itch.io

The Maze is your best inclusion yet…! It appeared during endless mode with a handful of other baddies, and my jaw dropped.

I like it so much because it completely shakes up a build that depends on synergies between units in order to work as well as it does. This build was soundly trounced when the Maze scattered it all over the place.

This game is so well done. When can people start throwing their money at you as thanks and/or encouragement to continue development? …Asking for a friend.

Thanks for fixing that bug in the newest version. :)

It’s already a satisfying jaunt, as is. Should you end up with a spare moment or two for updates and improvements, then I’m sure it’ll be a hoot.

Meanwhile, I made it to Level 27. I think by then my projectile was wider than my bike. :-D

Gritty and minimalist shootemup. Addictive hunter-hunted dynamic that emerges when you scout out your next target on the minimap, chase them down, then risk being blown away once their abilities are revealed through combat. Motorcycle movement and physics is nicely executed.

It’s satisfying to slide in, blast the convoy, steal all the loot, then make a getaway before the escort riders can catch you.

Well done!

Clever, charming, and polished take on the launcher genre. Integrating the virtual pet mechanics into the launch variables was an excellent choice. I second the comment regarding the evolving music scheme as a nice touch.

I played this one until I finally made it to Paris. Colour me surprised when I actually overshot the city…! Now it’s time to mess around with the mechanics a bit more, like directly vertical and horizontal launches.

I had a lot of fun with this one so far. Thank you. Best of success on your future projects. :)

Nice refinements you’ve included in the Director’s Cut! It’s short enough to play several rounds in a row, and varied enough that each of those rounds all have different outcomes and levels of challenge.

It’s amusing to me to try to imagine a narrative of the game as I go through the different locations, meet survivors, leave survivors behind or sacrifice them, and so on. Definitely scratches that classic horror film itch I have from time to time. Nice work…! :)

I appreciate your reply. The issue occurs if one clicks too swiftly on the “continue” buttons at the bottom of the screen once a battle is completed. The current work-around is to let one screen fade completely before clicking on “continue” again.

This is admittedly not a serious problem to avoid. I only encountered it because I was a bit too impatient when I lost a battle, and wanted to move past it and on to the team selection screen as quickly as possible.

Quirky, strategic, entertaining game. :)

I’ve immensely enjoyed this! Working my way through winning with all the Beings. The way you’ve structured the varied perks keeps a play-through with one Being considerably different from the others.

Clicking-through the “continue” at the end of a round sometimes causes the different game frames to overlap and muck up your ability to improve your lineup, but beyond that the game runs incredibly smooth (taking your time at the end of a round is a fair work-around for this). The single music track is infectious, too…!

For such a “small” game, it’s a great package of fun. Well done. :)

Glad to hear some of the jokes came through for you. :)

The Zezmeron character is based off the leader of the Ghosts in the cartoon. Never made it into any of the games as far as I can tell, so he’s not really a “canon” character. I think he was created solely for the cartoon series.

PS: Hope the GT community is still going alive and well…! :D

Thanks everyone, for your comments and constructive feedback!

It’s been difficult for me to log-in here at itch.io and review games. I moved recently, literally into a tiny cabin, and basically adopting a new life out here in rural farmland. “Mom N’ Pops” fell off my to-do list after I submitted my first draft.

I honestly appreciate all these kind words. I intend to devote time to revising the rules just a little bit, and making the images for the Subjects larger and easier to draw on. One of these days…

I sincerely appreciate Mammut RPG for hosting this event once again. I hope to be back next year, with more time to invest in reviewing (and providing English translations for) other entries. :)

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Grazie a tutti, per i vostri commenti e feedback costruttivi!

È stato difficile per me accedere qui a itch.io e recensire i giochi. Mi sono trasferito di recente, letteralmente in una piccola capanna, e fondamentalmente adottando una nuova vita qui fuori nei terreni agricoli rurali. ‘Mom N’ Pops’ è caduto dalla mia lista di cose da fare dopo aver presentato la mia prima bozza.

Onestamente apprezzo tutte queste parole gentili. Ho intenzione di dedicare del tempo a rivedere un po’ le regole e a rendere le immagini per i soggetti più grandi e più facili da disegnare. Uno di questi giorni…

Apprezzo sinceramente Mammut RPG per aver ospitato questo evento ancora una volta. Spero di tornare l’anno prossimo, con più tempo da investire nella revisione (e nella fornitura di traduzioni in inglese per) altre voci. :)

Ciao!

Game submitted to the jam! :)

…

Gioco sottoposto alla evento! :)

(La traduzione italiana è sotto il testo inglese.)

Worked-out a first draft of how the game will go. Living in a tiny cabin at the moment, and updating sporadically while I work out my routines here… Anyhow, here’s a blurb about MOM & POPS: The Game About Becoming A Tattoo Artist.

TO SUM IT UP This is a solo storytelling and drawing game following a modified format of the Carta game system. The player is an aspiring tattoo artist and two close friends have agreed to become the player’s “subjects.” The player will cover their subjects’ bodies with tattoos, while building skills as a tattoo artist, and building connections with the two subjects.

The player gauges their progress within a streamlined format, comprised of three categories: TECHNIQUE: Their ability and proficiency in using tattooing equipment and tools ARTISTRY: Their creativity, vision, and aesthetic capacity CONNECTION: Building a close, personal relationship with each Subject. The player is ranked twice in this category: once for each subject.

Cards are drawn from a deck, each with a prompt to create a tattoo for one of the Subjects. Prompts could be connected to any of a wide variety of subjects, and could be images, or text, or a combination of both. The player should be inspired to make a tattoo of a certain type based on the prompt they’ve received. I used the Carta game system to help devise the 52-card deck of prompts (the game uses a deck of classic playing cards with the Jokers removed).

Each region of the body (the front and back of the Subject, divided into nearly two dozen locations) can only be tattooed one time… There are no do-overs! Some cards have requirements of a certain Technique or Connection score in order to be executed. If a tattoo’s requirements are not met when drawn - or if the tattoo is impossible to create for some reason - the card is either discarded or moved to the bottom of the draw deck.

The player will draw a representation of the tattoo on their play sheet, and then record their skill adjustments, perhaps earning bonuses for their efforts. The player is also encouraged to record a brief journal entry based on the process of creating the tattoo. Maybe the image or text can be described, or maybe even the conversation between themselves and the Subject while the tattoo is being created.

…More to come later. I just wanted to put down some notes here to let anyone curious know what I’ve been up to. Thank you for reading!

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Elaborata una prima bozza di come andrà il gioco. Vivere in una piccola cabina al momento, e aggiornarsi sporadicamente mentre elaboro le mie routine qui … Comunque, ecco un blurb su MOM * POPS: The Game About Becoming A Tattoo Artist.

PER RIASSUMERE Questo è un gioco di narrazione e disegno in solitaria che segue un formato modificato del sistema di gioco Carta. Il giocatore è un aspirante tatuatore e due amici intimi hanno accettato di diventare i “soggetti” del giocatore. Il giocatore coprirà i corpi dei suoi soggetti con tatuaggi, mentre costruisce abilità come tatuatore e costruisce connessioni con i due soggetti.

Il giocatore misura i loro progressi all’interno di un formato semplificato, composto da tre categorie: TECNICA: La loro abilità e competenza nell’uso di attrezzature e strumenti per il tatuaggio ARTE: la loro creatività, visione e capacità estetica CONNESSIONE: Costruire una relazione stretta e personale con ogni Soggetto. Il giocatore è classificato due volte in questa categoria: una volta per ogni soggetto.

Le carte vengono estratte da un mazzo, ognuna con la richiesta di creare un tatuaggio per uno dei soggetti. I prompt possono essere collegati a uno qualsiasi di un’ampia varietà di soggetti e possono essere immagini, testo o una combinazione di entrambi. Il giocatore dovrebbe essere ispirato a fare un tatuaggio di un certo tipo in base al prompt che ha ricevuto. Ho usato il sistema di gioco Carta per aiutare a escogitare il mazzo di prompt da 52 carte (il gioco utilizza un mazzo di carte da gioco classiche con i Joker rimossi).

Ogni regione del corpo (la parte anteriore e posteriore del Soggetto, divisa in quasi due dozzine di posizioni) può essere tatuata solo una volta… Non ci sono do-over! Alcune schede hanno requisiti di un determinato punteggio tecnica o connessione per poter essere eseguite. Se i requisiti di un tatuaggio non sono soddisfatti quando viene disegnato - o se il tatuaggio è impossibile da creare per qualche motivo - la carta viene scartata o spostata nella parte inferiore del mazzo di disegno.

Il giocatore disegnerà una rappresentazione del tatuaggio sul proprio foglio di gioco, e poi registrerà le proprie regolazioni delle abilità, magari guadagnando bonus per i propri sforzi. Il giocatore è anche incoraggiato a registrare una breve voce di diario basata sul processo di creazione del tatuaggio. Forse l’immagine o il testo possono essere descritti, o forse anche la conversazione tra loro e il Soggetto mentre il tatuaggio viene creato.

… Altro a venire più tardi. Volevo solo mettere giù alcune note qui per far sapere a chiunque fosse curioso cosa ho fatto. Grazie per aver letto!

Hello Mapemounde 2022…!

I was able to participate in last year’s event, and had a wonderful time. I crossed paths with many creative people and experienced some lovely games. Looking forward to this year’s event as well.

This time around, I’m actually using maps every day in real life… I’m currently moving across the country (but still have Internet access) and my personal circumstances are quite different. In a couple days I hope to be settled at my long-term residence, so hopefully it won’t interrupt the game-making process too much.

Thanks to Mammut RPG for hosting, once again. :)

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Ciao Mapemounde 2022…!

Sono stato in grado di partecipare all’evento dell’anno scorso e mi sono divertito moltissimo. Ho incrociato molte persone creative e ho sperimentato alcuni giochi adorabili. In attesa dell’evento di quest’anno.

Questa volta, sto effettivamente usando le mappe ogni giorno nella vita reale … Attualmente mi sto trasferendo in tutto il paese (ma ho ancora accesso a Internet) e le mie circostanze personali sono molto diverse. Tra un paio di giorni spero di essere sistemato nella mia residenza a lungo termine, quindi spero che non interrompa troppo il processo di creazione del gioco.

Grazie a Mammut RPG per essere stato l’organizzatore dell’evento, ancora una volta. :)

Hahaha! Well I suppose you can take the story anywhere you like.

Thanks for the kind words. This game is a very special one for me, personally. :)

This is a fun, quick “dice race” where the players are moving all over the map. The action was frantic and making sure energy was supplied to the proper locations of the space station was an engaging layer on top of the frenetic dice throwing and shifting astronaut positions.

When reading the instructions, I was reminded of an older game called “Red November.” Instead of astronauts in a space station, think of gnome mariners in a submarine that constantly breaks down… However, while playing your game, I felt a different, more serious tension in the game. The mood changed as soon as I tore off my first piece of the space station.

This was quick and engaging. The dice were flying, and my astronauts were bumping each other all over the place. Nice work!

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Questa è una divertente e veloce “gara di dadi” in cui i giocatori si muovono su tutta la mappa. L’azione fu frenetica e assicurarsi che l’energia fosse fornita nelle posizioni corrette della stazione spaziale era uno strato coinvolgente in cima ai frenetici dadi che lanciavano e spostavano le posizioni degli astronauti.

Quando ho letto le istruzioni, mi è stato ricordato un vecchio gioco chiamato “Novembre Rosso”. Invece degli astronauti in una stazione spaziale, pensate ai marinai gnomi in un sottomarino che si rompe costantemente… Tuttavia, mentre giocavo al tuo gioco, sentivo una tensione diversa e più seria nel gioco. L’umore è cambiato non appena ho strappato il mio primo pezzo della stazione spaziale.

Questo è stato veloce e coinvolgente. I dadi volavano, e i miei astronauti si urtavano dappertutto. Bel lavoro!

I created an English translation of the rules to Svalbard: forgotten, to help me understand the rules better. Although I am not a native Italian speaker, I did my best to maintain the spirit of the game with what I came up with. I hope I did a decent job!

Here’s a direct link to download the English translation, if you want it:

https://let-off.neocities.org/bgdesign/mapemounde2021/svalbard_eng_v1.pdf

Creato una traduzione inglese delle regole alle Svalbard: dimenticate, per aiutarmi a capire meglio le regole. Anche se non sono madrelingua italiana, ho fatto del mio meglio per mantenere lo spirito del gioco con quello che mi è venuto in mente. Spero di aver fatto un lavoro decente!

Ecco un link diretto per scaricare la traduzione in inglese, se lo si desidera:

https://let-off.neocities.org/bgdesign/mapemounde2021/svalbard_eng_v1.pdf

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I think this game is an excellent “discussion engine.” The players are faced with the dilemma of not only role-playing a representative of a culture (that could be radically different from their own), but they also are tasked with deciding what aspects of culture and civilization should be kept and maintained, or discarded and forgotten. It seems like a tremendous responsibility.

The addition of “forgotten words” is also an interesting wrinkle to the engine, and I imagine that discussions could become creative should players choose commonplace words as the forgotten ones.

The backstory and context of your game - the Svalbard seed repository mixed with a catastrophic disintegration of the world - is a fierce, bleak one. But it certainly makes for interesting storytelling. Nice work!

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Penso che questo gioco sia un eccellente “motore di discussione”. Gli attori si trovano di fronte al dilemma non solo di svolgere un ruolo come rappresentante di una cultura (che potrebbe essere radicalmente diversa dalla propria), ma hanno anche il compito di decidere quali aspetti della cultura e della civiltà dovrebbero essere tenuti e mantenuti, o scartati e dimenticati. Sembra una responsabilità enorme.

Anche l’aggiunta di “parole dimenticate” è una ruga interessante per il motore, e immagino che le discussioni potrebbero diventare creative se i giocatori scegliesse parole banali come quelle dimenticate.

Il retroscena e il contesto del tuo gioco - il deposito di semi delle Svalbard mescolato a una catastrofica disintegrazione del mondo - è feroce e desolante. Ma certamente rende interessante la narrazione. Bel lavoro!

To help me understand the game better, I created a translation to English. Although of course it can’t be perfect (I’m no student of the Italian language), I did my best and I think this captures the spirit of VeM fairly well (see the link below):

I’ll translate the tables of the different map landscape features and encounters in my second pass.

I hope you don’t mind my attempt, Vetetio! :)

Per aiutarmi a capire meglio il gioco, ho creato una traduzione in inglese. Anche se ovviamente non può essere perfetto (non sono uno studente della lingua italiana), ho fatto del mio meglio e penso che questo catturi abbastanza bene lo spirito di VeM:

https://let-off.neocities.org/bgdesign/mapemounde2021/vem_eng_v1.pdf

Tradurrò le tabelle delle diverse caratteristiche e incontri del paesaggio della mappa nel mio secondo passaggio.

Spero non ti dispiaccia il mio tentativo, Vetetio! :)

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This game provides me with a chance to live an epic fairy tale. It has echoes of classic mythology, the personification of human qualities in the various deities of polytheistic religions, and of course books and films like LoTR and most definitely “The Never Ending Story.”

The thing I liked the most about this is the collaborative storytelling takes the fore, not a competition about, “who will win?” The best stories have love and loss, victories and defeats, triumphs and catastrophes, and your framework here encourages all of that. It’s often said that to truly know the strengths of a character, place them in a terrible situation and see how they make it out. Well, the scenario you created for the start of this game provides ample opportunity for the two Wardens involved to test themselves.

Whether they ultimately triumph or fail miserably, the story created between the two players will likely have the stuff of classic myths and folklore. That’s the sense I picked up while reading through the rules you’ve made for VeM. Very nice work!

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Questo gioco mi offre la possibilità di vivere una fiaba epica. Ha echi della mitologia classica, la personificazione delle qualità umane nelle varie divinità delle religioni politeiste, e naturalmente libri e film come LoTR e sicuramente “The Never Ending Story”.

La cosa che mi è piaciuto di più di questo è che lo storytelling collaborativo prende la prima, non una competizione su, “chi vincerà?”. Le storie migliori hanno amore e perdita, vittorie e sconfitte, trionfi e catastrofi, e il tuo quadro qui incoraggia tutto questo. Si dice spesso che conoscere veramente i punti di forza di un personaggio, metterli in una situazione terribile e vedere come lo fanno. Bene, lo scenario che hai creato per l’inizio di questo gioco offre ampie opportunità ai due Guardiani coinvolti di mettersi alla prova.

Che alla fine trionferanno o falliscano miseramente, la storia creata tra i due giocatori avrà probabilmente la roba dei miti classici e del folklore. Questo è il senso che ho raccolto leggendo le regole che hai fatto per VeM. Ottimo lavoro!

So here it is, 10:30am on a bright and sunny Saturday morning, barely a cloud in the sky, and at the apex of the Spring. I should be looking ahead to the time I’ll be spending visiting a friend for lunch and then visiting the market, then harvesting some of my early vegetables. But after reading your rulebook, all I want to do right now is wait for sundown and start writing about my black metal sacrifice…!

Suffice it to say I found this a novel concept that touches on folklore and ritual to wrap the player up in the story they create. I’m personally interested in how the story will unfold over the next week. I have considerable time in my past history as the vocalist in a rock band, as well as an affinity for metal music of many stripes. The pull of the story’s hook is completely believable in a universe that caters to such things.

Looking at the game objectively, I think it requires a lot of personal investment from the player, and you hint at as much in the start of your instructions. One could also argue that the rituals and behaviours you ask of the player add to the thematic aspect, and even something as simple as a different colour of ink used to write down different aspects of the story lend both a thematic and aesthetic authenticity to the game experience.

I will be sure to respond to you in the future when my entire 7 days is complete, along with any additional insights I can suggest to make your game even better. Nice work!

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Eccolo qui, alle 10:30 in un sabato mattina luminoso e soleggiato, appena una nuvola nel cielo e all’apice della primavera. Dovrei guardare avanti al tempo che trascorrerò visitando un amico per pranzo e poi visitando il mercato, quindi raccogliendo alcune delle mie prime verdure. Ma dopo aver letto il tuo regolamento, tutto quello che voglio fare in questo momento è aspettare il tramonto e iniziare a scrivere del mio sacrificio di metallo nero …!

Basti dire che ho trovato questo un concetto nuovo che tocca il folklore e il rituale per avvolgere il giocatore nella storia che creano. Sono personalmente interessato a come si svolgerà la storia la prossima settimana. Ho molto tempo nella mia storia passata come cantante in una rock band, così come un’affinità per la musica metal di molte strisce. L’attrazione del gancio della storia è completamente credibile in un universo che si rivolge a queste cose.

Guardando il gioco in modo oggettivo, penso che richieda un sacco di investimenti personali da parte del giocatore, e si accenna altrettanto all’inizio delle istruzioni. Si potrebbe anche sostenere che i rituali e i comportamenti che chiedi al giocatore aggiungono all’aspetto tematico, e anche qualcosa di semplice come un diverso colore di inchiostro usato per scrivere diversi aspetti della storia conferiscono un’autenticità sia tematica che estetica all’esperienza di gioco.

Sarò sicuro di risponderti in futuro quando i miei 7 giorni saranno completi, insieme a qualsiasi approfondimento aggiuntivo che posso suggerire per rendere il tuo gioco ancora migliore. Bel lavoro!

Here’s a how-to-play video on YouTube.

Sono molto curioso di vedere come andrà a vedere come andrà a fine questo gioco e come funzionerà una sessione di gioco.

L’idea di condividere parti di mappe, alcune persone le cancellano mentre alcune persone le conservano, e poi confrontarle tutte tra loro alla fine è un’idea divertente. Consente ai giocatori di creare le proprie storie e, indipendentemente dal risultato finale della mappa, il “viaggio” fino alla fine del gioco sembra che sarebbe un’attività coinvolgente e creativa per tutte le parti coinvolte.

Essere in grado di condividere i vari risultati di persona o con gli smartphone aggiunge alcuni elementi fantastici aggiuntivi al gioco e mi fa pensare a dimensioni, tempistiche e universi alternativi.

Sono entusiasta di vedere le tue regole e idealmente vedere qualcuno fare un video “giochiamo” di una sessione di gioco.

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I’m very curious to see how this game turns out, and how a play-through will work.

The idea of sharing bits of maps, some people erasing them while some people preserving them, and then comparing them all to one another at the end is a fun idea. It lets players create their own stories and regardless of the end result of the map, the “journey” to the end of the game seems like it would be an engaging and creative activity for all involved.

Being able to share the various outcomes either in person or with smartphones adds some additional fantastic elements to the game, and makes me think of alternative dimensions, timelines, and universes.

I’m excited to see your rules and ideally see someone do a “let’s play” video of a game session of it.

Version 1 of Cosmic Spores is now available for download as a ZIP file. Please have a look and let me know what you think: https://let-off.neocities.org/bgdesign/mapemounde2021/cs.zip

I strongly suggest you have a look at the included readme file for details on how to set up everything before play.

Thanks!

Thanks for the kind words, Ametysta92! I will do my best with a reply to your questions.

The map is abstracted with the use of the cards. The layout represents a planet’s hemisphere: literally half of the surface of the planet in the game. Instead of a map being drawn on a paper, the map is assembled with the cards laid down on the table, creating this planet surface. Players move between the cards (the intersection created by the corners of the cards constitute the “spaces” to which a player can move their Mothership), and as they harvest the planet Elements you flip a card over to its blank side. Thus, the map is “erased” little by little until the players have flipped over all the cards.

I had hoped my first draft of the game rules would be done by now (and these will likely help someone understand how the game works than just the posts I have made here), but although I worked on them last night they aren’t done. I hope to have them finished tonight. I have my second vaccine shot this afternoon though, and I’ve heard it can take its toll on a person. We shall see.

Hopefully this explanation is useful! I will do my best to have something clearer - and my first draft of rules completed - later this evening.

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Grazie per le gentili parole, Ametysta92! Farò del mio meglio con una risposta alle vostre domande.

La mappa è astratta con l’uso delle carte. Il disposizione rappresenta l’emisfero di un pianeta: letteralmente metà della superficie del pianeta nel gioco. Invece di essere disegnata su una carta, la mappa viene assemblata con le carte disposte sul tavolo, creando questa superficie del pianeta. I giocatori si muovono tra le carte (l’intersezione creata dagli angoli delle carte costituiscono gli “spazi” in cui un giocatore può spostare la propria Nave Madre), e mentre raccolgono il pianeta Elementi si capovolge una carta sul suo lato vuoto. Pertanto, la mappa viene “cancellata” a poco a poco fino a quando i giocatori non hanno capovolto tutte le carte.

Speravo che la mia prima bozza delle regole di gioco sarebbe stata fatta ormai (e questi probabilmente aiuteranno qualcuno a capire come funziona il gioco rispetto ai soli post che ho fatto qui), ma anche se ci ho lavorato ieri sera non sono fatti. Spero di averli finiti stasera. Ho il mio secondo vaccino sparato questo pomeriggio, però, e ho sentito che può avere il suo tributo su una persona. Vedremo.

Speriamo che questa spiegazione sia utile! Farò del mio meglio per avere qualcosa di più chiaro - e la mia prima bozza di regolamento completata - più tardi questa sera.

Did a fair amount of work today on balancing, score tracking, playtesting, and finally graphic design. Attached are a few photos.

This is an image of the play surface: a model of one hemisphere of the afflicted planet, assembled with cards. Players move their piece to the intersection points between cards, flipping the cards over as they harvest the planet Elements. There are six icons scattered across all the cards in an equal distribution, representing the six different Elements the players can collect.

This is an image of an early version (that is, you can see my scratches and changes written in pen!) of the Elements Tracker. I apologize for covering up the icons in each of the sections… The little red and green cubes are used to track player collections in a two-player game I was playtesting. I think the game will be able to support 2 to 4 players (though only 2-player games have been playtested so far).

This final image is a rough version of the bonus chart. Each of the stars noted on the Elements Tracker provides the player with an opportunity to gain a bonus. Some are simply extra Elements to add to their collection, while there are also some which provide significant advantages the players can use to collect more resources, move across the map faster than their opponent, or both. The top row provides bonuses to scoring at the end of the game.

Tomorrow I intend to create typed-up versions of the revisions I’ve added to the Elements Tracker and Bonus Chart. Draft of the rulesheet will likely happen Tuesday evening.

This prototype is progressing and I am pleased with the results so far…! :)

I definitely enjoyed this game. It’s forgiving - but not too much - has a clear sense of progression, and is absolutely packed full of atmosphere and dedication to the PS1 vibe.

Excellent work! I had a lot of fun with this.

Had a few playtests yesterday, and after reflection I’m going back at it.

Scoring is based on synergy of an element with two of the other elements, and at this point scores run rather high and there’s a lot of mathematics involved. I hope to dial this back today with a few adjustments, related to another scoring aspect of the game.

There are certain “perks” or bonuses a player can collect once they’ve reached a certain quantity of elements of the different types. I’m in the midst of developing a “tech tree” that the player can use to individualize their game, and compete with the other players. Right now this is separated based on the elements - as in, there are six separate skill/tech trees the player can develop - but that seems a bit fiddly and I think I need to develop a single tech tree with broad branching.

Coming up with a separate, but thematically-linked, tech tree for each different Element was frustrating and time-consuming, and still isn’t done. I think a single tech tree can be just as impactful, easier for players to understand, and easier for me to develop.

This tech tree is an essential component of the game. It will allow for a sense of progression and “gaining powers” over time. It also incentivizes players to pursue several different elements instead of focusing on a smaller number: it’s easier to gather more tech tree points by going after all the elements.

If anyone is curious here are the elements, and the other elements with which they synergize:

• Water (Animals + Plantlife)
• Minerals (Technology + Plantlife)
• Plantlife (Water + Animals)
• Technology (Animals + Minerals)
• Animals (Water + Plantlife)
• Culture (Animals + Total Bonuses Earned)

Hello Mapemounde Community! Here’s to success on all your game projects. :)

I’m currently creating a game that features a competitive set-collection mechanic to drive the game forward. As players make choices about what they want to add to their own collections, the segment of the map they selected disappears, and they need to move to a different area of the map. The player can invest their collected elements to score points in “developments” that can be claimed only by one player per game.

In terms of theme and story, imagine a small planet somewhere in the universe that has become infested with a malefic, cosmos-spanning spore colony. This colony has somehow arrived, and creeps across the planetary surface, consuming everything in its path. The players represent rescue forces that are gathering planetary elements (such as water, plantlife, minerals, etc.), facing the realization that they can’t save it all. Players are forced to select one of two elements present on each card, then flip the card over to its blank side as the spores infest the region.

So how will the player re-create this planet on their mothership? Which of the planetary elements will become their focus, earning them more Merit? Which of the rescuers will be judged as the most effective by the Universal Preservation Council? This is the crux of the game.

Some progress has been made so far today, and motivation is high to begin playtesting with the components I have so far (one position token and 12 small cubes per player, two score tracking sheets, and a deck of 54 cards).

As progress continues, I hope to keep posting here (I admit that this will be primarily so I can stay motivated to finish this game before the deadline…!)

Take care everyone, and best of success to you. :)

Thanks for the kind words, Alex!

I did put plenty of thought in how to use the unique qualities of a spider and its web into the game. It’s cool to see someone else appreciates that. :)

As for the difficulty spike… Well beyond the time constraints I had for the jam, I think a spider would want to lure its victim in slowly but surely, giving them just enough confidence to move forward, deeper and deeper into the spider’s lair, until the only thing left is CERTAIN DOOM.

;)

Whew… Finally beat it! That last teleporting boss was quite the challenge. I had a lot of fun figuring out when and where to throw the gifts, or if keeping a gift as a shield was a better idea.

I really enjoyed this! Thanks for finishing your project, and make the most of your New Year. :)

A Dog with an Uzi… Why has nobody thought of this before?!!?!? :)

Seriously, I’ve had a lot of fun with this one. Nice work! I’m certain your giftee will be pleased.

I’ve just implemented autofire in version 1.2, should you be interested in having another go at it. Either the online or standalone versions should work for you.

Thanks again for the suggestion. I appreciate it!

Hmm… I’m thinking of implementing an auto-fire option. I shall seriously consider it for the next update.

Thanks for playing…! :)

Not bad for a few hours’ worth of work! I do hope you have a chance to come back to this and put a solid game together.

Enjoyed this quite a bit! The world came across as dreamlike and whimsical… Floating and “walking through a dream” were very clear feelings that came across here. Meanwhile, those rhino-sized thoughts at the end were quite a challenge. Each of the creatures had its own behaviour I needed to learn before I could deal with them effectively.

I would have loved to have seen some kind of end screen featuring the dog again, once you made it past the final stage. Besides that, I found this fun all the way through.

Very nice job! Best of success with the game jam. :)

Wow…! I was pretty much blown away by the clever implementation of dimensional shifting. Climbing the spiral stair was a nice visual and gameplay treat to experience. This was a satisfying platform puzzler, and I hope to see more (I saw that this was stage 1-1, so mmmmmaybe…?).

Really nice job with this! Best of success in the game jam. :)

I enjoyed playing this, and had a good laugh while doing so! Your team implemented a number of gameplay twists to keep things interesting. The rising water kept ratcheting up the tension, and was a good design choice for a game where players could otherwise hem-and-haw over pixel-perfect jumping.

Excellent work! Best of success in the game jam.

I thoroughly enjoyed this simple, quick game. I liked the colours you used for the homicidal sea cucumbers (that’s what they were, right?!?!) and the quick pick-up-and-play nature of your effort here.

If I were to be nit-picky, I’d adjust the following:

• allow a keyboard shortcut to restart the game, instead of just the mouse.
• I made it to the bottom, but the game still went on! My score was over 500 when I landed, but kept increasing after I stopped.

Well done! Best of success with the jam. :)