Foon → Ludum Dare Explorer → LD39 → Running the Marathon
By gamepopper
| Category | Rank | Score | Count | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 315 | 3.34 | 48 | |
| Fun | 398 | 3.02 | 49 | |
| Innovation | 267 | 3.23 | 49 | |
| Theme | 162 | 3.80 | 49 | |
| Graphics | 194 | 3.61 | 49 | |
| Audio | 333 | 2.80 | 48 | |
| Humor | 151 | 3.00 | 43 | |
| Mood | 186 | 3.32 | 48 |
I don't know why, but I got into a really good flow/atmosphere with this game. Maybe it's the black itch.io background? :P Genuinely, I think it's because of how well the sound and graphics went together. Really simple, but almost sorta rugged. I've ran half-marathons and I get the same sorta feeling from them. Good job!!
Nice take on the theme, I really liked the gameplay although my hand is cramping like crazy now. Good work :)
I liked the art style, and I wish I could learn from you to keep it simple. While not overly complex its simple, straight forward, and doesn't need to be explained. I did find the sounds to be repetitive though, but decent job overall.
i liked the art style and felt flashbacks to california games on the master system, i think a nice adapative soundtrack would really add to the game
This would be interesting to see as a challenge/charity run game a.l.a. desert bus. Good job!
Ugh I think I hurt my fingers doing this. It does require some patience as you can't just mash the buttons or you'll fail for sure. The graphics are super simplistic but I like them, the black and white palette reminds me of some old games. Simple game but very well done!
**Pros:** - Interesting take on the theme of running out of power. - Art and mood are very well done and both compliment each other well. - The game is quite simplistic in a good sense that its easy to pick up and get hooked.
**Cons:** - Maybe make the game a little harder? Personally I found it quite easy to go on for a long stretch of time or maybe add some obstacles you have to try and jump over or something similar? - Hand cramps (Lmao)
**Conclusion:** Overall a well rounded game , that could use with a few improvements here and there but is a solid submission and a job well done!
I liked the art-style too. I was kinda wishing for a meter that shows the energy, but I guess the "sweating" is there for that :D
really cute graphics and a fun game mechanic that makes a simple and nice game! the sounds are pretty great too although they do become a little repetitive after a while
Very good composition of minimalism. This would make a really good nokia game along with snake and space impact! Races could be shorter and running against some opponents.
Feel the cramps ^^. Really nice idea, goes very well with the theme. Graphics are great too. Some music would have made been a big plus imo. Great job!
I really liked this a lot, a fresh, strange idea. I got .45 miles before I gave up but I found the whole effect to be quite hypnotic and cool. Great art, great mechanic. Could have been improved with some music maybe? Or some more background changes to 'reward' your effort, something to look at while you're pressing? Anyway, I thought this was a really cool, interesting game. Reminds me a bit of the 'extreme' performance style work of Marina Abramovic, in a good way. Really well done.
Haha every LD has this kind of mindf*k challenge =] I think it's cute, but man seriously getting to 26 miles? Also 35 km/h? It's like.. bicycle's speed O-o
Hey I've made a running game too! :D I like this one because although it's difficult, it guides you towards a good practice. The graphics is also cool... Maybe add some music? Nice job for the compo, congratulations! :)
@g-o in my defense, I was trying to use Usain Bolt's speed, ~45km/h as a reference of fastest possible speed. My calculations actually makes it go over that. (the fastest I could get was ~55km/h!)
Couldn't get very far, but the graphics and use of the theme were quite nice.
This game was cute! A nice play on the theme; the character runs out of power, and so does the player haha.
The premise of this game makes me lol. Play a game about running a marathon that takes a nearly realistic amount of time. I thought about beating it just to say I could. Then I realized some other poor soul will probably give it a go eventually. Which... I might add would not be surprisng, the mechanics are sound, the graphics are clear. Excellent use of grayscale. Nice parallax. All in all well done :)
That's a really neat take on the idea. I wonder how many people will have enough patience to see the end?
Cool game! Relaxing and hypnotic. One thing I noticed was that the speed was in km/h and the distance was in miles.
When I read this is a "keyboard destruction" game, I thought it will be boring. But surprisingly this is real fun, at least in the beginning. Everything fits together very well, the controls and game response to it, sounds, visuals. It is so minimalistic but it is just enough. I really like it. I like the idea of running out of power by straining the runner. After a while of playing it starts to be repetitive, but it can be the same when running real marathon :-D Hey, good job!
@seanw You can press T to change the distance from miles to metres. Maybe in a future release I can also convert the speed from km/h to mph.
Simple but good ! Very nice minimalist pixel style. Great work on the background parallax, it works perfectly. I didn't finish the run (sorry), the cramps won before :)
Unfortunately, this wouldn't load for me (macOS, Safari). I will say though, I LOVE the idea, It's probably good for my productivity that it didn't load ;)
The game is very nicely made... It was fun running a marathon.... Retro graphics. CLASSIC DESIGN. Really cool..
Nice idea! I included it in my Ludum Dare 39 compilation video series, if you’d like to take a look :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvWeoxTQbD4
I think this game was done very well. Nice mood and atmosphere. One thing that would've been cool is if you added in a phase before the game started where you managed your runner's diet. Depending on the way the player feeds their runner impacts the energy level of the runner. Something to think about. ;)
Now I have a broken hand (hoof). Nice take on the theme. It's rare seeing games that test your patience and your skill at the same time. Would broke my hand again.
This is like one of those games you play on your phone even though you know you shouldn't...
Nice minimalist graphics! I appreciated the parallax effect too. Also...this guy can sprint quite fast ;P
Really fun little game :) I walked exactly 2018m and then gave up ^^'
Hey @gamepopper - [you put your game on my list to play](https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/39/end-of-time/whos-not-had-any-love-link-your-game-for-me-to-play), and [I streamed the play-through on Friday](https://youtu.be/-DEvWdMWCKk?t=7760), You were there, so you already know about it :) - But anyway, it's there if you want to watch. I'm still working on winning it :)
This was great! I lost my nerve at 1965 meters, but I loved how well-implemented the risk/reward mechanic was. I was able to recover from severe lack of power, and then reach 60km/h before I ran out. Very impressive! I also liked the airplane sounds, I'd love more distractions. The mood was great, you used the limited palette excellently! kudos!
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Cool! Great idea and deceptively complex graphics. I have to admit I didn't make it to the end (I don't think I have the concentration and patience to do so), but it's an it'd be a great exercise in mindfulness to do so!
nice runner. do you think about some Obstacles
I did it in 57 minutes and 47 seconds!
No, I did not, I'm a liar :(
Well you weren't kiddin. This one was pretty darn long.
I like the idea of having to time your movements for a very long marathon. I just sort of wish there was a little more going on in the game. Maybe you could toss in a couple other controls like QWOP where you have to occasionally jump over something or duck under another obstacle. Then you have to maintain your rhythm and also avoid smacking into some other objects.
Otherwise I thought this was well polished. You have some simple yet consistent graphics. Sounds that helped you define a tempo and maintain speed. Though some music might have been nice cus listening back to it was different than playing the game at the same time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mV0OIfrtqh0
Nice little game, very funny!
I had to read the instructions to figure out NOT to go as fast as possible. At first I though this was a fast button mesher like [mine](https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/39/breathless-parks-running-out-of-power) but it was not :-)
I like the parallex scrolling in combination with the minimalistic palette and pixel are, very cool!
The plane was a nice detail, I thought I had to run the whole time without anything happening. Then nothing happened :-)
I have not passed the plane, it is very slow, I hope you have added other things to not make the marathon too boring.
The theme was nicely implemented, good job!
Overall a cool game, thanks and keep up the good work!
Liked that you pushed the marathon aspect and interested to find out if anyone completes the full marathon and what would happen if they did. I don't have that much patience :) only got upto a few miles before I had to stop. The simple art is so nicely done. Loved the run animation and that it actually reacts to the speed also, was a nice touch.
Nice graphics and overall approach! Keep doing the good work=)
p.s. would appreciate if u rate our game too https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/39/answer-me
Boy, this project does take the theme in quite an interesting way there! :P Good job and, nice work with the presentation! It does feel retro and really well wrapped up! :P
It's like playing Track & Field with GT's endurance racing! While it does require a LOT of patience to play it, it's quite a nice game as a casual play and does entertain greatly!
The details in the animation, clouds, aeroplane sounds also really help with the mood of the game!
Good job there! ;)