Enduring Atlas by dickpoelen
**HOW TO PLAY**
Enduring Atlas is a 2 player game between Darkness and Light. Players take turns connecting lines between the worlds to reach their perspective goals: Darkness tries to let the planets collide while Light tries to lighten Atlas' burden. Each players' progress is indicated in percentages at the top of the screen.
Each turn a player gets to draw one line between the top and bottom row of nodes. Darkness goes from a dark node to a light node, and Light goes the other way around. Every line connected to a node increases that node's strength for the player. Multiple connected lines to a single node expand that nodes strength exponentially.
Lines can be drawn straight or diagonally. If a newly drawn line intersects with any lines of the opposing player then there is a 50% chance that the opponents line will be destroyed.
After each turn the strength of all dark nodes is added up, as is the strength of all the light nodes. These forces are pitted against each other and the planets are either pulled in closer together or they move further apart. The first player to reach a 100% wins.
**ABOUT THE GAME**
Enduring Atlas deals with connected worlds that are also opposing worlds. Besides the two external worlds - the ones Atlas stands on and the one he has to carry - it also deals with two conflicted and connected worlds within. Darkness and light.
The darkness and light theme is also present in the audiovisual part of the game. The graphics consist of harsh shadows and clashing colors. The cursor is Atlas' own hand controlling both sides. The scattered piano tones in the background music are all "neutral" tones, while actions by the dark player add minor tones, and actions by the light player add major tones.
Enduring Atlas is a 2 player game between Darkness and Light. Players take turns connecting lines between the worlds to reach their perspective goals: Darkness tries to let the planets collide while Light tries to lighten Atlas' burden. Each players' progress is indicated in percentages at the top of the screen.
Each turn a player gets to draw one line between the top and bottom row of nodes. Darkness goes from a dark node to a light node, and Light goes the other way around. Every line connected to a node increases that node's strength for the player. Multiple connected lines to a single node expand that nodes strength exponentially.
Lines can be drawn straight or diagonally. If a newly drawn line intersects with any lines of the opposing player then there is a 50% chance that the opponents line will be destroyed.
After each turn the strength of all dark nodes is added up, as is the strength of all the light nodes. These forces are pitted against each other and the planets are either pulled in closer together or they move further apart. The first player to reach a 100% wins.
**ABOUT THE GAME**
Enduring Atlas deals with connected worlds that are also opposing worlds. Besides the two external worlds - the ones Atlas stands on and the one he has to carry - it also deals with two conflicted and connected worlds within. Darkness and light.
The darkness and light theme is also present in the audiovisual part of the game. The graphics consist of harsh shadows and clashing colors. The cursor is Atlas' own hand controlling both sides. The scattered piano tones in the background music are all "neutral" tones, while actions by the dark player add minor tones, and actions by the light player add major tones.
Ratings
| Coolness | 100% | 1 |
| Overall | 3.63 | 175 |
| Audio | 3.77 | 52 |
| Fun | 3.09 | 514 |
| Graphics | 4.20 | 54 |
| Humor | 2.33 | 551 |
| Innovation | 3.94 | 81 |
| Mood | 3.78 | 69 |
| Theme | 4.12 | 34 |
Love the music, it fits it totally.
@ehtd yeah, AI was planned, but you know... time :)
@Appocket haven't had that happen to me yet. Was it a really long game maybe? Can't think of what could tax the memory to bad
graphics are spot on too! ;D
I like it when people do original stuff like this with
the theme, very creative.
Feels very solid all around, great job.
(Rated this based on AtomicVikings' stream since I didn't have anyone around to try it with)
Really nice entry !
Still, even in the laggy web version, the game's beautiful to look at and listen too. The neon-on-black, the organ dirge, and the classically-rendered Atlus Dong are all perfect.
Also for some reason the game worked a bit slow.
Great game!
I love the drawings and the animations
Liked the entry :)
Can the light player win?
I feel the 50% rule feels really unfair, but on the other end it is REALLY hard for the light world to win without it. Maybe a different rule to cut the beams could balance it in a better way.
good job, many stars for that one
Best regards from a fellow Dutch team! (See Connecting LD30 to the Real World by Will Edwards)
It's indeed a pretty bit advantage to have the first move, that's why crossed lines only have a 50% chance to get destroyed. With 100% is was near inpossible to come back if you were behind.
Points are calculated like this: every connection to a node is worth 5 point + a bonus of number-of-connected-lines-to-a-node to the power of 3 per node. Then the points of light and dark are compared to each other end you end up with, for example, +10 for dark.
Good stuff! Oh also of course, I have to mention how pretty the graphics are, love the subtle effect from the shadow world. The music made me VERY impressed with how well the different notes fit in with the mellow background music! You did a daaaamn good job here! :D
Apart from that, I'm not sure what the optimal strategy is - it isn't as clear cut as I thought it would be, but I'm pretty sure it's related to stacking a single node. Not sure how to get constantly the best tearing though?
Currently I'm considering 5-1 to be the best first black move: It stacks and tears light connections - 75% chance for at least one, 25% chance for a second one. I don't see how light is coming back from that. Sure, light can go 5-1 too and possibly do the same, but even if at best case (dark teared nothing, light teared all) it's only darkness 46%, light 54% - and darkness has the next move. Note that that's the best move with a 12.5% chance, and ALL other cases are bad for light.