FoonLudum Dare ExplorerLD40 → Run Guys

Run Guys

By arron-fowler

View on ldjam.com

CategoryRankScoreCount
Overall6193.4046
Fun3383.5647
Innovation5063.2347
Theme3093.7547
Graphics9462.7148
Humor2283.5944
Mood6973.1245

Comments

rohezal 2017-12-07 12:37

The website did not load the game on firefox quantum 57 on windows 7.

http://amancalledarron.com/ld40/4594134883

tvance 2017-12-07 12:50

Nice take on the theme! This is fun to play and I bet it was fun to make. I have a similar "long-suffering partner" story haha.

arron-fowler 2017-12-07 13:19

@rohezal I have added a link to a windows export. I have no way of testing it, so if it works for you I would love to know.

drtizzle 2017-12-07 14:36

Wow, this is cool! I love all the small details, like how your character jumps into the world when starting the level, and the delay on the jumps of your friends so that everybody jumps at the right time. The graphics are simple but clean, and bonus points for a character customization function!

One minor issue was that you are using the old Unity webplayer which does not work in Chrome, so I had to switch browsers just for this game.

Oh, and what the hell does "I broke my wind" mean?? haha

Well done!

dekart 2017-12-08 09:48

Sorry, didn't manage to launch your game - my browser says the plugin isn't supported. However I'd be glad if you'd try our game :)

fluffi 2017-12-08 10:37

sadly couldnt play it with chrome :(

arron-fowler 2017-12-08 15:46

@drtizzle can I ask which browser you used to make it work? I would like to invite you to contribute your own death message for run guys post ld40.

drtizzle 2017-12-08 19:52

I used Safari on Mac, for Windows only Internet Explorer 11 works for the old web player according to https://unity3d.com/webplayer.

I strongly advise you to make a copy your project folder, download the latest version of Unity and import it into the latest version. That way you can export it as a WebGL build, so everyone can play it. You might have to change some things in your code, but most of the time the console tells you exactly what to do. But make sure you keep your original project folder in case it goes wrong!

Good luck :slight_smile: !

arron-fowler 2017-12-08 20:00

@fluffi @dekart @rohezal so it seems like Internet explorer or safari might still run the old unity webplayer, if you can be bothered. I would be very grateful if you went to the extra effort.

arron-fowler 2017-12-08 20:15

@drtizzle thanks for that. My mac is old and I have the most up to date unity that this os uses. This is the first time I have published anything from unity since ld21! I had not realised how out of date it was. Time to update for sure but this is the best I can do. For now.

gassasin 2017-12-09 02:34

Awesome twist on endless runners!:)

roaring-cat-games 2017-12-09 02:41

This was a lot of fun. I felt bad running all my friends into trees, but also loved how they all fell down and tumbled.

Pros

- Simple mechanic - Kept wanting to try for a better run - Funny characters - Solid concept

Cons

- Collisions were wonky sometimes - Hard to tell where your character was after a while - Performance problems with > 8 friends

Really fun entry. I would play this on mobile with a few tweaks.

saramartins 2017-12-09 06:55

This was so much fun! Such a simple game, yet it kept me wanting to repeat over and over. The speech line between all of them were a nice adition, really fun. The mechanics are simple and I think that's a plus in this game. I felt the mouse follow was a tad slow, made me fell after I didn't start turning early enough. It does get hard to distinguish your character unfortunately.

Overall such a fun game, really loved it, with a few improvrements, art and sound (really missed a good jogging beat and maybe some garbled talking upon friends joining) you might have a mobile winner, like roaring-cat-games suggested. Congratulations!

arron-fowler 2017-12-09 10:53

@roaring-cat-games thanks for the feedback, already made lots of improvements post ld40. I am enjoying working on it. As a total hobbiest it is the first game I have properly shared (apart from ld21 and it didn't really function) so it has been great to get such positive feedback. I really loved making trees with your entry.

arron-fowler 2017-12-09 10:56

@saramartins thanks. Music is a must for sure. I was thinking of making it loop based where each friend has their own loop which would make a unique track with each grouping. I am 80% sure I know how to make that happen. What genre would you want? If you name an artist or track, I will use it as my inspiration

kleinzach 2017-12-10 23:25

Very cool take on the endless runner, a genre which desperately needs new ideas.I loved the way you had to adapt your playstyle to the size of the crowd following you, and I really like the text popups that everyone has when you crash into something. Great stuff.

sorlok 2017-12-11 01:46

Overall interesting take on the theme! Loved the simple controls leading to complicated behavior (i.e., not being able to see the hero that well). Great job!

kettu 2017-12-11 14:01

Nice point of view on the theme! The controls are pretty simple, which is good. The thing I found difficult was to determine who my avatar was after some friends joined the run. This led to some unnecessary "running against a tree" -deaths. This could easily be fixed with some sort of pointer. The overall mood of the game could be tuned up with some very simple sound effects. I liked the blocky graphics and what you have achieved with them in a small amount of time.

sleepygrin 2017-12-11 14:05

Very fun to play ! Special mention for the popups ! Great job :D

sleepygrin 2017-12-11 14:05

Very fun to play ! Special mention for the popups ! Great job :D

lieropart 2017-12-11 14:21

A simple interpretation of the theme that reminds me that I always overcomplicate everything. I liked how they all had names! Nice job!

chong-lee 2017-12-11 14:25

Extremely fun to play! good job!

flubz 2017-12-11 20:34

Simple game but it's still loads of fun! :smiley_cat: Well done! :clap:

rohezal 2017-12-11 21:39

I liked this game, it just gets realy hard. Sometimes there is a small stutter in the web version in chromium / unbuntu 16.04 / i5 2300 / 8 GB / amd 380 4GB

arron-fowler 2017-12-12 00:11

@rohezal thanks for coming back and giving it a go. I am working on Run Guys still and trying to strip out unnecessary processes to make it run smoother. It gets busy quick! It is much improved already.

wheffle 2017-12-12 03:48

Pretty cool little project! I like the premise, and the gameplay was straight-forward but entertaining. The controls are smooth and responsive, and the terrain done neatly. I'm still too much of a wuss to do 3D, so it's impressive to me that you did this all from scratch.

arron-fowler 2017-12-12 12:32

@wheffle My little secret is that I am a total n00b all round. I have been playing with Unity as a hobby and never been able to spend the right amount of time to finish anything. The only other game I have got remotely finished and out into the world was for LD21. I love the problem solving, hate the finishing. I was drawn to this Jam because I work well with deadlines. I was very pleased to get this done at all. In terms of the 3d modelling I did none, all the artwork is made of cubes and spheres straight out of unity - not my original plan, but actually a constraint I learned to love. 3d modelling is on my list, but it will have to wait!

subztep 2017-12-12 13:53

It's a fun to play, I really liked when the characters say something, it just added some personality to the game. It's quite simple to control but I got that endless runner feeling when I just want to play over and over again. :) I didn't experience any performance issue on (Chrome/Ubuntu/i7-4770HQ/16gb ram), I assume that the delay after dying is for a purpose.

king-kujito 2017-12-12 14:20

Fun little game. Good job! :-)

pcmaster 2017-12-13 15:11

"Broken my nail" :D Good job in the limited time you had!

jonasz999 2017-12-13 16:33

Simple game, yet very fun to play.

I would totally play it so as to kill some time :wink:

mundis 2017-12-13 18:03

I really enjoyed this! As with a couple of games on here, I really wish I had it on my phone 'cause it'd be great to play while waiting for the bus etc.

The game had a few nice touches. The character generator integrated with the main menu worked really nicely, and the stats at the end like longest friendship was really nice (I'll never forget you Georgia D;). The whole game had a very bizarre atmosphere from compounded by the weird comments the characters make.

It really goes to show that sweating the small details can make a huge difference. Well done!

jk5000 2017-12-13 21:35

"Run Forrest run"

A very simple but also a pretty fun little running game. I would have liked a bit more to do, and some music would have been great. But overall a fine LD game.

jlreymendez 2017-12-13 22:50

I have never in my life wanted so much to ditch my friends.. well that may be a lie

saramartins 2017-12-14 02:49

@arron-fowler I think an 80's cheesy vibe would be cool. Some suggestions (probably better/easier without vocals): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6cdnxNRnQc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOC9JB4KshM

tinis-games 2017-12-14 12:38

Nice game! I love messages from friends who are displayed :) A little trouble to understand collisions sometimes, but nothing that removes the fun :)

starlin 2017-12-14 13:58

I died in 5 seconds! Friendship doesn't stay long lol

arron-fowler 2017-12-14 16:17

@starlin friends come and go, but death is eternal.

arron-fowler 2017-12-14 22:11

@saramartins Challenge accepted.

sarafilipa 2017-12-15 12:07

Very nice game, innovative idea! I felt popular once in my life! XD I love how fast-paced it is! Well-done. :) Congratulations!

meanmon13 2017-12-15 14:26

This was a really fun game! Well done and it incorporated the theme very well :-) the game organically got harder the more people I had in my run group. I like that.

safrmo 2017-12-15 14:51

This is really, really charming! I loved the little bits of humor when the characters got left behind, and the people introducing themselves was a wonderful touch. I'm really pleasantly surprised by how much fun this was! (Also, I loved the main menu - it blends into the actual game effortlessly, which is a very cool effect!) Excellent work!

indie-gaming 2017-12-16 00:11

https://youtu.be/2RgawbdL4No

arron-fowler 2017-12-16 08:51

@indie-gaming thanks for playing. It is easier when you jump (and you can really make you friends go everywhere!) I really appreciate your review

jordgubben 2017-12-16 11:54

Seems your game and [mine](https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/40/be-popular) tackle very similar concepts. Interacting with other people is not always an easy thing. We get entangled in our daily lives and some times we just want to get away. But loneliness is also a hard ting to cope with. Perhaps the core of the human experience is in the struggle it self.

indie-gaming 2017-12-16 16:15

@arron-fowler ...umm you can jump? LOL, oops.

arron-fowler 2017-12-16 17:21

@indie-gaming not just jump, but a double jump no less! In game instructions are on the same list as the music.

toboggan 2017-12-17 15:25

fun/funny game. :) Would be cool to support keyboard controls, would be my preference.

Felt like i lost the main character instantly every time. Might be nice to make them a really bright colour and everyone else a dull colour (or something), to make them easier to follow.

arron-fowler 2017-12-17 16:28

Got an arrow on the go now. @toboggan

arron-fowler 2017-12-19 11:34

I have come to the sad realisation that I have played and rated my last LD40 games. I am away with work and then Christmas fun and wont be sat in front of my computer before the deadline comes. Thanks so much for rating and commenting on Run Guys. I feel inspired to pursue this hobby and take it further. Peace and good tidings to y'all. Arron

regisrquoi 2017-12-20 00:34

My best score was 1000 with a group of 14 ! It's pretty fun and I had a good time, I've already seen this kind of mechanic (here for example https://wimpykid456.itch.io/pepe-jump-land ) but never like this: usually you fail when all your group died, here you still have a single character and other people just make you less focused and unsure where you are. It can be a bit frustrating but actually i think it's a pretty good idea !

graphics do the job, it's not the reason why we play but they make the player understand the situation and are pretty ergonomics in term of game design: the player know what is an obstacle and what is not.

Good luck with the next projects =)

regisrquoi 2017-12-20 00:35

oh and the messages people say are really great, it's a super cool thing ! I would love it if there was a small voice acting !!

totsboy 2017-12-21 07:12

Definitely an interesting message, would be nice if when you hit something you lose a friend or two instead of game over straight away.

psychedelia 2017-12-27 19:26

I loved this. So simple, such fun. Thank you for making this. I kept wanting to play more. The analogy to the reality of friendships is strong with this one. It.hurts.ugh.

The text "RUN" that appeared regularly over the main character partially solved the problem of differentiating him from the crowd for me, but it still was challenging.

I loved every line of what the friends kept saying and kept imagining them screaming their greetings (and complaints!) at me for real. It would be awesome to add voices to them so if you collect many, the sound will become this distorted gibberish of people talking over each other :)

ashtrail 2017-12-28 14:42

It's actually one of the most fun game I played of all LD40. The art is fine, too bad there isn't any sfx/music.

I had a few ideas for improvements : the game could get harder (faster at least) as you get further to make it more challenging and getting a good sense of progression. It would be cool if the score was displayed as you go. The quotes from your friends are nice but it's hard to read them when you have to focus on the game, maybe if they actually said them that would solve it although it might get annoying fast.

Overall it's a really good game, good work !