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The Higher The Lower's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Graphics | #1 | 4.467 | 4.467 |
| Originality | #1 | 4.400 | 4.400 |
| Audio | #2 | 4.133 | 4.133 |
| Overall | #5 | 3.686 | 3.686 |
| Fun | #10 | 3.533 | 3.533 |
| Accessibility | #11 | 3.133 | 3.133 |
| Theme | #18 | 3.533 | 3.533 |
| Controls | #24 | 2.600 | 2.600 |
Ranked from 15 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Godot Version
3.3
Wildcards Used
Prithee, Speak!
Game Description
The final dialogue at the bottom was inspired by a strange dream I had.
How does your game tie into the theme?
Spacially and emotionally
Source
No, the underlying code is a mess!
Discord Username
Prospero
Participation Level (GWJ Only)
It is my second Godot Wild Jam.
Participation Level across all Jams
It is my second Game Jam.
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Comments
Same comment as most people about the controls deserving a bit more attention. Otherwise, this was a very original game. I liked its "poetic" aspect.
I like the deeper meaning of the game... at least that I found within it. For me it tells the story about life. Nobody knows how it will finally end... and where you will go. There is as far as I can see, also no way to find 99 beets above the umbrella shop. So you will never be able to have everything in life. There are people trying to fool you and tell you lies to get your money or whatever they want. And there are those kind people that tell you their story... or want to team up with you. Some who help you get up again...
While it's quite artistic (I liked the black&white background lower in the game), I would have liked more fun stuff in there. The steering was kind of cumbersome. Especially all to the end. Maybe I bought the wrong umbrella?
Thank you a lot for giving your thoughts on possible interpretations of the game.
I hope to one day be able create a videogame that can convey a meaning or let's say a more abstract idea. While I think this is a little overambitious given the scope of a game jam, I nonetheless try to come up with ways how art, music or gameplay might outline one of these ideas.
This makes me overlook what is more important for the game, like more gameplay related content or good controls. Next time I will try to discipline myself and get this right first - either by coding it correctly, giving players a tutorial or making some people playtest it.
Thank you again for giving your feedback. :)
P.S. There is a way to get the 999 beets for the black umbrella, but it is pretty hidden/challenging and you might uncover it only by sheer luck...
Ok, then I should probably play the game once more to have a look for a golden beet! 😉
The aspect of art and meaning is equally important. I guess it's all about you getting better with Godot programming over time, so you'll need less time to do the programming part. Hope to see you again at another Godot Wild Jam! 🖐
Try your luck at the golden beet and maybe post a screenshot if you actually make it.
It's very hard, so don't frustrate yourself with it. I think I will post a screenshot myself if you give up and still want to see it. :D
Awesome game! Really enjoyed the immersion. Was a lot of fun.
I have to ask. In the last section, was that Lord of the Rings Elvish on the sides?
Super nice music too.
Thanks a lot for the comment.
You mean that the walls in the last section reminded you of the elvish language from Lord of the Rings in written form, right?
I did not notice this until now, I was just trying to come up with interesting patterns while I scribbled in aseprite, but I totally see how you came to this association :D
Haha, that's awesome. At the speed I went passed, it definitely looked like it could be the words inscribed on the ring.
Such an awesome game.
Hi I just wanted to leave you another reply, because I saw you play my game on your stream.
Oh the pain I felt when I realized how unintuitive these controls are, I think I did a big design mistake there, because the idea of sliding your character up ramps and then jumping really is not that obvious if you just put someone infront the game without much explanation.
It was very valuable to see someone go through this experience and I have to make sure to gather some friends for playtesting next time.
You had a lot of patience and played it to the end, thank you so much.
Hey!
It for sure took a bit to realize that. But I don't think that it detracted from the game at all. I think it was a little bit hard to introduce given the story of the game, but it was super well put together.
Sign me up to be a play tester in the future. This was a super charming game that had a lot of heart to it. I am really excited to see where you go to from here :)
Keep up the awesome work!
This so much reminds me of Passage where there is actually only one direction and you can't go back and reconcider. The vending machine might be also a homage to the one from GWJ#34 ?
Maybe I missed a thing, but I landed at the bottom next to some sitting skeleton not nowing what I should do next..
Beautiful art and story, keep going!
I honestly never heard of either Passage or The Vending Machine from GWJ#34, but your comment lead me to check out both.
The similarities you have spotted totally make sense to me and especially the concept of Passage to create a game where there is "no going back", was something I had in my mind too.
Thank you for your comment and the nice words in the end :)
Oh and I guess maybe I set up the CollisionShape for the final cutscene trigger a little bit too small or it did not activate in your case. If you reach the bottom the skeleton should start a monologue.
I liked the art and the controls didn't bother me... I was a bit worried reading the comments beforehand :D
Great to hear, gives me a more balanced perspective on how people perceived the controls in this game. After reading the first few comments I thought I totally messed up and no one was even able to play :D
This game is amazing. The overall mood is so good thanks to the slow-paced gameplay, the fantastic music, and cute pixel art. The dialogue was really cool too, and I loved the ending. I think this is my favourite submission so far. Thank you for making it. Really nice work :D
Thank you a lot for the compliment, I am still just starting out with game jams and it means a lot to me to get positive feedback like this.
Now I definitely have to check out some more submissions tomorrow to see what everyone else created :)
I like this a lot, it has a nice cozy feeling. The controls confused me (and others) a lot. Perhaps the time frame for getting a higher jump could be increased? Input buffering always helps. This lead me to falling down further than I wanted to which was frustrating because I wanted to interact with everything in this interesting world! The music really elevates the experience.
Thank you so much for actually giving me some tips to improve the code!
If you really want to avoid falling down to far you can repeatedly mash the "W" button which will hold your altitude - another oddity of the movement code I guess :D
This game is really cute! The controls are a bit confusing though, sometimes I'm not able to jump and I haven't been able to get the guy to the red house yet
Getting the guy to the red house is super challenging and kinda requires mastering the weird controls.
But if you actually manage to do it you will be rewarded, I promise ;)
I loved the art and the audio and the general atmosphere, but I couldn't catch the third glimmer however much I tried.
Thanks for the reply!
Try to go to the right edge of the screen, then run towards the character on the left and use it's body like a ramp to propell yourself into the air. If you strafe around a little and jump you can make it over the characters head.
It was a little foolish to assume people would take up the controls very fast without a tutorial. When I playtested every section I already had experience with the controls of course.
You can do it :D!
This is a super cute game! I love the dialogues, music, and art. I wasn't able to get the second glimmer due to the controls (or my lack of understanding them) so I didn't finish... but I really wanted to and will probably come back to it!
Thank you so much for the nice comment!
The controls need a little time to get used to, so you might have to replay a few times. I should maybe add a tutorial or rework parts of the movement code. You can get the second and third glimmer by going to the right edge of the screen, then run towards the character on the left and use it's body like a ramp to propell yourself into the air :D