LudumData

Stoker by disperse

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

Goal

Keep the boiler running and disarm bombs the saboteur places on the train.

Watch the steam gauge in the upper left corner, when it is low return to the furnace where you start and stand by the coal box to refill it.

Keep an eye out for the bomb timer in the top-middle. If there is a timer, the saboteur has dropped a bomb somewhere on the train. Keep track of where he is (he runs along the top of the train) and get to it first!

See how long you can keep the train running and try for a high score.

Controls (Keyboard)

  • Left arrow: move left
  • Up arrow: jump
  • Right arrow: move right
  • Spacebar: shoot

Controls (Gamepad)

  • Left stick or D-pad Move
  • A: Jump
  • X: Shoot

Credits

Design and pixel art: Henri

Code: Mark

Sound effects by bfxr.

Public domain music including Ragtime Dance by Scott Joplin: (https://freemusicarchive.org/music/ScottJoplin/PianoRollsfromarchiveorg/ScottJoplin-RagtimeDance1906) and My Sweetie Went away by Bessie Smith (https://freemusicarchive.org/music/BessieSmith/AntiquePhonographMusicProgram02172015/MySweetieWentAway-Bessie_Smith).

Train sound by gadzooks on freesound.org (https://freesound.org/people/gadzooks/sounds/39413/)

Youtube https://disperse.itch.io/stoker
Youtube https://github.com/disperse/ld46
Original URL https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/46/stoker

Ratings

Overall 865th 3.638⭐ 60🧑‍⚖️
Fun 750th 3.56⭐ 60🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 928th 3.429⭐ 58🧑‍⚖️
Theme 924th 3.789⭐ 59🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 740th 3.948⭐ 60🧑‍⚖️
Audio 599th 3.592⭐ 51🧑‍⚖️
Humor 1031th 3.019⭐ 54🧑‍⚖️
Mood 1027th 3.491⭐ 56🧑‍⚖️
Given 71🗳️ 86🗨️

Feedback

🎤 disperse
21. Apr 2020 · 03:12 UTC
![Screen Shot 2020-04-20 at 11.12.15 PM.png](///raw/3c6/z/30f50.png)

My high score is $22,950. Can you beat it?
Xenith
21. Apr 2020 · 19:43 UTC
pretty cool concept you got here, enjoyed it :)
TheDouche
21. Apr 2020 · 19:43 UTC
Found this game funny! The sound is really loud and almost busted my ears at first xd. But overall nice art, and a cool game! :D
AdamV
21. Apr 2020 · 19:44 UTC
I liked it! There was a lot to keep an eye on (enemies, bombs, and steam) while trying to get money, which made for some frantic running around! I couldn't figure out how to restore the steam though :(
J_C - One Bit Studio
21. Apr 2020 · 19:45 UTC
Congrats for this game. The wild west themed music and art was a great choice. The gameplay is quiet challenging, but pretty well done as well.
Majadroid
21. Apr 2020 · 19:51 UTC
Nice game, works well, the controls are very fluent. It is fun to play.
Also cool music, but I think you should disable rating for audio, when you didn't make it by yourself.
Binney
21. Apr 2020 · 19:52 UTC
Lovely :) gorgeous art style and very playable. My one criticism would be it gets a bit repetitive after a while, I suppose I was expecting the train to pull into a station or something.
OndraSej
21. Apr 2020 · 19:57 UTC
This is a cool game, I liked the theme (there are not enough westerns in the world), the art stile is cool and so is the music.

It would be nice to give this a bit more polish
- the (gamepad) controls were not as precise as I've expected.
- for some reason, I had to press jump at the beginning to start playing. I lost my first train to this.
- is there a way to restart the game from the final screen in WebGL? I had to reload the page to play again.
mrs.wheelsx
21. Apr 2020 · 20:02 UTC
Loved the art and music. I was swept away to another place and time. Great job, keep up the good work!
🎤 disperse
21. Apr 2020 · 20:05 UTC
@adamv Thanks! Just return to the coal box (where you start the game) and stand there and you will shovel coal into the boiler.
🎤 disperse
21. Apr 2020 · 20:06 UTC
@binney Thanks! Yes, pulling into a station was the original plan but we ran out of time. We'll add it post-competition.
Ethan Losten
21. Apr 2020 · 20:08 UTC
Really nice art and music
Had to manage my resources well
But the lack of restart button was a bit annoying
Overall really nice and fun
🎤 disperse
21. Apr 2020 · 20:08 UTC
@ondrasej Ahh, yes, tapping a button on the controller is necessary to enable it. That should be automated. I added the gamepad support in the last hour before submission and was unable to test on my Xbox controller (not supported in MacOSX). It really should support analog sticks fully. A restart button is badly needed but you need to hit reload at this time. Thanks for playing and for your feedback!
Bastienre4
21. Apr 2020 · 20:13 UTC
Good job! Fun game. Being able to restart the game without having to refresh the page would have been great, but the game is lovely and the art is nice :)
TenaciousSlug
21. Apr 2020 · 20:14 UTC
I had a lot of fun playing this game, you did a great job on the atmosphere. It would be nice to be able to start a new game from the game over scene, but that's a minor detail.

Congratulations !
Brain in a Bowl
21. Apr 2020 · 20:15 UTC
Fun, engaging game with charming graphics. Quickly escalates from relaxed exploring to everything going wrong at the same time. Nicely done!
D5R
21. Apr 2020 · 21:39 UTC
Good job sticking to the theme, having to keep track of bombs and the train's fuel made for a really fun challenge!
joewolf
21. Apr 2020 · 22:40 UTC
Great take on the theme, I really like the western style graphics and audio! With the amount of times I died it would have been really nice to have a quick restart option. Other than that though the quick escalation of difficulty made it really enjoyable and replay-able. Great job!
Chillwind
21. Apr 2020 · 23:44 UTC
[My high score is $31,850](https://i.imgur.com/Mebb8aX.png)

This is my favorite game so far! It plays almost like a forgotten arcade era classic.
I had a lot of fun with this one and enjoyed it very much. Especially because the balancing is superb, too.

Thank you for making this!
🎤 disperse
22. Apr 2020 · 01:16 UTC
I added a "press R to reload" feature due to popular demand. Please feel free to rate the game as if it didn't have this feature (it literally just refreshes the browser window but helps when playing in full screen).

@chillwind You are too kind! That high score might stick for a while, I haven't made it much past my previous high score.
Shadoninja
25. Apr 2020 · 04:52 UTC
It just stayed as a black screen for me, so I didn't get to play it :(
NathanT
25. Apr 2020 · 05:01 UTC
Great art style. Especially liked the villains. I played for a while before realizing I could shoot lol. Made things a bit easier. Permadeath falling between the carts was a little rough. Fun soundtrack. Nice jam!
hiisileiri
25. Apr 2020 · 05:04 UTC
Good concept and fine game play! It is one tactic to follow the bomb dropper to know where the bomb is. Still have to keep moving to find more ammo. As said; good concept, meanwhile the concept may become unpleasant after playing this one train more than a ten or more times, and start-instructions are by some way unclear (i would like to see the whole train before start the mission start). I would also prefer different trains (=levels). This game reminds western movies and one/or two the James Bond- movies and that such a cool things
Patsui
25. Apr 2020 · 07:34 UTC
Charming art & good music set the mood very well, the gameplay was fine and dandy. One thing I couldn't figure out is how to get to the roof.. Other than that good job!
ChewieCB
25. Apr 2020 · 14:02 UTC
The art was great, liked the music as well. Took me a while to realise I couldn't stop the guy on top of the train and had to get the bombs he dropped, spent a while trying to figure out how to get to him.

Solid concept and interesting setting.
🎤 disperse
25. Apr 2020 · 18:18 UTC
@shadoninja I'm sorry to hear you were unable to play, it might have just been loading the music? I should probably implement a loading bar while the assets load. If you get a chance, right-click and Inspect the page and let me know if you have any console errors.
🎤 disperse
25. Apr 2020 · 18:20 UTC
@nathant Thanks for your comments! I wanted to keep the jumping from car to car a bit dangerous. I'm going to spend some time and make the restart instantaneous which should make the perma-death less painful.
🎤 disperse
25. Apr 2020 · 18:20 UTC
@hiisileiri A pan-view over the whole train is a great idaa! We were considering a minimap that shows the current location of the bomb, etc, but dropped it early due to limited time.
🎤 disperse
25. Apr 2020 · 18:22 UTC
@patsui Thanks! No way to get to the roof (that was something we considered early on but decided to make the saboteur an enemy you don't interact with).
🎤 disperse
25. Apr 2020 · 18:23 UTC
@chewiecb I should definitely add an in-game tutorial or explanation. Thanks for playing!
Shadoninja
25. Apr 2020 · 20:35 UTC
@disperse It worked this time! Loaded immediately, so Idk what was wrong the first time. Good job on the game!
🎤 disperse
25. Apr 2020 · 21:17 UTC
@shadoninja Thanks for trying again, glad it worked this time!
Olima
26. Apr 2020 · 10:14 UTC
Really like the art style and music, makes it feel like a really cool retro game! Also like the added challenges the train offers to mix things up and it goes well with the theme, well done!
monkeyDvrus
26. Apr 2020 · 16:01 UTC
Great game! Good choice for music. Very pleasant.
Trifectuh
27. Apr 2020 · 01:41 UTC
This is a fun game! It was made a bit more challenging since I had a (bug?) where my bullets would only fire at ground level, but I kinda learned to work around it. Very charming art/tunes as well. Overall a great entry, nice job.
FinnThePirate
27. Apr 2020 · 22:11 UTC
great, i like it. you can check my game thanks
sypdev
28. Apr 2020 · 21:22 UTC
Great game, loved the art style!
Tanapat
28. Apr 2020 · 21:32 UTC
I mean what can i say that hasn't already been said, this game is really good and super fun.
Jcourt
28. Apr 2020 · 21:53 UTC
Well done! I like the concept, although it did get a bit repetitive running back and forth through the same cars. If you continue working on it, it might be nice to have multiple levels, each with a different train? I like the art style, and the music fits the game very well even if you didn't make it yourself.
SarahFrisk
28. Apr 2020 · 22:21 UTC
Really polished game and a lot of fun! Great job with graphics/audio on top of a solid gameplay.
🎤 disperse
28. Apr 2020 · 23:30 UTC
@jcourt Yes, at minimum, we'd like there to be a time limit for each level (pulling into a station for a score bonus) and some sort of escalation of difficulty (perhaps new enemy types). Thank you for playing and your feedback!
🎤 disperse
28. Apr 2020 · 23:31 UTC
@tanapat @sarahfrisk @sypdev Thank you for playing and your feedback, we really appreciate it!
Andrzej Gieralt
29. Apr 2020 · 00:02 UTC
Very nice! Unfortunately the screen is quite small, and also the feedback is not very clear for when the enemies drop a bomb - perhaps a very clear sound and flash when the timer starts/a pop up message. Also the player is just kind of waiting until something happens not knowing if he should go somewhere or what or potentially even if he's stoking the flames properly. Some future thoughts perhaps.
🎤 disperse
29. Apr 2020 · 00:50 UTC
@andrzej-gieralt Yes, the default resolution is 240 x 400 pixels. I recommend hitting the full screen button to make it playable. Better feedback for the bomb would definitely be helpful. We were considering a minimap or something early on but it was dropped due to time. Thank you for playing and for your feedback!
zillix
29. Apr 2020 · 05:25 UTC
Really neat presentation! I actually quite liked the tiny default resolution, it really makes the pixel art look great; you've got so much going on in the foreground and background.
The pressure between keeping the fire alive and going out to deal with the bomb makes for some interesting gameplay, though the train felt a little long at times. Music is great and fitting as well.
Great work!
Snowirbis
29. Apr 2020 · 17:40 UTC
Good game, but it was hard to understand, there is no explanation in game, no tutorial
Hoseccan
29. Apr 2020 · 20:20 UTC
Hey! Nice graphic style! Also choice of music and conception at all!
amkingTRP
30. Apr 2020 · 15:38 UTC
Rather quite enjoyable. Not sure if it could break the game, but a minimap of bombs and bandits would be helpful so you could plan whether to go out to defuse it, or head back to stoke the boiler.
joemid
30. Apr 2020 · 16:07 UTC
Hectic! Fun little game! I had some issues getting started with HTML build- it seemed like it lost focus? I kept reloading and going back and forth into full-screen and I regained control.

![stoker.jpg](///raw/684/z/339b3.jpg)

That small issue aside, I like the controls- they are a little squirrel-y but with the pixel graphics, I assumed that is what you are going for- reminded me of 2600 or NES- The ragtime score really set the mood. I loved the graphics too, and appreciated the color and diversity of each train car.

I think this could be a great prototype for a larger game- built around the history of train lines and robberies.

Maybe instead of an endless points-based arcade style (I'm assuming, based on my play) you could start with a smaller train and get more cars as you progress? Bottom-line, you got me excited and started a brain-storm for sure!

Bravo and congratulations on a fantastic game!
kiddychris
30. Apr 2020 · 19:31 UTC
Music and graphics are nice. the control is a bit strange, also I didn't understand why the shooting was only on a lower level (I mean if you are on a box, the shooting goes not from your character but from the same place all the time)
🎤 disperse
30. Apr 2020 · 21:36 UTC
@zillix Thank you very much for trying the game out, we really appreciate it!
🎤 disperse
30. Apr 2020 · 21:36 UTC
@snowirbis Totally! Yes, we need in-game instructions or a tutorial. Just ran out of time...
🎤 disperse
30. Apr 2020 · 21:36 UTC
@hoseccan Thanks!
🎤 disperse
30. Apr 2020 · 21:38 UTC
@amkingtrp Yes, I had imagined a mini map in the top right showing where the bomb was currently set. We cut that feature early due to time. At minimum, we should have a bomb icon with an arrow showing in which direction the bomb has been set.
🎤 disperse
30. Apr 2020 · 21:39 UTC
@joemid Huh, I'm not sure what the loss of focus could be due to. I think it's a fairly standard HTML5 game in an itch.io frame. Thank you so much for playing and for your feedback, it definitely needs more of a "game" than just being a score chaser. We'll put some more time into it post-jam.
🎤 disperse
30. Apr 2020 · 21:40 UTC
@kiddychris Yes, the shooting from the default y level is a bug that I never fixed. It shouldn't be an issue in-game as the bandits only spawn in dining cars without crates, but it is weird.
Bulent Altinay
01. May 2020 · 12:34 UTC
Great game. Awesome music!!! Full of action. The bullet shoots from low level when the player is higher ( bug I think ? ) . Overall like the game a lot.. :thumbsup:
Mika la Grand
01. May 2020 · 21:56 UTC
The art is good, but I would have left out the ground part in the foreground and just had rails; now it looks a bit weird. The music is great, but the train noise is a bit too loud. The pickup sounds are also very high pitch. Now on to the gameplay. I like how there are multiple loops with the boiler and the explosives, but the train is too long. It takes to much time to find the explosive and keep ~~running~~ walking back to the boiler. I also noticed that there isn't any grace jumping. Could you also link to the individual sfx's? I quite like the train sounds and I'm working on a train game as well.
🎤 disperse
02. May 2020 · 00:21 UTC
@mika-la-grand Thanks for your feedback! The train sound is from freesound.org here: https://freesound.org/people/gadzooks/sounds/39413/ All other sounds were created using bfxr.
JMad
11. May 2020 · 22:21 UTC
I am very terrible, but really dig your concept!! The gameplay works very well. Art is great, I especially liked the background, and that train smoke... what a beauty! Good jobe :)
tobiasw
11. May 2020 · 23:23 UTC
Nice idea! Unfortunately I was quite terrible at the game as well. I wonder if multiple levels, or maybe the train stopping at stations and getting longer there, would've been a good idea for newbies like me? It felt really long right now, especially considering the player's movement speed. And sometimes the bombs just seem impossible to get. Great art and music!

PS: Nice avatar ;)