Understanding LD by DarkMeatGames

made by DarkMeatGames for LD29 (COMPO)

First Ludum Dare ever.

Tried twice to do something within the theme, but failed. Ended up just trying to get a simple platformer/shooter going.

The theme isn't too strong, but my justification is that I'm trying to get to a deeper understanding of making games, so I forced myself to finish and submit something. I wanted later levels to all be about going downwards, maybe adding fall damage, but I never got there. Weak justification, but it's the best I could do!

Created with Unity3D.

Voxels, care of Voxwell: https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/#/content/14989

Web	https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2615281/LD48/03/DarkMeatGames-LD29Entry-Web/index.html
Windows	https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2615281/LD48/03/DarkMeatGames-LD29Entry-PC.zip
OS/X	https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2615281/LD48/03/DarkMeatGames-LD29Entry-Mac.zip
Source	https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2615281/LD48/03/DarkMeatGames-LD29Entry-Source/DarkMeatGames-LD29Entry-Source.zip
Original URL	https://ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-29/?action=preview&uid=34345

Ratings

Coolness	100%	1
Overall	3.26	470

Audio	2.61	637
Fun	3.41	256
Graphics	3.81	190
Humor	2.80	332
Innovation	2.24	1107
Mood	2.96	579
Theme	1.87	1229

Feedback

Pietro Ferrantelli

28. Apr 2014 · 15:06 UTC

Nice platformer, I like the "Yeah" effect so much ! Great Job

Pierrec

28. Apr 2014 · 15:10 UTC

Those explosions <3

I love how you mix 2D and 3D.
The game is hard, but I managed to finish it. Why F or J to shoot? That's nor usual nor practical

zedutchgandalf

28. Apr 2014 · 15:38 UTC

I love the graphical style!
But I have to wonder, why is it called "Understanding LD"? :P
Congratulations on such a wonderful first Ludum Dare!

MetanoKid

28. Apr 2014 · 15:38 UTC

Although the graphics are pretty beautiful and I love certain details which require time but may be unnoticed (like the player's squash and stretch effect).
Its tutorial and YEAH! effect when completing a level are neat, and the sound is minimal but fits it! The effect when something is destroyed (even yourself) really made me laugh at first, pretty amusing!
Don't really see the theme in it, but I enjoyed playing it :)

nonentheless

28. Apr 2014 · 15:39 UTC

Great effects and cubey graphics. I don't like mechanics (would like to jump further and move quicker) but still impressive work :)

FyberOptic

28. Apr 2014 · 15:46 UTC

I really liked the look of this game. The graphics and lighting were well done. Exploding into voxels when you die was also pretty neat. I could see this getting developed into a pretty fun puzzle/platformer. Nice job!

sprawl

28. Apr 2014 · 15:47 UTC

Although most of the stuff seemed to already be in unity. its well done and good looking.

Zed

28. Apr 2014 · 15:53 UTC

Thank you for making the 'reward' for winning a screen where I get to endlessly watch myself explode. Never thought I'd play a game where death is so aesthetically pleasing. Good job.

Geckoo1337

28. Apr 2014 · 15:55 UTC

Whoah this is a really good game. In fact I don't like platform games, but you exploded my brain and my heart. Thank you bro' ++

UnixXNova

28. Apr 2014 · 16:11 UTC

like the graphics style the game got pretty damn hard but nice work overall

UnixXNova

28. Apr 2014 · 16:13 UTC

forgot to add i found myself at the mercy of the delayed movement a couple of times

SyBen

28. Apr 2014 · 16:30 UTC

Liked the idea and the graphics, had sometimes the impression to glide a little. Still really fun, great job

MintArcade

28. Apr 2014 · 16:54 UTC

I enjoy and my kids too :)

Balint197

28. Apr 2014 · 17:18 UTC

The graphics were really nice! Well done!

Sergraz

28. Apr 2014 · 18:19 UTC

Nicely done, has style and fun to play.

Larzan

28. Apr 2014 · 18:26 UTC

Nice, like the gfx, looks good!

Thomas Ingham

28. Apr 2014 · 18:36 UTC

Pretty tough with timing but you nailed the jump mechanic.

MattV

28. Apr 2014 · 20:59 UTC

this is a great example of how much lighting can make simple graphics look polished! Good work!

StabAlarash

28. Apr 2014 · 21:02 UTC

nice graphics

dook

28. Apr 2014 · 22:50 UTC

Not a lot of stars in the theme category, but it's a really solid little platformer. The effects are great and it has its own style. Good job :)

Crawler Studios

28. Apr 2014 · 22:50 UTC

Really fun to play. Quite challenging and very simple. I really enjoyed it.

Khopa

28. Apr 2014 · 22:50 UTC

Short, but excellent platformer !

Griz

28. Apr 2014 · 23:00 UTC

Haha, the first death explosion has scared me way more than it should. Also nice idea about placing those spikes on the credits screen. I like the style that you've got there.

terraco

28. Apr 2014 · 23:29 UTC

Boxes!

adamwoolridge

28. Apr 2014 · 23:31 UTC

Lovely art style, awesome death explosion! Too tough for me though!

Seraphic Media

28. Apr 2014 · 23:36 UTC

Haha YES explosions were awesome! I couldn't get past level 2 :'( might have to come back and try later... Way to get this up on Ludumdare this year. It's our first year too.

benmcnelly

28. Apr 2014 · 23:37 UTC

This is my favorite so far, love the feel!

jtpup0

29. Apr 2014 · 03:28 UTC

Nice game, I suppose learning game design deeper could be the beneath the surface theme

zanenga

29. Apr 2014 · 06:37 UTC

Simple, but fun. Like it!

tomvert

29. Apr 2014 · 11:58 UTC

Nice job for a first entry, you should keep it up and try agin next time :)

Crabman

29. Apr 2014 · 12:11 UTC

Just say the levels are underground, that's all the justification you need. ;D

ArcturusDeluxe

29. Apr 2014 · 17:05 UTC

Nice graphics. The levels reminded me of Portal a bit? A fairly well polished game, with some cool graphic effects, and decent gameplay, gets quite tricky in parts.

danidre14

29. Apr 2014 · 19:06 UTC

Kind of lags, the movement I mean. But otherwise I like it.

howieV (binarygirl)

29. Apr 2014 · 20:25 UTC

great gfx ..solid entry :)

mechabit

29. Apr 2014 · 20:29 UTC

Good effort getting something in, a lot of people don't even get that far so don't beat yourself up too much. Tricky levels and decent layout. Nice clean graphics, the black band on the guy reminds me of a thief lol

icereci

29. Apr 2014 · 20:33 UTC

art style is very nice.

IAmSpencer

29. Apr 2014 · 22:11 UTC

hard but very fun. the explosion was sweet, congrats on your first ludum dare, you did a really good job :)

HybridMind

30. Apr 2014 · 00:12 UTC

My favorite part was the player death explosions. Almost made me want to kill myself again and again just to see them! :D As you mentioned, pretty light on the theme, but seems like you had you goals for the competition and worked towards accomplishing them. Looks good and is fun to play.

Slashee the Cow

30. Apr 2014 · 00:58 UTC

I wanted MORE!!!! which is always a good sign. Graphics are really good (with a death effect like that, you totally need a Super Meat Boy style montage of all your attempts at a level after each level) and difficulty is spot on.

It's a little quiet though. The sound there is good, but it isn't enough.
Still, pleeeeeease add more levels post-compo.

grozamorei

30. Apr 2014 · 05:21 UTC

i liked death effect, enjoyed to die.

all in all great entry, but you really need to work with sealing materal - it does not bounce you back when you hit it, though it feels like it should.

keep up great job!

EpiphanyG

30. Apr 2014 · 06:04 UTC

I really like this game! The effects when you die or when you destroy stuff is really good. I also love the "Yeah" that flies out of the star when you win the level.

Really nice platformer, I'd actually like to see you develop it further as I think it has potential.

PaperBlurt

30. Apr 2014 · 07:22 UTC

The theme isn't everything I feel.
This is a good first Ludum Dare game!

samooJAM

30. Apr 2014 · 10:27 UTC

One hit kill mechanism is too brutal because the player is not fast as they are in other this kind of platformers. It leads quickly to frustration because it's a slow process to try again e.g. one tricky jump. Or you could add a health bar and keep the velocity as it is.
As a first ld game it's good job! Keep up learning. Looking forward to your next ld game.

KuGrou

30. Apr 2014 · 19:39 UTC

Really liked the death effects and lighting. I also like the level design. Movement doesn't feel as tight as I would like, but it is a good start.

Almost

30. Apr 2014 · 22:58 UTC

It would have been nice to allow W to jump as well as space, but thats pretty minor. The game is ok, the cube explosions feel pretty satisfying.

mcapraro

30. Apr 2014 · 23:40 UTC

congrats on entering LD. wow, your game is actually pretty awesome and you have all the elements in there and its pretty fun, and looks great too! i'd say you have a pretty deep understanding of games already! keep up the good work!

Bashosha

30. Apr 2014 · 23:59 UTC

Nice one keep going :)

vilya

01. May 2014 · 00:11 UTC

Great graphics, like that look a lot. The gameplay is tricky, but a good challenge. Some music would be a great addition.

DavidErosa

01. May 2014 · 14:17 UTC

Too hard for me, but a nice game :)

PapyGaragos

01. May 2014 · 15:44 UTC

Hey congrats on your first LD! It's nice to know your own limits and to have the willpower to rethink what you are doing.

You were still able to bring some content to the table, that is impressive

bentog

02. May 2014 · 00:30 UTC

Fun game, the visual effects added a lot overall. Congrats!

jadams

03. May 2014 · 16:29 UTC

Really enjoyed the graphical style and seeing lots of small things done well. I was disappointed when it ended. Nice work.

Tuism

04. May 2014 · 10:22 UTC

Really nicely juiced game, well designed levels, there's not much to it but what's there's quality :)

pinkmonkeyhead

04. May 2014 · 16:21 UTC

Graphics are amazing