Foon → Ludum Dare Explorer → LD41 → Match Strike
| Category | Rank | Score | Count | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 294 | 3.73 | 53 | |
| Fun | 346 | 3.55 | 55 | |
| Innovation | 202 | 3.78 | 56 | |
| Theme | 118 | 4.22 | 55 | |
| Graphics | 460 | 3.65 | 56 | |
| Audio | 155 | 3.79 | 52 | |
| Humor | 673 | 2.73 | 47 | |
| Mood | 398 | 3.49 | 53 |
Very fun game and lots of aircraft controls ^^ but could be a bit more challenging. Does the deployment of the landing-gear work correctly? The control light didn't turn off like the other control lights. And the game crashed on exit :/ (Win7).
@kruemelkeksfan The crash-on-exit is a known problem. It's not gonna be an easy fix, too, due to the way my keyboard mapping code is causing a bug in Unity Player. Watch this space for updates!
Its buggy but cool!
A fun take on both the Samegame and dogfighting genres! Too bad I'm horrible at flight sims :stuck_out_tongue:
Flying around and attacking the blocks felt quite natural once I got the hang of it. There were some small bugs, like the keyboard defocusing after restarting a level, but those didn't degrade the experience too much.
Man this one is a brilliant take on the theme. And the controls are quite something.
Just uploaded a WebGL build. It's a bit glitchy, graphics-wise, but it runs just fine, and no crash on exit!
@mao Thanks for trying it out! I'll take a look at the keyboard issue. I shouldn't have used some prototype keybinding stuff, last-minute, for this jam...
Fun, but it did feel very slow at times, and it seems a bit sensitive on what it defines as "base", for when you need to return. I've stopped on the runway a few times and it not register. I didn't realise I could shoot the turrets at first either, which made it quite difficult.
I have never really played these jet sim type games so the controls were very hard to get used to, but that is on me obviously. Once I got used to it, it was really fun and challenging to destroy the blocks. It wasn't enough that I could just hit them they had to be in order of three haha. The only real issue I encountered was that when restarting a level the engine button wouldn't work, I would either have to go into the menu and hit apply or exit to the main menu and start a new match again. Also when destroying all blocks and leave one, it wouldn't get destroyed, not sure if that is intentional and you have to destroy them in proper order so as that doesn't happen or if it is an error
Very smart approach! Really well done!
@kruemelkeksfan Landing gear was never implemented. But that's okay, since they don't slow down your plane when extended. :grin:
@Préda Thanks for playing! What bugs did you see, if I might ask?
@mao Would you describe the bug you see, as the same as what @noumenus saw? (Trying to gather info before I do a bug hunt in the game code.)
@Reizo Thanks! :smile:
@Seanharrs I will increase the size of the runway detection zone. I define it currently as the end of the base (between the tower and the hangar buildings) right now, but easy to bump it up!
@noumenus I'll take a look at the keyboard binding stuff. As for the blocks, it plays the same as Samegame: You have to destroy at least two of the same kind of block, and the game ends if there is no more possibly matches. Hence the message "you succeed but not quite" that you get if you end up with no matches but there are still blocks alive.
I've checked level 1-3, and it's possible to solve all the levels with 0 blocks left, but I haven't tested level 4. I was kinda in a :runner: when I was making level 4.
The random level could possibly generate unsolvable boards, too. My board generating algorithm isn't very robust and only tries 100 times to create a solvable board before it gives up, so no guarantees. :hammer:
I wish I had more time to write an in-game tutorial, so I will just have to add more instructions to my game posting here.
Yeah, that sounds like the same bug.
Controls are quite complicated, but I really liked this game.
@mao Thanks for the confirm! Bug has been fixed.
@alobker Yeah, it's supposed to be a flight sim, so lots of knobs to tweak. Glad you enjoyed!
New version uploaded. I've fixed ALL the problems with the board (such as falling blocks being stuck, etc) but sadly, my changes caused the deterministic board-gen stuff to change, too. So all the levels are different, even though they use the same seeds. But don't worry, I have verified that they are 100% solvable! Except for Random, which is, well, random.
Note: Crash-on-exit is still present in the standalone build of the game, but that problem is far more difficult to track down, so will have to wait.
Loved your game! The theme was used perfectly, one of the most original and most elaboreted ideas I saw, had a lot of fun playing. The audio is incredible!
This seems to be the gamejam of bad ideas because HOLY C%@&, this one just...
I don't know why I was expecting simplicity in a flight sim but, oh well, let's begin.
Every grip I have with this game is due to the combination of genres and, more specifially, about the inherit complexity of flight sims.
This game requires pacience and precision far beyond what I'm willing to give it, for example, trying to hit stuff while moving AND been attacked is kind of a c%@&$#ººt, having limited fuel is part of a flight sim but it makes far more punishing when you're trying to be both fast and precise in light of the constant fire your under and did I mention that you can only destroy the reactor parts that have combination AND you can barely register them AT ALL!?
Aside from me not enjoying the game, this certainly has to be one of the most solid entries this year! Congratulations on finishing your game. Get a rest soldier, you deserve it.
:smile: Nice job! it is somewhat complex but overall it looks like you put a lot of work on it :thumbsup:
This is just fantastic! My only complaint is the weird graphics shine off the ground at certain angles. Otherwise, this is perfect!
@chainedlupine Woah was this cool! I liked how involved the controls were, and the first-person cockpit view. The delightfulness of the pun-name was not lost on me. :) This felt like a creative and polished take on combining Match-3 and flight simulation: solid controls, good audio, simple visuals, and clear instructions. The flight sim component feels much more polished than the Match-3 part. Maybe it's my fledgling skills as a pilot, but I spent most of my mental energy just driving the plane, and found myself firing pretty blindly at the stack of blocks, since the gun's range was so short and your firing window so brief. Seems like a great idea though with a lot of post-jam potential.
Good Lord, this is hella polished! A pretty convincing flight sim on its own, which is impressive given the timeframe... I had no issue with the controls, even though I don't play this sort of thing often... though my landing technique could definitely use some work. Voice acting was spot-on, too, really adds to the atmosphere! As I played through the harder levels, though, it became less of deciding which blocks to hit accurately, and more of spraying the reactor with random machinegun fire in hopes of destroying as much of it as possible in a single run. All in all, it's a really, REALLY impressive entry. Great job!
Not sure if the link is to the LD or post LD version, seems like lots of coding to make this simulator, very impressive. Managed to fly through the ground once. :) Solid entry.
@ARuculaDoMal Thank you, on both counts!
@Fil089 I'd like to vote your comment for the best I've ever received in my years of doing LD. :grinning: I actually laughed out loud and had to read it out to my friends who were around me at the time I saw your posting. It's a frustrating game, but the theme did say **incompatible**! And when I had the idea of combining these two types of games, I knew I had that part in the bag.
@roaderful I certainly did. Way more into the flight-sim stuff than the block-matching part, that's for sure.
@Bodaciouslycrazy Thanks! And I've fixed the graphics shine bug! It was me being silly with a shader.
@the_noffs I definitely agree about the flight sim part being far more polished. I was more than halfway through the weekend before I realized I should get to cracking on the rest of the game. In fact, the levels were made in the last four hours of the jam. I was really cutting it close... As for post-jam potential, I agree!
@justinooncx My games tend to be polished but at the cost of content. I'm glad I implemented the Random level generator first before the other levels, so there was some replayability; I originally wanted 10 levels, with extra objectives, but I had to drop all of that pretty quickly. I spent way too much time on all the finishing touches, like the voice overlays, and getting the flight HUD working. But thank you for the compliments, I am glad you liked it!
@TomekS It's the jam version, though I have fixed a few game-breaking bugs (and a few of the broken visuals) as allowed, though I have not touched anything else. The flight model is also very simple, don't let it fool you. :grin: Thanks!
As a fan of planes in general, I quite enjoyed it. The controls felt like they worked well (though not sure about X being brakes... hmm), and I liked the mechanic of shooting down the blocks in chains. Unfortunately I couldn't figure out how to shoot down the turrets (can you even?). That's a small issue though. The flying felt realistic and I loved the plane model :)
Flight simulator is the genre I expected the least. This kind of games seems to need a lot of work and the fact you made it not only playable, but enjoyable indeed is impressive! The "game over" when out of fuel is a bit disturbing, but it doesn't spoil a game experience.
I like controls, they work pretty smooth. Also, lovely voice acting, I think headphones are recommended to feel the game's mood. =D
Wow, that retro flight sim feeling! And made by one person, wow - that is an impressive array of skills you demonstrate! Other jammers, beware! :tiger:
Likes ------------ The idea and the flight model are just really really cool. Amazing you pulled off a convincing flight sim for LD Jam. The sounds are punchy and the radio voices are just present enough to not make you feel alone.
The targeting diamond really helps players make a split second decision and miss fewer targets. Well done!
The gun turrets and their doppler-laden sound effects really help me retain my situational awareness and feel under some kind of surreal science fiction fire.
The graphics, especially the reactor complex, are nice convincing as well. My favourite detail is the depth of field effect on the cockpit.
Ideas ------------- Do the flaps even work? Does the rudder even work? I didn't feel these were very pronounced in their effects for a casual game / flight sim crossover. Possibly even have thrust vectoring / VTOL with a plane that looks like this in the age of quantum reactors. It would add to the skill ceiling.
A more pleasant Menu Button click, maybe...
And: The destruction of blocks and chains of blocks can be more more satisfying with juicy feedback - crank up the emission and let them flash white hot as they resolve, add some simple particles, etc. Or just punch them out as rigid bodies and let them fall to the ground.
Gist ----------------- A very original entry that took me right back into my Amiga Flight Sim Days. Somehow it reminded me a lot of Armour Geddon. Definitely destroys the theme in one swift fly by. Fox two! Bullseye!
Bugs ------------------ "Hey Goose, does the ground even have a collider??!" (Web and Windowns versions) Noticed it when I ran out of fuel, and then realized it's the same in flight as well. That said, a submarine sim / match-3 would make for a good sequel. ^^ However, a flight sim without ground crashes *does fit* the casual game / flight sim moniker. :laughing:
@Thygrrr gains +1000 points for finding an oversight of mine. Namely, I accidentally deleted the ground collider in my bugfix build. Great job, return to base. A round of cold ones, on me!
As for the flaps, they barely work. It's more like automatic "just push you upwards at low speed" flaps that gets modulated by your flap setting. The flight model is extremely basic.
And I love your ideas for juicy feedback! That's one of the things I had to leave on the chopping room floor. That, and when you destroyed chains of blocks, parts of the base would blow up.
Really making me want to do a post-jam version, now!
Oh man, I guess the game does require some patience to get get good! I'm not sure what the flaps did. Pressing G didn't seem to be working either, or atleast had no visual change. I played the web build, though. It's awesome that you managed to put in changeable controls, it helped a lot, especially because this is a flight sim.
Sometimes I wished I could go around faster for another firing run. Great job with the audio, btw.
WTF COULDN'T FIGURE OUT HOW TO LAND AT THE BASE TO REFUEL!!! SFKJDFKWQA!!! Besides that, the feeling and mechanics of soaring in this game are **so fun** and it *felt great* and realistic.
I loved the overall design, it was immersive, and the "match strike" in the menu was a nice touch 😂. The sound design was really immersive too! Really appreciate the voice acting and it's guidance... *though i couldn't do some of the things it instructed me to do...*
Still, if I didn't have more games to rate tonight, I'd be playing your game some more because it felt so satisfying to lift off and fly.
Try our game and give us a rate too! https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/41/a-tale-of-comedy-and-tragedy
@pranjalbisht I've mentioned elsewhere in the comments, but at the moment, the flaps are real simple and don't do much other than give an artificial boost in height when engaged at low speeds. They don't actually work like real flaps. The gear also don't work, though the HUD will update to reflect their raising/lowering (IIRC). Glad you enjoyed the game, as is though!
@Elsiana Eaves Landing can be a problem, particularly on level 4 when you're a bit far from the enemy base! Though you can belly-flop the plane on the runway versus land it and take less than %50 health in damage, though that assumes you haven't already taken damage... :grin: And sure, I'll check your game out!
Niiiice one!! I found it pretty hard from the third level onwards, maybe if the turrets stayed disabled for longer it would've helped a bit!
Also as a FYI, you're only meant to fix bugs that are entirely game-breaking for the jam version, and for other bugs treat them as post-compo, but I'm eh about that rule anyway :P
Cool stuff! :D
@Jezzamon Yeah, I wanted to tweak the turret settings based on the levels, but I didn't have time to write customization code for the turrets; So they all got the same values. Glad you enjoyed!
My changes were all bugfixes, plus fixing some WebGL porting issues, such as graphics or sounds that were different versus the Windows build. If you want to see the original released-five-minutes-before-timer-ran-out version for comparison, it's up here: http://chainedlupine.com/games/match-strike-ld41/
It plays identically, except the levels have different combinations of block types. I fixed a bug in the level generator that was preventing blocks from falling properly (wasn't indexing all positions, due to a off-by-one typo), but a side-effect was that it caused the random generator to spit out different arrangements of blocks since the generator and the checker were using the same routine.
@ZEST_is_BEST Thankies!
that was a lot of fun! cool concept and played well
Really needed something to show the controls when I went in.
@Haberworks Awesome, glad you enjoyed playing it!
@huminaboz Yeah, I wanted a tutorial but had no time. The help screen couldn't cover controls since they were re-bindable.
This was a pretty hard game! It took a really long time to get used to the controls (I haven't played many flight simulators, and it took me at least 20 minutes to figure out how to get the plane off the ground). It was definitely a very well done game, and the genres were very incompatible (best fit for the theme I've seen yet!)
I made a match-3 game as well (which is also a text adventure) and it looks like people have the same sort of feedback for this game - it might be less fun because it's hard to actually manipulate the blocks in both games, and you have to focus more on the controls. I guess that's the point of this theme, though.
Wow! It is an actual retro-sim that looks like good old F-19! That alone brings a lot of memories ))) And seeing here match-3 is really something unexpected for a flight sim genre. Kudos for mixing two totally incompatible genres! :airplane: :three:
Wow, I didn't expect that level of simulation. Very atmospheric and retro-aesthetic (love the voice especially), maybe slightly frustrating controls, but what else I would expect from incompatible genres :D
Wow, this game is terrific! BTW, guys can you vote my game(RTS+FPS)?https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/41/rts-shooting
This is impressive for a jam entry; building a whole flight sim in such a short time frame seems like quite a task. The genre mashup is pretty funny too.
@init-py LOL, "very incompatible" was exactly my thought when I realized I could combine the two. I wish I could have implemented an actual match-3, though I think the current model works better from the sim standpoint: After all, match-3s tend to be endless, where Chain Shot/SameGame is more like a puzzle game. And I preferred a game with an end, since I wanted to force the player to land after completing the mission. (As should be the case for every flight sim...)
@invader I love F19, I remember flipping through the manual when I wasn't played it. You might have noticed my jet fighter took a lot of inspiration from that craft. :grin:
@rosik Only slightly frustrating? I needed to have worked harder on that, then! :wink:
@magicera Thank you! And sure!
@Sean S. LeBlanc Awesome, love to hear that.
Really fun and a really fun flying simulation I even managed to land =)
Wow, loved it!
Very hard to flight sim with a keyboard, but I guess that's how it was done back in the day.
The graphics, and especially audio are outstanding. I liked the radio comms. I kept crashing the plane, and it was very tough to fly but felt realistic (at least what I imagine it might be like to fly a plane).
@csanyk I haven't tested it (since my joystick's still in storage since my move), but the game **should** recognize an analog input device. The code will accept analog input and use it for controlling the craft. But again, not tested, so who knows if it works... :grin:
@YANIV Hey not bad! Glad you made it down in one piece. :thumbsup:
@chainedlupine I tried playing it with an Xbox 360 wired gamepad, and didn't get a response from the game.
@csanyk Dang, sorry to hear. I just tried it with my Belkin Nostromo N52 (old PC gamepad, think I bought it in ~2004), and it worked. Sorta.
The throttle does not respond to direct analog input. You can still adjust it with an analog stick but if you have a throttle control (that goes from 0-100) then it won't work. I need a setting in the options that toggles the game's interpretation of an axis from "relative input" (as it defaults to now) to "absolute input" for those kinds of controls.