-05-01 08:59
I have now also rated your game.
I love the dev art :P the game is quite nice, after some time hard to keep up with the spawn. Sometimes a character is stuck un the edge if I'm next to damaged part but it's still quite fun to play. Great entry :)
lilroo
2017-05-01 16:51
Finally, a game where I can make use of the trippleclick on my mouse! Nice job
I like the fact that you have to move the boat
anayk
2017-05-01 17:01
@chaseplays I do plan to add variations, extra features, etc. Thank you!
@ikigaiseitetsu Good point. It will be alright after I add background music and proper menu, I guess. Thanks! Great score, btw and I will surely rate your game.
@jamesy012 Good score. I plan to add those features about upgrading island, etc. Days and Nights for waves is also a nice idea. Thanks!
@alex-lutay Haha, Thanks. Good score, given that you were playing with a laptop touchpad.
@sagarpatel25700 Thanks! I plan to make the spawn rate better by preparing proper waves, etc.
@jk5000 Thanks, I will surely rate your game, too.
@szczebel1995 Thank you!
anayk
2017-05-01 17:23
@lilroo Thanks!
Nice game! The difficulty ramp is just perfect enough to keep you from just sailing through, and it has a lot of replay value (mass click games often do). Sound (unlike most [b,j,s]fxr effects) is not annoying and fits very well. Good job!
svntax
2017-05-02 05:09
I really liked the idea of a destructible island. Like others have already said, you can get stuck along the shore quite easily. The power-ups are nice and add variety to the gameplay.
Haha, that game got hard fast, I didn't stand a chance. I had fun, the fast movement and response by the game was nice. Sometimes I would get stuck on the edges, but overall I had a great time playing it! Keep up the great work!
megalink
2017-05-02 06:41
This game is really cool! You did a good job especially since this was made in c++. I really loved when you would get about 1 minute into the game, the enemies would start to spawn quite rapidly, it got quite intense and was really fun.
I know this is really off topic, but i'd also be interested in learning about game development in c++, how hard is it and how did you learn it? I'm sorry if I am annoying you with these questions, I am just very interested in it lol
Other than that, good job! Keep up the great work dude, I can't wait to see your next game! :)
anayk
2017-05-02 07:20
@samusoidal @simple-blue Thank you!
@thebluegamer55 Thanks! I am working on better player movement
@megalink Thanks! I learned the SFML library using their own tutorials, documentation and GameFromScratch tutorials. I also used the SFML Game Development Packt book. Game development using C++ and SFML is simple actually, not as complicated as engines. It just needs efforts. If we also enjoy the process of learning and making games, then it's a whole lot easier. Why don't we connect on Twitter or something? Twitter: @anay_karnik
Nice little game, terrain destruction reminds me of worms but top down. Maybe you could add different enemies that fly and drop bombs in the middle of the island to make travelling across it a bit more tricky.
The game has a lot of potential with it's simplicity... it's pretty fun already! WASD controls would do lots for movement, and well it sure did get hard to click so much but there's not much of a way around that. I was disappointed that power ups were kinda rare for me, and I wish there were more special/useful power ups... autofire, different gun types, slow down time? More enemy types are of course another feature to consider. With WASD controls and more frequent power ups, the player would be more encouraged to move around and shoot in a more engaging way... right now since power ups aren't frequent (and also are hard to notice), the best thing to do is sit still and click away :laughing:
Great work and best of luck on improving it!
Please hate us on https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/38/deep-bottom
jdmazz
2017-05-03 02:21
This is a fun little game. Island fits with the theme, gameplay is cool. I like how there is a little spinny animation when you move the little tank. I liked the power ups as well. I think the feature I'd most like to see is a progression system, maybe like tower defense-esc to provide a persistent benefit to killing dudes and a layer of strategy.
avavt
2017-05-04 06:19
Very cool concept, I love it! Although there's a lot that can be improved as well:
- WASD or arrow movement might be much better than right click in this game, since players can use both hands to play. - Auto-fire by holding down the left mouse button is much needed! - Simply increasing the number of enemies until the player is overwhelmed is not quite fun. It's easy to notice and it seems like "lazy" designing. There's other ways to do it: varied types of enemies, loss of crucial combo cause an OP pickup not appearing, etc. The point is to ensure that as long as the player is good enough he could go on forever. The "enemy spamming" method has a hard limit (dps of the gun vs enemy spawn rate) that can not be overcame by player's skill. Also, it's easy to notice "that's all the game has to offer" after 1 play through.
Minor improvements that could be nice to have:
- Pause when in background: I played in window mode and when a skype call pop up I died T_T - Pick-ups should have some kind of sound/visibility effect when they appear. Right now they are quite missable. - End point explosion for the bullet, so it's easier to notice on your first play "oh, that's where the bullets end".
Nice small game good job
noobdude
2017-05-07 08:56
I enjoy the gameplay, its simple and fun, also the shooting sound is enjoyable , a little silent though
chupachu
2017-05-11 10:28
I thought the game was pretty fun, but since fire isn't set to spacebar, my finger got really tired and I had to use my left hand to mash the fire button. Would be nice if it was set to space. Pretty fun, got a score of about 2080 before I lost. The only problem I forsee with this game is the use of an autoclicker. But other than that, seems pretty solid, nice work! EDIT: Made it to 3640 this time.
A small, but well-executed game! I agree at @powerspark as well, keyboard controls could make this a bit less finnicky, but the game is fun already as is. Would love to see this expanded more :D
I thought this game was loads of fun! One thing I thought about was that there seemed to be no actual benefit in keeping the island as large as possible for as long as possible instead of just picking a spot and firing like crazy to protect that particular spot. If the score somehow was related to retaining area over time, that could maybe promote protecting the whole island? Sound was a bit intense, would have gone for a lower-tone shooting sound effect. Very engaging, played it to the end. Overall, nice experience - well done :)
Nice game! Simple but fun and effective, and a cool concept that fit the theme. Great entry.
Simple and clean concept. The volume of the audio is a little bit too much, but this can be solved quickly. I agree with the reviews here, WASD or Arrow movement would be a great improvement, I would also point out that a crosshair or something that indicates where you're going to shoot besides the mouse pointer would be quite good.
Overall the concept is good, next time I would try to focus on bringing some music and art to the project !