LudumData

Dark Space 8 by ShaunJS

[raw]
made by ShaunJS for LD 40 (JAM)

Whew. So classic story, I overscoped and missed the Compo deadline. I fixed it up in ~5 hours the next day for a Jam submission.

Controls: Click on things. Fun extra: Enter your own names into names.txt!

gameplay.gif

My idea was originally "Darkest Dungeon in Space" whereby you're trying to escape a massive space station that's under long term alien siege. You explore rooms just by clicking around and find new party members and fight aliens. The theme is buried into lots of subtle mechanics whereby every resource has a positive and a negative. More people = draw attention of bigger patrols. More equipment = less speed and combat initiative. Etc.

I wanted to build in a traits + morale thing like Darkest Dungeon has too (which is kind of it's crux as well right?) but didn't get chance. Way too much attempted for the time. I also don't like that what I have made is largely pretty derivative and doesn't do much of its own.

I also didn't really get time to balance it right, and procedural generation is harder than I thought, and just... whew. I'm tired!

It's in a state I'm happy is playable and occasionally fun when the numbers come up right, it's fairly self explanatory too.

Give it a whirl if I haven't thrown you off! Overall it's not my best work but I learned a lot from it and it's got some neat effects and polishy bits going on.

Source code http://www.shaunspalding.co.uk/files/DarkSpace8.yyz
Windows http://www.shaunspalding.co.uk/files/DarkSpace8.zip
Original URL https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/40/dark-space-8

Ratings

Overall 211th 3.808⭐ 28🧑‍⚖️
Fun 157th 3.808⭐ 28🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 507th 3.231⭐ 28🧑‍⚖️
Theme 820th 3.096⭐ 28🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 338th 3.865⭐ 28🧑‍⚖️
Mood 386th 3.519⭐ 28🧑‍⚖️
Given 32🗳️ 1🗨️

Feedback

fingerhutvogel
04. Dec 2017 · 18:46 UTC
It's so fun if you go full OP and just rage through all the rooms! 10/10 CoolCat
Sholf
04. Dec 2017 · 19:07 UTC
It's unfortunate that you missed the compo, the game's really fun! The art style is lovely and I enjoyed the gameplay quite a lot. Fun fact, I found out about Ludum Dare from watching your youtube videos. I decided to participate and it was an amazing experience! So thank you for that. :)
🎤 ShaunJS
04. Dec 2017 · 23:04 UTC
Glad to hear it @sholf!
oliverlevay
05. Dec 2017 · 15:59 UTC
Cool dude!
Handle
05. Dec 2017 · 23:28 UTC
Nice, there's a lot here! I died early a number of times to large groups of soldiers, but once I was established with a party it was easy going. Awesome entry.
Blueman
07. Dec 2017 · 05:08 UTC
Very fun and polished game from start to finish, I completed it twice. Twas fun hanging out in your stream a bit, hope to see you for LD41! :grin:
bitsandcrafts
07. Dec 2017 · 14:31 UTC
Very solid entry. Love the art and gameplay, lots of fun.
DidiGameBoy
07. Dec 2017 · 17:07 UTC
thats a very cool game, FTL feelings, wanna replay to get less crew with me but the fellow said 'he was excited to join you ^_^ Good job!
Trackless
07. Dec 2017 · 17:32 UTC
Very fun game, wonderful graphics with excellent mechanics.
Congratulations!
Billeclipse
07. Dec 2017 · 18:12 UTC
Great game, love the idea and the art as i always expect from Shaun :D I hope i was lucky though cause even in 30% i got the more troops called on me :P Fun fact: I like @sholf found out about ludum dare from you and i tried out GameMaker Studio for bit :D So i am always gonna be here looking on your new ludum dare whenever is compo or jam ;)

P.S. I escaped on my first try i guess the best way to do it get more teammates but still be careful :P
Triastase
07. Dec 2017 · 20:46 UTC
It's quite a complete game you've made here! I really like it! Some more sound or music would have helped with the mood, but in terms of gameplay everything works really well!
Grentacular
12. Dec 2017 · 21:57 UTC
Balancing aside, this game does feel remarkably polished for a Jam game! It was a ton of fun to play this. Great job!
Veralos
15. Dec 2017 · 02:14 UTC
Cool game. The strategy/roguelike concept is neat and works well. The balance seems a bit off though. I got destroyed in the early rooms of my first attempt, but managed to escape fairly comfortably on my second. I like all the different events you can come across. They add a lot of flavor even if they're not always relevant to the game.

The visual style is very nice with some cool pixel art and smooth animations. The audio is lacking though. The sounds that are there are good but a lot seem to be missing. Some music would add a lot too, but it's not like I have much room to criticise there considering my game has a similar issue.
DutssZ
15. Dec 2017 · 14:54 UTC
Oh my god, it's soo good
Flaterectomy
16. Dec 2017 · 13:18 UTC
A very well executed and complete entry. I assume with some luck, I managed to finish in my first go with three survivors in total. Well executed basics usually beat half-finished innovation in a jam game, in my book. With these basics, you can always innovate post-compo. :wink:

The art is classic and works, with room for improvement in the animation department *walking instead of sliding from room to room, for instance). More sound, as mentioned by others above, would also have added a lot to the game.

I played through three times and still ran into new things in my third play-through. I love feeling like there's more to it than I have experienced so far, so kudos there. :smile: Overall a very solid entry.
Goat Toaster Games
23. Dec 2017 · 23:38 UTC
I really enjoyed this! Just watched the timelapse, great work :) Very polished.