sean-esopenko 2022-10-04 00:12
The environment is interesting. What am I supposed to do? I opened the store but the people crowd the counter and get angry at me.
Foon → Ludum Dare Explorer → LD51 → Dead End Job
By codeman1010, iDeNoh, Jaycee Sandvig and Lin Vale Media
| Category | Rank | Score | Count | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 651 | 3.46 | 28 | |
| Fun | 621 | 3.34 | 28 | |
| Innovation | 742 | 3.14 | 26 | |
| Theme | 993 | 3.15 | 28 | |
| Graphics | 551 | 3.67 | 28 | |
| Audio | 340 | 3.56 | 27 | |
| Humor | 255 | 3.47 | 26 | |
| Mood | 360 | 3.68 | 26 |
The environment is interesting. What am I supposed to do? I opened the store but the people crowd the counter and get angry at me.
I really like the look of this. The store and the characters were really well designed. I don't know if I lost though. The meter went down to a sliver and people just stopped showing up but the game kept going. It fit the theme and it's a nice entry. The radio really set the mood!
Great game! Graphics are really good, amount of customers is balanced, squeezing trough line of clients to go to register is realistic and really enjoyed it, had a great 8h shift) изображение_2022-10-05_032546169.png Thank you so much for time well spent!
Had only one issue with skeleton stuck in "wanting mode" (with beverage machine and it was full)
Good game! Wish I could read what the drinks said. I really liked the character art, and the fact that you couldn't sit down to take a break. That was funny. The radio was good and I liked the music. Overall great game. (psst anyone else in the comments I have a secret strategy. You don't need to go entirely behind the counter to use the cash register. You can be halfway through the part you go through to exit and enter the checkout area and it will will work. Good Luck!)
This game has some issues with understandability and movement, but it's made up for by the audio and the clever comedic notes.
The core gameplay loop here is really satisfying, and I love the attention to detail: having to open the shop before anybody arrives, and having the music playing through a stereo physically in the game world are both really nice touches.
It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize that I could walk through the checkout counter, and I spent a long time standing there trying to click on it. Some instruction or hints there would be great (maybe the new owner is a :ghost:?).
I think I also encountered a bug of sorts: if you accidentally exit full-screen mode and then come back, the mouse controls stop working properly. I couldn't find a way to fix this without restarting the game.
Solid game, I did wish there was a sort of sprint button but it does make sense. I'm only upset that I enjoyed working a minimum wage job lol.
very immersive simulation game. I enjoy balancing between stocking and checking out to get money. Good job!
Ds get degrees :sunglasses:
We sure did love our minimum wage simulators this jam, huh?
Loved the art, presentation, and general QoL to this one. The monster theme was unexpected, but well executed with some great designs. Atmosphere, ambience, and artstyle alike just kind of works, and the layout of the store never feels frustrating to get around. Visibility is a non-issue, while you can't always see items directly off the shelves being able to see customers' intentions without the clouds cluttering the screen gives you a good idea of your store at all times and you can always tell when customers are rushing to a single location. Sometimes these games tend to be a little too frantic, but this game feels like you can really maintain your store as long as you keep paying attention. Having a score ranking also helps push things towards a fun game loop.
All in all, this was a pretty great entry in both intention and execution. Great work!
**DRAGON THEORY GAMES KNEW WHAT THEY WERE DOING.**
Hey! I had a great time playing this on stream. Here's a link to the playthrough that will be up for a week or so if you want to share with your teammates: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1610268632?t=00h33m35s
I loved the challenge and vibe of this one. I didn't want to let the cute spooky characters down so I wanted to make sure everything was stocked up! It got real overwhelming real fast, but I thoroughly enjoyed the hectic nature of it.
The radio was the icing on the cake. It really gave a lot of character to the game. What a great idea and yall filled it up with chill tunes and funny commercials.
The name... dead handjob... :rofl: :rofl: But the pixel posters in the shop are really nice!
Really solid gameplay loop here, and everything looks great. Nice work!
This is quite fun! The core gameplay is good and engaging. The game works well, and I didn't experience any major bugs. I had only one minor one: some clients were getting stuck near the soda machine, further from the cash register. They were just standing there, chillin' :grin:
I also enjoyed the radio announcement - they were amusing and added character to the game.
I didn't like pushing myself through the customers to get to the cash register. I think some side employee entrance would be nicer.
This is a cool game with a cool visual style. The visitors are amazing. It is not always clear what product is missing in the store. It would be useful to display the icon next to the customer. Great job.
I really like the look of this. The gameplay is nice and engaging. Goob job!
I earned $1,900, but I didn't have time to take a screenshot! Great job!
Had a bit of trouble with the wall of text but then it was quite fun. Wish it said on screen how much restocking costs
@inno The UI has issues when not in fullscreen for some reason, it was very last minute, so if you don't open the game in fullscreen it will be horribly cut off. As for restocking, it doesn't actually cost anything, upgrading is the only thing that costs money :) I'm glad you enjoyed it!
This is a realllllly fun concept! My only issue is I seemed to be having control issues. Movement felt choppy and getting into the cashier booth was a struggle and a half because it felt like I got bounced around - I have no idea if that was intentional or not.
Overall though I enjoyed the idea. If gameplay was smoother I would have played for a loooong time.
Thank you. :D
Well made and fun! Theme works well here too. I'm not sure I've ever seen a game where you serve customers in 3D. Loved the tune too and that it was playing on a real radio, nice one!
As a coincidence, I took a look at Ludum Dare 50’s *Claustrowordia* on 06/10/2022’s night and noticed [your comment](https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/50/claustrowordia) from the previous day, which brought me to this place. :)
##### Semi-on-the-fly remarks:
1. Judging by the description, the concept seems extremely close to that of ‘time management’ shop ‘casual games’ (such as the *Emily* series), including the thought bubbles from the banner. Did you draw any inspiration from it? :) I wonder if you injected some originality into it.
2. Tutorial/Explanation text at the beginning; nice to have given some context! Nevertheless, as to guidance per se, it is often a lot for a player to take; it may not always be easy, but if you get the chance, conveying the mechanics progressively (either explicitly or implicitly) helps. Also, small detail: the sight / small white dot is displayed in front of the text panel.
3. Controls are layout-independent, great (I have an AZERTY keyboard). :) AND arrow keys are enabled.
4. I like how the manual is *inside* the game, at the beginning! The very same happened in [*Far.*](https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/51/far), the previous game I tested, amusingly. :)
5. You can even see the scenery outside through the window; this, other details and the music all add to the immersion. (And you can even switch the radio off!)
6. Haha, classic 2D ‘billboard’ effect for the shelf products! Although I notice a very tiny ‘bug’: since they are always facing the player (as expected), their shadows vary instead of staying fixed. I guess you used real 3D panes. (Side story: I did the same thing for a MonoGame 3D labyrinth as a test for 3D with 2D sprites. Although I have no shadows there. ;))
7. Starting game properly speaking; checking out is intuitive enough, although I was wondering first if you had to go behind the counter, and yes you do — which is legitimate. ;)
8. I think it is hard to tell what customers are looking for in general and what is depleted, because the subjective 3D view only allows you to have a small partial viewpoint of the global situation, as opposed to a global 2D top view (as in the time management games I mentioned earlier). Suggestion: have some UI element that shows the amount for each type and the current customers’ needs! This would not make the (great) interactive indications moot, as you would still need to go and see which precise shelves need to be taken care of. Or even better if you want everything to be ‘in game’: have some screen(s) displaying this, either near the counter or as a portable device. :)
9. Shift ends; I get an F! :o I checked out every customer that came, but only four are satisfied according to the balance sheet… I really had trouble getting a sense of whether shortages had a big impact or not, despite my upgrading various shelving!
10. In the end, this is somewhat **different** from the time management games I was thinking of, as you do not need to act according to each client (by following a recipe or providing him some specific product/service), but act on the global *supply*.
11. Second run (!! pun not intended XD): testing Left Shift: I realize you can run! Not said in the manual; I guess this stems for some classic control scheme you used. ;) No crouching, though!
12. The unhappy thought bubbles do help getting where products are missing, actually! But I still think some more indications would help.
13. Some delivery points seem not to change visually depending on their supplies, which would help. (I am thinking of the drink machine and the toilet).
(1/2)
(continued: 2/2)
**Takeaway:** I really like the immersion (the subjective view helps a lot) into a seller’s shoes, and the intuitive indications and interactions. The downside of this is that getting what is happening globally is harder, and that some global indicators would have helped. I think the connection to the theme is reasonable although not that central to the mechanics, since having a regular flow of customers is customary (! pun unintended) in such management games. I still liked how you did *not* copy-paste the ‘standard’ time management games mentioned above! As for graphics, I like having good old 2D sprites in a 3D environment, and showing the scenery outside. I think sounds were nice, although some more may have also helped getting more of the action (I am thinking of some grunting in addition to the unhappy thought bubbles!); the radio is really a great addition for the atmosphere, including the soothing music and chatter voice.
Thanks for the immersive experience!
@pennycook It may depend on the navigator, but for me, the game could take focus again by clicking on it. (I use Firefox.)
@la-bread Actually, Left Shift does seem to make you run! ;)
Very charming game, I loved the spooky vibes! The instruction manual being a game object and the radio really help immerse you, along with all the sound effects and posters <3 The camera leaning over when you aim straight down is a really interesting idea too, I havent seen a game do it like that before but it makes sense!