The Shift by SoulGame

[raw]
made by SoulGame for LD31 (JAM)
Time travelling is a dangerous trip! To save your ass, hunt the guy who killed you and kill him.

This game is a fast paced platformer taking place on only one screen. The game rotates each time you kill your nemesis, giving a new perspective on things and physics. But sadly he's that easy to kill... There is no end to this endless mess.

Game made by 3 people from @4EdgesGames and @SoulGameStudio (facebook.com/soulgame)

Argl - Game Designer, Tea Maker
@Tavrox_ - Programmer, Git-Commit Assistant
@repstyle - Artist, Pizza Lead Cooker

Ratings

Coolness 100% 1
Overall(Jam) 3.99 42
Audio(Jam) 3.66 123
Fun(Jam) 4.03 21
Graphics(Jam) 3.96 179
Innovation(Jam) 3.92 67
Mood(Jam) 3.64 135
Theme(Jam) 4.32 30

Feedback

BtheDestroyer
09. Dec 2014 · 03:13 UTC
Four stars all around! Really great concept!
trenchgames
09. Dec 2014 · 03:13 UTC
Really fun way to deal with the theme's design constraint. I really enjoyed it.
jpcote
09. Dec 2014 · 03:15 UTC
Nice game! The rotation aspect was nice.
samfreeman05
09. Dec 2014 · 03:49 UTC
Pretty exciting, very original. You did a good job
the-arrival
09. Dec 2014 · 03:52 UTC
Pretty neat! As soon as you start to get better, the more fun it is, comboing stuff together :) Thats good Game design, guys!
abdurrahmankh
09. Dec 2014 · 04:09 UTC
this is well done, Innovative and well implemented. nothing to add here
AMS
09. Dec 2014 · 05:10 UTC
Best jam game I've played yet! And even better with a controller! Great mechanics, graphics, and really cool level design. I like how the same level can be reinterpreted in 4 different games. Love it, man :D
SirRicecake
09. Dec 2014 · 05:15 UTC
Very fun to play.
🎤 SoulGame
09. Dec 2014 · 05:54 UTC
Thanks a lot for all your feedback, that's really encouraging to pursue our work on the game. Please feel free to share anything you might dislike as well.
mactinite
09. Dec 2014 · 06:18 UTC
Awesome way to keep with the theme and really cool arcadey game. Would play on my PSVita or DS every once in awhile.
tmpxyz
09. Dec 2014 · 06:32 UTC
good game, compact and intense
feizenbara
09. Dec 2014 · 08:02 UTC
Good one. Maybe get rid of the scrollbar in embed game?
blackmagic
09. Dec 2014 · 12:36 UTC
Nice once, reminds me of proletarian ninja ;) A little more forgiveness about jump timing would have make it a perfect score :)
Simon
09. Dec 2014 · 16:05 UTC
Not bad at all :)
I had a lot of fun playing it.
SunBurn
09. Dec 2014 · 18:31 UTC
Très bon jeu ! Addictif !
bitserum
09. Dec 2014 · 20:24 UTC
Innovative and theme well used. Nice work
barryrowe
10. Dec 2014 · 01:19 UTC
Very well done. I was expecting a lot of rotating platform style games, so I had low expectations. You blew those out of the water. This game is a lot of fun, looks great, sounds great, fits the theme, and the controls are super solid. There are a couple of spawn points that feel a little bit unfair in certain orientations. That makes it feel like the game caused me to lose rather than my skill level. Great entry.
🎤 SoulGame
10. Dec 2014 · 06:32 UTC
@Barryrowe : many thanks. You're right about spawn points, we will work on that :)
raincole
10. Dec 2014 · 10:41 UTC
There are many games using rotation mechanics, but this one is the best i've seen so far. Btw i've rated 100+ games.
Ashuu
10. Dec 2014 · 10:54 UTC
A great job !

Love the design as much as the controls.

Just lacks a quick restart button (did i miss it?) and a fix for a few very punishing spawns and it'll be perfect :).

Omw to the 100 kills :3.
🎤 SoulGame
10. Dec 2014 · 11:11 UTC
@raincole : thanks, that's encouraging :)
@Ashuu : "Press Space to restart" in the game over ^^ If you use gamepad, pressing "A" should work as well. Good luck for the 100 kills, my BP is only 66...
jhice
10. Dec 2014 · 11:40 UTC
Good game in all categories :) A bit frustrating sometimes when jumping (too short jump ?) but perhaps it will be too easy. Congrats!
nokusu
10. Dec 2014 · 12:29 UTC
Really cool game, i dig the art, although a bit hard to get these jumps on this short timer, but that's really a minor issue, also good to see there's controler support :D
MrBadIvan
10. Dec 2014 · 12:50 UTC
Greate game! 5 stars!
deyteris_team
10. Dec 2014 · 17:02 UTC
Very stylish and addictive game. I like graphics and rotation mechanics but controlls seems little bit confusing and not very intuitive for me. Also your game is great!
Britt Brady (Gloom)
10. Dec 2014 · 17:59 UTC
Really great all around! Love the movement.
kaa
10. Dec 2014 · 20:38 UTC
Very well made little game!
Lynx
10. Dec 2014 · 20:40 UTC
Super fun concept and controls, I wish he sometimes didn't spawn is such odd and almost impossible corners though, but hey...where's the fun in that, right?
🎤 SoulGame
10. Dec 2014 · 21:30 UTC
@deyteris_team : we're working on that! Thanks for confirming our thoughts.

@Lynx : thanks for the nice feedback, spawn spots are not always fair indeed, we'll improve that part as well.
Meedoc
10. Dec 2014 · 21:51 UTC
Great game except the flaw on some spawning position! Congratz!
Kerdelos
10. Dec 2014 · 23:36 UTC
Nice and addictive game ! It looks like the dash does not always work. Anyway the game is still enjoyable ! And I suggest we should be able to see the characters at all times. Because right now if we stand on bricks at the top of the screen we have no idea where the character is.
Blobby101
10. Dec 2014 · 23:39 UTC
I love it! The rotation, combined with the screen-wrapping effect makes for some really interesting gameplay :)
6DownStudios
10. Dec 2014 · 23:43 UTC
Love this interpretation of the theme, really excellent style too! Great job on all aspects guys!

p.s. I replied to your question about my game (and added gameplay video), if you'd like to give it another try :)
Mase
11. Dec 2014 · 01:33 UTC
This is quite fun... it's very satisfying when I string together several kills.

I "only" killed him 38 times!
slarrimer
11. Dec 2014 · 03:52 UTC
Great game! The rotation and screen wrap work really well together.
Verz
11. Dec 2014 · 11:59 UTC
I like the level rotation a lot! It's a really good concept. Also the map wrapping is cool. Good graphics :)
hypnoticbytes
11. Dec 2014 · 15:25 UTC
Simple and addictive game. Love the graphics and the idea!!! Well done!!!
AdventureIslands
11. Dec 2014 · 17:42 UTC
Really creative entry, this was a blast to play. The art is nice and the rotation adds nice challenge, controls work well. Nice work.
renatopp
12. Dec 2014 · 01:04 UTC
The game is pretty fun and good to play. I only dislike the theme of the story (but this is not relevant to my rating). Great job.
allanolivei
12. Dec 2014 · 01:05 UTC
The Best ... I loved the game. Great art, very fun idea and very polished game
Grindstorm
12. Dec 2014 · 01:07 UTC
Loved your concept :)
Sundry
12. Dec 2014 · 01:10 UTC
i like this !! very good job
Kuupu
12. Dec 2014 · 01:16 UTC
Nice game, cool level rotation, good controls, nice artwork,
But I see no need for the dash action and the enemy design really don't fit in the design of the game.
hundredhundred
12. Dec 2014 · 02:19 UTC
40 kills woot! fun game
MjSpeCter
12. Dec 2014 · 03:50 UTC
Really fun, challenging! I wish you could double jump but I like the concept!
metalchouchen
12. Dec 2014 · 03:56 UTC
Nice game ! Simple but really good. Congrats!
MiniBobbo
12. Dec 2014 · 04:10 UTC
I had a ton of fun with this. My record is 42 kills. It takes a little while before I got used to the fact that if I missed the kill it was quicker to loop around the level than it was to try to correct.

As far as expanding the game I would be interested in seeing how you would do it. I think that it is pretty self-contained as it is and I do wonder if making additions would add anything new or dilute the good thing you have going.
Geckoo1337
12. Dec 2014 · 06:38 UTC
Really good physics and interesting mood. Thank you for your comment about my game ++
klianc09
12. Dec 2014 · 10:23 UTC
Awesome game, pretty fluid controls. Just sometimes I would have wished for a double jump, because the character is running so fast it's easy to fall of ledges.
But once you get the hang of it, it's a really fast paced and fun game. (Got to 75 kills)
admix
12. Dec 2014 · 11:30 UTC
I like how dynamic that is and how space is connected! Cool idea and great implementation!
DrGeraud
12. Dec 2014 · 12:19 UTC
Really cool game, love what you guys did. :D
Elemental Zeal Games Studios
12. Dec 2014 · 14:30 UTC
Neat game, well done. :)
UnionCorp
13. Dec 2014 · 02:00 UTC
Great Job!
Super Fun Game.
LeReveur
13. Dec 2014 · 04:00 UTC
Very good game ! Simple, fun, easy to understand, neat graphics and music, I liked it ! Very well done ! :D
Backterria
13. Dec 2014 · 06:09 UTC
Very nice project!Love the speed!
Phask
13. Dec 2014 · 13:38 UTC
Wow! Thanks for this game. I really like the game mechanics.
Stending
13. Dec 2014 · 14:16 UTC
As always, cool game mechanic, good polish (maybe I would suggest a pause or restart button, but that's not really important), and super little game!
Love your work guys, good luck for the future!
pcmaster
13. Dec 2014 · 20:10 UTC
Dude, this is really awesome, respect! One of the top here.
Managore
14. Dec 2014 · 01:23 UTC
Really fun and a great use of theme! My only complaint is I found things a bit hard to control near the edges of the screen, which made it very hard to kill him in certain locations.
loopinlouie
14. Dec 2014 · 14:40 UTC
I like the way the rotating works and that the screen wraps on both X and Y. My main gripe was that sometimes the guy would end up in a place where he was hard to reach, and the game was then no longer about how quickly you could figure out the most efficient way to the agent, but about platforming, which for the most part you are not doing, except in those situations. So it feels like you are doing well, and then suddenly you have some guy appear inside a little alcove you can only reach from below, and you are struggling to make the jump, and you lose all your time on that single guy, and it doesn't seem like it was fair. Or rather, it makes it feel like the only way to get really far is to try over and over until you happen to get lucky and get a perfect run without any weird agent placements. I enjoyed the other mechanic way more than the platforming part, especially when the solution involved taking advantage of the screen wrap. Being able to figure out how to do that on the fly is very fun, and it is naturally rewarding to see your time start to go up when you have a burst of brain power and pull of a bunch of quick kills in a row. Graphics were pretty cool despite being black and white, and while that did give the game a sort of 50s spy/assassin vibe, I would still prefer color. Music and sound quality were good and also fit the theme well. Oh, one thing though... that beeping is almost as bad as half a heart left on a game of Zelda... if you know what I mean. In a way it encourages me to try to stay above 5 seconds, but at the same time when you are coming down the the wire, its just about the most infuriating thing, hahaha.
🎤 SoulGame
15. Dec 2014 · 00:22 UTC
Thanks for all the comments and the feedback guys!

@loopinloui : that's really nice to have such a detailed review. We're proud of the good points you mentioned as it was core elements of the original concept. Regarding bad point (clumsy platforms, unfair spawn points) they're very valid and are unfortunately due to lack of time to balance! The level design was actually finished in the last hours of the jam. Anyway thanks a lot.
gre
15. Dec 2014 · 10:57 UTC
Pretty cool concept, nice graphics and game mechanism.
Lythom
15. Dec 2014 · 18:46 UTC
Simple yet addictive game. A bit too random in my opinion (got a very good game thanks to luck but several try hard ones) even if this random get balanced by skill over time.
Thanks for the game !
kirbytails7
16. Dec 2014 · 06:52 UTC
Very nice! Fun with a good style.
Do be sure next time to remember the player's face direction when not moving left/right. That messed me up on dashes at first.
NicePenguins
16. Dec 2014 · 16:33 UTC
Fun concept ! Maybe a the character movement is a little bit buggy.
pjimmy
17. Dec 2014 · 11:24 UTC
love it, love the pace, the visuals, the clever stage turning, very fun, well done
Bonobo Games & Mechanic Moon
18. Dec 2014 · 17:37 UTC
Beautiful graphics. Good sound. Simple and addictive game. Very good.
vidarn
22. Dec 2014 · 22:40 UTC
A solid platformer with great graphics. Good job!
codeapparat
27. Dec 2014 · 10:07 UTC
Great idea for implementing the theme and amazing execution in all aspects. Certainly the most heart-pumping entry i've played this Ludum Dare. :)
Canyon
28. Dec 2014 · 07:06 UTC
Great all round game. Something just doesn't feel right with the weight of the character, I am not sure what it is. But I love the game. It'd be cool to have a zen mode where it never ends.
PapyPilgrim
29. Dec 2014 · 18:16 UTC
Controls could use a bit of work, navigating around the level was sometime unnecessary hard. Really good job otherwise, I kept playing for a while.
🎤 SoulGame
30. Dec 2014 · 09:05 UTC
Thanks a lot for all your comments, they are both encouraging and useful to improve the game. Cheers!