Lights Out by Shafournee

[raw]
made by Shafournee for Ludum Dare 46 (JAM)

Your dad's been gone for a while, huh? Maybe you should go looking for him...

Whatever you do, watch your back and DON'T let your candle go out!

opening_2.png

window.gif

floodsmall.gif

Ratings

Overall 1204th 3.5⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Fun 1924th 2.968⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 1390th 3.21⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Theme 340th 4.097⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 647th 4⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Audio 1426th 2.707⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Mood 425th 3.839⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Given 27🗳️ 32🗨️

Feedback

nipatiitti
21. Apr 2020 · 01:27 UTC
Loved the theme, idea and graphics. The movement could have been a bit more fluid
MatheusBorba
21. Apr 2020 · 01:55 UTC
muito legallllll
Yadir2447
21. Apr 2020 · 01:57 UTC
the movement could have been better but overall very fun!
Quincy9000
21. Apr 2020 · 01:57 UTC
This is so well done! The puzzles were very good, and they gave enough hints to understand what you're supposed to do.
Kristian Kurktchiev
21. Apr 2020 · 02:01 UTC
I'll second nipatiitti on the movement comment. Gameplay definitely feels clunky. The aesthetic is pretty crazy though, especially the cutscene images!
Shouji
21. Apr 2020 · 02:09 UTC
Beautiful game! I this is probably the best graphics I've seen so far!
nicksmaddog
21. Apr 2020 · 02:09 UTC
Really liked the custscene images, and the overall idea. I agree with others about the movement. Was there supposed to be audio? There wasn't any playing for me.
🎤 Shafournee
21. Apr 2020 · 02:14 UTC
@nicksmaddog There was supposed to be audio. Really strange that it didn't play, sorry about that! Glad you enjoyed it still.
Kosmo
21. Apr 2020 · 02:15 UTC
You did a good job of coming up with unique mechanics that effect the candle (drips, windows, waterfalls) -- but the gameplay was just so slow that once you start getting to the more difficult sections (I didn't get past the geyser things) it feels extremely repetitive and slow.

The graphics were high quality and the mood is fantastic. In my opinion, each room should have been a bit smaller. This cuts out unnecessary repetition (solving the same puzzle again), and allows you to keep your slow pace for the mood.

Don't take my criticism too harshly though, I still enjoyed the game -- just some advice for next time : )
🎤 Shafournee
21. Apr 2020 · 02:15 UTC
@quincy9000 Thanks! We tried hard to find a fine line between holding the players hand, and being too obtuse, so I'm glad you thought we did a good job!
🎤 Shafournee
21. Apr 2020 · 02:16 UTC
@nipatiitti @yadir2447 @kristian-kurktchiev We wanted you to feel a little helpless, so we weren't entirely sure how to handle it, but it seems like we leaned too far to one side. (Probably need to do some more playtesting going forwards, too >.>) Glad you all still enjoyed despite that!
🎤 Shafournee
21. Apr 2020 · 02:17 UTC
@matheusborba Obrigado!
🎤 Shafournee
21. Apr 2020 · 02:21 UTC
@kosmo I appreciate the feedback! Just goes to show how much you've gotta prioritize playtesting, huh? Hopefully we'll be able to learn from that and have something better to show you next year :D
Kevin Barrios
21. Apr 2020 · 02:32 UTC
The pacing and tone of this is so goood! Everything was really cohesive. The slow frame rate animations, the tones in the background, and even the level design was drawn out and slow. I was waiting for a jump scare the whole time :I The game managed to get my heart rate up. There were difficulty balance issues obviously cause it's a jam, but really, a great job.
🎤 Shafournee
21. Apr 2020 · 02:38 UTC
@kevin-barrios Thanks so much, Kevin! It's definitely hard to hit the right balance for everyone, but I'm glad to hear the pacing struck a good chord for you! It's our first time doing horror for all three of us so we learned a lot, and I most definitely want to come back to it sometime!
Shaolin Dave
21. Apr 2020 · 06:33 UTC
I like the idea. I've mostly been seeing interpretations of campfires being kept "alive" but this being something that you don't just feed, you carry with you and protect, is very nice.
They game is a bit slow-paced for my taste but I liked the concept and mood.
Hegemege
21. Apr 2020 · 16:08 UTC
Great atmosphere, unfortunately the game crashed right at the end and I didn't get to see the credits :(

I really liked how some sections of the wall changed textures subtly to tell bits of the story and the increasingly absurd elements in the levels, like the droplets at the start vs the end was nice. Most of the levels had good timings so I got the feeling of just getting away from the baddies. The water section though would need some improvement, at the start I waited too long and it felt intense up to the last section where you need to run left for a longer period of time and then the surface caught me.

Lovely audio, animations and graphics. Perhaps you could have played more with the shadows the candle casts? Maybe some invisible shapes on the walls that cast some spooky stuff on the blank sections of the walls or something, like a haunted house.
hwaet
24. Apr 2020 · 02:36 UTC
That is some mood. The levels were really well broken up to help you learn through doing. At first, the movement bothered me, but the more I think about it, the better it fits the narrative/feel.