itch.io

Thanks for the kind comments and good feedback! Agent 747 is my oldest game published online. I recently replayed a bit of it myself and agree with your last paragraph. I also find that precision jumping is difficult compared to my later game Solumnoid. 

I'm glad you enjoyed the level design! That's always been one of my favorite pasttimes. I feel like I'm making games as an excuse to make levels half of the time. I grew up making puzzle levels for other games and I think of platform level design like puzzle-making too.

To answer your last question, I've considered making another action platformer but haven't gotten around to it yet. From Agent 747 to the present, my game release history here has been a mix of genres that only sometimes overlap:

• Agent 747 -- GM8 -- Action platformer
• Ghost in the Mainframe -- GM8 -- Action twin-stick shooter
• Spacerslide -- GMS1.2 -- Slider puzzle
• Minesweeper, but with Powerups -- GMS1.2 -- Puzzle replica / redesign
• Solumnoid -- GMS1.2 -- Puzzle platformer
• Chrysanthemum -- GMS2 -- Action puzzle replica / redesign (IN DEVELOPMENT)

I'm nostalgic about the old versions of GameMaker but am enjoying GMS2 now that I've learned how to organize/work efficiently in it. I was lucky enough to get a permanent license before they moved to subscription.

Thank you! Do you also use Game Maker Studio? I like what you're doing over there! It seems like we have been inspired by a similar era of games. I'm working on a replica game right now actually. I think it's a great way to learn. I appreciate your follow and I think your work is impressive too! 

so cool to see this game again, I played it on the Daily Click way back when. I was just organizing my iTunes library and listening to the tunes I grabbed from the game folder and have had in my library for years. Looked up the game and saw people playing the game and I was like... I don't remember all this extra stuff!! So happy to find out it was extended!

these look very nice. They are inspiring me for a game I'm working on, a remake of a very old arcade-style flower-arranging game.

this is very clever. I haven't solved the 2nd level yet but the presentation and concept are cool enough this is probably going to stick in my head and the solution will jump out at me later

super into how the look and feel keeps improving! the shader stuff is inspiring, I've got to learn that myself

nice herobrine reference

the 1st level with the floating number? You have to bounce it in a zigzag pattern from character to character and make it hit the green switch

fun game with interesting levels. Could use an undo function. At the very least for game speed I would prefer something like a button to instantly put the player back in the start position because the falling animation speed adds up when you're falling a lot. I like this style of game though, nice one!

See here a great use of a sequel. I played the original Follower and it's like night and day to here -- improvements across literally all heuristics. That isn't to say the original wasn't enjoyable because I did enjoy it. But Follower 2 feels more like a finished product. It feels like Xasor went out of their way to study what makes games fun but also what looks presentable. Heck, I don't even make trailers for my games (probably should though lol).

Both Followers have the same formula: You control a bunch of characters at the same time that each perform a different characteristic action when colliding with various goal points, with one catch: some of the characters aren't allowed to touch each other. Movement does not have inertia, so no sliding around. My experience with difficulty in Follower 2 is actually be more akin to a strategy game. You have to learn techniques for getting around the various obstacles put in your path and it is challenging. And in that challenge there is a lot of reward too. 

That brings me to the tutorialization. Follower 2 has an offshoot read-me screen which provides basic instruction on goals, mechanics, and some handy shortcuts -- something much appreciated. It doesn't explain every single mechanic in the game, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It did leave me with moments where I felt like part of the challenge was just figuring out how the game works, which again is NOT a bad thing, I think it's actually kind of underrated these days. That, however, and another design concept I too fancy, that of completely forgoing any in-game tutorial that actively interrupts the gameplay, does make for a high difficulty floor. That being said, I felt quite engaged as as veteran puzzle game player.

Audiovisually, Follower 2 is a surprise treat! For a game about colored squares it pops in the best way and has quite an atmosphere. Part of that is the music -- don't know who wrote it but it's well-chosen -- which sets sort of a spooky and mysterious stage. Sprites flicker, watching you while on the various pages of the menu. Just enough things move about constantly that the game feels alive and could keep anyone's attention, while also feeling cozy in a sort of Autumnal way. Sound effects are sparse but the ones included are crisp and fit the vibe.

I will also touch on the technical aspects of this release. This game that lives in a Zip file does not set off my virus detectors, a great benchmark. It also seems to lack any discernable bugs, there is nary an error message to be seen, and it runs smooth. It also autosaves, so even if you force quit you don't lose progress. Nice!

Speaking of saving, I haven't beaten the game yet but I'll get back to it if a stroke of inspiration hits me for solving that level where you have to hit 3 green targets.

I'd recommend Follower 2 to any casual puzzle enjoyers, people who enjoy a touch of crypticness, and anyone who is interested in following (hehe) a game designer who is serious about their craft!

I found all 8 ducks! Thanks for the fun challenge and lovely game :)

It is. I just played and beat the game :D The years of playing Jet Set Willy and Top Hat Willy paid off! I enjoy having more than 9 lives here. I got to the end with 76 left. Thanks for a wonderful time!

Looks really visually nice. No screen names though? ;c I'll probably try this when I get the chance, I love this tiling style

❤️

Been a while since I talked with you on Reddit about this but I purchased and am excited to try it out when I get the chance!  The documentation looks pleasingly detailed.  I'd like to use it to make a web upload that also scales well when I open it on my phone -- would be a first for me.

It does have chording, at least with right+left mouse click (also double click).  Is there a different control scheme you were expecting?  I'm always down to learn more about Minesweeper versions.

Found this project by searching for web client games that have multiplayer functionality to other devices.  Surprisingly they're very hard to find, maybe hard to make?  If you see this comment can you let me know what engine you used for this?  Thanks!   (I see a black screen btw, but I'm more interested in just how it was done than playing any games rn anyhow)

I can't get the game to focus.  Stuck on the title screen where it says press Enter, but pressing Enter doesn't work.  Very nice music though

EDIT: nvm it just started working somehow.  Got 17, love the elegant design and fun gameplay!

Fun game with good music (June Flower is pog).  Easy to understand too.  I wish there was a way to play on a higher difficulty to start faster and/or have a faster increase of speed.  I end up dying due to the hypnotic nature of the game before the literal difficulty ever kills me.  Still I love the presentation, it's in the perfect old school arcade style.

Dang that's hard.  The predictive firing is impressive.  As a trig enjoyer this game's coding really tickles my fancy.

wow you're good!!  Every time I get a streak going on a large board, I lose focus and make a mistake without using Combo Token x)

I'm not planning on releasing an update for any of my games for quite awhile (unless they're completely broken somehow) since I have to focus on a couple other projects.  But I'll consider that one.

Just made the major update if you're interested!

That one makes powerup tokens stick around 'til the next game if you win.  By default they get cleared.  I know, it's rather harsh especially considering the rarity of winning multiple games of minesweeper in a row.  I'm currently working on an update which will make it much cheaper since it's way overpriced.  

(Incidentally, I'm rebalancing and tweaking nearly all the powerups for the next update right now.  There will be approx. 10 instead of 7, have more variety, and will be generally more powerful for the price / cheaper.)

very satisfying movement and sound!

Formative for me as well.  And one of the best indie PC games IMO, still holds up.  I also think it looks quite pretty, especially the outdoor areas.  The creator's use of red was very striking.  I wish I could play this remake to see what the soundtrack is like.

It's so weird to be at a point in life where the Lyle in Cube Sector original page is no longer up :(  

Drills should move away from other objects when pushed horizontally into them.  I presume you are referring to when a drill drops next to an object.  The drill is programmed to activate when dropped any distance onto normal "filled" ground.  This rule takes precedence over the "move away from objects or walls" rule -- if that helps clarify anything.

Thanks very much for playing and for commenting, I'm glad you're enjoying it so far!  

Awesome, thanks so much for confirming!  Hope you enjoy playing!

Dang.  I'm sure it's a false positive; this issue is known to other Game Maker Studio users (the engine used here).  Thank you for reporting it and apologies for the trouble, I'm looking into it.  

I just built, tested, and upload an installer file for Solumnoid instead of a plain exe (the installer is still an exe but hopefully it will be treated differently).  When you have the chance please try downloading and running Solumnoid 1.0 installer from this page and let me know if you run into similar issues.

EDIT: It worked for the other person who had the issue! I'll keep an eye out here to see if the solution is the same for you.

It might be the lack of code signing on my raw exe and/or the way I built the Game Maker project straight to exe.  I just built, tested, and upload an installer file for Solumnoid instead of a plain exe (the installer is still an exe but hopefully it will be treated differently).  When you have the chance please try downloading and running Solumnoid 1.0 installer from this page and let me know if you run into similar issues.

oh no!  I hadn't experienced that in beta testing so I need to dig deeper, is there a specific program (like Windows Defender or a different antivirus) blocking it?  Does it give you the option to whitelist the file or ignore the warning?  Sorry for the trouble!

Is this project available?  I don't see a download. If not, is there at least somewhere where your Genesis versions of the soundtracks are located?  I'd love to listen.

1m 26s!  I like spamming the button when I'm going up the wall, you can get some crazy chains that way :)  

thank you I got the current version on Steam!  I'd love to get that soundtrack too, hearing anything in 5/4 is enough to perk me right up

音楽とデザインはきれいで美しい!

The presentation here is amazing, I'm already having lots of fun in the tutorial. The graphics are the most appealing type of old school pixel art IMO. Everything is snappy, the sounds are nice, the dialogue/exposition is perfect, being funny and not overstaying its welcome - That part reminds me of Advance Wars for some reason. I'm at work so I'm going to stop playing but I may pick this back up when I get home :)

Smooth game!  It feels mostly like a memory exercise, which I personally enjoy.  I was surprised that bombs were on edges rather than faces of tiles, but I quickly got used to it.  It's fun to visualize the path.  Nice sounds too.

wtf did I just read in this thread

Hi, I was just hoping to get insight into how this was developed -- the tools and such, just out of curiosity?  BTW it works very nicely on mobile, which is awesome, nicely done :)

Incredible.  You've hit the perfect sweet spot between unique mechanic, satisfying level design & progression, theme, and frustration, while also keeping the game remarkably simple, intuitive, and accessible.  It can technically be played with one finger!!  Fantastic physics that aren't overly bouncy -- the way the player knocks off of obstacles is just right.  The only things I could possibly fault this game for is there could be slightly more friction when the player grazes the ground, and also that the mechanic has been seen before -- minding that it's played up to amazing standards in your game.  I felt all emotions ranging from curiosity, excitement, anger, amusement, determination, and finally despair (when I gave up) when playing this.  The long soundtrack suits to immerse the player further and is a delight to listen to, regardless of whether or not it's stock music from somewhere (I have no idea).  If I had more time tonight I might try to beat it but I have no idea how far up the rabbit hole goes.  I got stuck at this innocuous-looking but extremely small pinpoint ledge somewhat above the wall-breaking area, and if you miss you have to redo like three challenges.  I'd love if you told me what percentage of the game I got through if you understand the area I mean.  I'll go out of my way to recommend this to others and I highly suggest you release it on Steam at some point.  

If you're reading this, play this game!!