LudumData

Feed The Pillar by SaxOps1

[raw]
made by SaxOps1 for Ludum Dare 46 (JAM)

CoverImage.png

As a mage, it is your job to feed the pillar and keep it alive!

Gather energy from the wraiths and stand near the pillar to feed it energy!

​

FEED THE PILLAR! - KEEP IT ALIVE!

  • Feed the pillar energy by standing near it
  • Gather energy from wraiths by hovering your mouse over them
  • Move with Arrow Keys or A/D
  • You must keep a balance between feeding the pillar and gathering energy!

The timer starts when you first feed energy to the pillar...​

Gameplay

You can watch a short gameplay clip on YouTube: YouTube

Tools

I decided to focus on learning the Godot Engine for this project, so I had to sacrifice making my own custom art or sounds. I used open-license assets (will link soon), and modified them to fit a more consistent theme.

:)

Youtube https://saxops1.itch.io/ld46-feed-the-pillar
Youtube https://saxops1.itch.io/ld46-feed-the-pillar
Youtube https://saxops1.itch.io/ld46-feed-the-pillar
Youtube https://saxops1.itch.io/ld46-feed-the-pillar
Youtube https://github.com/MHillier98/FeedThePillar
Original URL https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/46/feed-the-pillar

Ratings

Overall 2128th 3.043⭐ 25🧑‍⚖️
Fun 2300th 2.652⭐ 25🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 1269th 3.261⭐ 25🧑‍⚖️
Theme 1733th 3.413⭐ 25🧑‍⚖️
Mood 1880th 2.976⭐ 23🧑‍⚖️
Given 39🗳️ 9🗨️

Feedback

qqcs
21. Apr 2020 · 03:49 UTC
I often can't find a wraith and there's not much I can do about it. Having the pillar start with a little energy might help the player get going.
paulhocker
21. Apr 2020 · 03:51 UTC
unfortunately i could not really figure out how to play the game. looked interesting tho.
🎤 SaxOps1
21. Apr 2020 · 03:55 UTC
@qqcs - Try looking at the arrows next to the player, they might help give a hint :)

@paulhocker - Sorry to hear that! I might upload a video, but I don't want to stop people from figuring it for themselves.
Wet_Band-Aid
21. Apr 2020 · 04:02 UTC
Seems difficult at first but once you figure it out you can survive indefinitely. Very interesting concept.
drewstillwell
21. Apr 2020 · 04:10 UTC
still having a hard time figuring out the mechanics, but the controls feel really tight.
Gal Afik
21. Apr 2020 · 05:13 UTC
I'm afraid I couldn't figure out how to play without dying almost immediately. The idea is interesting though and I would like to play it again if you choose to expand on it.
🎤 SaxOps1
21. Apr 2020 · 05:55 UTC
Thanks for trying @drewstillwell and @gal-afik - I think I will make a video and a post-jam version to help improve clarity.
marbles
21. Apr 2020 · 07:52 UTC
I was about to say that I don't know where the next wraith will come from (and I die before I found one) but then I saw the arrow beside my character telling me which direction is the wraith. Good job!
🎤 SaxOps1
21. Apr 2020 · 07:57 UTC
Thanks @marbles I didn't want to make them too obvious, but hopefully people see them OK!
leniwabula
21. Apr 2020 · 08:02 UTC
Sadly I couldn't really get far into game, because the pillar drained too quickly for my taste and ghost spawned in kind of weird places :(

It's especially sad, because the game looked very fun.
🎤 SaxOps1
21. Apr 2020 · 08:44 UTC
Sorry it's kind of hard @leniwabula - there's a groove you have to find to get into enjoying the game, and I'd like to make it easier in the future to learn / get into the game :)
rufson
21. Apr 2020 · 17:12 UTC
It was hard to figure out at first, but after seeing your tutorial I got a good result.Flashing arrows are very helpful. Good concept, keep it up!
![score.jpg](///raw/070/13/z/31c49.jpg)
I love chromatic abberation effect but your shader have the same value on center and corners and that hurt my eyes(check HeartBeast godot video on youtube, he is doing this shader with mask in center, more natural look and good for the eye's)
🎤 SaxOps1
22. Apr 2020 · 05:41 UTC
Thanks for the feedback @rufson! I had a hard time making the chromatic abberation look decent, but still wasn't totally happy with it, as you've said. I'll go watch his video, thanks!
WilhelmStein
22. Apr 2020 · 08:19 UTC
A bit hard to figure out. Interesting concept though.
sztrovacsek
22. Apr 2020 · 16:44 UTC
Good to see other Godot games here! Took me a while to figure out how to not die instantly, but after I got the hang of it, it became an interesting challenge. I like this mechanic, but it might be a little bit too hard (I couldn't survive for more than 30 seconds). The energy could drain slower, or you could get more power from the wraiths or give them bigger hitboxes.
🎤 SaxOps1
23. Apr 2020 · 08:50 UTC
Thanks for the feedback @wilhelmstein and @sztrovacsek! The feedback I've received so far has mostly been around the learning curve and balancing, so it's good to know some more specifics :)
Ifidamas
23. Apr 2020 · 16:00 UTC
Nice concept. I needed your tutorial to really understand how to play, and nevertheless I feel like it is quite hard! Nevertheless, it is nice and fun.
Ifidamas
23. Apr 2020 · 16:00 UTC
Nice concept. I needed your tutorial to really understand how to play, and nevertheless I feel like it is quite hard! Nevertheless, it is nice and fun.
Sklaiser
23. Apr 2020 · 23:57 UTC
It took me a while to understand but nice concept, i liked the neon effect of the character's cloak,
i think it would be cool in a top-down view :)
rjerez192
24. Apr 2020 · 00:01 UTC
Nice concept. Kind of hard to follow the enemies, a larger hitbox would make it easier. I did feel that sometimes it was impossible to keep going.
TheQiwiBoy
24. Apr 2020 · 00:03 UTC
This game was pretty fun, but after a while, it got repetitive.
Abyss
24. Apr 2020 · 01:22 UTC
Cool idea! I think the decision making between gathering energy from wraiths or feeding the tower is an interesting one, and there is definitely room to expand, maybe different energy sources, other structures you can build with the acumulated energy, or potentially some enemies that you use energy to defeat. Great work!
🎤 SaxOps1
24. Apr 2020 · 04:58 UTC
Thanks for playing and giving feedback!

@ifidamas - I think a tutorial is something I'll improve for another version for sure!

@sklaiser - I'm pretty happy with how the cloak turned out, and I think I'll try something similar to it again in the future!

@rjerez192 - My initial thought was that it was just part of the challenge, but maybe it's too hard, so I might make it bigger again.

@abyss - Thanks for the ideas! They sound pretty cool, so I might look into them and have a think about it!
Jupiter_Hadley
24. Apr 2020 · 09:49 UTC
Challenging game. I included it in my Ludum Dare 46 compilation video series, if you want to take a look. :) https://youtu.be/Xpc46Nkubiw