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First Contact
First Contact
By tudvari
View on ldjam.com
| Category | Rank | Score | Count |
|
|---|
| Overall | | | 25 | |
| Fun | | | 25 | |
| Innovation | | | 25 | |
| Theme | | | 25 | |
| Graphics | | | 25 | |
| Audio | | | 25 | |
| Mood | | | 24 | |
Comments
Seems like a nice game. Kind of unsure what to do though. I walked around for a while reading the messages provided by the cubes. I couldn't find a way into the cabin or a way to leave the island and get to the other islands. I managed to clip through the cabin wall and enter the boat, then waited in the boat until the rising water pushed me through the roof. I then sailed across to the island with the plateau, but the bridge was broken and I fell to my death as I jumped across. I didn't complete the game.
The graphics are very nice, I especially like the way you've done the water and the trees. I can see the outer wilds influence. Maybe things could be a little better signposted though. I might spend some more time with the game later on and give a more in-depth review if I complete it.
Overall it seems like a well polished entry, good work.
ludevum
2022-04-20 15:56
This game was fun, I managed to beat it and I can definitely see the Outer Wilds influence. I don't want to spoil anything, so I won't give specifics. The puzzles were good, they were challenging but weren't too hard to figure out and easy enough once you knew what to do. I liked how the log kept track of progress and gave hints at what to do next.
The character controller could use some work, jumps felt too low and moving on angled terrain was hit or miss and often had camera jittering. The boat sometimes got stuck on the ground and it doesn't move at all once that happens, and pushing it was a little finnicky. Also, It didn't seem like I was fully submerged when I drowned.
The level design worked well for the game, and the music was great. I really enjoyed figuring things out and getting to the end! Great job!
edit: **Hints** (no spoiler tag, so mouseover these fake links) 1. [boathouse hint](open_boat_house_with_lever_above_the_front_side__jump_or_throw_stone_to_reach.a) 2. [island hint](push_the_boat_into_water_to_get_to_other_island_quicker.a) 3. [wooden statue hint](place_stone_on_the_pedestal_next_to_wooden_statue__log_tells_you_what_it_does.a) 4. [chest hint](behind_the_mountain_on_first_island__use_another_stone_on_the_pedestal_to_open_the_chest.a) 5. [axe hint](cut_down_one_tree__drop_the_axe__then_pick_up_the_log.a) 6. [bridge hint](use_the_log_to_fix_the_bridge.a) 7. [last hint](lights_go_off_when_you_or_statue_get_between_them__turn_off_all_lights_using_statue.a)
hope this helps anyone who got stuck!
chybby
2022-04-20 16:33
Couldn't figure out what to do after getting the axe.
Blue boxes seemed like a waste of precious time - maybe time should pause while reading them.
kuviman
2022-04-20 17:10
Tryed to cut down all the trees. Failed
image_2022-04-20_21-08-51.png
tudvari
2022-04-20 17:29
@abdonatioera Thanks for the feedback, sorry that you couldn't get into the cabin, I'll try to make the way to get in a bit more obvious next time. I guess the cubes could be a bit more relevant to the puzzle around them, because currently they aren't related to them. But I was laughing while was I reading your way of getting into the cabin! :laughing: Thanks for the feedback!
@ludevum Glad to hear that you finished it, liked the puzzles, the music, and the level design! :) Yes, I think third of my time went on fixing controller issues, and it still sucks! I must find a way to implement such a simple controller in a neat way. I always struggle with FPS controllers :smile: Maybe one day. Edit: Thanks for the hints! :)
@chybby You mean you used the axe but don't know what to do next? Or don't know where to use the axe? Ohh, yes, pausing the game while reading, that's an excellent idea, thanks! :slight_smile:
@kuviman So that means you managed to figure out around 2/3 of the game, nicee! :D Glad to hear that you tried, and sorry to hear that you failed. :smiley: It was surely a honorable goal.
mortiss
2022-04-20 17:33
Oh, wow, I like this kind of game where you should figure out what to do! "Can I go into the water? Apparently not. Oh, rocks, what can I do with them. Maybe toss it into the wate...ahh, it's rising!" I climbed up the highest point and watched the boat emerging from the cabin, it was wonderful. Couldn't figure out what to do with the chest, though, in web build I didn't get the hint in the upper part of the screen. I downloaded one for Linux, and there was a !gigantic glitching pointer!, I couldn't even start the game with it. Bummer...
tudvari
2022-04-20 17:44
@mortiss Yes, I love those games too, especially Outer Wilds. That's what I got inspired by it to make a similar one on my own :D Hmm, what hint in the upper part of the screen? In the upper half there is just the "Log updated" or something like that text once a while, so nothing serious to miss. But for me it's there in the web build as well :O Regarding the giant cursor... It was fine in the Editor and in the Windows builds. I don't know why that happens in the Web and, as it turns out, Linux build. :|
I couldn't figure out what to do, so I didn't complete the game, but what I did see looked very interesting! I think it would be good if you added some more indicators of what the player is supposed to do to make the game less confusing. I really liked the looping mechanic!
cool one, it took me a while to figure out how to get to another island :-) nice art and ambient audio, great stuff!
tudvari
2022-04-20 18:51
@lovetocode999 Thanks for the feedback. Yes, maybe the first clue on the "trail of clues" isn't that easy to find as I hoped so.
@supersonic Glad you liked it! :)
This is an interesting game-the game looping through the same time frame again and again is an interesting idea, and I can see the *Outer Wilds* inspiration from that. The graphics aren't anything impressive, but the music is very nice and serene. In terms of the gameplay, I did struggle with figuring out that there was a lever on the boathouse initially, especially when it is up and above where the player normally looks. Beyond that, I enjoyed the explorative gameplay. Nice entry.
mortiss
2022-04-20 19:01
@tudvari Yes, apparently the "log updated" part was not visible. Since I didn't read the spoilers I didn't know there even was a log:) I absolutely love the idea of playing with terrain and water levels, but maybe you should give the player more cues that something is actually happening. I've spent literally an hour trying to push the boat into the water with rocks, to no avail.
tudvari
2022-04-20 19:12
@proxy-games Yes, maybe the first puzzle was the hardest, the lever isn't really visible. Thanks for the feedback! :)
@mortiss Oh, so maybe the top left corner was gone as well? For the first 45 seconds of every loop, there is a quick key bindings info" which states the key for the log. :| Or maybe it just isn't really visible, my bad.
mortiss
2022-04-20 20:08
@tudvari My problem with the lever was that the aim was off center.
Yes, the top part of the screen is not visible at all when playing the web build on my small laptop.
4ahizon
2022-04-20 22:01
Interesting puzzle element game with water rising. Users are press to solve the puzzles before the water reaches to high. Art is good. Could improve on the audio with background music. I enjoyed the game
me4502
2022-04-21 05:43
I like this game and started to get the hang of it after wandering the island for a little bit, however sadly something about the graphics and handling (maybe FOV or mouse sensitivity) gave me motion sickness so I had to stop after ~10 minutes.
I like the graphics, especially the water. I do feel it could use a little more visual cues to direct the player at the start of the game, as well as improved handling for the boat. I had to exit the boat and jump into the water because it got stuck on a rock a few times.
Overall I definitely like the idea
This game is pretty and sounds great. Likewise I had to stop after a few minutes due to getting motion sickness - the mouse sensitivity is way too high! Otherwise a very comfy setting.
A nice enviroment and atmosphere, it's calming and lonely. The inspirtion from Outer Wilds is clear, well done!
leorid
2022-04-21 08:00
Played the game about 5min, then quit out because I didn't know what to do, nothing seemed interactable and you stated that the game is unfinished in your description.
Then I went to the comment section and saw the hints from @ludevum . Went back and finished the game after a few tries (went to the second island without getting the axe first, slid off the cliff after getting the axe, pushed the statue the wrong way, just to name a few).
Somehow you should show the player that he has to find things and that there are interactables before letting him explore the whole map.
Still - cool entry, I loved outer wilds and after understanding that your game is like it, I also understood some of the puzzles (without hints).
tudvari
2022-04-21 08:11
@mortiss Oh I see, what resolution is it? @4ahizon Thanks for playing my game and for the feedback! :)
@me4502 @congusbongus thanks guys for all the feedback :) Hopefully next time I won't forget about a mouse sensitivity setting :D
tudvari
2022-04-21 08:14
@arthur-mairs Thank you! :)
@leorid Hmm, where did I say that the game is unfinished? Maybe a typo, I should fix it really soon! :smile: And also thanks for giving it a second chance! Yes, getting the player to solve the first puzzle is badly done as it turns out. Thanks for the feedback! :)
leorid
2022-04-21 08:24
@tudvari In your Devlog. Yea, I didn't really read anything, just watched the video and jumped into the game. My fault. xD
mortiss
2022-04-21 09:40
@tudvari screen resolution 1366x768
tudvari
2022-04-21 12:03
@leorid Oooh, I see. Yeah, that's the earlier part of the "series". I still owe to the subscribers to make a second part, but I'm soo tired :smile:
@mortiss That's interesting, I was hoping that it would be some rare resolution :\ I will check it out, thanks!
Controller needs some work, but the design is top notch. Kudos!
tudvari
2022-04-21 17:45
@makiling-interactive-arts Indeed, next time I should definitely make an FPS controller before the jam, just in case :D I always invest so much time, and it always ends up being messy :\ Thanks for the feedback!
oillen
2022-04-21 18:07
OH OH!!!
LD50_Tudvari_OHNO.png
tudvari
2022-04-22 07:26
@oillen OOOohh Oooooh! :smile: