Magnus Lens by Sestren 2014-12-09T18:13:00
I dig it! Really cool interpretation of the theme, simple but elegant mechanics. Quite fun!
Foon → Ludum Dare Explorer → Users → 6DownStudios
| Year | LD | Theme | Game | Division | Rank | Ov | Fu | In | Th | Gr | Hu | Mo | Co | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 33 | You are the Monster | 13th Labor | jam | 616 | 3.11 | 2.70 | 3.30 | 3.74 | 4.31 | 2.60 | 3.38 | 62 | |
| 2015 | 32 | An Unconventional Weapon | Fencing in Wonderland | jam | 514 | 3.22 | 3.06 | 3.33 | 3.86 | 3.81 | 3.77 | 3.42 | 64 | |
| 2014 | 31 | Entire Game on One Screen | 1 Screen | jam | 870 | 2.74 | 2.66 | 3.06 | 3.57 | 2.85 | 3.08 | 2.73 | 100 |
I dig it! Really cool interpretation of the theme, simple but elegant mechanics. Quite fun!
Phenomenal! The physics is perfect; manuevering in the fisheye feels easy but looks awesome. Great idea and very weel executed. Bravo.
Simple, but elegantly so! Quite a bit of fun, and the motion trails really help the minimalistic style. Great font too!
I liked this quite a bit! The graphics are simple but very cohesive, the design is elegant, and the music/vocal fx complement the raw essence of gladiatorial combat (and game jamming).
Really solid.
Outstanding game all around! Simple but quite fun, with excellent level design/progression, great audio and fantastic pixelart!
One of the best!
Really awesome idea! Team battles could be neat, 2v2, or even 8v8 with different area attacks (line, cone, etc). Might also be fun to set up a free-for-all arena with a bunch of randomized bots, and use the victorious bots' data as a seed for the next generation of bots. Natural selection at work!
Well done!
Quite fun, and really groovy graphic style! Go HaxeFlixel!
Now this is thinking outside the box.
Confused me at first, but solving it was quite satisfying (I like sound puzzles). Very innovative interpretation of the theme, I really dig little games like this and love low-rez; constraints breed creativity!
Amazing job on the pixel art and animation! Special moves are really neat too!
I dig this! Ludum Dare games tend not to get any story, so thanks for taking the effort to construct a narrative. The text was simple buy very effective in conveying the mood (especially the Fighter's dialogue).
Also the battle mechanics were nicely balanced and fun, I quite like the shield spell which made for manual dodging.
Just read the walkthrough to find the best ending. Awesome! Most empathy I've ever felt for little dudes with box-shaped heads :)
Seriously though, well done!
Quite fun! I love the knockback effects and the movement inertia, makes for some really intense combat.
Really clever, and quite fun! Art and sound is great too, all around a really solid entry. Kudos!
This is awesome! Randomly generated puzzles are awesome! And great job on the graphics and audio, the mood is great!
Really clever interpretation of the theme, well done!
Very cool interpretation of the theme, quite unique, sort of a stream-of-consciousness-to-level-design. Simple but elegant and fun :)
Funny and fun! Great music and art too, love those little shielded crabs, although I think the crab idle might look better if the shield bobbed up and down with the frame change.
Well done!
Brilliant mechanic, I love it! Great pixelart, groovy track and man that footfall sound effect. Perfect.
Keep it up!
Man I dig this! Very well designed, and very fun! Lowrez pixelart is really cohesive with the style/mood, it all just works. Bravo!
Amazing work! Really fun game, great audio, and truly excellent pixelart! On of my fave 5 so far!
This is awsome! The rules make for a very elegant, fun game. And the art and animation, sound! Outstanding all around!
Very clever game, and the art is brilliant! I love the way the die rolls in from the side, screen space is very well used. Quite excellent!
Simple but super fun! Arrow physics feel great and the graphics are very well done. Bow shake on the long draw is a really excellent mechanic, makes it quite satisfying to nail a few in a row!
Simple but sweet! I love the pixelart and palette, and feel like such a pro dodging flame on those last couple levels.
Nicely done!
Nifty! Simple but fun gameplay, and I really dig the graphics, especially the falling snow. Love it!
Very cool mechanics, and the I really dig the art! Great goin guys!
Real neat and lots of fun! I would've liked another attack, maybe slightly stronger (shoots 2 or 3) but only in one direction. Music's great! Well done!
Nifty and lotsa fun! The white drops are great, especially the randomizer, can turn the game around real fast!
That dog'll have a stomach-ache soon, no doubt. He's had like five pounds of butter :/
Seriously though, simple but fun and funny, with a catchy tune. Well done!
This is so much fun! A very elegant set of rules, reminiscent of Risk, Go, and Settlers of Catan. Also I love randomized maps, good onya!
Simple but quite fun with the motion physics, and great audio too! Very elegant.
Clever idea! I would've like checkpoints in a couple of the tougher levels, but the music was outstanding!
Innovative mechanic, made for a very fun one button game. I agree with your ideas for improving, maybe adding a rotation variable to the jump for the player control.
If you want to experiment with different object shapes, I recommend looking into the Nape physics engine, which can be integrated into HaxeFlixel.
Funny stuff, and fun! Graphics are nifty too, it's a shame more people don't try isometric games for LD.
Nice job!
Simple but really neat idea, and incredibly fun! Keep going with the HaxeFlixel!
Really solid interpretation and puzzle mechanics, makes for a fun game. Kudos for adding a tutorial! Good onya!
Simple but very fun gameplay. Also looks and sounds awesome, well done!
Real neat way to show XP; nice use of screen space integrating the map/HUD!
Really neat idea, and well executed! A couple levels are quite tough, but the physics feels right so it's fun to try and fail. Well done!
Quite nice, loved the seasonal flavor text!
Brilliant art and music. Looked absolutely incredible with the dragon animating dynamically.
Bravo!
Real neat physics game! Quite a bit of fun trying to predict how the explosions will regroup stuff, and the dynamic map is awesome! Excellent work!
That snowman sprite is hilarious :)
Seriously though, quite fun with all the different demons once you're all powered up. Well done!
Nifty little game, nice and polished, simple but effective mechanics!
Nothing quite as scary as band of upside-down grim reapers! I think a thicker line width and some fills could have helped the art a bit, but despite the simple mechanic the game's pretty fun and well balanced.
Excellent! I used to have one of those handhelds, and you really nailed it on the art and sound. Also hilarious premise. One of my faves so far!
Fun little survival game, with good movement and sound. Powerups were a nice mechanic, but I would've like to see a different kind of enemy. Well done!
Awesome! One of the best theme interpretations I've seen. I tried to do something similar, but wasn't nearly as clever :)
Kudos, sir!
Brilliant! Simple but very well designed mechanic/map. Platform and ladder placement made for a very active playing field, and I love the low-rez art and sounds.
Keep it up guys!
Really innovative take on the theme one of my favorites, and much fun to boot! Graphics and audio are simple but effective, really solid entry!
Simple but great! Also agree with the other folks about the transitions being awesome!
Nifty game! And congrats on your 1st submission! This was the first time I finished in time to submit as well, and I too didn't have time for music. Hopefully next time around we both will!
Really innovative concept! I've tried to puzzle over how a murder mystery might be procedurally generated but never had any great ideas. Good onya for doing something unique!
I really dig the audio; that's one groovy beat, like river styx meets techno!
Pretty hilarious! I agree with plauk, animation is awesome. Movement's a bit clunky, and I especially would've liked to be able to aim my whip upwards when Rudolf turned into a (SPOLIER!) giant flying demon head thing.
Anyways good stuff.
Awesome graphics, music/sfx, and crazy fun! Those sheeps pixels are perfect, and the baa noise-I became quite protective of my flock. It was Zombies Ate My Neighbors all over again.
Tough but fun! Might be neat to play with multiple balls/sticks.
Clever interpretation, and really fun to boot, with good audio (especially the spawner sound effect).
Hard mode's a blast!
Everything works so well together! Chiptune track, low-rez pixelart (so good!), it all complements the CRTesque mood.
Way to make something brilliant with a tough theme!
Quite interesting, nice mix of units. Even if there's not a lot of interaction, I can definitely appreciate a complex simulation like this. Cool stuff!
Simple but fun. Nice platforming obstacles, but I would've liked to see a bit more of the screen space used.
Outstanding! Great art and so much fun! Would be fantastic with networked multiplayer. Good goin!
What a brilliant idea! So much fun, and really well executed. Excellent art, music, the whole shebang's quite dandy! Only criticism I have is that I wish the camera were a little smoother; not sure if that's possible considering the multiple objects + distance you're tracking, perhaps just zooming out slightly more would help?
Anyway, fanastic work. Unique!
Really well put togther, and quite fun! I love the art too, your games have that distinctive style, and they always look nice and polished. Good onya!
Cool take on the theme! I love simulations like this where different strategies will result in emergent patterns; feels like bacteria colonies fighting over a petri dish :)
Well done!
Quite clever game design! Also really great pixelart and polish, everything really fits together well!
I really like the art style, especially the ghost sprites! Qutie nifty!
Neat little game! Controls are tough but fun once you get the hang of it! Well done!
The music and physics make this game pretty hilarious, and quite fun! Can't believe you got 9.0!
Ha! Really nicely done, and quite funny. Great art, music, interpretation, three cheers for Haxeflixel!
An elegant style befitting elegant design. Well done!
So much fun! I love sandbox stuff like this; dynamic environments can make for some satisfying and/or hilarious results.
Here's one of my creations, in two stages of life: imgur.com/bejEFuc
@Watercress: I had more I'd hoped to include; will be doing so in a post-jam version :)
@Krimble: thanks!
@Caspila: "Flies" were supposed to be zombies, but during the time crunch they morphed into floaty-buggy things. Their purpose was to make the game harder as you progress, but in the post-jam version they'll be a bit easier to deal with.
@stephenhaney: Thanks very much! I opted out of sound because the music track is a public domain jazz song from the 1920s - Gathacol Radio's "2 to 2"
https://archive.org/download/Free_20s_Jazz_Collection/2to2_64kb.mp3
I do hope to include some of my own music the next time LD comes around! :D
@p1x3ruckus : I agree, I'm addressing these things in the post-jam version. 'Preciate the comment!
@lekochen : Thank you! Nape physics has a lot of potential. I hear ya on the boomerang, one of the first bugs on the post-jam to-do list is prioritizing pickups.
Much appreciated!
@Arkrothe: I intended for it to be experimental, if you pick up the boomerang and throw it at the letters, you knock them down and score points. You also knock down enemies, which clog the screen, slow you down and subtract from your score while attached.
See if you can knock down all the letters, it gets pretty tough at the end!
@adrianulima: Thank you sir!
@SoulGame: It's sort of a sandbox game, but there is a victory condition (knock down all the letters with the boomerang). The more you knock down, the more enemies are added to the swarm, so the last few letters are pretty tough.
Thanks for playing!
@d3garcia: Thanks! And yeah, stuck boomerang is a bummer, that's one of the first bugs I'll address in the post-jam version. I'll probably make it throw itself or burst the stuck object if it remains motionless for too long.
@jpmit: Thank you!
@SoulGame: My pleasure! Thanks for giving it another try, means a lot when there are 2000+ other games to play!
@SinistraGames: Glad you enjoyed it! I do plan on adding more!
@Arkrothe: Thanks for playing again! Lost boomerangs are definitely at the top of the fix-list :)
@sorlok: Thanks very much, really appreciate the feedback!
@Downtown: Yeah, I'm a fan of letting the player experiment and figure the game out for themselves if they like, though it's probably not a great strategy for a gamejam with 2000+ submissions :)
I feel it's more of a physics sandbox than an objective-based game, though there is a "victory" condition (knock down all the letters), which is incredibly difficult with boomerang retrieval as you said.
In the post-jam version, I plan to add a way to retrieve the boomerang, or perhaps just add a new one.
Thanks very much for the feedback, quite helpful!
@pjimmy: Thanks guy!
@markusfisch: See above post, and thank you!
@efux: Thanks!
@Ithildin: Yeah, that actually happened to me a few times, I thought it was my own computer which sometimes has internet problems. Thanks for the extra effort and feedback!
@ceosol: Some great suggestions, thank you! I especially like the trigger buttons, that could add a whole new layer. Your feedback is greatly appreciated!
@mklee: Thanks a lot! I love the idea of using other objects to proceed, like ceosol suggested weighing down buttons is an option, and the "O" pieces will be able to attach to the main platform to turn it into a vehicle. I certainly will develop it further, especially since I'm getting all this great feedback!
@MrSun: Thank you! I'd hope to expand upon it with monologue from the character as he discovers and reacts to the constraints/rules of the game. Didn't make it into the submission, but it will be in the post-jam.
@Gamepopper: Yeah, I was browsing public domain jazz songs and came across "2 to 2". Listened to it once and realized that's perfect! Thank you!
@maxmetallica: thanks!
Nice to see this kind of humor in LD, walking animation's pretty funny too ;)
This is an incredibly inventive interpretation of the theme! Games like this are why I love game jams :)
From what I gather (SPOILER!), Fido will always point you in a direction, but the wrong one (or perhaps a random one?), while Fiona points you in the right way when she decides to help, but hardly ever "updates" her direction, which makes her wrong most of the time. Finally,
I think Fidel's distance-to-goal check doesn't take walls into account, but even if it does I'm okay with it; I prefer when rules aren't outright explained, but rather hinted at (exactly as you did), leaving the player to experiment and layering the puzzles.
One of my favorite entries, very elegant gameplay and humorous to boot. Quite Looking forward to your next LD!
This was quite fun, especially on the last level! Good use of screen space too, difficulty seemed just right :)
Simple but awesome! Level progression kept it from getting stale, and looks great with the pixelart and parallax. Go HaxeFlixel!
Interesting set of rules; it'd be neat if you could control the pixels' direction a little more directly, like giving each added pixel a velocity and direction. Maybe moving pixels could leave a trail of less dense pixels behind them?
Anyway good job!
Awesome and hilarious! I really love the animation too, really great all around!
Congrats on your first LD! Great concept, and I love the programmer art with the cub's bobbin head, good stuff!
Really awesome! Great layered gameplay, cohesive art style and fantastic music!
Random names are a nice touch, and I like the background. Maybe next time experiment with new enemies with different motion patterns, like a sine wave. Hope to see you next time!
Quite funny! Props to your cat for excellent voice acting; fooled our Piwacket who had to come over and make sure her fellow feline wasn't actually being flung across the room.
Good onya!
Pretty cool! Swinging around spiderman-style can be quite fun, nice use of screen space and level design too. Kudos!
Nifty game, quite fun! I really like the minimalist aesthetics with the backgrounds and box-particles, really complements the elegant mechanic. Great work!
This is extremely cool! Simple but elegant mechanic makes for some really fun puzzles, and the graphic effects are awesome (I especially like the level transitions). Well done!
Woof! Good and tough, but really fun! Also great job on the art, I love procedural graphics and you really nailed it! Well done!
Simple but fun! I could've done with a little less screenshake, but the minimalist style works.
Nifty game! Physics are pretty fun, cool to be able to use just a little bet of jet fuel and then let the planets slingshot you around.
Nifty game! I like the sprites, especially the lute and the owl, and instruments seemed well balanced, though it would've been neat if they had different movement mechanics as well.
Cheers!
Very outside the box! Breaking the 4th wall figuratively and literally. Keep it up!
Real neat! The puzzle elements along with the map design made for some serious herd-planning. Didn't go so well the first time I tried (some serious wolf-feasting), but once I got the hang of it was quite fun!
Looks simple, but actually quite fun optimizing placement and movement with the high inertia. Go team haxeflixel!
Creature designs are cool! Might be neat if they had slightly different stats like in Toejam & Earl (speed/rate of fire maybe? Wrapping the map horizontally might let you add some AI entities (that both players have to dodge) without getting the level too cluttered.
Very fun! I enjoyed both modes, the high inertia makes for a lot of close calls. Good onya!
Crazy track! Reminded me of the racecar levels in the Toy Story genesis game.
Tough controls at first, but quite satisfying once you get the hang of it!
That was quite clever, and the tough levels were really fun. I dig the Schroedinger jokes too, great job on the humor!
Fun interpretation, and I love the art! The static effect is very neat, especially the pixel filter. Also the penguin game was sweet! Well done!
Andale! Speedy Gonzombies! Quite fun though, and nice job on the particles.
Silly but great! Dynamic levels can be very rewarding, and the physics makes it quite a bit of fun! Adding some other guys to the level could be good, maybe some random hoppers or flying bats or somesuch. Anyways, nice job, really liked it!
Neat rhythm game! Graphics, music, and sound are all great too, really comes together. Didn't expect that (spoiler!) giant demon head boss! Excellent work guys!
Crazy hard but very fun! Projectile patterns make for some really close calls, which is great. Really nice ambient track and the graphical effect in the background is awesome!
Nifty little game, neat set of rules can make for some complex strategies. Cool sprites too, nice work!
Very surreal! Love the art, really quite enjoyable. Well done!
This is awesome! Great take on the theme, well-laid out level and nifty pixelart!
I've been learning to use the nape physics engine, and this really makes me want to try to make a pixeled pinball game.
Good Onya!
Fun stuff! The light-fading and spawn-rate make for a nice difficulty ramp. If you're planning on any post-jam changes, maybe add an enemy that moves in a different pattern (sine wave, or with a little randomness).
Adorable! The seasons are a very cool mechanic (I love dynamic maps/levels), and the a capella audio is fantastically hilarious. Hope you guys can participate next time too, I quite look forward to more games like this :)
Really innovative idea, quite outside-the-box! Keep on breaking the mold!
Excellent work guys! Design, art, sound, FUN! Keep on jamming!
Brilliant! The level design was genius, every mechanic was introduced at the right time for a smooth difficulty ramp. And I'm with Somfun, music is absolutely top notch.
This is how you handle a theme like LD31s.
Looking forward to more from you!
Cool idea, and quite fun. Also great for training hand-eye coordination! Solid art and music too, very consistent. Job well done!
Clever interpretation, and a real neat little simulation, elegant and quite user-friendly with that TAB key. I quite like it!
Awesome! Great mechanic, movement feels really satisfying with the snow and sound effects, and the art style is distinct and cohesive. I quite enjoyed this one!
Really neat concept! The art is simple but I like the skifree vibe sprites (although I'd offset the wall image so you don't have a 1px brick.
I'd certainly like to see Option B made into a game. C's my second choice; would likely be simpler, and could be quite funny.
Nice take on the theme, and neat gameplay.
My compliments to the voice actor, top notch!
Very cool mechanic, and a good difficulty curve with the platforming obstacles. Bird-riding's quite cool, and the reuse/overlap of map areas when these abilities are introduced is great level design. Well done!
Innovative twist on a typing game, I really dig it! The spell effects are a great mechanic (sandstorm is brutal!), and appropriate word choice is a nice touch. The sprites are simple but super, my faves are Beholder and Chicken.
Well done!
I'm with these guys on using a PDF instead of a game engine, quite clever. I like the art style too, sort of like Harold and The Purple Crayon but more angular and macabre. :)
Love the background effect, it really works with the semi-retro vibe of the voxel enemies and the music. Groovy.
Woof! Tough game, especially since the enemies can shoot through walls, but it made it more fun. Good thing you included the sound cues, I had a similar problem with hit feedback in my game. I really like the pen logo, great style that!
Truly excellent! I love the groovy soundtrack, works great with the pixels (which aren't half as cute as the SFX, kid's got a talent for voice acting).
Too many. Too. Many. TOO MANY!!!
Slightly shudder-inducing, but fun and a humorous take on the theme. Despite the vehemence with which I wielded my couch and coffee table, I was no match for the roach's Tribblesque rate of reproduction. Good stuff :)
Excellent stuff! I love surreal stories like this, very Twilight Zone, read lots of it in Rod Serling's voice. Great use of font and formatting too; simple colors but everything worked, and the amount/shape of the text made it very user-friendly. Also the intro visuals were very cool, it's great seeing outside-the-box animation done in the Twine engine.
Neat mechanic, and some great bg pixelart. The retro style coupled with the blip sfx gave me a Captain Comic vibe; could be extra nostalgic with a nice chiptune soundtrack!
Simple but fun. I quite like the pixelart cityscape in the background, and the starting screen is a nice style as well.
This game excelled on so many fronts-pacing, level design atmosphere...but I particularly applaud the outstanding music/sound design, and low-rez pixelart. Camera events were also spot on; the nute tank zoomout-letting the player see a letter or two for a couple moments before showing the big picture. A well-crafter narrative indeed. 5/5.
Great take on the theme, taking the player out of the role of warrior and into the role of warfare oversight. And quite fun to boot; good pacing with the weapons upgrades and soldier variation keeps manuevering/disarming interesting.
Very chaotic but quite fun.
The nuances of the stage dynamics along with the delicate control give it some nice replay value. Abundance of debris makes it hectic, but definitely in a good way; slow homing turrets clog up the vortices, allowing one to escape after being sucked in.
A limited slow-motion ability (spidey-sense fuel?) might be good for players with less patience/midichlorians.
Solid game! Nifty pixelart and sound, fun physics and stealth gameplay. Some very difficult jumps, but makes it all the more satisfying when you finally make it. As long as I don't have to wait a long time after each attempt, I don't mind tough platforming. Good onya.
Love the sprites and the cloud effects! Some great platforming at the end there too, tricky stuff, that's how we like it.
Really great work! I love innovative platforming ideas like this, made for some really unique gameplay. Everything is very well presented too, pacing's good, the pixelart style suits the mood quite well, and the music is spot on. Kudos!
Powerful stuff, quite a way with words. I especially like the "master in the head can be cruel to the body" bit. I'm glad you chose an outside the box interpretation. I remember reading choose-your-own-adventure books and wishing they had better writing and/or more profound themes.
Nifty game! Really hectic but fun at high scores. Nice art too, I especially love the Paper sprite and the ending splash screen. Kudos!
Outstanding entry! Well designed and quite a bit of fun.
I got stuck after getting the reflect power; the shooter enemy fell onto the button but the door only opened briefly.
Despite not being able to see the whole game I was very impressed by it all, especially the sprites and the overlay effects, made everything really cohesive.
Great stuff! The platform-puzzle mechanic is real nifty. Sprout's animations are great too, simple but very effective, good use of gesture. Well done guys, I dig it!
@Muffin: Thank you! 'Preciate your comment about the win condition; at first I wanted the player to figure it out for themselves from the animations going on in the background, but it's hard to watch several things at once. Here's how it works:
-Hitting your opponent with your flamingo's beak scores you a point. The page (white rabbit) raises a flag indicating which payer scores first.
-The painter on the left keeps track of points by painting roses (black for you, red for the heart). First to 3 points wins the match.
-The King of Hearts keeps track of the match winner, raising a sign for heart or spade. This triggers the painter on the right. Best of 3 matches wins the game.
-If you beat the Queen's champion, she is angered by his failure and shouts "off with his head!" (She says the same thing when you lose, referring to you instead)
I plan on adding a couple more features in a post-jam, including hedgehogs and a real victory/loss ending.
@Traumendes_Madchen: Thanks!
@Muffin: Thanks for giving it another look!
@RafaCP: Thank you! I agree about the music, I had a few different ideas but none of them panned out.
@drewdonley: Thanks!
@TeslaCoil: Appreciate the detailed criticism, and I agree with most everything you've said, which is I've added sound cues to the post-jam. Still working on debugging the wonky physics, and I think if I can solve the beak-stick bug, the spectators do make the game more interesting, adding a bit of randomness and an accordion-like playing field perimeter.
Cards definitely go flying if you use the mouse, I should've mentioned that this breaks the physics. It was in the game for debug purposes, but I kept it for disentangling purposes. :)
@Hambone: Why thank you!
@uvwar: Yeah, I wish I'd had time to put in a victory/defeat cutscene. Half of my wants to fix a few of those flamingo-physics glitches, the other half wants them to stay in. And thanks about the shadowing effect, I quite like how that worked out too.
@Garris: Thanks man!
@rudra: Thanks!
@Kate: 'Preciate it! Re your screenshot, certainly. In addition to the match win, you've also managed to get your foe in a headlock *and* disarm him! (The former is intentional, the latter a bug) :)
@GAFBlizzard: Thanks a lot for the detailed comment! You're right, the thrust and parry animations are tough to make out, because they look different depending on what position your flamingo is in when you initiate them, and how far it can travel before it hits something. If I wanted to make this into a competitive game, I would certainly take your suggestion on swapping physics for animations, but since the awkwardness of the weapon and inability to control one's flamingo is the main part of the game, I'd have to leave that in. :)
@jmborden: Why thank you!
@bakpakin: Thanks and yes definitely@
@efonsecab: 'Preciate it!
@nameoftheuser: I did consider this, perhaps in the post-jam version I'll put in an option for Number of Clubs and Diamonds. Thanks!
@Langouste: Thank you!
@uninthar: Why thanks! I'm glad most people seem to think the humor outweighs the frustration; the latter is a key ingredient in this game, but a pinch would've been better than a dollop. Next LD I might prioritize tweaking the physics over background animations.
@drludos: Thanks very much for the detailed feedback! I'm with you 100% on the end-game pause etc, I'll certainly make that more of a priority next time!
Real funny take on the theme, a simple but elegant mechanic can make for some quite fun platforming if you know your level design (you do!) Dig the track too, well done!
Great mechanic, really dig this interpretation. The level design is excellent too, script bits like "must not allow these shadows to lead me astray" especially. Tying gameplay and story together with a neat little puzzle, this is how tutorials should be done.
I also love the art; low-rez is hard, it's not just less is more. Tidbits like the star twinkling, the teleport animation and the character's head turning make a big difference when it all adds up visually.
Really great pixelart (background is great, very bleak) and design, with the terrain destruction and whatnot. Fun to boot, with excellent audio as well. Excellent all around, keep it up!
I quite like the low-poly bugs, it's a nice style, and good job on the sounds too!
Nice! The necessity to compensate for vertical motion when using Peace and Freedom makes it tricky but fun.
Good onya for honoring the memory of the victims.
Simple but fun with the simultaneous characters. Neat how the two mechanics connect, allowed for some unfamiliar coordination strategy. I like that. :)
Nifty little platformer. I like how you introduced new elements with each level good way to keep it fresh. I agree with itch about the jumping, but I actually like the floatiness. It works in levels with big open spaces like these, makes dodging a bit more challenging. Grabbing the second key on level 3 was a tricky, but tough jumps are what make the platforming satisfying.
Love the mechanic, fun both in combat and puzzles. At first I thought I'd gotten the ball stuck on that bouncy bit, but I released the floor and stairs were placed just such that even though I couldn't return the ball, I could roll towards the button a bit at jump's peak.
Great sound and music, and really quite fun once you get the hang of the physics! Also love the title screen. Excellent work guys!
I like the mechanic. Simple but fun!
Hilariously fun. Hard to play but in one of the best ways.
Soundtrack is quite suited to the chaos which ensues.
You say excuse your graphics, but sometimes with ragdoll sprites, less is more (Phoebe demonstrates this quite nicely, well rigged!)
I'm a big fan of procedural generation, and the game's quite fun to boot. Great take on the theme and fantastic pixelart too. Two metacarpals way up!
This rocks. Fun game, funny, and great pixelart, especially the character. So good.
Also thanks for putting the combos on the HUD.
Very original idea! The engine feels really smooth and satisfying, art works too; style juxtaposition of the boids with the background art works too, really brings out the character of the people (and animals) without distracting from the engine. Quite glad you submitted this; wouldn't take much more to make it a complete game, and I really dig outside-the-box entries like this one.
Great entry! Elegant design that's simple to learn but hectic and quite fun as the difficulty ramps up.
Graphics are excellent! Seemingly sloppy and chaotic sprites are designed quite well in terms of overlapping foresight. Once the screen fills up you can really appreciate the variations of trees, distinct shapes but with strict compositional rules--evenly spaced "joints" to tie together the bone-branches, skull-fruit at every altitude--all really comes together when they fall down.
Seemingly minor graphical decisions like color choices and the subtle hilliness of the ground are demonstrated nicely with grouped units and number pop-ups; even on a crowded screen with only a dozen colors, everything is easy to parse.
What impresses me the most is the animation. Still images don't do justice to the gesture and fluidity achieved with just a few finely-crafted frames.
Bravo.
This is brilliant! Movement's a bit tricky at first but very fun once you get the hang of it! Lorez pixelart is great, art and sound/music complement each other nicely; mood matches the delightfully absurd destruction and mayhem.
And the gameover screen art, man. Outstanding work!
Nice take on the theme! Movement's a bit tricky at first, which makes it even more satisfying once you get the hang of the inertia and can pull off some great dodges. Fun stuff!
Great take on the theme, very innovative! Fun game, well designed, pixelart/animation is top-notch!
Outstanding work guys!
Great stuff! I almost made a Kraken game myself; went with the Hydra instead, but I'm quite glad somebody else paid homage to the legendary mollusk.
Hard to believe such a simple mechanic could be so much fun, but this ship-smasher is a real blast once things get really hectic. Pulling off a quick combo of well-timed tentacle strikes amidst barrage of cannonballs and bombs can be very satisfying. The cracking of masts and crunching of timbers, flotsam scattered throughout tumultuous waves, the occasional Wilhelm scream...all really comes together.
Kudos!
Mood is outstanding! Art's excellent; style matches the music and the composition is well thought out, very balanced and everything on the screen from the font choice to the multi-layer text-boxes complements the aesthetic. Kudos!
Outstanding art! The style is quite well defined, everything from the low-color-count palette to the sans serif font helps to unify the elements. And that Kraken sprite, man. Top notch.
I really dig this. Brilliant and hilarious take on the theme, and I have no problem with the repetitive nature of the gameplay. It complements the premise perfectly and gives you time to explore the environment and find the easter eggs, which I quite appreciate; art can be a very effective reward, especially in a game with such great character design, each frame of animation expressive. Soundtrack really grew on me too, but when I found the boombox, oh man. That'll keep those eyelids open. Great stuff.
Great take on the theme, very funny! Art style and music really matches the hilarity of the premise, kudos!
@Manou: Thanks!
@Hjalte: Since Hercules is a demigod, you can't actually kill him. His stamina regenerates very quickly, you need far more than the 3 starting heads to hit him fast enough to empty the bar, which doesn't do anything since the Herc-knockout feature didn't make it in. Thus, the objective is just to rack up as many heads as you can before nightfall.
I've updated the game page with details so it's (hopefully) less confusing. Thanks for your comments!
@Shaw: Glad you liked it, and thanks very much for the detailed feedback! I'll probably do a post-jam after I've finished with a couple other projects I'm working on.
@dancingmad: The same thing has happened to me a few times, not sure what it is, but refreshing the page worked for me.
If refreshing doesn't work for you, I'd love to know what OS/browser you're using. If I can't find a fix I can send you the .swf file or host it elsewhere. Thanks for letting me know!
@Lancelot: Much appreciated!
@monetai: Thank you!
@Fantasieleben: Thanks! I'd forgotten all about other keyboard layouts, very valuable feedback!
@Arnage: Why thank you! I'm glad players were able to see where I was going with this even though it's more of a sketch than a game!
@lemer: Thanks!
@Skyfish: 'Preciate it!
@fraans: Thank you! See the 3rd comment regarding Herc's health.
@FistBumpGames: Thank you very much!
@jrhee: Thank you!
@crucknuk: 'Preciate it!
@Yrr: Thanks!
@HThomson: Thanks very much! All this positive feedback has made up my mind to do the post-jam with those features!
@Daukan: Since Iolaus is a mortal, he's prepped for the battle by covering himself in armour too thick for the Hydra's venomous fangs to pierce, so the Hydra focuses on attacking Herc. In the post-jam, I might make it so you can shove Iolaus backwards, maybe even knock him down, but he'll likely remain unkillable. On the other hand, maybe I'll give him a weak spot (neck?) that lets you connect with a bite...something to think about, thanks for the comment!
Outstanding entry! Visually superb, demonstration of pixel art in one of its purest forms-shape and gesture the utmost importance when animating with so few colors, shows how a very skilled artist can fool the eye and achieve fluidity with just a few finely crafted frames.
Visual style is fantastic, the vivid colors and fading gradients of the skies, scattering of stars and smooth camera panning past the silhouettes of landscape and architecture, all combines to stunning effect and works really well with the theme of the narrative. The text interface could certainly be improved as others have suggested, but the rest other visual aspects are so exceptional that it still gets a 5 in Graphics from me.
Even though the physics of the engine is superficial, the bouncing is a nice touch, showing off the effects of the trailing god-particles (which quite appropriately defy gravity).
If you decide to do a post-jam with dodgeables/catchables, I think you could definitely stick with bouncing movement (always on, sort of an "even-gods-must-follows-rules" thing), just a tad of acceleration from the up/down arrow keys for more motion control. Stick in some pixel-sized people subject to divine wrath (smite via squashing?), a bit of alternate dialogue if you can avoid squashing them (something about resisting the urge to punish one's subjects), maybe power-ups to increase/decrease size and an alternate ending for the skilled pacifist?
Bottom line: Despite your disclaimer, it seems to me this is just a few tweaks from being a complete game! Well done!
Neat take on the theme, and a simple yet satisfying mechanic! I really like the background, style as well as composition; brush shapes, shades, and edges give it a paint/pastel vibe, and the sprites/motion (bridge-hopping especially) work well with the whimsical premise.
Very fun mechanic! Graphical elements like the particles and the tree and grass swaying bring a real cohesion to the goofy aesthetic, and smooth motion of your monster's dilating pupil juxtaposes nicely with amorphous eyes of those invading isosceles wannabes. Keep it up, I dig it.
Very funny take on the theme! The art style is unique, and really fits the fanciful, kid's-story mood. The monster-to-dad/fantasy-to-reality parallels are especially creative! Glad to hear a post-jam's in the works, I love imaginative entries like this one!
Groovy game! Comedic twist on a classic monster, well executed to boot!
Art and music are great, styles of both really fit the moods of the two game states; whimsical absurdity of the sea-spanning romance-hunt in overland mode matched with a retro pixel style, a kawaii kraken and a catchy, carefree tune...immediately replaced by the dramatic drum-driven battle song, detailed sprites and a more menacing (yet still lovable) sea monster, quite appropriate for the intensity of combat mode's cannonball-dodging (those submarines and their sine-wave torpedo trajectories can be mighty tricky).
Keep it up!
The graphics are outstanding, especially the tentacle animation, that's gotta take some serious math! Whatever trigonometric voodoo Wu did paid off, the effect looks excellent!
I really enjoy this one!
An apt homage to a book and board game both well known for their elegant design.
The art and mood are truly outstanding, each character whimsically unique in his or her several expressions, a perfect match for the pantomime-heavy silent-film style you guys have emulated
The visual effects from the lighting and overlays compliment the aesthetic even more, as do the camera control and text transitions; in fact, this is one of the most stylistically cohesive ludum dare games I've ever played! Props!
Really dig the tentacle animation, very creepy, and when teamed up with the visual filters, haunting tune and sounds..the sniffing of nostrils, beating of heart, and bleating of fleeing sheep...well it all makes for a mood of eerie surreal absurdity. Keep it the heck up.
Classic yet innovative take on the theme!
Low-rez art is great; I especially like the enemy poofs and the skull-bouncer's 2-frames, and minor touches like the dithering variations on the moon and background make a big difference for the overall visual mood.
Level design is great too. Platforming obstacles and enemy frequencies increase in difficulty at a good pace, and area links/platform recycling are effectively managed with the switch/blocks.
Hope to see you again next time!
Neat concept and nifty pixelart, some real nice sprites!
Great entry! Love the art and sound style, juxtaposes hilariously with the immersive ambient music and makes for a unique mood.
Ship-catching is tricky at first, but quite fun once you get the hang of the physics-just the way I like it. Munching that triple-threat ship was especially satisfying; to dodge all those harpoons and stick the landing is no easy feat!
Even the most efficient monster could never cause as much damage as those that would destroy it by any means necessary.
Solid metaphor for a solid entry. Gameplay is fun, and the elegance of theme and design is mirrored by the art style which, despite the limited palette and contrasting colors, is quite cohesive. Subtle graphical effects like the sprite variation, shadows, particles, and the bobbing of the monster pieces really bring the whole thing together.
Forgoing any narrative details and letting the art tell the story was the right choice. The premise poses the questions: Where are we? Who are the people? The crosshairs arrive on the scene before the people do...Why are they hunting the creature before it has any confirmed meals? Who's the *real* monster?
I don't know whether the monster's hue was a thematic or artistic choice, but it's exactly what I would have picked, and here's why: The green shades of the background imply grass, and the semi-chaotic nature of the pattern suggest a wilderness setting, as opposed to a metropolitan one (say, a park).
The green monster seems more at home in this environment than the blue people...Who's doing the intruding? Indeed, the starkest contrast of all is in the bright reds and whites of the unrelenting barrage, shaking the earth, scorching the ground, and spilling the blood of man (and woman). The haunting drone punctuates the explosions and emphasizes the screams of the dying.
To sum up, you hit the nail on the head for Theme and Mood. Kudos.