Geometer's Folly by SpareWizard

[raw]
made by SpareWizard for LD35 (JAM)
POSTJAM IS OUT, READ BELOW

Left click - inscribe shape
Right click - dimension shift
WASD / Arrow keys - move
R - Cancel current spell
Tab / F1 - Show/hide spellbook

The other wizards graduated at the Zanzar University for Higher Magical Learning with more common majors: Pyromancer, Conjurer, Diviner, etc. You were undecided, and eventually circumstances pushed you into the study of arcane geometry. Now you are - the Geometer.

As a Geometer, you have two spells - Inscribe, to place a node that is part of a magical shape, and Teleport, to shift about the field quickly.

SPELLCASTING TIPS

- Spell quality is based on shape accuracy and size
- The centre of the points is calculated, then the standard deviations of distance and angular separation are measured
- The larger the spell, the easier it will be to gauge where to put the next node, and the less effect errors will have
- If any of size, angle, or distance attributes are too poor, the spell will fail
- The view is isometric, but don't take this into account when casting spells

POSTJAM EDITION

- More spells have effects
- Changed graphics for Fissure
- Added sound effects
- Enemies now attack
- Added menu with help and level customization

The postjam adds a significant amount of content (where the jam version had next to none), so be sure to play both, but base ratings on the jam version, please!

Credits
Developed by Sean Gilhuly

Additional Credits
Tiles - http://opengameart.org/content/dawnblocker
Music - Digial Clouds - Eric Matyas (www.soundimage.org)

Tools
Sound - sfxr, Audacity
Graphics - Gimp
Engine - Game Maker Studio

Ratings

Coolness 73% 3
Overall(Jam) 2.94 827
Fun(Jam) 2.68 876
Graphics(Jam) 3.00 740
Humor(Jam) 2.69 404
Innovation(Jam) 3.69 135
Mood(Jam) 3.06 579
Theme(Jam) 3.14 684

Feedback

HolyBlackCat
19. Apr 2016 · 12:24 UTC
Background space is great!
I like the idea. It's nice how game detects how good your spell was.
It's sad that it is unfinished.
Beard
19. Apr 2016 · 12:30 UTC
I like the unique mechanic for casting spells. This is an interesting twist. With a little polish this could be a really fun game expanded into a full RPG.
virtual_void
19. Apr 2016 · 12:52 UTC
Would've loved to see it finished!
bigmangames
19. Apr 2016 · 15:08 UTC
Cool look and cool mechanic, would be interested in seeing a full game.
Khaoz_Fang
19. Apr 2016 · 15:14 UTC
The way to cast spells is very interesting.
Berserker_Chris
19. Apr 2016 · 16:02 UTC
Cool machanics, a goal or something would be nice
Penthaquill
19. Apr 2016 · 21:00 UTC
10/10
Sean
19. Apr 2016 · 22:38 UTC
Interesting mechanic. It'd be neat to see what it looks like in a full game.

P.S. I got a "failed on size" error whenever I tried to do the octagon spell.
Pontifex
20. Apr 2016 · 16:10 UTC
Cool idea, but currently difficult to say anything more.
Ironhead
21. Apr 2016 · 05:17 UTC
I agree with everyone else. Looks cool, would love to see more.
Rock Eaters
01. May 2016 · 20:20 UTC
nice gameplay mechanics, we want more
abuzreq
03. May 2016 · 21:28 UTC
I loved the story.
The idea of drawing the shapes on the ground and that every shape represent a spell were great.
The game could have been more "active" though
like more active enemies , more destructive and visually cool spells and a level designed to aid this
the right click teleport although cool , didn't fit much in my opinion and found it unnecessary

The game has good potential but requires better using the game mechanic.
abuzreq
03. May 2016 · 21:33 UTC
Ok,just played the post compo version and that was almost exactly what I had in mind.
The game is still a bit hard , I rarely had time\space for anything more than a square or a diamond.
abcdef65g
05. May 2016 · 08:27 UTC
Postjam version is pretty cool. The enemies attacking make it feel more like a real game (would be nice to have more than one type of attack coming your way though), but they also highlight a key issue: while drawing shapes for spells is fun, it's really hard to do while you're getting attacked, meaning you basically have to spam the easier spells like firestorm or the blast one (which is impossible to aim XD). Some games with similar ideas tend to stop time while you're drawing, and now I can sort of understand why.

All in all though, the game is fun and the idea is fresh. I could definitely see a whole RPG game centered on this mechanic. The drawing became a little buggy when you draw near the edges of the screen though, as well as when you move. Still, the drawing algorithm is very good, and I really like how it can affect the spell power in case the drawing was lacking. Awesome job!
Septi
05. May 2016 · 15:03 UTC
The idea is really great. And the spellcasting mechanic appears to work quite well, though I never managed the octagon spell in the postjam version. I would love to see a game like this finished, and have you thought about multiplayer? :)
yuigoto
06. May 2016 · 04:12 UTC
Loved the graphics style and the overall mood of the game!

Being able to spellcast by drawing points is really fun and interesting. Controls work nicely, but sometimes mouse position feels weird, probably GM stuff.

Backstory is really great and you have some nice potential in here! Keep working! ;)

Congrats! :)