Day of the Vampire by drilltail

[raw]
made by drilltail for LD27 (COMPO)
A game of platforming and patience.

In this world, a day lasts only ten seconds. This is kind of a big deal, since, after all, you're a vampire. Using your trusty shovel to stay underground, overcome various challenges without exposing yourself to the sun's fatal rays!

Controls: They're explained as you play. But, if you must know now, or if you forget:
- Move: Arrow keys. Press up to jump; hold it to jump higher.
- Dig: Hold Z while walking into dirt. You have to find a shovel, first.
- Suicide: K. Use this if you somehow get trapped.

Made with Flixel. I used Bfxr for the sounds.

Ratings

Coolness 82% 2
Overall 3.99 26
Audio 2.69 479
Fun 3.90 28
Graphics 3.65 165
Humor 2.81 260
Innovation 3.99 37
Mood 3.36 160
Theme 4.10 17

Feedback

Kortuga
26. Aug 2013 · 03:14 UTC
Super cool game. Nice execution on a great idea.
Latency
26. Aug 2013 · 03:16 UTC
Really like the sprites, and really clever use of the theme, loved the game :)
greysphere
26. Aug 2013 · 03:16 UTC
This was really fun!
Taylor
26. Aug 2013 · 03:16 UTC
I really like this one! It was fun, and it was really clever with the whole day and night. I was kind of skeptical about the digging mechanic, but that made sense too! well done.
bugninja
26. Aug 2013 · 03:16 UTC
Really fun, really interesting. Love the theme, the concept, the surprises (digging). Thank goodness for checkpoints, I kept forgetting what I was doing and would run out into daylight like an idiot! :o Great game.
TheBlueRage
26. Aug 2013 · 03:18 UTC
This was a ton of fun, nice job! Lots and lots of stars all around ;)

The only thing that could have made it 100% perfectly awesome is some sweet vampire/cartoon/time-intense music.

Yup. Awesome game. Love the mechanics. Cheers!
Zuige
26. Aug 2013 · 03:19 UTC
Just brilliant! Absolutely one of my favourites! Well executed platformer. I see this isn't your first ;)
OldPeculier
26. Aug 2013 · 03:20 UTC
The funnest game I've played so far. Awesome job!
JAH2488
26. Aug 2013 · 05:32 UTC
Awesome. Very well put together little game. I really liked the digging mechanic.
lambda_express
26. Aug 2013 · 05:33 UTC
Most fun so far. I haven't pressed down so much in a platformer since Rastan.
Deadlyapps
26. Aug 2013 · 05:36 UTC
Fun and Entertaining
Lancey
26. Aug 2013 · 05:36 UTC
Great idea and well made too!
Colorvade
26. Aug 2013 · 05:37 UTC
A cool concept done well. Nice job.
AmyDee
26. Aug 2013 · 07:29 UTC
That was a really enjoyable quick experience! The precision digging and timing challenges toward the end had just the right balance of challenge vs. pure panic.
skarab
26. Aug 2013 · 13:20 UTC
Nice one! Looks really polished.
aquilicoco
26. Aug 2013 · 13:37 UTC
Good job!
Crowbeak
26. Aug 2013 · 13:40 UTC
This was rather harder than I expected. Are you sure a day is ten seconds long? I feel like the seconds are a little short. Your vampire is gorgeous, though.
Jan Marcano
26. Aug 2013 · 13:58 UTC
Really good game, the level of polish is great.
Loved the vampire art!
recursor
26. Aug 2013 · 14:56 UTC
Nice game with a pretty fun 10 second game mechanic.
🎤 drilltail
26. Aug 2013 · 18:36 UTC
Thanks for all the nice comments! I'm glad people have fun with the game.

"Are you sure a day is ten seconds long? I feel like the seconds are a little short."

Man, you just have to make me paranoid! You made me realize that I never actually tested if the timing really is accurate.

And you're right. I let it run over a long time and took the average. A day lasts just slightly less than 10 seconds. That might be heresy, but I think it's close enough! Sunset and sunrise may give the illusion that it's worse, though: the first half of sunset and the second half of sunrise are considered daytime, while their other halves are nighttime, even though the lighting is about the same.
SaintHeiser
27. Aug 2013 · 03:21 UTC
Good gameplay idea =)
Can't understand what about 10 seconds but digging so fun, hah!
nathanhoffer
27. Aug 2013 · 04:35 UTC
Great job! Fun. Simple. Straight forward. I really love the art too!
leafo
27. Aug 2013 · 06:14 UTC
cool game, cool idea
boddiul
27. Aug 2013 · 19:19 UTC
The best game I have seen at Ludum Dare so far
All 5/5
alangamebot
27. Aug 2013 · 19:22 UTC
Easily one of my favorites so far. Super fun.
flavio
27. Aug 2013 · 22:29 UTC
Very nice concept !
Very nice mecanics and gameplay ! Great use of the theme
Well done ! :)
01010111
28. Aug 2013 · 03:04 UTC
Wow! One of my favorites! This is such a beautifully made game, amazing idea, fits the theme very well, well-crafted levels, adorable sprite, it's just all very well done!
tompudding
28. Aug 2013 · 08:09 UTC
Great mechanic that fits the theme really well and really fun to play. The last part of the the last level took me a few tries so I was really pleased when I finally got it. I think music would have been especially nice since it could have been an additional indicator of the time of day
nddrylliog
28. Aug 2013 · 19:41 UTC
The original mechanic was incredibly well done. I particularly loved emergent level design (E.g. shovelling your way up). Really nice game, keep them coming!
Mironix
28. Aug 2013 · 22:03 UTC
adore this game :D a mole vampire! thanks for making this possible.
LD_LAN_Party
29. Aug 2013 · 00:36 UTC
The first time I touched a coffin the sound scared me so bad some poo came out. My definite favorite so far. Love everything about it. Nice work!
zillix
29. Aug 2013 · 02:58 UTC
really cool idea! loved the day/night cycle, and the digging controls were fantastic- it felt amazing to jump through dirt. great job!
Jimanzium
29. Aug 2013 · 10:15 UTC
Very smooth looking day/night cycle
ratalaika
29. Aug 2013 · 17:22 UTC
good job
Crazi456
29. Aug 2013 · 21:36 UTC
Really cool mechanics. Great use of the 10 second theme! Wish there was some music.
BradleySmith
29. Aug 2013 · 23:43 UTC
This is amazing, I rated this very highly. Awesome gameplay mechanic, digging is quite satisfying and a really interesting take on the theme. :) Awesome work!
acro
01. Sep 2013 · 01:04 UTC
You had me at "you're a vampire" - then the game won all my affection with the fast-beat running animation, and the digging mechanic feels so fast and fluid! Great execution of the ten seconds theme, a decent challenge all the way through, and especially in level 3. There's a great deal of game mechanics as well considering the 48h limit. Nice one!
Hayawi
01. Sep 2013 · 02:29 UTC
very nice game.the label on the top (daytime & nighttime)was very helpful.
siat
01. Sep 2013 · 03:16 UTC
I am in awe that you managed to do this in 48 hours. Such a nice game! Fun mechanic, interesting theme.
CosmicAdventureSquad
01. Sep 2013 · 03:33 UTC
Great game! I beat it. I wish there was a more clear indication of how much time I had during the day/night, although I do like how you changed the sky's coloration.
Dining Philosopher
01. Sep 2013 · 09:16 UTC
Very nice game!
odeckers
01. Sep 2013 · 12:17 UTC
Fantastic
Dan
01. Sep 2013 · 13:36 UTC
This was a really good game! Good use of the theme as well!
Christina Nordlander
01. Sep 2013 · 13:50 UTC
This is very good. Pretty original set-up, good graphics, and generally very enjoyable and appropriate to the theme. I like the seamless day/night transition (great use of colour) and the sparkly effects.

Fiendishly difficult towards the end, but not aggravatingly so.

My one nitpick is that the checkpoint sound effect is a bit loud compared to the rest of the sound. But heck, that's one small nitpick for an otherwise great game.

Love the title, too.
mrspeaker
01. Sep 2013 · 14:22 UTC
My favourite so far - I played it for aaaages. Such a great idea... at the start I thought "errrgh, 10 second day/night... I'm just going to be sitting around waiting for night". Then the SHOVEL! Genius. My only complaint is the jump seems to be a tinnnny bit finicky - sometimes you press up, but don't jump. Devastating if you're trying to jump over an infinite hole ;)
Integershift
01. Sep 2013 · 15:51 UTC
Very challenging game!
I liked it!
Zccc
01. Sep 2013 · 15:54 UTC
Great and fun idea :)
manuq
01. Sep 2013 · 16:37 UTC
Hehe, nice! I loved digging the terrain, and the way you showed if it is daytime or not through small windows. The background transition was a bit overkill for my small netbook. Good game!
The Evil Cult
01. Sep 2013 · 17:57 UTC
Nice little game. At first I thought it was a bit basic but the third level was really fun to play through. Liked the little character and thought this was pretty good all round. Would like to see some more abilities for the character (perhaps a double jump to use those wings for), and maybe a bit more polish but other than that this was very enjoyable, and very nice work for the 48 hours. Good work.
Brejlounek
01. Sep 2013 · 18:27 UTC
"If you wolk in daylike, you die. So, don't." Great idea, fun game! Great level desing, original opponent. Could have some music... But who cares. Enjoyed it :)
Yakka
01. Sep 2013 · 18:32 UTC
Good idea, good execution! Camera effects are quite anoying for my eyes, but I think thats just me *_*
Zer0Kelvin
01. Sep 2013 · 20:36 UTC
I love this game! Great concept, well executed. Day/night thing was fun and pretty challenging without being annoying. Awesome.
Christina Antoinette Neofotistou
01. Sep 2013 · 22:30 UTC
Fantastic idea, fantastic execution, top marks for fun! Jumping is a *tiny* bit unresponsive, and I died a few times on level 2 just before the checkpoint.

But an amazing entry nonetheless, congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
murilo
01. Sep 2013 · 23:52 UTC
Great idea! The most fun I've had so far I think on LD27. The art, sound and controls are great too!
Jacob123
02. Sep 2013 · 01:03 UTC
Fun platformer. Although the gameplay and levels were a little repetitive. At least the last level spiced things up a bit.
matthias_zarzecki
04. Sep 2013 · 17:01 UTC
Nice idea! love the "inconvenient" line
Cryovat
04. Sep 2013 · 18:19 UTC
Oh god, the line is coming!!!

I liked the game a lot. The mechanics are interesting and the levels seemed to be the perfect length to explore them. And the vampire is cute. :3

Your use of the theme worked well. If anything, I'd have wished for a clearer indication of when the times were about to flip. Like an hourglass, progress bar or similar. I was quickly able to learn the timing well enough to exploit it though.

Minor niggle aside, excellent game, great job!
MrBlade
15. Sep 2013 · 03:39 UTC
Nice work. Polished graphics, good sounds. Solid concept! I would hate to be the vampire though. 8/10.