I really liked the mechanic of putting input on a "conveyor" to plan a few steps ahead, I think I was going for something similar with my game :) I didn't love the idea of litterally losing controls, because you're getting to a point where you can't really do anything, so you're stuck waiting for the game over, unless I didn't understand something and you can recover from it...
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Terminal Time's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Originality | #106 | 4.214 | 4.214 |
| Presentation | #153 | 4.271 | 4.271 |
| Overall | #209 | 3.886 | 3.886 |
| Fun | #560 | 3.514 | 3.514 |
Ranked from 70 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
How does your game fit the theme?
The game fits the theme by first making it all seem simple and accessible - "oh, I certainly won't make any mistakes if this is how it is", you say - but the longer you stay without any mistakes, the bigger the delay between your commands and the game's response... you can reset it by getting hit, but it will cost you one of your 9 possible moves.
Did your team create the art for this game during the 48 hour time slot?
Yes
We created all art during the game jam
Did your team create the audio for this game during the 48 hour time slot?
No
We used pre-existing audio
Comments
You can progress up until you lose the second to last move - then you're in a delayed game over state, you've already lost by that point and you are correct in that regard. You're in a terminal state where you have to move yourself into obstacles to end the suffering/game - otherwise it takes.... about 2 minutes? to end from timing out.
Interesting mechanic, and great aesthetic. I'd say that the 8-directional controls don't seem to be very intuitive - seems like only jumping and moving forward so far I played, so it would be more streamlined with just those movements. The "loss of control/command" is also a little unclear.
Submitted
AFK on a UFOThanks for playing!
Jump forward + move forward are indeed the core moves required to progress, the other moves offer additional and often easier alternatives. The game wouldn't be more streamlined with just those movements as then it would not be possible to lose any movements, it's the issue you'll see with other 'moves = lives' jam submissions - as soon as you lose a single core movement it's game over. I've designed mine so the extra moves make the game easier but are not required to progress, and you lose them in an order that does not fully impede you of making progress until you actually reach a game over state.
I'm not sure how the loss of control would be unclear depending on how invested you were in the game, it's represented in multiple ways:
- You literally lose your moves/commands whenever you take damage
- When the clock completes a turn, your reactions get slower - your inputs are queued +1 turn later, which is reset by taking damage
- For every damage you take, the clock timer gets shorter, inevitably spiraling your loss of control
- All movement happens on a set, universal timer - you do not fully control the time of your actions & reactions
- Once a movement key is pressed, you cannot willingly take it back or change your input, only taking damage will stop queued moves
- Thematically, the game is built around the concept of human aging & a slow process of death by loss of one's own functions/control of self
- The gameplay loop is designed in such a way that the end is inevitable, you cannot avoid losing yourself and dying, you can fight harder against it but your own death is beyond your control
If none of these aspects were apparent to you, please do share what you took/understood from the game and its workings as I haven't seen anyone mention not finding any "loss of control" in the game so far and it would be interesting to understand what you interpreted. Cheers!
Sorry, I meant the mechanics for gradually losing control (other than the obvious end state) are a little opaque to grasp (as thematic it may be) e.g. its a little unconventional to have a reducing timer over time / reset in the reaction time due to taking damage. So half of the time is not being sure what's happening in the game (which I guess is the point?). I do think that you've represented that out of control theme really well.
Oh yeah certainly - that falls more in the grounds of more direct communication & proper tutorialization, which has been a common complaint and I wish I’d noticed the issue before submitting.
The submission version’s timer is also way too long... I didn’t manage to balance the 30s base timer so I had to fall back to the 60s one...
Taking damage resetting the delay is also a equalizing mechanic, it’s there to minimize the gap between better players and those having a hard time - kind of “no matter how hard you try or how well you do, you too shall perish”.
This was a great concept with a well done execution! (Literally?) The platformer was deceptively easy at first, making the gradual slowing down of commands very effective. It's a masterful idea, and while dying removed my will to continue playing, it definitely left a strong impression on me! I'd love to see a post-jam version. Good job!
Submitted
Limo LimboSuper impressive! Love the idea here and it's brilliantly executed, how I missed playing this one earlier in the week I don't know! Defiantly a gem! Brilliant effort! Really love the timing with the clock theme along with the out of control theme fits really well! Awesome job! :D
Submitted
Panik AtakA really great idea and original take on the theme. I also like the simple yet effective aesthetic :) As others have mentioned, the difficutly could use a bit of tweaking, as in it's current state it can get a bit frustrating. However, difficulty is super subjective and hard to nail in such a short space of time. This could easily be ironed out post jam :). Great entry, good luck!
Submitted
Retro RampageEffective use of the premade sounds. The art style is really nice as well. As far as the core gameplay loop, a more direct implication of how your character can move would help - like flashing the keys up with the movement icons before you start playing. The overall experience is really great once you get an idea of what to do, and the delay mechanism is really tense!
I'm not sure if there's a way out of the death-spiral, though; once you lose enough moves, the game can become impossible and the fail state seems to be awkwardly staring at a motionless character. More to come in future updates, I guess?
Anyway, fun concept, and I enjoy that the mechanic that represents the Game Jam theme actually ties into the game's overall vibe, when so many games in this jam just include control manipulation as a gimmick.
Submitted
Epimetheus: The Show Must Go OnEven with the parts I didn't manage to implement, the death spiral was always the intended end.
The only part it's missing that I'd planned for was being able to reach your sister's grave if you get past all the challenges - this would then put you back at the start, but without recovering any moves or time. The idea was that you're visiting your dead sister once per year, and it's the same journey - but each time it gets harder and harder. When I didn't manage to make the cemetery screen + restart in time, I just shoved 5 extremely hard and maybe not passable challenges at the end.
The awkward staring at the motionless character is intended... but maybe should be shorter - you're watching her last moments before death, and then the game closes. It's certainly meant to be uncomfortable.
And yeah, after the first comments came back - it became very clear that the indirect tutorialization was not even close to being enough... which is sad as I still had enough time to fix that before submitting, had I playtested a little bit.
I certainly like where you're going with it. Obviously the 48-hour constraint left everybody wanting for more features to finish off a game. If you keep running with this idea I'd say it's important to cue the player a bit more.
The awkward staring was actually really interesting -- and I felt like it was intentional for the effect of parading around the fact that I sucked and also lost -- but at some point in attempting to reset, I managed to get to a close-up of the locket looping on character death [and making more grunting noises than my entire jam submission]. It just felt unclear whether I was supposed to do something else or I was supposed to be unable to do anything.
Played and rated days ago, but forgot to leave a comment here (I fail).
Really well-made entry. Fantastic aesthetic that manages to give a great atmosphere to the title.
Very original premise and execution (but I think you know this already).
And on a side-note, the old lady is adorable.
Great job!
Submitted
Blastius | GMTK Game Jam 2020I loved the idea behind this game. Very clean visuals and the theme was very somber. This was lovely, thank you for making this.
Submitted
Choking HazardWow the game is definitely original! 5/5 for that! Though I must agree with AtymTima Games, if you are really gonna get your game out there to a wider public, then you must create a good balance for players to stay interested in your game and not get demotivated. Other than that, the game is awesome!
Submitted
SWITCH!I think most people already commented on how original and cool the concept and the game itself are. So, I just want to add that although the game fits the theme and is executed great, if you ever consider expanding the game, make sure to not over punish the players. When the main concept is "as better your at the game, as bigger the punishment will be" can quickly to lead to the decreased motivation to play the game. You made quite a good balance to make sure it won't happen in your game, but still, be careful with that. Maybe, you can add some more rewards for actually playing without mistakes as much as you can. But overall, the concept is great, the execution is even better, and the colors used for visuals only add to the game. Nice one!
Submitted
CTRL and RollAbsolutely beautiful presentation and a really neat mechanic! I liked having Q & E as diagonal inputs, even though it wasn't really explained anywhere and even to someone with a lot of video game literacy is a bit of a stretch to assume.
I have to agree with Ryan Vanden Boomen though, would be great to set this mechanic along to something more thematically fitting than a platformer but in the context of a game jam it fit perfectly and was plenty of fun.
Great submission, congratulations on submitting such a well polished game!
Submitted
Potion PanikEven this isn't really a platformer, the game only supports a flat plane - it's more akin to a rhythm-based or time-based obstacle dodger.
Yeah, you actually start with QWE ASD ZXC as inputs; I thought the implied directions in the game would be enough (they certainly weren't), so I ended up missing any clear instructions in the game.
Wow, this was really impressive. Great job. I was surprised how much I enjoyed this. It's the type of game I would spend a few moments a day playing on my smart phone.
Submitted
Space Cardet Alphawow, i am seriously impressed by this game!! the concept is really unique and smart, the presentation is incredible, especially when the 48 hour constraint is considered; overall this is a super cool submission!! i can totally see this expanding and becoming a fun mobile game or something. i do think that it's a little tough, especially since the worse you do the more difficult it becomes... but that's also the point. it fits the ideas the game is trying to communicate, so it works. but maybe a way to restart the level or something quickly would be nice? although now that i type that i realize then players won't have a reason to stick with it so nevermind lol. great job!!
Submitted
SUPER SIM FIREFIGHTI'll be frank with you, the game's supposed to end when you lose - I just added 5 or so super-tough areas to the end 20 minutes before submitting and then hoped that no one would be able to get through. BAHAHAHAHAHHA
I might make something out of a similar mechanic, but I was thinking more into RPG territory - with different equips with different actions for each move slot.
This game really looks amazing ! I managed to made it to the third checkpoint but no further haha :')
Thanks for the game I just loved it !
Submitted
Too Many BulletsIt's a really clever and well executed concept. I also loved the visuals a lot. Good job!
Submitted
Waste Waster
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