Binary Systems

Day Broken by UglySwedishFish 2021-10-05T17:07:59Z

I can't imagine how much work that custom engine was but it definitely paid off! It's a very distinct look that scratches some of the same itches that 'low-fi' does while being really, really hi-fi. The blurriness around objects when they move is a very distinct effect and I like it a lot. Only two graphical things that brought me out of it was the periodic vertical scanline effect (I think the graphics are distorted enough without the deliberate effect, and it was distracting) and whatever far-culling effect caused the far end of the tunnel to be cut off. Other than that, impeccable!

You did a really good job of creating the mood as well. The color palette felt very 'sheltering-from-overly-bright-sun' for me, even in the dark corners, which was impressive.

Sound design also really good. The echo is very nice and moody. I will say that the narration is *almost* too distorted for how critical it is. It usually took me a couple times to understand each clip, which translated into death more than once.

Personally, I think the monsters are a little unreadable. The ones that are in the 'go-very-fast-when-not-watched' ended up being trial and error for me, since I got killed by ones that appeared where I wasn't looking while I was trying to keep others under observation. The near-instantaneous speed and the fact that it happened when I was looking away meant that it felt like a random event rather than a kill by a monster.

You're not supposed to be able to ride the train, right?

The Alignment Problem by cireneikual222464 2021-10-05T19:25:17Z

This is so cool! I left the first door and saw the enemy duck around a corner just as I went through. I followed, expecting to get jumpscared and instantly killed, the enemy saw me... and then flew right past me, going the other direction.

That was funny for a second... until I realized that it hadn't learned how to 'get' me well enough yet. That made me realize that I was on a 'soft' timer -- I had to get through the level quick, because the enemy was only going to get smarter and smarter and scarier and scarier as it hunted me down. That created a great sense of tension, much more than any arbitrary timer or slenderman spooks could do.

Maybe I'm overestimating how much the AI learning actually has an impact behind the scenes but it sure felt real to me! Great job!

Unstable Concoction by Blueberry_Mauro 2021-10-05T22:02:19Z

Pretty fun! I had an interesting bug where everything turned into bread.

Geiger Cubes by Samuel Hollywood-Summers 2021-10-05T17:09:22Z

Pretty fun little tech demo. Is there some kind of real-time foley mixing going on when the boxes hit each other?

To Heaven and Back by Barji 2021-10-05T17:19:19Z

Also took me a second to figure out what I was *supposed* to do (look up and jump towards objects) and even longer to figure out how to actually get anywhere with the time distortion (aka use it while I look directions other than up). But once I figured it out it got super maniac and fun. Great job!

Psycho-unstable Journey by KenForest 2021-10-05T19:16:07Z

The environments were interesting enough to keep me playing to see them all. I wish the gas station scene had let you seamlessly get out of your car, walk in, talk, and walk out -- the transitions took me out of the immersion quite a bit. The car also did feel a little too slow, and the fact that the only sound it made was the windshield wipers also felt like a missed opportunity. Good experience overall!

The Probability of Meltdown Is Minimal by DarthBoseiju 2021-10-05T15:13:11Z

The removing-screws mechanic definitely needs to be explained a little clearer. I got stuck in the first room until I re-read the comments; I don't think I ever would have figured it out that the screws themselves are the interactable object since the hitboxes are so small. Maybe mousing over the access panels could give you an outline but only make jiggling noises when clicked to imply you need to find a way to free it? Or even a manual page with screw diagrams for the control box next to the screws.

Anyway that doesn't really matter too much because the mechanic is so good. You really hit it out of the park basing the game around a single task that lends itself to multiple immersive tasks so well. Great job!

A Year of Rest by Binary Systems 2021-10-05T16:09:17Z

@darthboseiju Thanks for playing! I'm glad you liked the world, this is my first time making a world in a genre like this and I had a lot of fun crafting it. Also glad you find the TV obnoxious -- that's kind of the kernel I started building the world out from, so it's good it's impactful.

The "health" is 'supposed to be' 'numbness' -- i.e. you're not getting hit by a car, you're getting shocked out of your stupor when you're honked at in the street. I wasn't sure how to or if I should tell the player this, so I ended up going with not saying anything and letting it come out via experience. I wish I'd done things differently, and if I had the time to add sound I think that would have helped.

I think I fixed the two bugs you mentioned (plus a couple free extras) in the new beta, so also thanks for the reports! The lobby definitely was not you, it was z-fighting I noticed before release and then forgot to fix.

A Year of Rest by Binary Systems 2021-10-05T16:11:50Z

@samuel-hollywood-summers That's definitely my number one disappointment with this jam, not having the time to add sound. I had some really neat brainstorms for how to do it that I just ended up scoping myself out of. It definitely makes the game feel more empty than eerie to me. Thank you so much for playing, and thanks for your kind words on the scope.

A Year of Rest by Binary Systems 2021-10-05T16:12:19Z

@mithoskuu Thank you for the report, that was the exact bug and I got it fixed in B2.

A Year of Rest by Binary Systems 2021-10-05T16:17:08Z

@cubanfrog I'm so happy the game-play loop matched the theme for you! Not to extract a bug report, but did the store not sell you any two days in a row? There shouldn't be anything that causes them to permanently stop, you might just get unlucky a couple days. There's another way to skip time that involves the doctor, but seeing as you got through September you probably didn't visit them (since if you had in the original build, you would have gotten stuck in the office).

Toil & Trouble by eveenova 2021-10-05T18:59:48Z

It took a minute to realize I should only pay attention to the colors on the tag, not the sprite, but once I realized that it was quite fun. Definitely a big difficulty range, though -- some potions end up made with a single ingredient, and sometimes it seems like making a given potion with the generated ingredients is impossible.

Do the 'elements' of each ingredient (i.e. [time], [gossip]) determine if a potion will explode? Couldn't tell.