FoonLudum Dare ExplorerUsers → ZNCatlaw

ZNCatlaw

Games

YearLDThemeGameDivisionRankOvFuInThGrAuHuMoCo
201533You are the MonsterIt Came from the Rift!jam6313.093.193.253.593.582.662.8764
201431Entire Game on One ScreenSynthetic Nano-Organic Web-Manipulating Agent Networkjam3753.352.913.263.684.052.973.143.4273
201430Connected WorldsLa Roue de Fortunejam6222.832.403.472.533.383.3328

Performance over time

overall score (left axis) percentile (right axis)

Scatterplots

Fun vs Overall

Innovation vs Overall

Theme vs Overall

Graphics vs Overall

Audio vs Overall

Humor vs Overall

Mood vs Overall

Comments by ZNCatlaw

LD30 — Connected Worlds

Equilibrium by phi 2014-08-26T16:47:00

What a neat mechanic! Normally these "drag lines from circle to circle" games are about bodies with varying populations but a stable rate of change. This is neat because you have to try to understand how the populations will change based on the rates of change.

That being said! I never felt like I "understood" how to win these levels, but I won by just making a bunch of connections and then tweaking them. It would be nice if there was more of a visual sense of how these quantities are changing.

Do you have a twitter account?

Connect and Conquer: Emperors by Moosefly 2014-08-26T22:55:00

Gripping game jam game, got me clicking all frantic-like. Thanks!

Escape From Animal Forest by Skyfish 2014-08-26T16:23:00

Is it possible to provide a linux download? Unity web player doesn't work in Linux.

Sinister by Joe Williamson 2014-08-26T17:14:00

Fantastic! If it is only short because you ran out of time, then you should take heart: if it had been longer I would have liked it less. Think of it this way: when I start to play a beautiful platformer, with great graphics and nice controls, I want it to last forever. I want to play for an hour, and explore a super cool world! Imagine my heart-break when I got to the end and felt "what? that's it? that's all I get?"

That heart-break is exactly the feeling of a lover who loses their partner. So your game made _me_ feel loss without hammering it over my head through text. If you are planning to make this game longer post-jam, I recommend abandoning that goal. Keep it as short as it is, and maybe just polish the experience (remove text, include more feedback). Use the engine and art assets to make another game, because this game about loss will lose its impact if you "bring it back from the dead" as a longer, gamier game.

Seriously: even if people love this game, don't make it longer! Integrity!

Sinister by Joe Williamson 2014-08-26T17:16:00

Also: nice camera lerp.

TERA - World's Intelligence by NicePenguins 2014-08-26T19:39:00

Loved the feel and mood. Wasn't clear to me that the praise of humanity was required to exist. Kinda wish I could just keep playing through to the end each time and not be affected by humanity's opinion.

Little thing: partially transparent dialogue boxes with stuff behind them make it harder to read, especially when it's a series of white lines.

Otrora by LudusPactum 2014-08-26T16:20:00

The web link points to a download? Is it supposed to run in my browser?

Crossing Wet-Dry Land by barnowl 2014-08-26T16:30:00

I'm on Linux, and I'm proud of you for only releasing to Linux: that's bold. However, your "Linux" link doesn't begin a download. Can you provide a link to a download?

Tether by Jamage 2014-08-26T16:34:00

The link says "web" but is a link to a Unity Web player, which does not support Linux. Could you provide a linux build for download (or at least change the "web" link to say "Unity Web"?)? Thanks! (your game looks cool and I want to play).

Seed The Universe by mephysto 2014-08-26T16:36:00

Hello! Your game looks cool, but unfortunately Unity Web Player does not support Linux. Could you provide a download for a linux build? Thanks!

La Roue de Fortune by ZNCatlaw 2014-08-26T17:16:00

Yes, the arrangement of the board and the visual feedback for certain choices are not clear enough. That's something we will be working on for the post-jam version. When you click a card in your collection (at the bottom of the screen) it becomes "selected" (you will see a faint white glow). Then you can "submit" the entire selection by clicking the finger. Thanks for playing!

La Roue de Fortune by ZNCatlaw 2014-08-26T19:43:00

@Moosefly - "This card may only be accessed from La Roue de Fortune." Is this not clear? Bummed to hear you got so close! Thanks for playing!

La Roue de Fortune by ZNCatlaw 2014-08-27T05:21:00

Glad it worked, and happy that you got to the ending!

La Roue de Fortune by ZNCatlaw 2014-08-27T18:25:00

Yes, sorry I broke it! I'm fixing it now :(

LD31 — Entire Game on One Screen

O-Inari Origami by Solifuge 2014-12-13T06:55:00

This game... is so good. You have something here, so please build on it in the post jam. Also, the level editor? Really!? Wow.

I think, though, that this level set suffers from having been built in 48 hours. When making puzzles in a strange space, it is really hard to avoid making the solutions kind of brut-forcy. In my playthrough, I usually had to pull down every side and corner in order to familiarize myself with the layout of the levels. If there was some way of broadcasting to make this process less painful, that would be cool. Maybe by starting each level all folded up, and then slowly unfolding them? Who knows! I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out in the post-jam.

Seriously: good luck!

Thief of Insulo by Cake&Code 2014-12-10T17:10:00

Very nice! Cute, fun mechanic, and a nice look.

I wish you hadn't spent so much time setting up all the instructions: the last level was the only real puzzle level, the rest were tutorials. I think you should try shortening the tutorial.

Lord Wars by berkano 2014-12-13T05:35:00

Impressive game for the jam, but it is frustrating to have to click each knight individually. Have you played Close Castle? Feels like it could be close to that game. I liked the sound effect of the little knights :)

Clockwise by schnerble 2014-12-16T07:47:00

This was nice. I liked the effect of having the levels fade away when I left them. The gravity puzzles were cool too!

Baguette Quest by Saturnyn 2014-12-10T17:29:00

Wooooooow! That was truly epic! You did such a good job with the characters and dialogue, and I loved the premise. At first it seems kind of easy, but the last few levels are cruel and punishing! I'm glad I made it to the end.

Scratch Track by playvue 2014-12-13T05:51:00

Really nice entry! The controls felt pretty awkward though... why not go for "df jk" or something, for example? Nice music (naturally) and I liked the simple design!

Visual Out by madameberry 2014-12-10T17:44:00

So cool! The aesthetic reminds me of Heiser Saint's games. I really liked the strange atmosphere, but I think the pace and gameplay don't communicate well what the graphics and text do. Work on getting the gameplay to reflect the world you want to show us, and this could be really great! I think.

Thanks!

ld31_Arena_Battler by Lasty 2014-12-12T05:38:00

Ha ha ha, that was neat! I like the snowmen in the late game. It is pretty easy to just kite the enemy, I think you should try experimenting with some AI or enemies with projectiles.

Who cares Entire Game? by bukt 2014-12-12T05:26:00

I tried! I really, really tried! My best strategy was to switch to the macho man, leave the main menu button on 'resume' and then use the round-house kick over and over. I killed some zombies this way.

I am attracted to what you did here. You challenged yourself to make something that couldn't be played.

Mr Snowman Visits Forbidden Temple by voxel 2014-12-17T08:12:00

That ending! This is the highest ratings I've given to a game so far.

Raptor Polo by Bensonance 2014-12-13T06:23:00

Hyperlight Drifter, Titan Souls, Nuclear Throne, Raptor Polo. BOOM.

Seriously, I think your team has absorbed the Vlambeer game feel lessons, and the Fez/SB:S&S EP pixel art styles... so good, so right.

You Can't Take The Space From Me by ZeronSix 2014-12-10T04:20:00

Um. Wow! This is an excellent game, very nice and very hard. It stays interesting for a while, and requires skillful piloting. I also really liked the sprites! (I guess those are the default Unity sprites)

I don't want this to sound like a plug: I can't help but observe that your entry is a lot like Gunship Souls, which I (@arrogantgamer) released on GameJolt last week. They are quite different; but because of the setting, the bullet-hellness, and the bfxr sound-effects, I felt right at home! The game feel is familiar, is all. If you enjoy your game as much as I did, you might enjoy mine too ^o^//

Observation: there is no reason not to push the shoot button, it can be held down at all times?

Vibrant City by Anshul Goyal 2014-12-13T06:13:00

Attractive, nice mood, love the city. Loved the teleporting sound-effect! Swooop! I'm not super into a game about a sniper, so I didn't play it for very long. Also: man those targets are so finicky and small!

Click For Dragons! by vinull 2014-12-12T04:33:00

I love idle games! Did you ever play Megami Quest? This reminded me a lot of that. I loved the little visualization on the side, and the promise of dragons kept me clicking. A little too easy, for my taste (does that even make sense in this genre?).

Megami Quest: http://shimage.net/megamiquest/en.html

Click For Dragons! by vinull 2014-12-13T23:13:00

I, too, was unprepared for the adictivity of Megami Quest. ^o^//

Happy Snowball by gmaker 2014-12-11T17:05:00

Fantastic. True believers know the #snowmanjam is real! ☃ ☃ ☃

Great sound, wonderful pixel art. And the gnome fills me with rage.

AZOR by Hellequin 2014-12-13T05:29:00

Loved the atmosphere, the music was very well chosen. It does a good job to reinforce the tension of oxygen levels. Have you played Asphyx by droqen?

Minor complaint: the intro was not skip-able, and there was no way to restart the game. I got to a point where I felt completely stuck, and I started over to see if I had missed something. The intro, which I enjoyed the first time through, is quite long.

I experienced a weird glitch where the character would start walking right kind of at random, and this made the game unplayable. By that point I had already experienced enough of it to be satisfied, though ^o^//

Unity Ascension by hitchh1k3r 2014-12-10T04:59:00

Missed connection: I was brown, and you were green. We jumped around shooting floating coloured heads... but I felt a connection between us.

For such a simple game, I spent a long time on this. As a programmer I'm really impressed that you got this kind of a game working for a Ludum Dare. I've encountered a few multi-player online games here before, notably @porpentine and @mcclure's entry from LD26... um about Harpies? Regardless, you are making me jealous!

Try Saving Animals by kneeko 2014-12-12T06:27:00

So cute! I like how the penalty for throwing luggage out is orders of magnitude smaller than the points you earn for saving animal lives... and the penalty for not saving animals is death! This set-up really speaks for itself.

Frosty Ninja by belva1234 2014-12-14T00:09:00

Wonderful. :)

☃ True believers. ☃

Mantis breaks the Rules by Gaspard_ 2014-12-12T06:07:00

Woooooow this was way cooler than I initially thought. I couldn't figure out how to start the game for a while. For those of you who, like me, were lost at the beginning: kick the frog (green thing) into the snowman.

I didn't beat the Mantis, but oh man was the death scene cool! Thanks for this strange surreal game!

The Broken Seeing Glass by Linear 2014-12-12T17:19:00

So frustrating to have to look through a tiny screen! Once I figured out how everything worked, this was pretty cool. I think the colours are too faded, they don't really feel engaging.

I got stabbed by a statue and died...

Isiphudi by hbocao 2014-12-12T04:30:00

Hmm... there was a problem with the linux download? The zip file gave me an error when I opened it, and then appeared to be empty. Sorry!

Screen Space: 0 by noahm 2014-12-12T17:44:00

I like it as is: it tells a true story, and so few games do that these days. Every time the screen shrunk away again, the words getting smaller and harder to see, I couldn't help but laugh and nod my head. Yes, noahm, _yes_.

Entomophobia by DoubleS 2014-12-12T18:29:00

Ha ha ha WOW! This was an awesome entry. The floating GameGal background was great, and I feel you've got a really good sense of """""""game feel""""""" or something. I played one round where I got arrows up so many times that the game just got stupidly colourful.

Madeline's Daughters by oh_cripes 2014-12-13T05:46:00

I played this for a while! Lovely little simulation. I had a baby and planted a bunch of trees, and waved at giraffes. What more could I want?

King of the Castle by adamwfindlay 2014-12-12T17:35:00

This was good! I sometimes felt like I died out of nowhere. When the enemies hit you, and when you take damage, there is no feedback besides the hearts going down. Normally the player might flash, or be knocked back, or better yet... the screen might shake!

Anyway: very nice entry all in all!

Check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJdEqssNZ-U

Shadow of the Shotgun by Peni6 2014-12-10T16:37:00

Neat concept for sure, but I was disappointed by the resulting tactics. It seems like the kind of game where my drone should give me an advantage over the enemies, so that if I use the drone carefully I can sneak up and take people out. There are a few factors that get in the way. the enemies are never surprised to see me, they just start shooting right away. They don't seem to have a "rear facing" so I can't get the drop on them. I might as well just walk to the chopper, and shoot in the direction of bullets. In that sense the drone is not an advantage, but a disadvantage, since all it really does is force me to stand still every once in a while.

Nevertheless! I like the idea and I think you could elaborate it into a deeper game in the post jam.

The shotgun is so annoying, btw: even at close range it was very inaccurate. Why are the bullets so small? Bullets should be at least the size of a man's chest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJdEqssNZ-U

Republik Power & Light by JavadocMD 2014-12-10T05:29:00

So gooooood! I'm really happy with the feel of this entry. At first I was like, huh nothing's happening? After a moment I was typing STATUS over and over. Strangely addictive for its simplicity. Is there a way to reduce the radioaktivity? I was venting constantly, to remain at 0% pressure... so eventually I poisoned everyone.

This is a really unique entry, and I think you could go further with it. If the messages etc... were used to introduce an element of intrigue, for example, or if the controls were more involved but less likely to kill everyone all the time.

Thanks for playing our entry, by the way: I think we were going for something similar, but you nailed it.

Spacey Trail by Jacksendary 2014-12-10T04:40:00

Excellent. I ran through the game once on easy, and it was cool. The music really makes the mood, and the graphics all fit perfectly together. I liked the occasional weird thing that would sail by in the background.

Merchants who want to trade 50 of their ammo for 10 of mine... are maybe collectors? Ammo enthusiasts trying to accumulate space-bullets from every corner of the galaxy.

Bummer by thiaguera 2014-12-11T02:28:00

I think this game needs more screenshake. Hmm... what I mean is, it is a super hard game, but it doesn't _feel_ very rewarding. With a few adjustments I think you could have something pretty fun. Maybe I'm just a wuss, but usually games where you die a lot present a faster death/action cycle.

Off Screen by Bogden 2014-12-13T06:00:00

This is an excellent game! I imagine developing it must also have been really fun. I made a game recently for another jam, called Gunship Souls. I also used drawing primitives and had a very dodge focused style of play, so I know how much fun it is to build these up.

Really cool use of the theme! I loved the way the edge of the screen looked, too. Thanks!

Christmas Doodles by BUNN1E5 2014-12-14T00:03:00

Loved the art style and idea. ☃ Forever. ☃

Jump button was super sticky, which was mega frustrating.

Color Code by TaylorAnderson 2014-12-12T17:52:00

Quite a nice puzzler, it reminds me of 0hh1.

http://0hh1.com/

Color Code by TaylorAnderson 2014-12-12T18:03:00

I liked it more the second time I played it, when I started using the bumpers and planning out my moves. The warning that you've run out of moves is premature: maybe it should say something like "no moves in the current configuration".

Dauntless by Luthwyhn 2014-12-11T02:42:00

Hmm... needs more feedback for sure. At first I was very unsure about how to attack enemies, even though I am familiar with the genre. The inventory system, with equipping, swapping with floor, and holding items in inv is pretty confusing too. Why not have items just jump into your inventory slot, and give players the ability to put them down. Also, a message like "wow, a katana!? Baller!", and "you _*_*DEVASTATE*_*_ the xenomorph for 12 pts of damage" would be nice.

Nice rogue-like implementation though! I mean, with a base like this you could totally go any direction. Have you played any of the 7 day rogue-likes? Possessed, in particular, is a great one. Also Pyramid from, like, LD 26 is amazing.

Broken by SetArray 2014-12-11T16:57:00

Great compo entry! Love the way damage is visualized. I must fight for the colour!

Broken by SetArray 2014-12-11T16:59:00

I just wish bad guys wouldn't spawn right on top of you. Still haven't beat it. :)

Broken by SetArray 2014-12-11T17:15:00

Hahaha! I saved the monitor! Perfect run! :D

Minimal Duel by Miziziziz 2014-12-13T23:16:00

I would love to give your game a try... is there no way for you to export a Linux build? We Linux folk have trouble with the Unity Webplayer. I understand if you don't have the right license, etc.

Sweet Honey Bear by Larry 2014-12-10T16:42:00

So frustrating! I want the honey! My strategy was just to wait by one tree, and then bolt for the honey as soon as I could. I got 100 oz in 4 tries.

Slippy - The hungry penguin by SpecialTrooper 2014-12-12T05:18:00

I had a strange problem, which was that the left and right keys didn't move me much. The up and down keys were crazy and slippy, but I couldn't go left/right very much... otherwise, cute game!

Synthetic Nano-Organic Web-Manipulating Agent Network by ZNCatlaw 2014-12-10T05:15:00

@JavadocMD, @BMacIntosh, @p1x3lruckus: thank you all so much! Great feedback!

To the folks saying audio cues would be nice: yes, definitely that is on our list. I wish I'd been able to/thought of just taking an hour to grab a bunch of noise from bfxr and plugging that in. Would have been great.

To the folks who love the graphics/how crowded the game feels: I'm so glad you got it! The game feels crowded and hectic, like a space-ship under the constant strain of an ignorant crew. That's for sure what we were going for (I was saying "juicy" but I think crowded/busy is probably more accurate).

More strategic depth: YES YES YES! We literally only worked on the gameplay programming for about 6 - 12 hours... the rest of the time was all graphics and basic game engine stuff like pathing. @clang, our game designer, has a great vision for this project, and the three of us will probably touch this up in January.

I'm making trello cards for all the feedback, so please keep it coming: peers are the best playtesters.

Synthetic Nano-Organic Web-Manipulating Agent Network by ZNCatlaw 2014-12-10T05:17:00

@BMacIntosh, hadn't thought of that... the art and sound are all arranged by @clang, and there is no category for "level design". Maybe opting out of sound/music would be a good idea, since "mood" covers what we did with that, but I would like to believe that the art of arranging tiles into a functional whole is at least as worthy of praise as the art of arranging individual pixels into a whole.

I'm glad for the feedback though!

Synthetic Nano-Organic Web-Manipulating Agent Network by ZNCatlaw 2014-12-10T17:34:00

A ha ha, @ZeronSix yes the game crashes if you push space or enter. That's a feature! #wontfix

Snowflake by Meral 2014-12-12T16:41:00

I scored 51 seconds! I am a unique snowflake!

7 Days of War by error031 2014-12-14T00:33:00

Pretty rad! Loved the music and the idea.

Wish there was a reason to go underground, and wish there was something to do during the downtime of no bombs or supplies dropping. Also, I kinda wish supplies killed you like bombs when they hit you in the head and aren't landed yet.

Sanic Sokoban by terrytheplatypus 2014-12-14T21:32:00

Puzzlescript is a great tool for learning game design, and every game you publish will make your next game better. Good luck!

Ice Blocks by Troilk 2014-12-10T16:44:00

Hi! I'm a Linux user, and we don't have Unity Webplayer support. To reach the widest audience with your Unity games, please provide download builds in addition to web. ^o^//

Together In Thousands by Os_Reboot 2014-12-17T08:35:00

Neat! I think it needs more feedback? I was winning all the time, so I guess I understood. I kind of liked not knowing, because it made me feel like a scientist doing research. In that case, though, I would have liked to be able to drop resources on any of the colonies, rather than just on mine.

GTFO by semdog 2014-12-13T23:53:00

This game is rad!

Sound, animation, mechanics, lighting effects. Fun fun!

Wish there was less waiting, played through at least 6 waves but got bored of "Warning, wave approaching" because there's nothing to do between waves. Also not sure how ammo works, I think if I touch the boxes during a wave it refills (but not outside of one? so confused!). Also, just generally too much "listen to talking instead of playing". Flavour talk is great, but I should be able to listen _while_ I play.

Great job, buggy of course but really impressive for a single person jam entry.

Puzzle! by nassi 2014-12-12T17:27:00

Ha ha ha! Nice! Happy Holidays to you too, and good luck with gamedev!

Ripley by k8n 2014-12-12T05:14:00

I didn't make it very far... I like the idea of this encroaching goo, and having to fend it off with fire.

Abelian by merrak 2014-12-12T05:53:00

This game is pretty awesome and hard. Have you ever played "I'm sorry about forever"? Great LD28 entry by a nice young sprite, in which cruel platforming meets otherworldly, next-level game design.

http://blog.ivybaumgarten.com/sorry-about-forever/

Needless to say: this is one of my favs. Out of curiosity: what is "abelian" about this game? I'm only familiar with the group theoretical sense of the term, but symmetry is something.

Do you have other games, a website, or twitter? Get in touch (I'm @arrogantgamer)!

Coded Universe by peterthehe 2014-12-10T16:47:00

There appears to be a problem with the Linux download: I clicked on it, and the archive was empty. The other ones work, but not Linux. Is anyone else experiencing this issue?

Coded Universe by peterthehe 2014-12-14T21:46:00

You definitely need to include the ability to restart the level in a game where you can arbitrarily rotate the world. I had to exit and start again several times.

I wasn't able to figure out what to do really, sorry. There a bunch of other games like this, where the player has to change attributes of the world to solve puzzles, I would look to them for inspiration.

Here is an overview of some games that use programming as primary elements: http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/RobLockhart/20130905/199667/Games_That_Teach_Programming_A_Brief_Overview.php

Richard Bruck in the Dark by Kovalsky 2014-12-12T16:58:00

Beautiful graphics and very nice concept. I love the shadows pouring in through the windows. I wish the games was a little harder, and I wish I had it on android :)

Two Steps from Darkness by Ashalah 2014-12-11T16:20:00

I got the same error as @xaedes .

Would love to try it out, though. :)

Patricia I by theFireman 2014-12-10T16:58:00

Ha ha ha! I love the premise! The way you framed the game with the mother's question, and Patricia's inevitable denial, is priceless. I enjoy game and watch style works, but I think you missed a key factor: lag. Adding a slight delay between keypress and response would make this more authentic.

Henry Defends His Research by mysteriosum 2014-12-11T16:39:00

Love the audio, bloody hilarious. Not sure what the point of the staple gun is, perhaps that's part of the humour. After successfully stunning the zombies by working at the desk long enough, game slows to a horrific crawl as the zombies flash and do nothing. Eventually, they disappear and become stars, but that process took minutes and seemed to involve no user input at all (I could move, but only at the slowest rate perceivable). And then they became ghosts and I instantly died. I tried having the patience to wait though the "flashy zombie part" but I just didn't.

Still, very enjoyable, put a smile on my face.

gnoPortal by LostCodeStudios 2014-12-10T04:08:00

Wow that meta! The terminal interface, the code scrolling by in the back-ground, and the victory screen are really clever. The music is stunning!

I want to know how many people start trying to run other commands, and I'm kind of curiuos as to how you created the terminal in the first place.

The gameplay itself is kind of confusing and feels unresponsive (maybe that's just my machine?). Regardless, this is a great entry.

Hackception by Gemberkoekje 2014-12-11T16:50:00

Didn't get it at first, but slowly figured it out. Didn't find a use for "COMMAND". Also, didn't seem to be any sound. But I did beat the game and I enjoyed that it took me a bit to figure out what was going on.

Really dug it, good work. :)

Hackception by Gemberkoekje 2014-12-11T17:18:00

Hey, you played our game! Thanks! ^.^

Play with the cat by Draknek 2014-12-14T21:51:00

Aww my Christmas heart is so warm now :)

LD33 — You are the Monster

Primer by alvivar 2015-08-26T05:17:00

I'm such a fan of your work. To anyone reading this comment: go check out the rest of @matnesis's work on their itch.io page (http://t.co/vALe1sMFMd).

That having been said: nice demo! I like the feel of the teleport, the slow motion is nice. Can't wait to see the finished product. You should hide some secret platform way off to the left that the player can only get to by repeatedly teleporting. ^o^//

Aglæca by philomory 2015-09-07T19:16:00

Hello, I downloaded the OSX version and chose open from the context menu but the app did not open. Sorry! This looks awesome.

Windmills in the Sky by Fib 2015-09-04T06:06:00

Hey that was really great! I'm so glad I sat down and really learned how to play. I'll be sure to fire this up with a friend sometime ^o^//

Very pretty, and I loved the neutrals.

Separated by rxi 2015-09-08T23:17:00

Wow! This is amazing. The ending is really well done, too. It was so different in terms of the look and feel that it gave the scene real weight. This is probably my favourite game of the dare? Probably!

SPOILERS

I'm so glad I stayed till the end. I had a bad experience because the last villager had wandered into a corner somewhere, so for me it didn't feel like a gradual organic change in the villager's behaviour; rather it felt like a discrete switch had been flipped. I think it is possible some players did not experience the ending, not for lack of trying or patience, but because the last villager was just too hard to track down.

On the Growth of Ludum Dare and the Selection of Themes by Crowbeak 2015-09-11T22:06:00

I rate this very highly! At first I was playing because I thought "pfft, what does this old-timer have to say about the theme! It's a great theme!" but you actually made a very nice, friendly, compelling game with lots of "team spirit" and stuff. Good job! You're a real Ludum Dareling!

Goomba Simulator 2015 by LandoSystems 2015-09-13T04:13:00

I'm so glad I played this! Such an awesome and creepy vibe. I especially liked how, almost every step along the way it could have ended and still been a complete work. Like, if it had ended at the end of Chapter 1, I would have been satisfied with the experience. If it had ended after killing Mario once, I would have been happy. Even with just level F-F and a different ending I would have been happy. You all took it to the next level, turned it up to 11, as they say.

Did you ever play Super Plumber Bros? It was ZNCatLaw's entry in a previous dare, and I think you might enjoy it as it is also a radical deconstruction of Super Mario Bros. Basically, I consider our teams to be blood brothers now. Link:

http://gamejolt.com/games/platformer/super-plumber-bros/27754/

Trick Parade by SimonLarsen 2015-09-03T23:29:00

Amazing! You've done it again. I couldn't find the flashlight though...

No Credit, No Problem! by Razoric 2015-09-13T04:37:00

Loved the keyboard and ringing sounds, very nice sound design. The "PC" is also a really nice touch! This was a really together game. I just have one problem...

THE HANDBOOK SAID MUST HAVE INCOME __GREATER THAN__ $1000 BUT ROY BLANKENSHIP ONLY MAKES $250/WEEK ASSUMING 4 WEEKS/MONTH THAT'S NOT LEGIT!!! I DEMAND YOU REVOKE THIS WARNING!!!

This game is definitely the cream of the crop, BTW.

The Monster Within by S0lll0s 2015-09-03T18:47:00

Strange! You didn't give any clues as to why the red ones are worth points, but I found out by experimenting. I like the mechanic, because it means you have to find red ones clumped together and then try to remember who was who. My highest human score was 160 : 90 I think.

I think this isn't very "fun" as it stands, but the mood is very well established and I think you could make it more engaging without too much work. Good job!

Delicious Cortex by deepnight 2015-09-07T19:56:00

Absolutely amazing. I had a hard time believe that this was made in 48 hours, but then I watched your timelapse. This was super fun, gorgeous, and the sound design was very pleasing. For me, this is the winner. ^o^//

Mother Nature by ethankennerly 2015-09-07T06:36:00

This was rather stressful! Around level 9 it gets really tough. I was only able to make it to level 11. Who is the real monster, though!?

Mobs, Inc. by Pietro Ferrantelli 2015-09-14T04:56:00

HOLY HELL! That was amazing! Y'all just blew my mind.

Be THE Monster by eLLectron 2015-09-03T21:04:00

On Safari, I wasn't able to see any animations for the various attacks. For example, when the bomb exploded it would just flash and be gone. When I used the body shock ability, I didn't see any feedback, just a sound.

I thought this was interesting, but could have used a lot more polish to make the individual attacks feel better. The music was awesome, though, and the titlescreen really grabbed my attention.

Gravity Snake by lessmilk 2015-09-14T20:19:00

There is something really satisfying about the core mechanic of crawling/climbing. I'm not sure what it would look like, but my heart tells me a Gravity Snake RPG or metroidvania would be really cool... hmm Gravity Snake: Gaiden!

Aww, from reading the comments I regret I played with the sound off (I'm in public and don't have headphones).

Corrupt Ground by LukeZaz 2015-09-04T05:46:00

This was interesting, but the lack of feedback made it difficult to appreciate. I think that's what everyone else is saying, so at least that's consistent! ^o^//

Ancient Storm: Legends of the League of Defence Heroes 2 by 3CGames 2015-09-10T01:43:00

Ha ha! Very clever and unusual. Games about games forever! Did you make some of the sound effects with your voice? Love that.

Ancient Storm: Legends of the League of Defence Heroes 2 by 3CGames 2015-09-10T01:47:00

Ha ha! Very clever and unusual. Games about games forever! Did you make some of the sound effects with your voice? Love that. Nice screen shake too!

It Came from the Rift! by ZNCatlaw 2015-08-26T22:48:00

Thanks!

We stole all the music, without permission, from Bleeds (https://bleeds.bandcamp.com/track/epidemic). Do us a favor and check out his Bandcamp!

The UI at the end if upside down on purpose.

It Came from the Rift! by ZNCatlaw 2015-09-01T23:13:00

Folks without the gamepads: interesting observation! This is a pretty gamepad focused experience, especially considering the local multiplayer option. We all hummed and hawed about it a bunch though.

Everyone else: thanks for the lovely words! We were out for pizza when someone suggested the upside down end screen, and we all laughed a bunch. @nomoon made it look smashing!

It Came from the Rift! by ZNCatlaw 2015-09-07T01:44:00

hate-marina, it's possible! We are the remix culture.

It Came from the Rift! by ZNCatlaw 2015-09-10T01:31:00

Oh, 3CGames you make us so happy! That's how the game is meant to be played for sure. Glad you could get the special shot!

It Came from the Rift! by ZNCatlaw 2015-09-11T21:41:00

I'm loving how many people love the win screen!

They Look Like Ants by Tortoise 2015-09-10T03:44:00

Why is death a banana? This was fun!

Some Knights Left by farwyler 2015-09-07T19:28:00

Absolutely amazing! You nailed the audio, with that charming bard voice and the positional sounding horse hooves. Amazing.

Beautiful Winter by ManuSaiz 2015-09-04T20:53:00

I was able to consume a corps! Very nice music, graphics and mood. The protagonist moves slowly, but that's OK. What I couldn't figure out was how to locate corpses...

Impassioned Fowl by Nebulaic Toaster 2015-09-07T01:00:00

Ha ha ha, this was great! Loved it when the thought bubbles started to float around. This is a great mechanic because as it gets harder to click, I find myself more and more attracted to "kill everyone" or "ignore call from parents".

I Hunger by David Yates 2015-09-06T04:40:00

This was a solid game for sure. My first and second playthroughs were very rewarding, but what I experienced as a lack of real depth made the next three runs less compelling. Maybe if each decision added something to man's city, even if the description was just a sentence. I often felt like the "observe" link didn't give me enough back to warrant the extra click. Maybe just include the observations in the main body of text?

Anyway, altogether really nice!

Scabs by bitdecaygames 2015-08-26T15:38:00

When I tried to run it on OSX I got a JRELoadError.

The Sacrifice by foxboard 2015-09-10T04:11:00

Holy crap! That was beautiful and amazing! Sound design was really great, minimalist and effective. I feel like you might have taken a page from Red Hook in terms of the overall feel. I really liked the procedural personalities of the potential sacrifices. This is one of my favorites overall.

Bop'em by Kaadmy 2015-09-11T21:46:00

Adorable! Ha ha, that was really cute. It asks an interesting question about level design. All these spikes and crushers and stuff, but who is operating them?

-=SPACE RAM=- by nicksantan 2015-08-25T05:46:00

I like the concept, but the balance seemed to be missing. Basically I reached a point where I could no longer meaningfully eat asteroids, but was also not yet able to eat small planets. I'm a patient person, so I figured I could just putz about eating dust until I got big enough to eat a planet... but then the game suddenly ended without apparent reason.

Never the less, the slow creeping out of the camera and the core mechanics are nice. I like the addition of the space ships, and of gravity.

Ludum Dare 33: Monster by Valicitor 2015-08-26T23:18:00

Really nice graphics. The gameplay is simple, but I appreciate the dynamic you are creating.

The first time I played it, I was not drawn in enough. I didn't play long enough to feel like anything was "scarce". After reading the game's description I realized that there was a further mechanic; that of scarcity. When I played a second time, I resolved to play without eating humans until I felt compelled to do so by scarcity. That was much more interesting, because of course I was eventually eating primarily humans.

So my comment for future improvement would be:

- there should perhaps be something compelling me to want to continue playing, like a high-score or something that I am growing/building (a tech tree, a family, a garden: anything permanent). Maybe evolutions or customizations?

- there should be some initial barrier to prevent me from eating humans. Right now, eating humans is about as hard as eating fruit, so the transition doesn't feel scary. My first game I ate fruit, and then humans, without really noticing the difference. If lower health affected my ability to move, or jump, or just slowed me down somehow, that might be enough to encourage me to eat fruit as long as possible.

With that stuff, and the stealth and human encroachment that you mentioned, I feel this would be a very compelling experience.

I rate this game pretty highly, and I hope you go forward with it post jam.

Fear me! by NidzaKornjaca 2015-09-05T22:43:00

A very nice entry. Challenging, and it relies both on puzzle solving and quick reflexes.

You must not by kerotan24 2015-09-07T01:07:00

Weiiiiiird. I loved the slightly chilling music, it gave the game a real edge. Also, the blurred figure of the running animation was very eerie and cool.

Alice & August: A Love Story by nic 2015-09-07T01:29:00

The lack of animations made the long straight corridors very anxious. I actually liked this effect a lot, when paired with the music. At first I thought the maze was not respectful of my time, lacking any real mark of progress or milestones. At a certain point I realized that this must be intentional: the protagonist's existential crisis is mirrored by the player's own frustration at having to make their own meaning, despite the implicit promise the video game makes with us. I think a lot of the comments you've received about walking speed are motivated by this. Once the player realizes that the only feedback the game gives them is the rooms, she only wants to see more rooms and more quickly. I'm glad you made this, and I'm glad I had the patience for it! ^o^//

PS are there endings? I didn't find any. Do you have a twitter account, I would like to tweet at you.

PPS you should have opted out of the Fun category, but not the Graphics category, in my honest opinion. I rated this quite highly.

InkKat by cerity 2015-09-07T05:57:00

This was adorable! I'm so glad I played this. I'm a person who makes lots of meowing noises, so I feel well qualified to judge and I would say you are a virtuoso.

Kill Click by Mubox 2015-08-26T16:13:00

Everything was blurry for me too. I love clickers and idle games!

Hecatomb by FieroNZ 2015-09-07T06:45:00

Ha ha, yup. That took about 3 seconds to understand and then I played it a bunch. Good entry!

Under Full Moon by Minhir 2015-09-13T03:17:00

This is really beautiful, but the controls were a barrier for me. I really enjoyed the jumping across rooftops, but in some sequences it seems you must run as a human and that was not as much fun. Very nice entry, though!

Out West by veoviscool12 2015-09-07T01:43:00

Very nice, loved the setting sun. Had a real sense of being pursued. Loved the mine!

Pit of Despair by hijomo 2015-09-13T03:21:00

Oh this is so weird and awesome! Thanks! I love the crushing jaw action. A little blood splatter, and maybe a counter of how many people I devoured, would have been cool.

Pac Ghost by zagony 2015-09-13T03:31:00

HA HA HA! The hunter has become the hunted, but who will survive! I think this could also be really neat with more than one player.

Fly On The Wall by Apostrophe 2015-09-10T01:53:00

I like the idea, but I found the fly's controls kind of weird. I didn't really feel like I was directing the fly with the mouse, but more like just luring it places. Some in-game instructions would have been good too.

The Fifth Apartment by The Fifth Apartment 2015-08-26T05:45:00

Simple amazing. Reminds me a little of Roman Polanski's "The Tenant" (especially the teeth).

I used to live on the seventh floor of an apartment in the 10th in Paris, and our neighbor was a strange old man. We never spoke to him, he was shy and avoided us (especially he would not look at my girlfriend). At night, usually quite late, we would hear him bellowing: he would yell in a language we couldn't understand, not angrily but more like someone very proud having an argument with God. I wonder what demons shared his apartment.

Also, I thought the music was interesting. The only people I ever saw playing that music were Rom buskers on the subway; so while it reminds us of "gay Paris", it is in some ways a very lonely song.

I agree with everyone else about the look of the game. I think this will easily be in the top 25 overall.

The Fifth Apartment by The Fifth Apartment 2015-08-26T05:46:00

Also! Loved the whispering neighbors!

Delicious Ships! by BaseCase 2015-09-14T19:51:00

Nice! Very cute Kraken. I found this quite satisfying. I was always able to think about the levels and make a plan in my head, and I never felt like I was just using a guess-and-check approach.

Once note is that sometimes there was too much traversal. You probably designed the level wanting the islands to look like islands, but the result is that sometimes I have to move a lot in order to navigate to a ship. If the islands had been just one or two tiles each, rather than having rather large islands, I bet you could have made all the same levels solvable in less moves. Not a big deal, but since jogging back and forth is not really part of your puzzle, why include lots of jogging back and forth, right? ^o^//

Melody Muncher by DDRKirby(ISQ) 2015-09-13T03:54:00

This is astounding, 5/5 in every category! This wasn't the most profound experience I had during LD, but it was certainly the most polished, most complete, and most fun.

Slime Saga by Draknek 2015-09-14T20:03:00

Very lovely. I have so much trouble with the sticky games! If there is a type of logic puzzle that I always have a hard time with, it is the sticky ones.

Monster Discrimination Simulator by yokcos700 2015-09-11T21:55:00

Yup, very challenging and kind of cute. I found it didn't run very smoothly in Firefox. What was up with page up and down, was that just for looks?

Monster - Your Worst Is Our Best by Ellian 2015-09-08T21:50:00

So much polish! I really like this entry, beautiful and amusing. Could be more challenging, but whatever!