LudumData

The Heart Pieces by Sticmac

[raw]
made by Sticmac for Ludum Dare 46 (COMPO)

GENRE: Top-down, Puzzle game
HOW LONG TO BEAT: 5-10 minutes

Capture d’écran<em>2020-04-20</em>01-40-28.png

Capture d’écran<em>2020-04-20</em>01-40-56.png

What is this game?

The Heart Pieces is a top-down puzzle game where you have to pick up healing items and bring them to a dying heart :broken_heart:, in order to save it. You have a limited time to do so, and each item brought to the heart gives you more time.

The game challenges you with several puzzle-like rooms, where you have to manage the little time you have to collect the items in the right order.

According to the rules of the Compo format, all the game and the assets were made by me, during the first 48 hours of the jam.

How do you play it?

The way you want. The game is compatible with WASD, Arrow keys and gamepads. Simply move the character like in any other game! You can pick up the items by walking on them and give them to the heart by colliding with it.

Thank you!

Yes, thank you for reading that page and potentially playing the game! :slight_smile: It is my first combo submission, so I’m very happy if you’re interested in it! Comment with feedbacks and your own game so I can play it too! :wink:

You can follow me on:

  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sticmac_JV
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsPW9iLnrDY9XiUHV_P56Aw
  • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sticmac/
  • Itch.io: https://sticmac.itch.io/

Changelog

  • Fixed a bug making the music restart if losing on level one.
Youtube https://github.com/sticmac/ld-46
Youtube https://sticmac.itch.io/the-heart-pieces
Youtube https://sticmac.itch.io/the-heart-pieces
Youtube https://sticmac.itch.io/the-heart-pieces
Original URL https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/46/the-heart-pieces

Ratings

Overall 447th 3.5⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Fun 497th 3.321⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 888th 2.804⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Theme 380th 3.821⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 754th 3.054⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Audio 223th 3.536⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Mood 464th 3.278⭐ 29🧑‍⚖️
Given 22🗳️ 29🗨️

Feedback

Snory
20. Apr 2020 · 12:03 UTC
Thank you for your entry!

Thanks to the music I felt like I really needed to keep the heart thumping. The movement was smooth, the idea simple yet enjoyable. Some more challenge would be welcome but apart from that I feel good and chill after playing it.

Just missing exit button (had to do alt+F4) and also I think more people would play it online. With unity and simmer.io it it a piece of cake to build it for web.

Thank you!
Landerack
20. Apr 2020 · 12:04 UTC
The gameplay feels super smooth~ nicely done, the game does really rely upon you explorign the level before you can play the level well, maybe have a mini map? but good job either way! The music is very nice :)
Nirose
20. Apr 2020 · 12:07 UTC
Fun little game. A small tip.
When playing the bigger levels, try zooming out the camera, so that the player has full view over the level. This allows you to strategize and plan how to approach the level. Forcing the player to make interesting decisions. Rather than jsut blindly walking into a random corridor.
DangItsPang
20. Apr 2020 · 12:09 UTC
Good job! :) took me a few tries on the last level but i got through it
bigTINYGames
20. Apr 2020 · 12:31 UTC
I love this running for life concept, level design could use some more work however first levels are explaining mechanics very well - it just lacks end game :) I could see some element of strategy involved in this game(levels made in a way that encourage specific order of collecting bits) or some additional interaction (like one way passages that will speed u up in one way and slow in oposite direction, jump pads that would knock you back and soo on) Improve graphics, add more content and variation and this might become BIG :)
axelrinaldo
20. Apr 2020 · 12:37 UTC
What a brilliant puzzle game, especially how you had to do a few trial runs to figure out the map layout on the last level. I wish it had more levels to complete.
🎤 Sticmac
20. Apr 2020 · 12:48 UTC
Thank you all for playing my game!

@snory That’s a very nice feedback thank you very much! I think I will always forget to put a pause menu and an exit button in all my ludum dare games XD I’m glad the game felt that right to you, that’s awesome! :smile:

@landerack Thank you very much! I’m glad the game feels that great for you! :smiley: I’m also glad you liked the music because I felt super unsecure about my music writing skills XD The mini map is a great idea, I may try to add one if I continue developing this game :slight_smile: Thanks!

@nirose Thank you very much for the constructive feedback! Indeed that seems smarter to do it that way :) If I continue that game, I’ll consider doing so

@dangitspang Thank you very much :smile:! Would you say it was satisfying? :slight_smile:
🎤 Sticmac
20. Apr 2020 · 12:55 UTC
My my, the time I took to write my answer, two other comments popped out!

@bigtinygames Thank you very very very much! I wish I had more time to do level design, I loved designing the different levels present in here, and I’m a bit frustrated I could only make one “complete” level… I’ll really keep your comment somewhere if I want to do some improvements :smile: Thank you very much again!

@axelrinaldo Thank you very much for your comment! I wish I could have made more levels as well, the level design process on this game was extremely satisfying to work on :smile: You made me so happy calling it brillant haha! Thank you! :D
CaptainAbi
20. Apr 2020 · 15:37 UTC
It took me three tries but I finished the last level! Fun and relaxing :)
cagibi
20. Apr 2020 · 15:40 UTC
Nice game! A bit short, but audio and gameplay are good and smooth. Though I didn't notice the timer counting down until level 3-4.

I also had this feeling of "blind exploration" on the last level. What you can do (instead of/in addition to a minimap) is to put the camera slightly in front of the player.
🎤 Sticmac
20. Apr 2020 · 16:27 UTC
@captainabi Thank you! I’m glad you liked it :smile: Hope the difficulty was enjoyable!

@cagibi Thanks for your feedback! I note that the counter should be more visible then! :stuck_out_tongue: Did you find the “blind exploration” feeling frustrating? I might work on that for post LD, if any :)
cagibi
20. Apr 2020 · 16:32 UTC
@sticmac I didn't really find it frustrating, maybe that's because I was lucky in my exploration choices and I didn't die because of it :P
🎤 Sticmac
20. Apr 2020 · 17:09 UTC
@cagibi Thank you very much for feedback :smile: I feel from other comments (both here and in private) that some may actually enjoy that exploration, but sure it may need to be less frustrating :stuck_out_tongue:
Leon Oost
20. Apr 2020 · 18:26 UTC
First one that I saw with the theme to fix a broken heart! The music is really good and I like the gameplay.
joowon
20. Apr 2020 · 18:39 UTC
This is a great game! Thanks for sharing it. I felt sad when I hear the music. :sob: What's the story behind it?
🎤 Sticmac
20. Apr 2020 · 20:50 UTC
@leon-oost Thank you very much for your feedback! I’m glad you liked it all :smile: I’m so unconfident about my music writing skills so it warms my heart to hear that someone found it great!

@joowon I’m honored that you found my game great! Sorry if the music made you sad xD There’s no real story behind it if I’m honest! If I’m honest and personal, I could tell part of the artistic direction was led by the melancholy feeling I have from not being able to see my lover during those quarantine times ahah ^^ But yeah thank you veeeery much for your feedback!
Taldius
21. Apr 2020 · 09:08 UTC
Simple concept, but well executed. I felt the adrenaline rush while playing! :sweat_smile:
🎤 Sticmac
21. Apr 2020 · 09:32 UTC
@taldius Thank you very much for your feedback! :slight_smile: It’s very nice to read that! I’m glad the game plays with your feelings that way haha :stuck_out_tongue:
Raivk
21. Apr 2020 · 15:07 UTC
Cool game, loved the simple yet cute aesthetics, nice music and mood :) had a nice time playing your game !
🎤 Sticmac
21. Apr 2020 · 17:05 UTC
@raivk Thank you very much! I’m glad you enjoyed the game! :smile:
Brice Mahier
21. Apr 2020 · 17:41 UTC
Simple, clear, well implemented. A really nice game for a first compo.

Keep up the good work!
zimny11
21. Apr 2020 · 18:54 UTC
Nice game. I really liked the music.
🎤 Sticmac
21. Apr 2020 · 19:13 UTC
@brice-mahier Thank you very much! I’ll try my best to do other nice games for future jams! :smile:

@zimny11 Thank you very much! Glad you enjoyed it :smile:
Joe Bustamante
21. Apr 2020 · 20:06 UTC
This is awesome! I'm really impressed you put this together for the compo. The overall mood of the game is great - you did a good job with the graphics and the audio. They really work together well. The game itself is fun too. You did a good job creating the core game mechanic and I genuinely liked playing it (and it also had a nice amount of tension + cool take on the theme with dealing with relationships). Overall this was an awesome entry!
🎤 Sticmac
21. Apr 2020 · 20:30 UTC
@joe-bustamante Thank you for your enthusiasm about my game :heart: I’m soo glad you find that awesome and that you liked playing it! :smile: I’m very happy to read that you like graphics and audio, because this is the first time I create them for a game! :laughing: I’m more of a game designer & programmer to start with!
Funny you said it deals with relationships; now that you talk about it, I kinda get that my game can be interpreted that way :smile: I didn’t specifically design the game around that theme, but it probably was somewhere in my head while creating it :smiley:
Stending
23. Apr 2020 · 12:39 UTC
I already told you, but what a nice entry! Especialy for your first compo!
The idea is simple yet really well made, everything works fine, even the music is great!

The last level was nice to understand, I was so sad it was the last one!

I'm looking forward to your next game! :heart:
🎤 Sticmac
23. Apr 2020 · 16:20 UTC
@stending Thank you very much buddy! Your feedback means a lot to me :heart:
Inka McAtee
28. Apr 2020 · 09:35 UTC
Sweet and heartbreaking </3 You nailed the Theme ^^ I like.
🎤 Sticmac
28. Apr 2020 · 16:29 UTC
@inka-mcatee Thank you very much :D I’m glad you found it enjoyable, sorry if it broke your heart xD Thank you again <3
8BitCharlie
04. May 2020 · 12:27 UTC
This is really pretty nice entry. Good job! Feedback: It would be nice to be able to continue with next level without necessity to touch the mouse. PS: I played all levels! :-)
🎤 Sticmac
05. May 2020 · 20:13 UTC
@8bitcharlie Thank you very much for playing my game entirely! :smile: Yeah I know, I wish I could have done that in time ^^ Hope it didn’t bother you too much!
blobo
07. May 2020 · 17:33 UTC
Ooh, that last level was fun. I like how the longer your stack of heart pieces is, the easier it is to reach the heart. I was even able to reach through a wall, I had so many pieces in the last level! Cool game.
🎤 Sticmac
09. May 2020 · 08:37 UTC
@blobo Thank you very much for your feedback :smile: That honestly was not really intentional but, if you liked it then, let's say it's a feature! :smile: Haha!
shaulor
12. May 2020 · 16:19 UTC
Very simple but it feels complete :smile: