Hello operator. by cowa

[raw]
made by cowa for LD 43 (COMPO)

A game about phone calls, propaganda, resistance and sacrifices.
Where you try to save lives without losing your job

Story

You are an operator in a call center.
Your job is to establish communication of incoming calls.

But recent events changed the country drastically...
As an operator, you have a strategic position.

But to help the Resistance against the Militia, you must not be suspected and keep your job.
And this, unfortunately, comes with sacrifices...

Controls

Everything is controlled with the mouse.

Screenshots

anim.gif

screen2.PNG

screen1.PNG

screen3.PNG

Tools

  • Godot engine
  • Inkscape
  • Gimp

Ratings

Overall 115th 3.716⭐ 39🧑‍⚖️
Fun 216th 3.338⭐ 39🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 50th 3.797⭐ 39🧑‍⚖️
Theme 298th 3.338⭐ 39🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 117th 3.757⭐ 39🧑‍⚖️
Humor 221th 2.848⭐ 35🧑‍⚖️
Mood 105th 3.595⭐ 39🧑‍⚖️
Given 48🗳️ 13🗨️

Feedback

SlizzBen
03. Dec 2018 · 15:00 UTC
Cool game, like Paper please, i like it :)
TheseusInABottle
03. Dec 2018 · 19:15 UTC
Pretty interesting. I defenatly feel like its got a papers please type gameplay loop going on. I wish there was some indicator noise for the phone ringing although I will say I would rather have no sound than an obnoxious one. I also wish it had been made clearer (for idiots like me) that the numbers on the desk where reflective of incoming calls not outgoing. I eventually figured it out but it took longer than it should have due to there being no auditory que of what I was doing.
pantoufle
03. Dec 2018 · 19:22 UTC
Cool game with a nice Papers please vibe.
Great job!
Fat cat
03. Dec 2018 · 19:22 UTC
Really cool game! But I feel as if this would have been a better fit for Making Connections instead of the sacrifice theme. At the end of the day I didn't understand that I had sacrificed people at all by hanging up on them. Still it's definitely one of the more interesting games I've seen for LD43!
justalocalhero
03. Dec 2018 · 19:27 UTC
I adore this idea. Engaging core mechanic. Sets the mood well. There's a ton of design space left to expand into. Really well done.
pixlark
03. Dec 2018 · 19:28 UTC
This is a really cool game. I'm gonna list my thoughts as a pros and cons list, because that's easier than writing in paragraphs:

*Pros:*

- Great visuals---simple but very effective
- Great story and writing. There's a big variety of call text, and it's all very well-written (except the one mentioning defenders of the universe, I don't understand that one...?)
- Simple but effective gameplay
- Ramps up and becomes really hectic and fun

*Cons:*

- Days are too long. I'd prefer 2-2.5 minute-long days that ramp up faster. Right now, it just takes too long for a Ludum Dare game. Generally I assume that I should be able to complete most of a Ludum Dare game in 10 minutes.
- The z-order of things covers important information. The wires shouldn't go over top of the dialog boxes, and there should be some way to see the pieces of paper w/ the numbers on them even if wires are over them (maybe make the wires slightly transparent in the spot that they cover the papers? I don't know how difficult that would be in Godot).
backurio
03. Dec 2018 · 19:52 UTC
The game is not bad but it seems to me that you have planned for the "making connections" theme and not directly for "sacrifices must be made".

Good:
- Graphics, easy and clean
- Controls work good
- Changing of the numbers for each playthrough is nice and challenging.

Bad:
- It's really hard to play without music. Not having music kills the overall feel of the game for me. Sorry.
- The theme is not really present for me.
- Not really any time to read the text. I was just looking at the numbers on the table and decided if I connect them. Maybe you could have taken that time to focus on some music.
- All three days are the same. I was really dissappointed to not get anything special after playing all 3 days (15min)

Bugs:
- It's possible to connect to the same pin on the right side. (screenshot 1)
- It's possible that the same number calls 2 times simultaneously. (screenshot 2)

![DoubleConnection.png](///raw/ae6/d1/z/1d12d.png)

![SameNumber.png](///raw/ae6/d1/z/1d12e.png)
Querk
03. Dec 2018 · 20:50 UTC
really nice game i like it. it was sometimes hard to me because i has many calls at the same time, but it is ok I like challenge.
i found one bug. Sometimes cable was above message , and i can't read it. Great job :) sorry for my bad english
J0ye
03. Dec 2018 · 21:23 UTC
It would be a clear 5/5 in Mood for me if there was music,
- Great simple graphics
- A lot of good texts
- Works well

There are some things I have to criticize, for example the very slow development of the game and the fact that you are not really brought into the situation. But beyond that, the style is nice, the idea is good and for 48 hours you definitely did something impressive.
CalLavicka
04. Dec 2018 · 01:10 UTC
I love the graphics, it's very well polished. I think some good music/sound effects / static from the phone calls would really add to the immersion. Very well done!
Derek Volker
04. Dec 2018 · 09:53 UTC
I think it really lacks sounds. It killed the mood. The talking could be just random mumbling and would be alright. The graphics, in other way, are very nice. Also, innovative. Congrats.
Zetorama
06. Dec 2018 · 00:38 UTC
Cool story! Nice graphics and pretty dramatic gameplay. As for music… Probably you could give us just a link to some youtube video, so I just turn it on next time I play :smile:
As for LD game this one looks pretty good and polished. Great job!
incobalt
06. Dec 2018 · 02:36 UTC
This was very tense! I got a very Papers, Please feel out of this one. I felt there was too little time to make good judgments, though, and I started just connecting everything I could because I didn't have time to pay attention to everything. But I suppose that's how this kind of game works.
Quasar47
09. Dec 2018 · 13:41 UTC
I'm really impressed with this one. Nice hommage to Papers Please, with very nice visuals to make this concept your own. It's pretty easy to win, in fact. The only thing I had to do was plugging every phone call I had into their respective destinations, and that's it. The game doesn't really punises you for helping one side or another. I really like the short dialogues in this one, it gives more life to the characters, even though they quickly become repetitive. But for a 72 hours game, this is perfectly acceptable. Once again, the main problem of this game is that the moral choices have no consequences on the character we're playing, it just builds a score meter.

In Papers Please for example, you had a family to take care of, and if they died, it was a Game over. Here, there is nobody to take care of, nor a cause the main character is willing to take part of. It would have given him a bit of a personality, or at least a reason why he is helping either the Resistance or the Propaganda. Still, a funny game with a sweet concept, good job!
v1ru6
09. Dec 2018 · 15:49 UTC
Nice 48 hours prod!

The lack of music could add some feeling (oppression for instance), but it's not really what makes actual immersion. I don't mind that a 48h compo doesn't have any music.

During one session, I was idling doing nothing the whole session and still got a score of 10 saved life.
goudagames
09. Dec 2018 · 16:46 UTC
This is really interesting and good. The days drag on for a bit too long in my opinion, and sound would be really nice for a phone operator game :)
dcrdro
09. Dec 2018 · 18:22 UTC
Fine game, suitable for theme!
vlandemart
09. Dec 2018 · 18:33 UTC
Game really lacks sound and "need to hurry".
In "Papers, please" you **needed** to hurry because of back story - you have family, you have house. You need to pay for it, you need to save some money, that made you value your time. Here you can kind of slack and nothing really bad will happen (or maybe it will and I just missed that part)

Other than that - game is fun and tells an interesting story.
Also, seeing Godot entry warms my heart for some reason.
Roka Josh
09. Dec 2018 · 20:36 UTC
Great game, I would love to see more of this and for it to become a proper papers please style game with multiple endings depending on decisions you have to make. I understand that not everyone can make music but even sound effects add a lot to a game, and I think this effects the mood quite a bit. Apart from that great job and best of luck!
Kerdelos
09. Dec 2018 · 20:47 UTC
it's really too bad there's no music :/ Also it seemed weird that accepting resistance calls raised so much suspicion. Anyway, the concept of being an operator is really interesting and it's a nice entry. Good job (and it's super cool that you used Godot :) )!
EdwinGameDev
09. Dec 2018 · 21:25 UTC
Good entry! Viva la résistance! :heart:
🎤 cowa
11. Dec 2018 · 09:52 UTC
Thank you everyone for playing my game and leaving feedbacks! I really appreciate.

I know there is a the lack of sounds and musics... But I did not have enough time and energy :cry:
Next time I'll do my best to incorporate them early in my development.
gagapete
17. Dec 2018 · 19:29 UTC
Nice game with a very atmospheric interface. I would love to see a version with spoken voice.

A little hint: itch.io allows to add the entry url to the game page. I bookmarked the game there and had difficulties getting back to this page to rate. :smiley: