1 Screen by 6DownStudios

[raw]
made by 6DownStudios for LD31 (JAM)
Arrow keys to move/aim throw

X to jump

C to grab/throw (hold to charge), aim with Arrow keys before releasing

if you get stuck, push Z to teleport.
if the boomerang gets stuck, push V to teleport it.

R to reset.

- = -

Can you knock them all down?

- = -

if the gamejolt page shows a white screen, try refreshing

Gameplay Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXJHvTO0L3c
65-Second Victory: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BeHxMb0JMs
Motor Plant: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1txtG6r_QA

- = -

TIPS

-if the boomerang is out of reach, grab onto an enemy head or use the springiness of the pieces (especially the yellow ones) to bounce.

-if the boomerang is buried beneath you, hold up while tapping C to dig down until you can grab it.

-if you are surrounded by the swarm, try grabbing and holding on to enemy heads to break up the clog. (Keep in mind they can fly!)

-wedging a piece into an elbow of the platform makes a spinner, which helps keep the swarm at bay! Pushing objects towards the center of the screen make this easier.

Thanks for Playing!

========================
P.S. (Feedback Question)
=========================
Boomerang retrieval is clearly the number one issue. For the post-jam version I'll highlight the current grabbable object, and giving the player a button to do one of the following things:

A: Teleport the boomerang to yourself (wielded)
B: Teleport the boomerang to a random location (like pressing Z)
C: Add a new boomerang to the level.

Thoughts?

Ratings

Coolness 100% 1
Overall(Jam) 2.74 870
Fun(Jam) 2.66 795
Graphics(Jam) 2.85 693
Humor(Jam) 3.08 265
Innovation(Jam) 3.06 484
Mood(Jam) 2.73 718
Theme(Jam) 3.57 490

Feedback

WatercressStudios
09. Dec 2014 · 04:44 UTC
I wish there were a bit more substance to it.
Krimble
09. Dec 2014 · 04:49 UTC
Interesting approach to the theme, not bad at all.
Caspila
09. Dec 2014 · 04:49 UTC
haha, had some fun in this crazy physics sandbox. Didn't really understand the purpose of the flies though.
stephenhaney
09. Dec 2014 · 04:57 UTC
That was entertaining - it took me a silly amount of time to think of throwing the boomerang UP, but once I did I had a lot of fun exploring the different mechanics that kept appearing. Why did you opt out of sound ratings? I enjoyed the song and throwing noise.
p1x3lruckus
09. Dec 2014 · 04:58 UTC
Like watercress said, needs more content. Also, conflicting art styles really damages the aesthetic.
🎤 6DownStudios
09. Dec 2014 · 05:06 UTC
@Watercress: I had more I'd hoped to include; will be doing so in a post-jam version :)

@Krimble: thanks!

@Caspila: "Flies" were supposed to be zombies, but during the time crunch they morphed into floaty-buggy things. Their purpose was to make the game harder as you progress, but in the post-jam version they'll be a bit easier to deal with.

@stephenhaney: Thanks very much! I opted out of sound because the music track is a public domain jazz song from the 1920s - Gathacol Radio's "2 to 2"
https://archive.org/download/Free_20s_Jazz_Collection/2to2_64kb.mp3
I do hope to include some of my own music the next time LD comes around! :D
🎤 6DownStudios
09. Dec 2014 · 05:09 UTC
@p1x3ruckus : I agree, I'm addressing these things in the post-jam version. 'Preciate the comment!
lekochen
09. Dec 2014 · 08:13 UTC
Good interpretation on the theme, nice physics sandbox, hard to pick up the boomerang in the late game.
🎤 6DownStudios
09. Dec 2014 · 17:02 UTC
@lekochen : Thank you! Nape physics has a lot of potential. I hear ya on the boomerang, one of the first bugs on the post-jam to-do list is prioritizing pickups.
Much appreciated!
Arkrothe
09. Dec 2014 · 19:36 UTC
I don't understand what I'm supposed to do :(
adrianulima
09. Dec 2014 · 20:42 UTC
after a 60 seconds Ad Video I played the game...and I liked it!!! cool graphics and physics, contrats!!!
🎤 6DownStudios
09. Dec 2014 · 22:09 UTC
@Arkrothe: I intended for it to be experimental, if you pick up the boomerang and throw it at the letters, you knock them down and score points. You also knock down enemies, which clog the screen, slow you down and subtract from your score while attached.
See if you can knock down all the letters, it gets pretty tough at the end!

@adrianulima: Thank you sir!
SoulGame
10. Dec 2014 · 21:55 UTC
I don't understand what the goal is? I didn't found how to score point! I managed to jump over the title after a while but that'as all!
🎤 6DownStudios
10. Dec 2014 · 23:32 UTC
@SoulGame: It's sort of a sandbox game, but there is a victory condition (knock down all the letters with the boomerang). The more you knock down, the more enemies are added to the swarm, so the last few letters are pretty tough.
Thanks for playing!
d3garcia
11. Dec 2014 · 00:10 UTC
Really fun to play, but I lost the boomerang and I couldnt continue :( But very good gameplay
🎤 6DownStudios
11. Dec 2014 · 00:54 UTC
@d3garcia: Thanks! And yeah, stuck boomerang is a bummer, that's one of the first bugs I'll address in the post-jam version. I'll probably make it throw itself or burst the stuck object if it remains motionless for too long.
jpmit
11. Dec 2014 · 10:33 UTC
Great music and cool game.
SoulGame
11. Dec 2014 · 10:40 UTC
Thanks for explaining! I indeed got swarmed all around by dark shape, I broke some letters though. I also lost my boomerang out of the screen... And then I got stuck to the wall by 15 enemies! Crazy game!
SinistraGames
11. Dec 2014 · 14:41 UTC
Haha, it was fun, but maybe from the wrong reasons? I just jumped around throwing things. THe mood was great. Maybe add more too it? God work though : )
🎤 6DownStudios
11. Dec 2014 · 17:49 UTC
@jpmit: Thank you!

@SoulGame: My pleasure! Thanks for giving it another try, means a lot when there are 2000+ other games to play!

@SinistraGames: Glad you enjoyed it! I do plan on adding more!
Arkrothe
11. Dec 2014 · 19:00 UTC
Pretty nifty once you explained everything :P
I like how you can kill those mosquitoes and use their heads to kill other mosquitoes. Also the boomerang keeps getting lost!
🎤 6DownStudios
11. Dec 2014 · 20:55 UTC
@Arkrothe: Thanks for playing again! Lost boomerangs are definitely at the top of the fix-list :)
sorlok
12. Dec 2014 · 02:34 UTC
A solid entry; a bit tough to control effectively, but a really cool concept. Would like to see more of this, and tighter controls! Great job!
Downtown
12. Dec 2014 · 02:37 UTC
took me a longest time and a browse of the comments to figure out about throwing the boomerang upwards. bit of fun once I got going, wasn't really sure of how to make any meaningful progress and found it really hard to get back the boomerang back once it was covered in letters. Music was good and made the whole experience more fun.
🎤 6DownStudios
12. Dec 2014 · 02:51 UTC
@sorlok: Thanks very much, really appreciate the feedback!
pjimmy
12. Dec 2014 · 11:10 UTC
nice, cool little game, very creative approach to breakout, well done
markusfisch
12. Dec 2014 · 11:19 UTC
I have no idea what I'm doing but it's interesting :)
🎤 6DownStudios
12. Dec 2014 · 17:05 UTC
@Downtown: Yeah, I'm a fan of letting the player experiment and figure the game out for themselves if they like, though it's probably not a great strategy for a gamejam with 2000+ submissions :)
I feel it's more of a physics sandbox than an objective-based game, though there is a "victory" condition (knock down all the letters), which is incredibly difficult with boomerang retrieval as you said.

In the post-jam version, I plan to add a way to retrieve the boomerang, or perhaps just add a new one.
Thanks very much for the feedback, quite helpful!
🎤 6DownStudios
12. Dec 2014 · 17:06 UTC
@pjimmy: Thanks guy!

@markusfisch: See above post, and thank you!
efux
12. Dec 2014 · 20:01 UTC
Haha, nice job. I like the atmospheric music. =D
Ithildin
12. Dec 2014 · 22:27 UTC
I wasn't able to run the game inside the Gamejolt frame (a wild white screen appeared instead), but it worked fine entering the *.swf URL directly :)

Music is awesome, and so is the idea, quite fitting to the theme. As it's generally the case with physics dependent gameplay, though, it felt a bit chaotic, even though it that can be part of the fun sometimes.
🎤 6DownStudios
13. Dec 2014 · 00:21 UTC
@efux: Thanks!

@Ithildin: Yeah, that actually happened to me a few times, I thought it was my own computer which sometimes has internet problems. Thanks for the extra effort and feedback!
ceosol
13. Dec 2014 · 03:38 UTC
Thank you for the comment on my game. I am so glad that someone finally understood the concept :)

Your entry is loads of fun. Having everything breaking and being thrown around gives some visceral satisfaction. My only real complaint is that there isn't a real goal other than breaking things up. Instead of focusing on the bommerang in post-comp, maybe switch gears to developing a purpose. You won't be confined to "entire game on one screen" anymore, so use that to your advantage. One of my favorite parts in the various "Lego" games is when you having to construct something to complete a goal. In your game, you would not specifically need to construct anything, just destruct enough to make a pile of pieces that you can climb or weigh down on a trigger button or something.
🎤 6DownStudios
13. Dec 2014 · 03:59 UTC
@ceosol: Some great suggestions, thank you! I especially like the trigger buttons, that could add a whole new layer. Your feedback is greatly appreciated!
mklee
13. Dec 2014 · 06:55 UTC
The initial discovery of having to knock down the title is pretty clever! There's a nice surprise/bit of humor from realizing that's the objective of the game. I agree with the other comments that boomerang retrieval is too difficult, it would be nice if the other objects could play a unique role going forward. The idea of destroying the environment in bits and pieces has a lot of potential, hope you keep on working on this going forward!
🎤 6DownStudios
13. Dec 2014 · 08:12 UTC
@mklee: Thanks a lot! I love the idea of using other objects to proceed, like ceosol suggested weighing down buttons is an option, and the "O" pieces will be able to attach to the main platform to turn it into a vehicle. I certainly will develop it further, especially since I'm getting all this great feedback!
MrSun
16. Dec 2014 · 20:39 UTC
Nice spin on the theme!
🎤 6DownStudios
16. Dec 2014 · 22:21 UTC
@MrSun: Thank you! I'd hope to expand upon it with monologue from the character as he discovers and reacts to the constraints/rules of the game. Didn't make it into the submission, but it will be in the post-jam.
Gamepopper
16. Dec 2014 · 22:54 UTC
Something about watching this game with the music makes this game hilarious, not sure if that is intentional. Either way it's a brilliantly clever use of the theme and great use of physics.
🎤 6DownStudios
17. Dec 2014 · 20:21 UTC
@Gamepopper: Yeah, I was browsing public domain jazz songs and came across "2 to 2". Listened to it once and realized that's perfect! Thank you!
maxmetallica
29. Dec 2014 · 21:20 UTC
nice work
🎤 6DownStudios
01. Jan 2015 · 02:00 UTC
@maxmetallica: thanks!