Twist And Weave by ZeppelinCaptain

[raw]
made by ZeppelinCaptain for LD30 (COMPO)
Twist and Weave the worlds together. Enjoy.

Don't give up when the going gets tough. Later levels are harder, but also better.

Level 10 is only for true experts. Don't feel bad if you don't beat it. The rest of the game is manageable though - my dad, who don't really play games, actually got to level 10!

The game auto-saves, so you don't need to complete it in one sitting.

Turn up the volume, there is a soundtrack, although an unorthodox one!


Update: deleted a line that reset the save file every time the game launched. Moved the download to itch.io, so Chrome doesn't think the file will destroy the world.

Ratings

Coolness 100% 1
Overall 3.66 161
Audio 2.76 522
Fun 3.60 148
Graphics 3.24 445
Humor 2.00 776
Innovation 3.95 75
Mood 3.00 534
Theme 3.56 323

Feedback

Foofur
25. Aug 2014 · 09:52 UTC
Great game! smooth yet simple!
Kinta
25. Aug 2014 · 10:52 UTC
Wow, great concept, well executed!
Vircung
25. Aug 2014 · 15:25 UTC
Great!
Praron
26. Aug 2014 · 16:17 UTC
Really interesting mechanics and nice simple visualisation!
Hoopsnake Games
26. Aug 2014 · 16:19 UTC
Great concept, nice and simple and quick to pick up. Nice difficulty curve as well.
bobrocks
26. Aug 2014 · 16:19 UTC
Nice, relaxed game. I like it a lot!
lukz
26. Aug 2014 · 16:21 UTC
Nice mechanics!
OinkIguana
26. Aug 2014 · 16:26 UTC
Very unique and interesting gameplay, very enjoyable. Graphics are nice and clean, though sound is a bit annoying at times - when it repeats over and over while you're too close to a wall. And it could use some music.
Gets very difficult, and I couldn't finish all the levels. I might go back to it later.
MyougaHiroshi
26. Aug 2014 · 17:34 UTC
Very funny game :D simple, but still can be hard
ponk
26. Aug 2014 · 20:57 UTC
Incredible engine, good ideas.
Makes me think about cellulars behaviors.
May be too much spikes but,
this is awweeEEssSOooomme...!!
43iscoding
27. Aug 2014 · 11:20 UTC
Great concept, visually pleasing. Well done!
louis.denizet
27. Aug 2014 · 11:25 UTC
Very good game, good job! Simple and efficace ;)
MechanicMoon
27. Aug 2014 · 11:26 UTC
I like the sounds they make the balls to catch them and I like how the game
rnlf
27. Aug 2014 · 23:26 UTC
Way too difficult for me, but it felt pretty smooth and innovative!
alvivar
28. Aug 2014 · 00:30 UTC
Lovely mechanic, innovative and fun.
Knowledge
28. Aug 2014 · 12:59 UTC
It sends me Windows Error on 9th level.
🎤 ZeppelinCaptain
28. Aug 2014 · 15:11 UTC
Thanks for all the nice comments guys, if anyone sees this. Comments (=reactions) are the best thing about making games, especially if they contain valuable feedback, so keep them coming!

@Knowledge: Hm, that's weird, I haven't seen that on any machines before. Did you try to just start the game again? Your progress should have been saved.
OFF
28. Aug 2014 · 22:20 UTC
Simple and nice idea, but the physics make the controls a little bit slow and sloppy.

It could deserve more friction to make the trajectory manageable. Here is a game fully different who have in my opinion a really nice control of object to bring other at one spot (it's a "pool-like" game) :
http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-30/?action=preview&uid=42067

The game could also benefit of some physical effects of the links to make the moving a little bit manageable.

I like the graphics specially the spike with their shaking. ;)

Theme linked, fun hard but not too much. Nice job.
synchingfeeling
29. Aug 2014 · 20:20 UTC
Really fun mechanic, very clean.
jomomomo
29. Aug 2014 · 21:21 UTC
I can't play on windows... any chance for a web version?
🎤 ZeppelinCaptain
29. Aug 2014 · 21:55 UTC
@jomomomo No chance for a web version, sorry. I'm still working on a mac version, but I'm having a LOT of troubles with GameMaker and exporting to mac, even though I've done it before w/o problems.
lkr
29. Aug 2014 · 22:38 UTC
Loved the physics and the way the chain moved around. Some levels were tricky where you had to sling the tail with accuracy to connect the last orb, and very rewarding when it worked :)

Couldn't beat all levels myself, but you should make more levels with all sorts of difficulties between the ones you have now, so there's something for everyone. Unless you want most levels to be difficult of course! (But you should still make more :)
kidando
30. Aug 2014 · 04:14 UTC
I liked this game. It's challenging yet, you want to play more. The satisfaction of having solved a level is awesome. Congrats on finishing this on time.
Jod
30. Aug 2014 · 11:52 UTC
Wow. That's really, really great design! Both on the level-design as well as graphics. Loved it!
elefantopia
31. Aug 2014 · 20:16 UTC
Incredible game!
LandoSystems
31. Aug 2014 · 20:17 UTC
Very nice game, sleek and elegant visual style, satisfying sound effects, clever puzzles... great work!
veryfinestlions
31. Aug 2014 · 20:29 UTC
This is a cool mechanic! Couldn't quite make it through the last level, though. Maybe later.
moi93101
31. Aug 2014 · 20:42 UTC
Very good game ! Simple, efficient, it's my actual favorite.
hbocao
31. Aug 2014 · 21:08 UTC
Very fun and addictive! Well done!
vividhelix
31. Aug 2014 · 21:20 UTC
Interesting idea and I loved the elastic feel of the bond!
Knowledge
02. Sep 2014 · 14:13 UTC
Last level doesn't work, sometimes game raise System error and if you resize window it raise system error.
🎤 ZeppelinCaptain
07. Sep 2014 · 20:23 UTC
@OFF: I would have liked to experiment with different amounts of friction more, but I made the levels too rigid for that. However, I did play around with it in the beginning of development, and I actually think I found a good feel. It doesn't give you perfect control as one might be used to from games, but I think I like the chaotic element.
🎤 ZeppelinCaptain
07. Sep 2014 · 20:24 UTC
Hey guys! Once again, thanks for being so nice.

Please don't be scared away by Knowledge's bug. I haven't seen it anywhere else, so it might be a rare, system specific thing.

And please do leave comments. Reactions is the reason I make games.
OrangeeZ
08. Sep 2014 · 19:26 UTC
Great concept, smooth execution!
Moosefly
13. Sep 2014 · 22:49 UTC
Upon seeing that final level I instantly closed the window and dragged the game to the garbage bin. Thanks, but no thanks!

Sometimes it feels like getting the balls to go where I want them to go takes more luck than skill. Didn't really hear the background audio and didn't want to raise the volume because of the sound effects.

You could've also made it so that the player doesn't need to rescue all the balls, but instead each rescued ball counted towards a common score, which determined how well the player completed the level (bronze - silver - gold for example). That would've made it more easy for casual players to adopt while still providing the completionists with a challenge!

Anssi@MooseflyGames
radmars
13. Sep 2014 · 22:53 UTC
Awesome concept, would be better with a maybe smoother difficulty curve though
Shmackson
14. Sep 2014 · 00:14 UTC
Interesting mechanics. Smooth, sleek and fun yet difficult game.
Managore
14. Sep 2014 · 01:36 UTC
A great original idea for a game! I had a lot of fun with this.
Teesquared
14. Sep 2014 · 04:06 UTC
Very fun and unique game. Great take on the theme. Last few levels were a little too frustrating for me but I kept trying :)
martim00
14. Sep 2014 · 05:07 UTC
Nice game. Congrats!
fisholith
14. Sep 2014 · 05:40 UTC
Very cool puzzle game. The last level was pretty hard but I did finally get through it. Then I accidentally knocked one of the balls on the final page away before I realized I could lock them all in. :'[

Anyway, awesome game. :D
frogcheese
14. Sep 2014 · 08:38 UTC
I liked this game - graphics and audio were simple, clear and clean and the gameplay was challenging without being too difficult. Except that last level...
Lokarunith
14. Sep 2014 · 11:12 UTC
This game is really great fun. The visuals are very simple but elegant, ant the levels are super fun, challenging, but not to the point of rage quitting or being boring. Very well done!
Sunflower
14. Sep 2014 · 17:08 UTC
Alright, made it to the end, might have accidentally discovered some bug and treat it as gameplay element; or maybe it was gameplay element altogether, but it makes level 6 and 10 much easier than they would be otherwise. I mean: if orange orb has possible connection with more than one world, all of them get connected to the orange orb, making synchronised spikes avoidance a breeze.

Aside from that, game is pretty cool, both gameplay and aesthetics wise. I guess it might work well with more levels, though the little control over the blue worlds might make things more frustrating than challenging (seemingly needing more luck than skill). I wonder how it would work with lock-on option, when relative worlds alignment would be preserved; it might reduce challenge in some parts, but introduce in others...

(also, thanks for Madagascar; take some Greenland ;) )
cardboard
15. Sep 2014 · 16:38 UTC
The mechanics are very interesting. I was one planet away from beating the last level after numerous tries, but the first loop was too hard and eventually deterred me from trying any more. The level of difficulty scales nicely from level to level, and beating a level is very rewarding.