p-man

The Quacking Hour by StaNov 2024-04-16T20:54:00Z

Super duper fun mechanic. So clever and tied-in to the summoning theme. Well done!

Observation about design (and Pro cheat): if you are in an place where you cannot "quack" (for social reasons!) -- then you can blow into the microphone to produce audio levels. But I quickly got lightheaded with this technique hahaha... but it brings up an interesting design question: the player *should* quack to get into "the spirit" of the game, but they can cheat as I did. I wonder, just for the sake of imagining a fun design challenge and because as a sound designer, I would want to know if this is possible -- can you have some sort of sound table or similar bank of options which require the player perform a specific sound (within an allowable margin of error -- like you wouldn't have to match the exact one specific amplitude/frequency spectrum over time for it to be a match, but close enough) -- or at least some way to make the audio input more specific than just reading "amplitude in general"?

In terms of story, I dig it! And the "frogger" type format is great. If I were to develop this further, I would eventually get picky about the semiotics of the obstacles -- like, meteors? It's kind of funny, but takes me a little bit too far out of what I think the realm of the story is... what else would be more plausible as an obstacle falling from the sky, requiring the player to read the shadows to avoid it?

Good music! Love the duckling splat sounds -- it's one of those game sounds that is both satisfying to hear and sad to hear at the same time!

Slimeleon by icxon 2024-04-18T17:02:59Z

Fun concept for the mechanic! I think what I had fun actually doing was trying to figure out how to utilize the results of the casted spells -- I mean like, the self teaching through trial-and-error is the fun part for me... "huh, what's this black flower thing.. oh if I put it near the enemy it does this.. oh if I cast a circle against it, I can shoot the flower forward... etc" I'm kind of saying that I'm glad you don't explain in any detail what each thing does, because it would take away the discovery and be less fun... but also I am saying that they are well conceived because their functions are not so opaque as to becoming completely frustrating.

I like the repetitive aspects of the sound -- splay splat splat -- but also maybe the spells could have unique sounds

I think if you were to continue developing this, there's lots of room for more intricate sound design -- possibly even making sound inform the mechanics.

resown by Lushboy Studios 2024-04-17T20:39:43Z

I imagine good piano players may have an advantage in playing this! (left-right hand cooridnation). I am very glad there's no pressure to hurry in this game (eg, clock, or enemies chasing) as that would make it impossible for me... I took my sweet time thinking about every coordinated move. Though I could imagine, maybe a later level, once a player has built up muscle memory, there could be a very gentle external pressure building up, like water level rising slowly.. or maybe an area that requires some slow-and-easy coordinated rhythm between the two hands (i mean to an absolute metronome type of thing)... think of it like maybe a puzzle element that has a slowly turning wheel, or swinging pendulum, or something else happening on a consistent tempo..

Other thoughts:

It was tricky when the two characters switched sides (so that Left-controlled player was on the right side of screen and right-controlled player was on the left). My brain is not built for that!! hahah... but it makes me wonder... What about a puzzle component with a reflection, where you have to coordinate with a mirror, or puddle...

One character can climb on the other, and can jump on the other, but then the character who is being climbed on or jumped on cannot carry the first character. Was that just the result of the physics template you were working with, or a deliberate design decision (maybe you thought it would be cheating to have characters carrying each other?)

Great work! My one small criticism (but you should not care, because this is a great game!) is that it doesn't really seem to reflect the summoning theme ... or at least I'm not making the connection.

The footstep sounds are very satisfying. I'm not 100% positive, but they sound very slightly different in pitch which is a great detail -- or am I imagining that?

Photographic Memory by Adam Konig 2024-04-16T21:10:24Z

I enjoyed the structure of the gameplay -- scrolling to guess which image goes with which story. And the music changes are a great touch to help put you in the mood to find the right photo (like the surfer garage rock track for skateboarding).

I think this game format has lots of potential -- currently it's fairly straightforward, but I can imagine the story and matching mechanic could become increasingly complex!

The Duke's Cartographer. by Wolfier 2024-04-17T21:04:46Z

i love maps

i like the game play and general mechanic

i love the art, the player sprite is so cute

i appreciate the player speed

not sure what the icons are for

not sure how to do this: "If you’ve found at least 1 additional city to your starting one, before the start of a new week you can draw a path between them by dragging the red dots to score." -- what red dots?

Piggy Harvest by sami822 2024-04-16T19:39:27Z

Overall, I enjoyed the format and story! Regarding the theme, the game seams to have a very thin connection to "summoning" -- beyond just "calling" the term summoning should have some feeling of "secrecy" and "duty" I think.

-- level 1: I read that 1,2,3 keys were supposed to do something but not sure what.

Took me a long time to realize I could click on the arrow to change direction! Might just be me! But maybe.. why not add a sparkle effect or something to draw attention to the arrow as a clickable feature?

-- upgrade screen: The pig names are fun! The upgrade rank sound effect is funny!

I don't love the font -- I find it difficult to read... the M's look like H's... Hake Fast? oh.. Make Fast! And the N's kind of look like W's at quick glance.

-- level 2: what's the second pentagram for? Why is there a pig hiding in the bushes?

+++ level 3: oh! the 1,2,3 keys change the selected pentagram spawn zone thing!

Baby's First Demon! by JonasO 2024-04-16T21:21:11Z

This atmosphere is great, and the general format is fun. The premise is hilarious!

But I can't figure out how to "banish" .. Like, I've picked a recipe, so then I shake the spices in order and then I play the notes indicated in the recipe... and then I shake the rattle... nothing happens... I try the same and try shaking the rattle overtop of the playmat... that didn't work... so I never succeed.. I think I'm not interpreting the instructions properly...

My question: Do I pick just ANY recipe? Or am i being told which recipe to use (which means I don't know where that info is being communicated to me)

Baby's First Demon! by JonasO 2024-04-16T21:23:03Z

And yes the music speeding up and demon cut scene was terrifying

Exorcist Pianist by Aviv Levy 2024-04-18T05:07:18Z

That was fun. Simple and fun. Reminds me of games i used to play on the Apple II as a kid. One suggestion for a small easy improvement would be some background ambience... like even the rain

Peso by Tuna545 2024-04-16T20:03:32Z

This game has great mood. The art is very fun to look at. Very satisfying when I found a piece that fit perfectly. The mouse wheel rotation mechanic is very tactile.

Music a bit too repetitive. Also on my computer, the audio was stuttering the entire game.

An interesting design problem: finding pieces -- on the one hand I like clicking random places and having the piece visualized only after clicking on it, but on the other hand, my act of selecting a piece kind of feels too random, and when nothing useful comes up quickly enough, I found myself just randomly clicking and dragging without much thought. So one solution could be to show edges of the piece even before i click on them -- but that solution would take away some of the fun mystery of anticipating/discovering what you picked up.

Also, is the game complete when I say it is? Or is there an official end that I just never reached?

Summons by Talif Moor 2024-04-16T19:50:22Z

The idea is a hilarious satire with lots of possibility for expanding gameplay.

To bad there's no sound -- it would really help with building tension and the emotional feel.

I kept failing because there seems to be no way to brew tea -- i go into the kitchen and then what? I thought tea would appear in my hand or something... I went to my master after going into the kitchen but he was still not satisfied--the bastard!

If you were to continue developing this, I think obviously some animation would be nice, but also, personally, I have a soft spot for this crude 90s aesthetic! So I would keep animations to a minimum.

Soul Pact by SesMiRe 2024-04-17T18:41:38Z

I will need to keep trying but wanted to share one observation (maybe a bug?) for now: In level 1, I picked up a bottle and brought it to the gate. Switched to the soul. Tried to grab the bottle. Didn't work. Switched back to the body and dropped the bottle. Switched to soul. I look down at the bottle and it looks like the body is lying down on the floor on the same side as me (the soul) on the same side of the gate... like in putting the bottle down, the body somehow fell through the gate! Not sure if that was supposed to happen. So then I switched to the body and found myself in a grey nebula, unable to move... hmmm seems like a bug... but this is a puzzle game, so maybe it's part of the puzzle? Am I stuck in the threshold between two worlds? I switch back to the soul... AND THE BODY HAS DISAPPEARED. Truly creepy! Hahah, if this is a bug, it's the perfect kind -- the kind that adds value to the game's story :D

I'll definitely return to playing it after work :)

Oliver by F13 2024-04-16T19:21:53Z

hmm... it seems some people can play the game, but it's not working for me :(

ColorMon by FloweryAndy 2024-04-17T19:58:12Z

I got impatient with the repetitive battles, but maybe this is just not my genre. Cute atmosphere! I like the colour theme.

Ghost Step by Willbone 2024-04-16T19:19:29Z

Very intrigued! The opening premise is well conceived and the music and the graphics present a mysterious world. It seems the choices I select in the narrative paths don't yet go anywhere, but I the format looks like it would support a complex narrative. In a fully fleshed out version, animating the Ouija board to move would be a must! :)