LudumData

Volleybody by Ramperkash

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

You (the intrepid white dot) have come across a small green alien creature that seems to be allergic to the floor. Keep it alive (that's the theme!) by bouncing it around like a volleyball, without letting it touch the floor (walls and ceilings are OK). This little guy seems to be hungry and loves the blue fruit seemingly appearing out of nowhere; bounce your new friend to these fruit to feed him and arbitrarily increase your score (self-worth).

https://youtu.be/x_2duNTB4Rs

Controls: W or up arrow to jump A or left arrow, and D or right arrow to move left or right respectively Space to reset the alien (and your score unfortunately) if he hit the floor

These keys also interact with the alien: If you're holding the jump key while the alien is in contact with you, he'll bounce twice as high. If you're holding left or right while the alien is in contact with you, he'll bounce sideways instead of straight upwards.

Don't fret, all fruit are actually reachable, although a few of the spawns are a bit difficult; they're randomly chosen right now, sorry.

I'd love feedback on the game feel of moving around in particular. I know it's finicky to bounce this thing around, but how much better do you think I could have made it and where/why did it absolutely suck.

Youtube https://ramperkash.itch.io/volleybody
Original URL https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/46/volleybody

Ratings

Overall 2298th 2.905⭐ 23🧑‍⚖️
Fun 2259th 2.69⭐ 23🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 774th 3.5⭐ 23🧑‍⚖️
Theme 776th 3.857⭐ 23🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 2260th 2.375⭐ 22🧑‍⚖️
Humor 1594th 2.5⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Mood 2323th 2.342⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Given 21🗳️ 5🗨️

Feedback

Danial Yong
21. Apr 2020 · 18:03 UTC
I liked the concept! The ceiling above the alien's spawn was kinda oh no though haha. It felt really hard initially since i kept bouncing the alien into the ceiling and instantly losing. A few runs after felt better after i didn't hit the alien as hard.
FlashViper
21. Apr 2020 · 18:06 UTC
After a good 5 minutes of play, I finally reached a score of 2. I loved the game, and the concept was especially fun. I would love to see a more polished version of this!
Gronther
21. Apr 2020 · 18:18 UTC
It's quite a tricky game, but I like the idea of this keepy-uppy thing. The level design makes it a bit unplayable unfortunately. For example, you can't jump up to the floating box on the left side from the raised up part in the middle, making traversal from low to high only possible via the very small corridor on the left. Would have loved some simple sound effects too, as right now the game is very quiet.
Koolruz
21. Apr 2020 · 18:30 UTC
It took me several lives to figure out the alien's movement, but I eventually got to the point where it felt more natural, and ended up bringing him on a walk all the way around the level to get three points! :)

Once you got into a flow, there was something interesting that happened - Because you move at the same speed as the alien, you weren't really worried about your own position relative to the alien, and instead had to focus on frantically platforming without stopping or slowing down, which was fun! You might consider putting the fruit in fixed positions around the level, so that you can nudge the player into a path with a nice flow to it - It wasn't until I happened to get a second fruit that spawned to the left side of the level that the movement clicked with me.

Because you asked for feedback on how the movement feels, I had originally expected the alien to bounce off of you in a more realistic way, as if you were a circle - Eg, if you hit him with the left side of your head, he'd bounce off to the left. This might make the gameplay more focused on bouncing the alien than on the platforming, if that's something you wanted to do. :)

Overall though, keep up the good work!
dasilvacontin
21. Apr 2020 · 18:36 UTC
Jesus, I love hard games, usually good at them, but this was veery hard. I wish it was slightly easier. Maybe I didn't get the "trick" to it. But it was enjoyable to experience. Good job putting it out! :)
🎤 Ramperkash
22. Apr 2020 · 16:13 UTC
@gronther and @danial-yong: You're definitely right; the level design is bad. Not only that it makes learning the game tough, but also in a few other ways. Thanks for the feedback, if I continue this game, I'll definitely be looking into level design way more.

@koolruz Thanks a bunch for the input on the movement, and for putting so much effort into getting the hang of the game (as everyone has noted, it is hard at the moment). On the movement stuff: I usually try to make games completely physics based, but I was trying to take game feel stuff into account (basic example: the character drops faster after a jump) and also apply it to the alien which is why he always moves left/right at a constant speed. I'm glad you managed to get into the flow of it and noticed that you move at the same speed as the alien; I think I should have somehow communicated that better, as I assume most people would try to use the sprint speed from the start. Also great ideas on guiding the player with the fruit; at the moment they're just put in various places to challenge different "tricks" possible with the current game ruleset.

Thanks everyone for the feedback so far, and sorry if it's a bit difficult to play ;)
kfischer-okarin
27. Apr 2020 · 08:52 UTC
Nice idea but much too difficult for me to enjoy it. At least with current level design and falling speed of the alien.
Samuli
07. May 2020 · 15:45 UTC
This is insanely hard. Couldn't even get the second score after many tries. Good job on the entry still!
Dave Follett
07. May 2020 · 17:35 UTC
I think the alien moves a bit too fast or the white ball too slow. Other than bounce the alien straight up and down I couldn't get anywhere. I do really like the idea though. Like others said maybe a different level design to get started.
HacksawUnit
11. May 2020 · 22:38 UTC
This is genius!! The main mechanic here is so, so cool. I love how much control you have over the alien thanks to the slightly odd-ball but very precise directional input system. Echoing what others have said, the player control could use tweaking. I would greatly reduce the character's 'slipperyness' (walking deceleration) and maybe add more options, like wall jumping or a fast ground-slide. However, I really like the character's jump as it is now. In most contexts, I don't think I would like the fact you can hold it down for so long, but it makes sense for this game.
neontropics
11. May 2020 · 23:36 UTC
The core gameplay of this is is very nice and it feels good to play.

It does get a bit too frustrating a bit too soon, and some sound effects and music would be cool.
Literal Games
12. May 2020 · 12:16 UTC
Super hard but quite rewarding if you take the time to keep going! I got to 4 points and then couldn't see the next fruit, but I had a good time practicing to get there. I would like to see a version of this with less-random aspects, like a proper level system rather than random fruits. With progression and a bit of work on the movement I could see this being a full game. Good job!
yy404
12. May 2020 · 16:17 UTC
Have to say it's too hard :smirk:

I think allowing hit floor (e.g. max 3 times) may could be a solution.

Good job anyway!