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Echo: First Location's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Presentation | #8 | 4.810 | 4.810 |
| Overall | #43 | 4.190 | 4.190 |
| Gameplay | #101 | 3.714 | 3.714 |
| Originality | #112 | 4.048 | 4.048 |
Ranked from 21 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
What do you like about your game?
I really like the main shader, it makes everything feel very eerie. Also the atmosphere overall, and the fact that it's a horror game without very loud jumpscares.
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Comments
I think I'd echo what a lot of other people are saying - this looks amazing. That shader works really well, absolutely perfect. I'd definitely like to see the shader graph at some point! You should definitely polish it up and release on steam - and I can imagine it doing pretty well on Itch too tbh, people love horror games here.
I don't really enjoy horror games - not because it's horror, but because a lot of them just feel like I'm wandering round aimlessly until I stumble upon something... This game has the same issue tbh, though it's mitigated by the echolocation thing - it works so well, I don't mind the wandering. Such a good mechanic for this sort of game. Does it tie into the monster's behaviour at all? It didn't feel like it did, but maybe I was missing something. It was pretty easy to just run room-to-room and avoid everything! It feels like in this sort of game, I'd expect to have to sneak around being quiet, and only using the echo when absoutely necessary.
Those are only minor gripes though, and probably are just normal horror game things. Like I said, I don't enjoy the genre at all, so take my feedback with a big pinch of salt lmao.
Nice horror game. Really good work with the shaders and environment overall.
I don't know it that was the intended experience, but I managed to complete the game only by running from a safe room to the next. At some point I choose to jump down from the balcony rather than running down the stairs because I thought it was quicker and safer, and that means the level design was good. I was also spamming the echo to find where the monster was (I used an instrument because I didn't want to use headphones). I was using linux and didn't encounter any audio problem.
The monster behavior felt too random, trying to enter a room for too long and seemingly teleporting in random places. I think I saw once two pairs of eyes, one red and one white? But I think there is only one monster in the game so maybe it was a bug.
Losing was a little too frustrating because of the randomization of item placements. In horror games the fear of loosing progress is more important than actually loosing progress. For example I'm okay with the random position of the code because the places where it could spawn are obvious and knowing them is progress that's not reset.
More monsters spawn as you complete objectives, which is just used as a difficulty thing since I didn't have time in the jam to do more actual monster phases/behaviours.
As for randomization, I'd say just adding some mechanic that lets you find items easier (possibly tied to the echolocation ability) would probably circumvent frustration. Thanks for the feedback and thanks for playing!
Super creepy vibe, the main shader that breaks apart meshes is soooo freaky -- I kept seeing shapes in the shadows that I thought were monsters. (I've always wanted a way of giving that experience to players, and that shader definitely solves it :). Great job on the sound design (very important for horror). I would have preferred if you could take a few swipes from the wendigo before dying (so there was a chance of running away), since I got locked in place and died a few times. Other than that I don't really have anything critical to say, superbly polished and executed entry. Very nice work :)
I can barely put into words how much I enjoyed this game. So fun, so polished and good looking, easy recommendation for my friends!
This can 100% be expanded to be a 90 minutes to 120 minutes long horror game on steam! I'd be among the first to wishlist it :D
You've done a great job here of creating an unsettling and creepy game, using the scenery and the vision the player has. I was on edge for the whole of the game. The bugs I noticed were only really minor. On my ultrawide the FMOD text at the beginning was behind the quit button, some of the pieces of paper were flickering at times. I paused the game and noticed that my EarPods were listed, and that was when I noticed the Echo function. I couldn't really tell if it was working or not (I saw some light flickering but that was it), nonetheless it's an interesting concept.
What pieces of paper? And the microphone should send a wave of lights, not really flicker. Are you on mac/linux? Cause these two versions are untested so it would be good to know the issues are there
I had a great time, took me a while to find the code but when I did it was fairly obvious in hindsight. For some reason the light effect was working for me but I didn't get any voice echo, which is fine. I like the visual effect that washes over your vision when things are dark, I didn't put together that it was inspired by radiation until i finished the game lol
I see that some people found the wendigo to be random or unpredictable, but once I realized I could move faster than him and that he only really attacks when you get close, I had no problems just sprinting around the level. Though, I'm not really sure about the times he would randomly attack when nowhere near me? Either way, I' don't think he was too random, or too hard to avoid. being able to see the eyes through the walls was a really interesting touch and also made him easier to keep tabs on.
I think to go much further the enemy AI would have to be more complicated. like interacting with the sound you make, or if it also used echolocation to see. Alien isolation but this setting with the echolocation mechanic could be quite an experience. but of course making a more complicated AI would vastly increase the scope of the game and i think you achieve something a bit above average for or a 2 week jam.
I really like how this game feels. A very cool shader! Now that I see noise in horror, I think that in such games it would be possible to use ray tracing without noise reduction, to make it more realistic
It's an interesting concept with a very nice aesthetic. Very atmospheric.
Thank you for making this available on Linux :)
Here's my feedback: The enemy felt too random and unpredictable, making it difficult to avoid being suddenly killed and losing progress. I am still not sure how to avoid being killed suddenly.
A wise druid once told me:
The high lavatory contains secrets of a forgotten future. Thy two feet must be placed atop the washbasin for thy to hear the hidden whispers.
Anyways good game, scared the hell out of me, didnt finish cuz im bad
Really good game and nice aesthetic. I liked the voice acting and the enemy model. Great entry!
This game looks exceptionally cool. I'm forever in love with the main displacement shader you made, and for the first ten minutes I was just taking screenshots of every new prop and thinking how I want to make something like this, too. It's genuinely magical how good it looks. I liked the models too, and the squiggly textures are just genius.
The echolocation mechanic is very imaginative but not very accessible; I don't live alone so it was very uncomfortable to use. I went to the menu and was happy to see a toggle for it, but then realized there's no alternative button or something else to use instead. Not sure how players are supposed to find the passcode if they don't have a mic. I do respect the creativity of the mechanic though!
Disappointingly, I spent the rest of my hour with the game very frustrated. I never got the mechanic of the enemies and just echolocated into them until they disappeared before moving forward, to eventually unexpectedly get killed from behind (which was very much a traditional jumpscare every time). The closest I got was getting everything but the keypad code and then coming to realize that the code is randomized, and its position is randomized as well (and then I proceeded to get killed from behind). Really tried my best to see the game to the end but just couldn't. It is so, so punishing and running around searching for randomized items just didn't feel rewarding at all.
Also, the water tank mini-game broke the immersion a bit, would have much preferred something physical and in-space, even if just a button.
I'm sorry for this being so critical. Just wanted to love this so bad because it might have the best-looking visual effect I've seen, like, ever. Looking forward to your future work.
EDIT: Took a break and tried again. Tried a new and advanced strategy of sprinting around the facility ignoring everyone who isn't a quest item. Beat the game this way, the ending effect was pretty cool. Was this the intended way of playing?.. Or was there a stealthy tactic that I didn't get? Am I supposed to just turn around from a place where I see eyes and come back later?
Firsr of all, this is my very first try at a horror game like this so all your feedback is priceless to me. The enemies react to either looking at them, using the mic or running, all while close to them. So running around and avoiding the eyes with smart movement is definitely one way of playing this game (definitely the quickest!).
I agree there should be an alternative button to the main ability, but I was afraid that everyone would just use it instead of using the mic like intended.
Again, you being critikal is great for me because I get to learn, thank you! <3
Very well done. I liked the vibe and it really felt like you where in this weird warehouse, well done with the world building. However, after about 20 minutes for looking around the whole complex, I did not manage to find the code for the keypad. It would have been a good addition to scatter hints around, or have a hint system, that would tell you roughly where it could be. I did not enjoy running around and try to find it. Also, I didn't really understand the meaning behind the microphone and audio level and how it would effect gameplay. I understood that it effected the light you emitted, but otherwise it was unclear if I should be keeping quiet, or if I was free to scream without any side effects.
Anyway, very well done, I also love the shader you used it makes the visuals really unique.
Sadly I didn't have too much to play test and with the 2 people I have playtested with found the code pretty easily, so I didn't realize it needed more hints, sorry! The microphone is needed for finding the code and it's mainly so you can scout rooms better for items and such (also the enemies can hear you when you're really close)
this was pretty neat! the visual distortion effects were definitely the best part about this game, it added a lot to how eerie the environment felt, it was genuinely unsettling getting around
Echolocation, that coupled with the oppressing darkness really makes one feel as if they are a mere bat flitting wildly about the complex in search of keys and crystals. The fine shader work really exemplifies that I believe.
I'll admit, I am not the stoutest of heart, more then once when I came upon the creature did my adrenaline spike. It really is a wonder that one can create a piece of art as such that elicits that kind of visceral response in such a short time.
Ah, and of course I loved the voice recordings.
Excellent work.
Cool!
Well done, give credit where credit is due, you will probably win.