EDIT: I updated the page, this comment is now void! Thanks for the responses!!!

Hey, there was a bug where the game would be unbeatable past the second level that for some reason only appeared when we created a game build. The online version is updated and should be working now, and here's an updated download link (I'm afraid to edit the game page in case if it disqualifies us from round voting)

Windows Download Link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/hq9fm4cw76ra3rg/AngeryShipsOnly.exe?dl=0

I had fun finding the best strategy for this game.I noticed that if a piece of armor is destroyed, all the subsequent pieces are destroyed as well. This cause a few of my designs to be destroyed almost instantly due to weak points. When you place a new piece bordering two other pieces, you can't always tell which piece it connected to. The solution: Make armor blocks in a branching fashion to make sure they will always be destroyed one at a time when they get hit, and put thrusters and weapons in the holes. I got frustrated and quit the game when I realized I had reached a level where your ship gets immediately surrounded when it spawns.

Being able to spawn multiple copies of your ship is SUPER COOL.

I'm genuinely impressed that you guys made a ship construction interface in just a few days.


p.s. Editing the game page shouldn't disqualify you, go right ahead...

Very original idea I like it, graphics fit into it, but I prefer more ship blocks :)

Could you provide source code ? (I know it's not in rules), but I am very curiours how you managed and handle the block system :) I will be happy that I can see how works it, If you want keep it in private send it to email vladimir@mudwars.io Thank you again :))

@hadik Thanks for the feedback!

At the moment I'm using school wifi which means if I try to upload our Unity Project, the school day will end before the upload is complete. As soon as I get home I'll upload it, post it on the page and let you know!

As for the block system, we decided to use Unity's "Parent-Child" System. Each block is a child of another block, with the top parent being the core. In the editor, when you place a block, the block is assigned as a child to whatever block is next to it. When a block is destroyed, all of its children are also destroyed. Since a block can only have one child, this created a problem in our game where there were random weaknesses (that's why some parts of the ship are really really weak since they are a parent of a long chain of children).

This was fixed by each block storing a list of "parent" blocks which shortens each time a parent block is deleted, and the block only gets demolished when there are no more parents in that list. The problem didn't completely go away after doing this, but it reduced its effects.

Because we're using Unity's "Parent-Child" system, each child holds a position and rotation relative to the parent (which is why the blocks stick together).

Hope that answers your question! I'll post the source code 7-9 hours from now.

This was a fun experience for sure. A few critiques I have on it though - It felt like the UI was lacking and was basically impossible to figure out without viewing the tutorial. Once I figured out how to add parts, I got past the first level fairly easily. On the second level, though, I tried a few various configurations and just got absolutely destroyed every time... like not even getting remotely close. It felt like the difficulty curve between the first level and the second level was just massive. Overall though, it was really fun, and was well executed. If you plan to enhance this further, perhaps adding something interact-able during the combat phase would be a fun thing to add to give some interaction during that?

@doomshmuck
Thanks for the kind words but more importantly for the critique! If we had time we definitely should have sort of built the tutorial into the first level itself, that would have made it quite a lot easier for the user. As for the difficulty curve you're definitely right that it spikes from 1 to 2, we wanted to have a good amount of challenging levels in the limited amount of levels that we had, in hindsight we definitely could have added more with relative ease. Not sure if you thought it was unbeatable or something but I can assure that the game is beatable with several different tactics. Once again thanks for the critique and enjoy the rest of LD38!

This game was a lot of fun to play, and I really think you accomplished something special here. I'd love to see a post jam version, my only complaint is I don't think you hit the theme very well. Everything else was awesome!

Fun game! I like how you just build the ships, but don't pilot them. Usually you spend all this time constructing stuff, but if you're not good at shooters you fail anyway. This is way more fun for me!

As for overall presentation, it's really unpolished (standard unity skybox and gui) and the graphics aren't great either, but the gameplay is a lot of fun!

I spent more time playing this than most other LD games, trying to come up with more efficient designs. I gave up on I think the 3rd wave. I feel like I'm missing a strategy, but I enjoyed playing it anyway. I would have liked it if your design stuck around in between tries. Good job!

Maybe it's my browser but I experienced a couple bugs with buying parts and stuff but for the most part it worked. I love playing these kinds of games where I can just sit back and relax and not have to worry about scores or kills or anything like that. Would love if you polished it more cause I can actually see myself playing this if it were a full game. Has that FTL feel to it (and these kind of games aren't usually my first pick either). Keep it up!

Okay, right out of the gate, the 'Next' button for the tutorial is in the middle-left?! I'm a pretty open-minded guy, but... Yeah, WTF?

I love the base concept. I'm a sucker for indirect control games, so this was right up my alley. I could see this expanded in a huge number of ways. The modular damage system in particular is a very cool idea. Couldn't crack the third wave after a bunch of tries, though. Would have like to see more slots available for ships in further waves. I assume this probably got scrapped due to time (much like the 'Available Budget' not really being a factor). LD is a harsh mistress, lol!

Oh, and, of course, shout out to the rockin' soundtrack!

Congrats on surviving your first Ludum Dare! Be proud!

This is a very cool concept. It's pretty near impossible for me (I can't build a defense system to save my life), but the music was good and the graphics were as well.
Congratulations on your first LD (it's mine too)!

Real good concept, congrats on your first LD, would lover to see you compete again in the future!

Goob game!

This was a really nice game! I actually had a lot of fun playing this. At first it was a little confusing just because it felt too good to be true to be able to build anything I wanted and actually see it operate. I like the fact that nothing is required. You could go off into the world with nothing but a ton of shields, or all boosters, or just a whole lot of bombs. It was really fun trying different combinations to try and see how much better I could do next time.

Some points of feedback: I think one thing that might help is being able to tell why I died. It's a little hard to know if it was because I didn't have enough shields, or if the lack of boosters meant my ship couldn't move to avoid enough attackers. I found myself just having to guess. Getting some more info on that would make the game more interesting. Like I can imagine there's a lot you can do with the camera that you didn't have time for, like being able to see the action up close.

I also felt like the difficulty ramped up pretty quickly. I was really enjoying it but couldn't really get past the second level. I think starting with just two basic units (booster and bullets?) and having an easy level, and going up from there, would make it feel less overwhelming and more rewarding.

I would definitely play a more complete/polished version of this! I love games that combine strategy with real-time action!

Very interesting concept and fun although I have not yet achieved to leave alive in a match. Great job!

Pretty solid entry. I like the concept that you have to build your own ships. The building menu is simple but works well. The graphics also work well with the game. Nice job!

Great concept of modular ship construction. The audio was pretty decent though perhaps the bullets could be a bit quieter (since there can be tons firing at the same time). The actual execution was also done nicely, having to balance quality and quantity, though it may help to make the "number of ships" a bit more obvious UI-wise. The main problem I had with the game was the difficulty curve as it seemed to ramp up a bit too fast. Obviously you can't expect perfect balance from a game made in several days, but just letting you know in case you want to revisit it. Finally, while the graphics were simple, they did do a nice job of making things look interesting without making them look messy. Just a suggestion, I think it would be really cool if they were actual 3D parts on the ships instead of just 2d sprites.

Me again. After two days, this is the one I keep coming back to. I understand the building and budget systems a lot more now. Still can't be level 3, lol.

Really great job. This is only the second game this LD I've replayed days later.

@ryte2byte Wow thanks so much! really glad that we made a truly fun game, good luck trying to beat it all the way through (because we know for sure that its possible ;) )

Good Job!!!!!!
Please rate my game because my ratings are under 20.
https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/38/monster-island

Cool game with a really fun and unique concept! The gameplay is simple, though I had to view the tutorial to understand what I was supposed to do, but is also challenging to find the right combination of parts and ship numbers. The graphics and sound are also both very well done. Great job!