Dungeons Below

disvent 2025-04-09 17:26

Okay, I beat it. The game is definitely a bit strange. The music has a nice atmospheric feel to it, but it doesn’t really fit the art style. The main character’s sprite lags and shrinks when taking damage, and he doesn’t turn left, which makes the combat feel less impactful. Also, web build doesn't work. The art is quite cute overall, but the pixel sizes are inconsistent, which breaks the visual cohesion a bit.

But yeah, it's cool that you got experience from this jam—continue growing in game dev and learn from your mistakes :)Снимок экрана 2025-04-09 202007.png

mtnbonez 2025-04-09 17:35

Congrats on your first LD! I'm in that same boat, but found that working w/ a group of friends keeps that anxiety in check. Remember... it's only a game :)

Really dig the lighting effects & tense music! It's a bit hard to figure out what I'm looking for in an exit - hard to discern where I should go based on the flat tiling. I dig the sprites you used for the hero & enemies! I think some really basic SFX for attack, taking damage, etc. would go a long way.

Best of luck on your next LD!

klinsmannhengles 2025-04-10 16:26

Man, i liked a lot about the text on your journey through your first Ludum Dare, and congratulations you finished your game! I think a lot of us developers can relate with your experience through this and this is the most important thing. A game is a expression of art, about how we feel, and a game in a jam is sometimes a little achievement we needed in our life. This is just the beggining. Hope to see more games from you on the next Ludum Dares!

alvaron 2025-04-10 16:54

I found the exit!

It was great getting to play your game. What most ressonated with me was your post. Proud of you to finish! Learning is what we are here for and looks like you did. Keep it up!

velis69 2025-04-10 19:55

I am a dwarf and i diggy a hole! diggy diggy hole! Check my game too comrade-dwarf!

inferno123 2025-04-11 02:06

A great first ld game. Congrats on finishing it! I dig the weird effects with growing and shrinking and the darkness and its definitely a different take on the theme than most.

str8griz 2025-04-11 03:37

The vibe of the game was awesome music, lighting and effects. I couldn't quite tell if I was hitting the enemies so maybe a hit sound there but solid first submission! Can't wait to see what you can do on your next one!

lazyanttu 2025-04-11 18:42

Congrats of finishing your game (I'm also first timer on game jams/Ludum Dare)!

The game was a bit unclear on what I was supposed to do, but I managed to find the exit and win. Sometimes it seems like I lost health without enemies being nearby, and sometimes enemies hit me without me losing health. The ability to only attack towards right was a bit weird. The special effects were fun addition. The game could be a tad bit more responsive and inform the player on what's happening (whether you hit the enemy etc.)

jamsbond 2025-04-12 09:16

Congratulations for your first game. It's also my first participation in a Game Jam. The game is quite fun ! Maybe the fights against mobs are a bit weird : (The fact that there is no knockback when you hit or get hitted is weird, maybe because i'm just used to this mechanic). Well done ! :smile:

darwinigan 2025-04-12 15:05

Congrats on your progress from a fellow first-timer in LD! I see a lot of potential here - the concept is interesting, especially the narrative you implied in your blurb on itch. I agree with some of the others about the combat being a bit clunky (there were times I'd ram right into the mass of enemies and take little-to-no damage), but again, it's a jam, it's rarely going to be pristine and the point is getting experience. I liked the music choice, added to the slightly ominous atmosphere of being stuck in a dungeon. Give yourself a pat on the back!

jag 2025-04-12 17:57

This was great for a first Ludum Dare! I think the atmosphere was really spooky. The audio was really really good. In terms of gameplay though I feel it needs a bit more... depth (haha). It was pretty straight forward travelling and clicking to kill some enemies. Would be nice if there was a bit more strategy to which path you could take, and I was hoping to see something spooky at the end, but it kind of ended abruptly. But thank you for the game!

nbumgardner 2025-04-13 03:03

The circular shading helps reinforce the feeling of a small field of vision. Moving the character blurred in a way that hurt my eyes. I also like how the enemies can be pushed around with some resistance, making them feel more real.

verbante 2025-04-13 10:50

Game: :man: :hammer: :pig: :map:

Music: :skull: :knife: :red_circle: :ghost:

I managed to win! Good job on your first game :))

tenzz 2025-04-13 12:27

Really solid game, I had a good time

glurgludor 2025-04-13 22:56

Congratulations on your first Ludum, I must admit I was a bit confused by the character's movements and the combat (I don't know if it was necessary for the experience you were looking for) but I liked the atmosphere. The advice I'd give you is to try to simplify your systems as much as possible so that you can put all your energy into the essential things to polish them up and make the experience as understandable as possible to keep us captivated.

Are you planning to do it again in the future?

empyreans 2025-04-20 02:48

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2437522937

Played your game on my stream and here's a highlight from it :slight_smile:

I really enjoyed reading your postmortem on the development and I agree with everything. You have the right mindset to keep growing and get better in the art of game making :muscle:

Great work!

~Xp

holyblackcat 2025-04-20 11:20

I can't rate this game for some reason. Did you intentionally opt out of all categories?

ty-victorson 2025-04-21 09:48

First off congrats on your first jam, even just finishing a game to submit is a challenge so consider this a success!

I have a couple critiques for you: the UI in the web version was really large and took up a lot of space it ended up covering a good portion of the upper left of the screen for me. next up the motion blur I feel wasn't needed here and kind of felt off putting. for the next one I'm sure it just came down to time constraints, but it would have been nice to have maybe a darker brick texture for the walls instead of the white blocks to make the level feel more cohesive. Additionally, as others have mentioned the strange size changing of the player made moving around a tad bit jarring, and having the sprite flip to match the direction would have been nice to have as well.

I hope this doesn't come across as too harsh I hope you can aim even higher for the next one, keep up the good work!

nathmate 2025-04-21 10:27

The pixel art was nice, but the motion blur felt awful to look at. The attack animation of the MC and the enemies had them shrink down, I was confused where the hitboxes were.

hulya 2025-04-24 14:36

The motion blur during the breathing animation made me feel like the little Viking guy was having an anxiety atack! 😂 I loved the pixel art.

oadt 2025-04-25 19:50

Congratulations for your first entry! The fighting system needs some polishing, but you put some nice music in there and especially the player sprite looks great! (just maybe remove the motion blur from the player)

texugo 2025-04-25 23:39

Hey, congrats on your first entry in a LD! The game has potential, but I have to agree to the other comments here. The motion blur, size of the characters and UI made the world feel a bit weird, also the shrinking animations and lack of feedback. Even so, this is a great way to start and you should keep going! The next one will me immensely better and the other after that as well. Don't give up and keep jamming!

antoine-bodin 2025-04-26 08:07

Hey, congratulations for your submission. I won't point out the problemes ofthe game that already have been pointed out by other players. I loved the art work and the music that is very original. Keep it up, you're on the right path !