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A jam submission

PolterheistView game page

A touching story about possession, a ghost, and their dog. Submission for the 2025 Pirate Software - Game Jam 16
Submitted by Ferngrowl — 12 hours, 41 minutes before the deadline
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Polterheist's itch.io page

Link to your Game Design Doc on Google Drive.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rXGwpNAmTGtcSv7SdS5pFRdUqZDGokdpe7CAOTd4FiA/edit?usp=sharing

Have you checked that your GDD is publicly accessible ?
Yes - Anyone on the Internet with the link can view

Is your game set to public on itch.io so we can see it?
Yes

Summarise your game!
Polterheist - Puzzle Mechanics, Story, and Controls

Mechanics:
In Polterheist, you play as a ghost with the ability to possess NPCs to solve puzzles and escape with your heist target. As a ghost, you can float over gaps but cannot interact with levers, barrels, or pressure plates. The Strong NPC can push barrels onto pressure plates to keep doors open. The Agile NPC moves faster than others. Both NPCs can activate levers. Levers open doors when flipped, while pressure plates can either keep doors open while pressed or open them for a limited time. The goal is to navigate levels using possession mechanics and escape with your heist target—your old pet dog. You must possess him and guide him to the exit while avoiding traps.

Story:
You are a ghost thief infiltrating various heist locations, but your ultimate goal isn’t gold—it’s rescuing your long-lost pet! Once possessed, the pet triggers lockdown mode, activating traps and forcing you to navigate it safely to the exit without getting hit. If the pet is destroyed or time runs out, the heist fails.

Controls

WASD - Move
E - Possess/Interact/Pull Barrel
F - Exit Possession

Please explain how your game fits the theme:
In this concept, instead of a physical object or tool, the player themselves become the weapon through their unique ability to possess and control enemies.

The player, as a ghost, has no direct offensive or destructive power. Instead, their possession ability allows them to weaponize the enemies they encounter, turning these entities into tools for solving puzzles and overcoming obstacles.

Is there anything you'd like the judges to pay particular attention to?
My first ever game jam!

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Comments

Submitted

Clever idea for a puzzle game. Kind of reminds me of a sokobon style game. I think the ghost should be able to just move through walls. I ended up going through the maze in level 2 as the agile dude only to find a locked door and would have had to walk all the way back out. Being able to assess the situation in ghost mode would have helped figure out what I should be focusing on next.

Developer

Thank you for playing and sharing your thoughts! I agree that being able to assess the level would make things much clearer. While allowing the ghost to move through walls could help players see more of the level, it might also let them skip key puzzles. For instance, a player could ghost through a wall to pull a lever that was meant to be reached through solving a puzzle. I would like to implement something like a zoomed-out map view, which would allow players to plan their heist without bypassing the intended challenges.