Golden Shackles by FuriousWitch | LudumData

Golden Shackles by FuriousWitch

made by FuriousWitch for LD 42 (JAM)

Screenshot from 2018-08-15 01-03-54.png

Controls:

Left click the work table to craft gold jewelry
Left click the phone and magazines corner to unlock upgrades

Rules are simple; consume this gold as fast as you can to beat the game.

To do that you will need to:

Craft gold items to sell
Use the money to buy upgrades
Craft higher items to consume more gold and get more money
Consume all gold in pots to win

Have fun and leave comments and I will play your games :)

Thank you.

P.S The one model I didn't make during the jam is the character model. I made it two days before to use in another project and I decided to use it here to save time. Also, I used Maximo website from Adobe to auto-rig and animate the character. Everything else is done by me from A to Z... Just to be clear :)

Post-jam version: - Added background music - Added sound effects for coins - Decreased painting price to quicken the pace of the game

Bug fix: - The last upgrade can only be bought if you have its price. - After winning or losing you can't interact with any object in the scene.

HTML5 (web)	https://furious-witch.itch.io/the-golden-shackles
Original URL	https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/42/the-golden-shackles

Ratings

Overall	882^th	3.12⭐	48🧑‍⚖️
Fun	987^th	2.815⭐	48🧑‍⚖️
Innovation	765^th	3.011⭐	47🧑‍⚖️
Theme	523^th	3.578⭐	47🧑‍⚖️
Graphics	509^th	3.556⭐	47🧑‍⚖️
Humor	609^th	2.563⭐	42🧑‍⚖️
Mood	785^th	2.907⭐	45🧑‍⚖️
Given		37🗳️	58🗨️

Feedback

14. Aug 2018 · 14:22 UTC

It's not working for me, I see a white trapezoid and a grey/blue sky?

14. Aug 2018 · 21:51 UTC

![Screenshot (280).png](///raw/5e1/b1/z/19844.png)

Nice game! I would definitely suggest posting a screenshot and some instructions as I had a bit of a rough start trying to figure out what I was supposed to do! But I ended up defeating the genie and it was quite fun to do so! The graphics were definitely a highlight. Great job and good use of the theme! :)

🎤 FuriousWitch

15. Aug 2018 · 01:10 UTC

@nate-howard Sorry Nate it was a problem. It is working now.

🎤 FuriousWitch

15. Aug 2018 · 01:30 UTC

@katie-dover Thank you very much for playing my game and your positive feedback and sorry for putting you through this :) I was dead tired yesterday so I barely uploaded and decided to leave everything else for today. Thanks again :)

15. Aug 2018 · 01:34 UTC

@furiouswitch Hahaha, no worries! I'm glad you got some sleep - I'm sure, like our entire team, you were totally exhausted from the LD weekend. :)

15. Aug 2018 · 21:23 UTC

Sleep is indeed very much needed after an LD, I'm only starting to rate games today.

I like the style and the effort put into creating, rigging, and animating a character. I also like the coin phsyics.

I also found a bug ;) Once you are defeated you can still open the magazine. It doesn't break the game though. And perhaps a play again button could be useful.

🎤 FuriousWitch

15. Aug 2018 · 22:50 UTC

@echo-team Hey, thanks a lot for playing my game and your kind feedback :)

I should be clear about one thing though, I used Mixamo website from Adobe to auto-rig and animate the model so I shouldn't take credit for this. Also, the character is the one thing I didn't make during the jam, I made it a couple of days before and was intended for another indie project I was working on. I will add this as a note above so that people know in case it affects the ratings.

Thanks for finding this bug for me, I'll be sure to fix it soon :)

15. Aug 2018 · 23:42 UTC

Well, it still doesn't detract. Who wants to redo everything everytime?

16. Aug 2018 · 01:46 UTC

I love this game. I am personally a fan of the type of games that put you in a room and you have to complete a set of tasks to win. This game was very relaxing and the mood was perfect. Seeing those gold coins drop into the buckets was very satisfying. For me, this game had the same mood and feeling as the game "My little blacksmith shop". You could feel yourself being a craftsman in that room, crafting jewelry out of gold and waiting for people to buy them. It felt like I owned the shop.

![Golden Shackles.png](///raw/c7b/81/z/19ea4.png)
*I'm going to be rich!*

🎤 FuriousWitch

16. Aug 2018 · 04:31 UTC

@bloc97 I can't thank you enough for the kind and soothing words. It makes me so happy to know that you enjoyed playing my game. The feelings you talk about is exactly what I look forward in games of this kind when I play them myself and so it was what I wanted to put in my game although I can't say I was so brilliant to plan this exactly, instead let's just say it worked better than I expected alhamdulillah.

You explained the game feel better than if I myself tried to put it into words thanks a lot for that and for your generosity of spirit :)

16. Aug 2018 · 04:52 UTC

I was happy to see that there was indeed an end screen for this one. I managed to beat the genie and buy a nice painting while I was labouring away making gaudy jewellery. Damn tricky genies.

I like the voxels, and the gameplay was well-balanced. Perhaps if there were an indicator above the jeweller to show you how long they had to complete an item it would be better. But I ended up timing the animation well enough.

🎤 FuriousWitch

16. Aug 2018 · 20:10 UTC

@tomg Thank you very much for playing my game and your feedback. I am happy you enjoyed your time rolling in gold :D I will be sure to add your suggestion in the post-jam version in sha' Allah plus much more feedback to the player. Thanks again :)

16. Aug 2018 · 22:33 UTC

Nice entry, first i bought the last item to craft so it was a little fast to beat the game. I think this was the only way to beat it.
I suggest add wanted levels for the items, so the player could manage between the demand and the gold, so the game could be more playable. Good job, i was fun :heart:

🎤 FuriousWitch

16. Aug 2018 · 23:06 UTC

@edwingamedev Thank you so much for playing my game and for your feedback. Yes, you are right I should add leveling system to make things more strategical but there was no time for any more development so I had to leave it that way. I don't know why you chose to not buy anything until you have the price for the last upgrade but the game is winnable and probably even easier to win if you bought the upgrades one after the other :) Thanks again.

17. Aug 2018 · 05:52 UTC

That was really cool! First of all hats off to an original setting, thanks for putting together a game intro (most games just jump right in). I love the concept, although I found it a bit repetitive towards the end while trying to get the painting. I also love the graphics and animations. The music was pretty nice and soothing, it went well with the game. Overall great job!!

🎤 FuriousWitch

17. Aug 2018 · 06:24 UTC

@karlipoppins Thank you very much for playing my game and for the kind feedback. I'm so glad you liked the intro, I too enjoyed writing it :) I'm sorry about the repetition which I totally agree with you about. Unfortunately, it is the result of the little time which didn't allow for me to make better balancing. By the way, the painting is not just a decoration it has a big purpose which I'm not gonna say :D But suffice it to say that it is better to buy it sooner rather than later :)

Your last comment made me laugh :) My game doesn't have any music, you must have been listening to something else. If possible share the track you were listening to with me, I might add it to the game if it was so fitting :)

17. Aug 2018 · 16:40 UTC

@furiouswitch I'm so dumb... Sorry I must have been listening to Spotify at the same time, which I usually turn off when I play some LD games. Can't remember what I was listening to, (perhaps this): [https://open.spotify.com/user/spotify/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX3PIPIT6lEg5?si=s4aPXmvASCCI6AKVvhBDKQ]

I did beat the genie though (against all odds!) :)

I think that the repetitive aspect probably came from the fact that I took too long in getting the painting, which you are right makes the pace much better if you get it early.

Anyways great job! :)

🎤 FuriousWitch

18. Aug 2018 · 19:03 UTC

@karlipoppins It's okay, it happens :) I don't have a Spotify account due to a country restriction policy they have. If you could share the name of the song and the artist that would be great, if not no problem.

I'm happy you're finally free of the curse :)

19. Aug 2018 · 02:53 UTC

Brick(Minecraft?)Style Graphic is so cute and attracts me to play. The gameplay might be a bit repetive. Maybe consider to add some random customers who have different favors of the jewelry or some little thieves to steal your money if it's out of space. Anyway,a cute entry and good job!

19. Aug 2018 · 10:11 UTC

Nice little game. Loved the art style. Only complaint I have is that once you get all the upgrades it becomes a bit of a repetitive grind to get the gold down to zero. A little variation could make this a nice little time sink.

19. Aug 2018 · 11:08 UTC

I really liked playing this. As mentioned by others, pacing perhaps need a bit of tweaking especially in the end-game part. Overall good fun and I would definitely encourage you to take this idea a bit further - there is potential here.

19. Aug 2018 · 11:51 UTC

really good game

19. Aug 2018 · 15:43 UTC

Good game! The balance between the gold stream, the making of jewels, the selling and upgrades create a pretty good curve of tension.

I started slowly enough to understand how the game worked, without too much pressure, then it started to get dangerous, having about 100 gold, but I bought the painting around the same time and it gave a nice change of pace and I managed to control everything and win. That's why I think the key element in your game's balance if the price of the painting: drop it and the game will be too easy, make it higher and it will almost be impossible to win.

Fun story by the way! I liked the moral about "You'll have what you like the most in the world but you'll have to work if you want to keep it."

19. Aug 2018 · 18:13 UTC

Interesting idea! The lack of feedback makes it hard to understand at first, but after that, there is an interesting game loop within. The art style would be nice if it was more cohesive. The character and the props are all voxels put then other stuff is not. With a little more variety and options with crafting, it has good potential.

arctic_allosaurus

19. Aug 2018 · 18:23 UTC

Loved the originality of the concept! Story at the beginning pulled me into this delightful little game :) Mechanic was great, audio would have added to the atmosphere. Overall very fun to play.

20. Aug 2018 · 21:04 UTC

Hey Sarah! I really love the concept of your game, it's kind of a reverse idle game, which I think I've never seen before. The execution is really solid, but could use a little more work. There was just not a lot to do, and especially in the end, once all upgrades had been purchased, it got a little grindy. The visuals are nice, some sounds and music would've been great. After winning I restarted and wanted to see if the character really turns to gold when losing, but that would've probably been too much work. :) Overall, I enjoyed this and I think the concept is worth examining deeper, good job!

🎤 FuriousWitch

21. Aug 2018 · 00:06 UTC

@bmopapa Thank you for playing and for the helpful ideas. I already had very similar ideas in another game of mine but I didn't have time to even consider adding them here. I'll be sure to add them to the post-jam version in sha' Allah, now that I have more time :)

🎤 FuriousWitch

21. Aug 2018 · 00:43 UTC

@jcwelgemoed Thanks for playing and you are right about the repetition it seems the complaint of everyone and it will be my first thing to fix in the gameplay in sha' Allah. Thanks again :)

@mammabouter Thank you very much for the kind words and the motivation. I will keep working on it in sha' Allah and see how it goes :)

@zeusx212 Thank you and glad you liked it :)

21. Aug 2018 · 03:14 UTC

Hey nice work! Love the graphics, and it was fun to try to manage all the resources well, kinda reminded me of games like Power Grid where you can really plan ahead.

21. Aug 2018 · 23:33 UTC

Very nice entry! I like the graphics and know that the game would be even more captivating if some audio was added.

I found a bug on my first play - you can buy the 700$ update without having the money for it at any time, so I won my second playthrough by just selling 1 piece of jewelry.

Other than that - all the people above have already given good suggestions on how to make the game more fun to play, so all I will say is -great work!

22. Aug 2018 · 07:02 UTC

Nice game,The worker just worked too slow compared to the speed the gold came in, I was constantly clicking the work table to get another one started, but was quickly out passed and as soon as I had the money for the upgrade, after I started another build, I bought the upgrade. But it was fun to play, would have just like to feel like I had a fighting chance to win.

🎤 FuriousWitch

22. Aug 2018 · 15:15 UTC

@j-carlson Thanks for playing my game and your feedback. I am quite sure something is missing, maybe you didn't buy all the upgrades. Did you unlock all the jewelry and the painting? Higher jewelry consumes more gold. If you bought all the upgrades it will be easy to win. Let me know more if possible :)

23. Aug 2018 · 04:46 UTC

I played it again, buying each piece from cheapest to most expensive and was almost done when I decided to use the cheat and get the 700 when I didn't have 700 yet. once I had that, I was able to make ground back and buy all the pieces and win.

🎤 FuriousWitch

23. Aug 2018 · 17:17 UTC

@j-carlson Congratulations :D Thanks again for the extra effort and for giving my game a second chance :)

I'll be sure to remove that cheat soon ;)

26. Aug 2018 · 21:16 UTC

Pretty fun. Nice job on animating on the character! That bit stood out. I felt some of the upgrade costs & gold used amounts could have been balanced better. I must have crafted about 20 of the most expensive/upgraded item, giving myself some mild RSI, at the end before finishing the game and banishing that cursed genie. Sad there was no audio also. Otherwise a solid entry. :thumbsup:

🎤 FuriousWitch

27. Aug 2018 · 20:28 UTC

@gwinnell Thanks a lot for playing and for the detailed feedback, it sure helps :)
As I mentioned above, I used Mixamo website to auto-rig and animate the character so I can't take much credit there, I just assigned the bones and chose from their long list of animation which was a lengthy process but still :)
Music is the first thing I'm working on right now for the post-jam version and balancing will be soon after :) Thanks again.

🎤 FuriousWitch

28. Aug 2018 · 00:35 UTC

@kiirohanabi Thanks for playing my game and the kind and helpful feedback. I'll take your advice and be sure to balance my painting price in the post-jam version in sha' Allah.

Glad you liked the moral of the story although what I was going for was a bit of "be careful what you wish for" and "If it's too good to be true then it probably is" or another saying in my country "The kite(bird) doesn't throw chicks" :D But I guess the story could be interpreted differently for everyone :)

🎤 FuriousWitch

28. Aug 2018 · 01:10 UTC

@carlos-giraldo Thank you for playing and your feedback. I know about the lack of feedback but unfortunately, it is the result of insufficient time. I didn't quite get your comment about the art style. You say some stuff is voxel and some are not but actually, I made everything myself and it is all voxel so I'm not sure about what you mean. Would you describe what you mean in more detail? Thanks again :)

🎤 FuriousWitch

28. Aug 2018 · 01:36 UTC

@arctic-allosaurus My gratitude for the kind words and happy you liked it. I'm working on the music these days, it's the most requested feature :)

@ctrble Thanks for the feedback and I'm very glad you enjoyed playing my game :)

🎤 FuriousWitch

28. Aug 2018 · 01:51 UTC

@erkberg Hey Erk, thanks for playing my game and the helpful feedback. I like how you described the game as a reverse Idle which I think is a very fitting and precise description for it, thanks :)
I agree with you about the grindiness but it was the result of not enough time for any more content or even sufficient planning to choose proper values for upgrades and the likes. I'm currently working on the music and I will see if I can do something about that cursed end, great idea ;)

🎤 FuriousWitch

28. Aug 2018 · 02:03 UTC

@erikiene Thank you very much for playing and for the helpful feedback. I'm currently working on the music and I hope I will make something fitting to the mood.

Thanks for finding the upgrade bug, I will fix it soon, hopefully before any more people use it to cheat their way to the end :D

28. Aug 2018 · 22:27 UTC

So its pretty fun ngl, i love the style you went for its very appealing and the character was very nice and looked very smooth when animating. The introduction text was very good and fit the whole narrative in perfectly, overall i really like it, only improvements i can say is that a music track for it would of been amazing, as well as maybe a couple sound effects when you have crafted an item. Overall its very good!

🎤 FuriousWitch

28. Aug 2018 · 22:36 UTC

@sollara-games Thanks a lot for your feedback and kind words and glad you liked the game. Will be adding music and sound effects in the post-jam version in sha' Allah :)

29. Aug 2018 · 08:10 UTC

- I like the games lighting/mood!

- The game idea is interesting, what i would've loved to have some orders or some kind of reason to craft something else than the current "best" item. What could be interesting if you get an order and the player needs craft it using 2 or 3 parts. For example: customer orders a golden ring with a red stone. Left field: golden ring - Right field: red stone.

- Also a few little sound blips would be nice.

- Like some others said the gold dropping in the buckets looked cool!

Congrats on making a good game!

🎤 FuriousWitch

29. Aug 2018 · 15:12 UTC

@testlab Thank you very much for the helpful feedback. I'll be sure to integrate your points some way or the other in the post-jam version in sha' Allah.

What I thought about before is to add customer requests in a natural way like, for example, if I have only one type of jewelry displayed may be customers won't buy because they didn't find the jewelry they want. But if I have more variety then I'll have more sales. I'm not sure how I will do it yet but your idea of orders could be it. I'll also think about the crafting part but it probably will be automatic like adding something different for each piece so that they look different from each other when displayed. The sound is top priority :)

I'm glad you liked the gold dropping :) Thanks again.

29. Aug 2018 · 16:49 UTC

Really neat graphics and a good concept! Of course it needs more content and probably something to be able to make each try different, but I had fun beating the genie so I guess you did good :smiley:
Great work!

🎤 FuriousWitch

30. Aug 2018 · 00:02 UTC

@nonimad Thank you for the kind words, I'm happy you liked it. Of course, there is a lot of work that needs to be done and your feedback inspired some good ideas too. Hopefully, I'll be using at least some randomization in the post-jam version to make things less expected. Thanks again :)

31. Aug 2018 · 19:17 UTC

I like the style of graphics you used for this. The gameplay itself wasn't really my cup of tea, but that's just me :).

I did notice a bug where you could just buy the recipes even if you didn't have the funds for it.

Good job making it!

🎤 FuriousWitch

31. Aug 2018 · 20:05 UTC

@team-yarn Thanks for playing and your feedback. I should have fixed this bug sooner but I'm busy rating other games, will do it soon :)

31. Aug 2018 · 21:36 UTC

Fun idea, and a nice overall feel. The gameplay didn't really excite me, and it felt like a constant loosing battle. Nice work though.

🎤 FuriousWitch

02. Sep 2018 · 20:33 UTC

@doey Thanks for the feedback. For sure the balancing needs a lot of work to make things exciting and challenging but I'm quite sure you can win and easily too. Did you buy all the upgrades?

03. Sep 2018 · 14:13 UTC

A nice little game. I liked the graphics and thought it had a good feel. I found it was lacking a strategy though.

🎤 FuriousWitch

03. Sep 2018 · 21:15 UTC

@player2point0 Thanks a lot for your time and feedback. I'm happy you liked the graphics and I absolutely agree with you about the strategy, there wasn't enough time to test and optimize the strategy.

04. Sep 2018 · 04:37 UTC

Nice game! :thumbsup:

04. Sep 2018 · 14:21 UTC

Nice game!

🎤 FuriousWitch

04. Sep 2018 · 22:14 UTC

@hellsquirrel Thanks for playing and rating my game. Sorry, I didn't rate your game, I was away all day and just got back. I'm very sorry about that :( Wish you the best.