A Ghost with Alzheimer's by POBIX

[raw]
made by POBIX for Ludum Dare 47 (JAM)

In this game you play as a ghost who has just recently died in a dungeon. There's only one thing standing between you and the gates of heaven - you have Alzheimer's disease. Every time you jump, move or shoot you immediately forget that you did that, and do it again, until you do something else - making you Stuck in a loop. But that won't stop you! (or at least we hope it won't).

Keybindings: A/D - Moving Space/W - Jumping Left Mouse Button - Shooting

Ratings

Overall 1056th 3.333⭐ 26🧑‍⚖️
Fun 889th 3.271⭐ 26🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 1250th 2.891⭐ 25🧑‍⚖️
Theme 1106th 3.318⭐ 24🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 693th 3.68⭐ 27🧑‍⚖️
Audio 445th 3.583⭐ 26🧑‍⚖️
Humor 663th 2.87⭐ 25🧑‍⚖️
Mood 894th 3.304⭐ 25🧑‍⚖️
Given 36🗳️ 22🗨️

Feedback

Jaycee Sandvig
05. Oct 2020 · 23:49 UTC
Very fun! Love the graphics and the idea of being a cute ghost who can't remember what they're doing. I definitely want to come back to this game to see how far I can get.
06. Oct 2020 · 00:57 UTC
The Game.
KingDwarf
06. Oct 2020 · 10:19 UTC
Cool game! A really fun mechanic that you are stuck in the actions you take (like jumping, moving ect.)
The piano track is really soothing which is pleasant to listen too!
JohnDaivisse
06. Oct 2020 · 10:20 UTC
Love it ! Very nice sound design hahaha !
Crazybot
06. Oct 2020 · 10:24 UTC
It's cool but there are quite some bugs (keep in mind I played the html5 version) for one, the jumping is really weird I find it really hard to move even a centimeter in the x direction while in the air. the beginning instructions text was also so pixelated that I only recognized it as instructions the 3rd time I saw it

that said I do really like the graphics and the idea is pretty fun, too bad it's kind of held back by some clunky controls
ChilleBigPP
06. Oct 2020 · 10:30 UTC
The mechanics could use some work but the art and music are pretty good.
Nehvis
06. Oct 2020 · 10:31 UTC
Cute graphics, controls seem a little buggy though
negdo
06. Oct 2020 · 10:33 UTC
Indeed a cool idea for the theme! Pretty decent game too. Only had some problems with jumping, everything else worked smooth!
xSooDx
06. Oct 2020 · 10:38 UTC
Nice platformer. I feel the theme could be taken a bit further tho. Good work.
GameDevMatt
06. Oct 2020 · 14:41 UTC
I found the way you implemented the theme into the controls to be quite restrictive. Platformers are often about freedom of expression when navigating obstacles (take mario 64 / odyssey & super meat boy, for example), but that just didn't feel possible in this game. While you certainly adhered to the theme, the novelty of the concept wore off for me as soon as the obstacles became more challenging, since navigating them became more frustrating than fun.
What would I personally do to add freedom of expression?
Perhaps shooting could knock the player character away from the direction of the shot, allowing for more mid-air movement (a sort of reverse dash, that fires the projectile forwards).
I would put more thought into the level design to try and test the player's mastery of the mechanics. it felt like you placed a random set of towers clustered with enemies on top, and the goal was to just jump up in front of them until you had shot them all. Tighter level design that on the surface requires specific execution of moves (but with a broadness of mechanical design that allows for the freedom of expression I mentioned above), often creates more of a feeling of satisfaction than a large playground in which to run wild. Particularly in the platforming genre, I find this to be the case. If you haven't played Celeste, I highly recommend it, it's a masterclass in platforming level design and mechanics.
The aiming element of the shooting mechanic felt like a weird choice - perhaps constraining it to only being able to shoot left or right would make it more straight forward to play, giving the player fewer things to worry about. In addition, I found myself unable to shoot left, which I think must have been a bug.
I hope you take these comments as constructive rather than negative, you worked super hard and created a game, and you should be proud of your efforts.
NoytroO
06. Oct 2020 · 16:20 UTC
This is an idea we come up with, but we thought it will be too restrictive.
And by playing the game... I think it's the case, a bit too restrictive.
Maybe you have to adapt the level design in order to not be frustrating when we play, because atm it is a bit frustrating (and it remove some fun...)
Also, I almost never succeed to pass the spikes without take 1 hit, even if I wait for my jump to put me at the top of the level... Some LD problems I think.

Overall it's a good idea, but maybe you have to rework a bit the level design, to be funnier and less restricive.

Music is awesome, and graphics are good tho !
VPhyre
07. Oct 2020 · 12:46 UTC
I liked the graphic style and the game in general. Good job.
Sunblast
07. Oct 2020 · 12:49 UTC
Nice game! My only complaint would be that the controls felt a little clunky. Keep up the hard work!
alpharock6
08. Oct 2020 · 03:41 UTC
Grateful that you implemented checkpoints, it was fairly challenging :D As some other mentioned I think it would have been nice to be able to move left/right a bit while jumping, but I can also see why that would be a challenging restriction? Great job overall, very impressed with the visual style :)
Arad HamidSamiee
09. Oct 2020 · 08:54 UTC
Graphics are well designed, the game itself is a hard game, at least for me. Chackpoint mechanic was a life saver tho, good job
RedHermit
16. Oct 2020 · 02:57 UTC
The title caught my attention, great naming choice! I loved the pixel art.. mini pixel art.. very cute! The wizards especially were my favorite. Cool take on the theme, and the mechanic incorporated.. while I do agree it could get frustrating, with a feeling that you don't have proper control, I understand that's part of the challenge of playing. Perhaps you could have added a power up where there was a 'clear mind' for a bit to have solid control for a bit, before returning to your Alzheimer's state. Overall though, great job - music was fitting, and sound effects.. lol.. those sound effects, so good!
EvanGreenwood
26. Oct 2020 · 11:45 UTC
Really enjoyed the music and graphics - well done !