Short Life in a Box by tequibo

[raw]
made by tequibo for LD23 (COMPO)
Do not judge post-compo version, please. It's super-polished compared to original entry.

+/- to change mouse sensitivity

First person mini-metroidvania with fireballs, jetpack and such. About life in a box. There is secrets to find.

I did not managed to add any interesting content-wise to find, work on graphics and level design more. But, hey, not many people can say that they did everything they planned during compo. I'm not one of those people.

Update: Added option to change mouse sensitivity by pressing "+" and "-" keys. And, removed power-ups for debugging, and, moved another power up I forgot to move. Hope it's ok, and not a horrible cheating.

Made with Unity + monodevelop, paint.net, and bfxr + audacity.
6th secret spoiler http://minus.com/mMAYVeGmu/1f

Ratings

Coolness 100% 1
Overall 2.95 434
Audio 2.11 576
Fun 2.73 474
Graphics 2.81 472
Humor 1.65 706
Innovation 2.51 636
Mood 2.78 358
Theme 2.68 595

Feedback

Andrew
23. Apr 2012 路 09:02 UTC
The mouse sensitivity seems rather off. Made it hard aimiing myself down corridors and jumping and the like.
brianshaler
23. Apr 2012 路 09:16 UTC
Agreed about the mouse sensitivity. It also seems rather slow and spread out. And as a newcomer, it's hard to figure out where you are, where you've been before, and where you still need to look, because it all looks about the same and you have to check every corner of every room to see if there's a hidden passageway. I was eventually able to shoot, and while shooting looked cool, I didn't have much reason to shoot..
馃帳 tequibo
23. Apr 2012 路 09:47 UTC
Thanks for feedback!
Added option to change mouse sensitivity, and changed quality settings - as it turns out unity sets quality to fast by default, so powerup icons were unreadable.
You shoot dark blocks to destroy them and access new places.
the8donut
23. Apr 2012 路 10:19 UTC
The idea of exploring a box and finding secrets is nice, unfortunately the game is quite hard to control.
Ishisoft
23. Apr 2012 路 10:34 UTC
Rather enjoyed this. I liked how the jump unlocked more of the environment - but I then found a massive stash of items that gave me all the abilities. I assume they weren't meant to be there?

Regardless I had fun exploring the rest of the world, and got all 6 secrets. :)
馃帳 tequibo
23. Apr 2012 路 10:50 UTC
Oh, silly me, I forgot to upload updated windows build with mouse sensitivity settings and without power-ups for testing.
Thanks for feedback:)
Law
23. Apr 2012 路 11:08 UTC
The mouse sensitivity options seem to only apply to the vertical axis, though that might just be me. I enjoyed the exploration, though I wasn't really used to the walking speed while you leap and shoot. Still personal opinion.

Despite this being quite an empty world, I enjoyed my time in it. I can see a lot coming from this.
馃帳 tequibo
23. Apr 2012 路 12:38 UTC
Thanks, Law!
Fixed bug with vertical axis not changing sensitivity.
unicornpooping
23. Apr 2012 路 12:56 UTC
Waaaaaay too hard to control. That's the only complaint I have. And i'm not even talking about the the sensitivity. Yes that stinks, but i can't move like i normally would in a first person shooter. I'm going to try this one again later though.
davidllanos22
23. Apr 2012 路 13:13 UTC
So hard to control, it's almost unplayable, sorry. btw i love the simplistic graphics, well done :)
馃帳 tequibo
23. Apr 2012 路 13:15 UTC
Damn, with last fix I have broke controls for walking.
Should work now.
Endurion
23. Apr 2012 路 13:31 UTC
Neat!
Quite a bit of clipping problems, but plays nicely. I only managed to find 5 secrets.
robbiehunt
23. Apr 2012 路 13:41 UTC
For what I played, it was nice. Good sound, good animation, good atmosphere. Exploring secrets in a box is a good interpretation of the theme.

Yeah, the controls were difficult, but I somehow attributed that to what life was like in the box.

Not bad, but definitely needed to be taken farther though.
馃帳 tequibo
23. Apr 2012 路 16:09 UTC
@Endurion, @robbiehunt Thanks, glad you liked it!
nuprahtor
23. Apr 2012 路 17:42 UTC
Really liked it.
小薪邪褔邪谢邪 薪懈褔械谐芯 薪械 锌芯薪褟谢 - 薪械 屑芯谐 锌褉褘谐邪褌褜. 袟邪褌械屑 褋谢褍褔邪泄薪芯 薪邪褕械谢 褝褌褍 褋锌芯褋芯斜薪芯褋褌褜 - 懈 薪邪褔邪谢芯褋褜 胁械褋械谢褜械!
馃帳 tequibo
23. Apr 2012 路 18:08 UTC
@nuprahtor
Thanks!
Pohoje, sait ne vosprinimaet kirilicu, no ya rashifroval cherez dekoder.
nuprahtor
23. Apr 2012 路 18:36 UTC
Oh, no Russian words for us :c
Also, Unity really has some issues with mouse sensitivity. On my PC and laptop everything is ok, but there alway will be an user(s) with problems with mouse sensitivity.
馃帳 tequibo
23. Apr 2012 路 18:59 UTC
Probably, it's just users have different system settings for mouse sensitivity, so it is best to include an option to tune it for first person games.
brodavi
24. Apr 2012 路 10:15 UTC
Looks cool, but there's no unity web player for linux. sorry :(
brus46
24. Apr 2012 路 11:00 UTC
I testes on linux with wine, it works but the mouse is just crazy. The environment is kinda crazy, i was getting an headache after a few minuts of exploring. Btw good job!
DoktorAce
24. Apr 2012 路 11:02 UTC
I could only rotate to the right, and it made it really hard.
Orni
24. Apr 2012 路 11:09 UTC
I like it - the graphics are very minimalistic yet charming
I especially liked the black fade-fog , jumoing over those high platforms while the world turns black under one's feet is quite cool
piterlouis
24. Apr 2012 路 11:15 UTC
I like the game, the concept and the visual aspect. In my PC the controls are ok, no problems, good responsive. Well done!
chinchang
24. Apr 2012 路 18:58 UTC
dat was one scary place :| nice atmosphere created. I couldn't jump though.
馃帳 tequibo
24. Apr 2012 路 19:38 UTC
@brus46 uh, sorry to hear that, I haven't put much time to level design.
@DoktorAce this is weird, have no idea what could case this
@Orni, @piterlouis Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
@chinchang Thanks! You need to find power-up to jump, and then there other abilities to find.
Arkazon
24. Apr 2012 路 19:49 UTC
Nicely done, I like that each new power up allows you to access more areas.

I thought it was broken at first though when the controls said press space to jump and click to fire, neither of which were doing anything! Figured it out though when I found that first powerup.
bms
24. Apr 2012 路 20:21 UTC
I love the simplistic graphics and gameplay is quite mysterious & fun. good job!
Gabriel
24. Apr 2012 路 23:29 UTC
Love it! Very interesting interpretation of the theme and great mood. I liked the rhythm per which you get new powers. One thing I'm not sure if was on purpose or not, but which worked well, was the complete lack of instructions - learning what to do next, from beginning to end, happens very organically! Congrats, nice entry!
netmute
25. Apr 2012 路 11:26 UTC
This game had a great feel of exploration to it. Some sort of map would have been nice, I was never really sure were I already had been.
Doesn't really fit the theme thought, the world is massive ;)
dukope
25. Apr 2012 路 11:31 UTC
Really impressed with how interesting it was to play even with such basic visuals. The progression, discovery, and opening-up as you gain new abilities was perfect.
blob
25. Apr 2012 路 23:04 UTC
Was fun ! Only got 2 secrets.
Had no issue with controls. Only thing is it took me forever to realize I had gotten the double jump at some point... And is the fireball used ?

Reminded me of good old 3D games like jumping jack flash.
Pierrec
26. Apr 2012 路 10:32 UTC
This world seems so small at the beginning and so huge in the end...that's a great feeling. I love the colors too!
馃帳 tequibo
26. Apr 2012 路 14:06 UTC
@Arkazon, @bms, @Gabriel, @netmute, @dukope, @blob, @Pierrec Thanks a lot!
@blob fireball is used to destroy dark blocks.
I will make it more obvious what power-ups do in post-compo version I'm working on.
evilseanbot
27. Apr 2012 路 02:00 UTC
3d metroidvania, quite ambitious for 48 hours!

I appreciated the unusual colors and lack of brown.

I started out using the arrow keys, but jumping with the space bar + arrow keys hurt my hand after awhile. I think you'd be best off including an arrow-key friendly jump button or disabling them altogether in order to not start players on the wrong foot (or wrong hand)
馃帳 tequibo
27. Apr 2012 路 07:36 UTC
@evilseanbot Thanks!
I will remember to do something about it for post compo version (and further games). Probably by adding an option to customize keys for player's liking.
cjke.7777
28. Apr 2012 路 09:40 UTC
Actually really fun - it ran silky smooth on my setup
Moth
28. Apr 2012 路 09:40 UTC
I must agree with Chinchang and say that this environment was quite eerie! The absolute tranquility of it, save for the player's own foot-steps, made it feel like I was being set up for the world's most effective jump scare ever (if you cashed in on this you would make something way more jarring than even the mythical '"maze game").

The nice chunky graphics were cool and I loved the projectile's particle effect. Does strafe-jumping help you go further? Because I strafe-jumped off of a few blocks before I got the double jump and jetpack and made some fairly gnarly jumps that I felt I could only pull off with strafe-jumping.

Anyway it's really cool, love it! I'd also agree with the sentiment that it would be very cool to see this extended into a longer experience!
Tifu
28. Apr 2012 路 14:48 UTC
You can get on top of the maze with just the single jump upgrade, get into that little space with the [?] box, and end up trapped forever :P
Enjoyable game! Couldn't find all the secrets, but had fun trying =D
馃帳 tequibo
30. Apr 2012 路 10:31 UTC
@cjke.7777 Thanks!
@Moth Thanks, glad you liked it! I will look at strafe jumping for post compo version I'm working on.
@Tifu Thank you. There is a fake wall near this secret, it have no collision box, which is of course is not clear for player, but I was in a rush, so I left it like that, hoping that player will try to jump from there and discover this:)
matthias_zarzecki
30. Apr 2012 路 12:06 UTC
Fun little puzzler!
AdventureIslands
30. Apr 2012 路 12:41 UTC
Nice, runs really smoothly. There could have been bit more details in the walls and such because especially in the beginning you are just running in empty copy paste halls. Also I got stuck soon after getting the jump because I couldn't jump out of the hole one of the secret boxes was hidden in. Nice job with the game though.
vigrid
30. Apr 2012 路 19:30 UTC
Hint: whenever you do a FPS game, put in an "Invert Mouse" option. I'm a guy raised on flight simulators, and this has affected how my brain works in FPS games :). The textures were really misleading, I couldn't really "feel" where I was.
Fireblend
01. May 2012 路 02:14 UTC
Interesting stylistic choice; the sounds got a bit repetitive and made me turn the volume down, honestly. Nonetheless I enjoyed it and made it to the end :D
wademcgillis
01. May 2012 路 16:48 UTC
I was only able to find five secrets. Then I jumped out of world.

Fun little game.
AlwaysGeeky
01. May 2012 路 19:21 UTC
Interesting concept, I took a while to get used to the controls though, but it was still great fun! :)
馃帳 tequibo
01. May 2012 路 21:54 UTC
Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

vigrid, will remember to include this option:)

wademcgillis, I hid six one too well, as I realized after submission, it's outside the box, near the spawn.
chambers
02. May 2012 路 02:07 UTC
I liked the simple art style a lot. I wish the game was a little longer though, suddenly there was nothing new to explore in the game world, except for finding the 6th secret (which I tried hard but couldn't do). But that's alright for a 48-hour game, I guess =P Anyway, I had fun!
orgarus
02. May 2012 路 06:18 UTC
An immersive, engaging and fun game.
Congratulations!

PS.-I'm going to try it again :)
orgarus
02. May 2012 路 06:39 UTC
Damn! I can't find the sixth secret >:(
馃帳 tequibo
02. May 2012 路 09:35 UTC
@chambers, @orgarus Thanks, and sorry about sixth secret:)
馃帳 tequibo
02. May 2012 路 09:43 UTC
here is a spoiler for last secret http://minus.com/mMAYVeGmu/1f
orgarus
02. May 2012 路 17:41 UTC
Thank you Tequibo, but I've found these already, there's one that "avoids" me :'(
Argh!
angrygeometry
02. May 2012 路 21:04 UTC
it was kind of hard to control, and the textures hurt my eyes (probably my screen though), and sometimes i got bad fps (also my computer) but in all i enjoyed it. i love wandering 3d spaces, especially eerie/strange ones so i think you did a really nice job on this.
馃帳 tequibo
02. May 2012 路 21:45 UTC
@orgarus basically, all secrets are in the "building" game starts.

@angrygeometry Thanks for feedback! Was the problem with mouse or with movement speed? yeah, I guess I have made textures a bit too colorful, they will be more calm in post compo version.
ratboy2713
03. May 2012 路 04:10 UTC
I got stuck on one of the secrets as the jump couldn't get me out and there were no exits.
Christina Antoinette Neofotistou
03. May 2012 路 12:24 UTC
Very cool mood! It felt a little like Ultima underworld for some reason. Very claustrophobic. The controls were excellent for me. Good job!
馃帳 tequibo
03. May 2012 路 22:17 UTC
@Christina Antoinette Neofotistou
Thanks!
CireNeikual
03. May 2012 路 23:46 UTC
Nice game! It would have been nice if you were told what your objective is though :) I assume flying out of the map means I won
RobProductions
04. May 2012 路 01:21 UTC
I like the level, but a few comments as a fellow Unity user:

1. I hit escape to unlock the cursor and tried to click back in, but the cursor didn't re-lock. I recommend you put code in so that if the user loses focus (such as hitting escape) it pauses the game, and when you click while the game is paused, it re-locks and resumes the game.

2. I changed the sensitivity all the way down and came up with a negative number, I recommend making a limit to the min and max sensitivity.

Anyways those are just my picky comments! Nice job overall!
Madball
04. May 2012 路 17:11 UTC
Great game! I liked how the world becomes bigger and bigger.
spooks
04. May 2012 路 22:56 UTC
very well executed. I enjoyed it, and found the controls very polished
SidetrackGames
05. May 2012 路 01:43 UTC
Nice :)
azurenimbus
05. May 2012 路 01:50 UTC
Nice one! I'm pretty sure this is the most fun I've had on LD 23 playing a game that used 3D with Unity. It's also very smooth, unlike most of the others (thanks for adding the sensitivity control).
馃帳 tequibo
05. May 2012 路 10:50 UTC
Thanks for feedback, everyone!

@RobProductions, Thanks! This is my first unity game, I will add those things you've mentioned in next version.
Muu? (lanoiadimuu)
05. May 2012 路 16:39 UTC
Nice that every box i found added a feature, keeping it worthwile to keep searching.
Hume
06. May 2012 路 17:46 UTC
I reduced the mouse sensitivity and then my mouse axes were swapped, which was good for up/down (I always invert mouse for Y) but actually made me feel nauseous because X was backwards. I haven't had that happen with a first person game in like 10 years.

So I couldn't keep playing. Sorry.
Make A Game
06. May 2012 路 19:34 UTC
Finally someone knows how to lock the mouse to the center of the screen on a Unity game! Had fun looking for the upgrades and secrets, but only found 4. I tried to break the game by flying and falling out of the world, but I was surprised that was the way to end it. One thing that was really misleading was that the controls were on the game page, but there was no info about the upgrades. I nearly gave up playing since Space wasn't jumping.
derosa
07. May 2012 路 01:50 UTC
Liked it but I was a bit frustrated at the beginning because I was trying to jump but couldn't :) Thanks!
Datamosh
07. May 2012 路 13:21 UTC
Maybe the controls have some issues (as other users said, mouse speed, etc.). But despise that, I like the idea! Love "metroidvania" games and yours is good. I hope to see more of it!
bombom
08. May 2012 路 09:50 UTC
Cute textures and colors! Steps sound is also awesome!
AleksandarDev
08. May 2012 路 14:18 UTC
I love it!
馃帳 tequibo
08. May 2012 路 17:01 UTC
Thanks, everyone!
I have released post-compo version.
http://tequibo.com/games/box-life/
RobProductions
08. May 2012 路 21:49 UTC
Wow you did an amazing job with the post-compo version! Nice to see it evolve!
馃帳 tequibo
09. May 2012 路 12:41 UTC
@RobProductions Thanks!
R茅mi
09. May 2012 路 19:24 UTC
Great atmosphere!
馃帳 tequibo
10. May 2012 路 12:22 UTC
@R茅mi, Thanks!
ilo
10. May 2012 路 21:42 UTC
What I liked most about this was how organically it flowed from one power-up to the next, without having to tell me what, why, how, etc. And by the end, I knew exactly what I had to do to complete the game. Also cool was how a new perspective of the environment opens up after you gain the first jump power-up.
KevinWorkman
12. May 2012 路 04:46 UTC
I get an error saying the connection timed out when I try to play the web version.
Drabiter
12. May 2012 路 13:48 UTC
Thanks for posting secrets spoiler, I really want to know ^^
Shadow
12. May 2012 路 16:57 UTC
Loved the game and the atmosphere. If the player is not going to have any ability from the start you should -however- make the encounter with the first ability painless and easy (specially when it's hard to tell where the floor or the walls end). I was about to quit the game when I discovered the "way". Anyway, great entry, quite solid. Congratulations
ghRibacki
13. May 2012 路 17:38 UTC
Nice game! Only thing I didn't like too much was the walls' textures, it's very easy to get lost because they're all the same. Good work nonetheless! =)
Jhelle
13. May 2012 路 21:54 UTC
Looks fun, sadly I cannot download it cause your site is down :(