Schism by agentparsec

made by agentparsec for Ludum Dare 51 (COMPO)

[$$embed-1107.zip]

Schism

About the game

You have picked up a crystal that has cursed you to shift between two different dimensions every 10 seconds. The only way to be free of it is to collect the other three crystals nearby. They only exist in the normal dimension, and are only visible when you are close, but the crystal you hold will ping when you are near another crystal, and will ping faster as you approach it.

While in the dark dimension, everything can hurt you, even the trees. If you are hurt, you will heal (slowly) when back in the normal world.

Controls

Mouse to look
WASD to move
Shift to sprint (mind your stamina)
Escape to quit (NOTE: In the WebGL version, press escape twice)

Made using

Unity 2021.3.0f1 (game engine)
Reaper v5.983/x64 rev 3fd15a (music)
GoldWave 6.41 (sound)
GIMP 2.10.20 (textures)
Blender 2.81 (model)

Hints

Trees move randomly, but are still dangerous to touch.
Rocks will pursue you only when not looked at. They will get gradually faster over time. Listen to their sound to know if they are getting close.
A barrier prevents you from leaving the area, and marks a circle around it. All the crystals will be within the circle, but not too close to the center (where you start)

Link	https://agentparsec.itch.io/schism
Link	https://agentparsec.itch.io/schism
Link	https://agentparsec.itch.io/schism
Apple macOS (untested)	https://agentparsec.itch.io/schism
Linux (untested)	https://agentparsec.itch.io/schism
Original URL	https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/51/schism

Ratings

Given

14🗳️

3🗨️

Feedback

PoV

03. Oct 2022 · 01:23 UTC

I've heard a report that the embedded game wont run in Firefox. If you disable the "Data Caching" checkbox in Unity's HTML5 exporter, it should solve this problem.

https://ludumdare.com/resources/guides/embedding/

greenphox

03. Oct 2022 · 17:41 UTC

That was scary.
That was very scary.
That was really scary.
The trees would move and chase me, the rocks would become dark creatures making creepy sounds and worst of all! those beautiful, pure, white, clean, full of light creatures would become an abomination of the dark. I loved it! really nice graphics, and the gameplay was really good, it was hard to find the crystals (didn't finish the game yet), but it doesn't seem impossible. I also loved the death screen, it added a lot to the scary vibe of the game. well done, wonderful job!

edit: I forgot to say that the music was also awesome, especially the cahgnes between epic and scary were amazing, well done!

LDJam user 305869

03. Oct 2022 · 21:02 UTC

Wow I love the mood and the sound design. So far I only played it once and only managed to get two out of the three remaining crystals. Good game!

LDJam user 279622

05. Oct 2022 · 08:46 UTC

I played this one on stream last night! unfortunately the VOD got muted, so no link :(

I loved the atmosphere of this game (and hated the sound effect when I got eaten haha). The music and audio is really well done!

The gameplay loop could use improving - I kinda felt like I was running around in circles, and it was really easy to get lost. Maybe more unique landmarks would make it easier to remember where the player had already been?

stmatn

09. Oct 2022 · 16:56 UTC

Very nice mood and sound design! It would be nice to add some constant landmarks, because I had the feeling I was running in circles. Maybe some kind of beacon in the center of the game world. All in all good work.

Steve7411

11. Oct 2022 · 03:04 UTC

I love the music and sound. The mood is also great in the dark world. Really impressive compo entry!

nardandas

11. Oct 2022 · 03:38 UTC

Really cool mood. I talked about this in my stream, but I really liked the stressful gameplay loop. To repeat myself here, I think the way all of the props become dangerous, while super super cool, paints you into a bit of a corner with the way it's hard to add more props. I think it might feel okay if really big things just don't move, I'm not super sure. I really liked the effects on the edge of the map. I think with more landmarks, it might be nice to expand the map more. While I can't be sure where exactly I was, the arena felt kind of small.

ShaunShepherd

16. Oct 2022 · 06:05 UTC

The music was really great and the switch between dimensions was well done as well. Even though the other dimension was scary visually and dangerous, I kept dying very quickly, it didn't feel all that scary mechanically. There was maybe not enough feedback that I was being pursued or attacked and it didn't feel like i had much control over whether I was going to die or not. I really like the contrast between the dimensions on all levels, well done!

Magnus Lindh

16. Oct 2022 · 11:22 UTC

Very cool game, especially I liked the scary trees and the ambient soundtrack. Maybe a tutorial could be added? Also I was unable to restart the game.

Voidsay

16. Oct 2022 · 11:38 UTC

Very atmospheric. I really liked the presentation, the visuals and the music shift. Sadly I died before I could get the last crystal :( Having to walk this slowly in combination of being mostly aimless when it comes to locating the crystals was ok for one playthru, but didn't exactly encourage me to try again.

kr4ft3r

17. Oct 2022 · 13:15 UTC

Quite a good idea, and execution for a Compo entry. Sound design is top. The downside is after a few tries I had to give up as it kept being disorienting and the evil versions of will-o'-the-wisps were too fast for my stamina. I guess more of a reason to train and stay in shape, as there is not a chance I wouldn't pick up a crystal found in a forest.

Rashcan

18. Oct 2022 · 06:11 UTC

Really cool idea! I really liked the way the trees amble towards you in the shadow dimension. The music switching was well done too! Although, it did get a little repetitive considering how long it takes to find the crystals. I ended up dying unceremoniously somewhere near the last crystal due to the evil wisps being overly persistent bastards, but I think I got the full experience of the game. Well done for 48 hours!

PBG

18. Oct 2022 · 12:56 UTC

The mood and the music here are really top-notch. I love how the music and the sounds corresponded with the transformations - you absolutely nailed the timing there.

I wasn't able to find any more than one crystal. Maybe some hints about where to go besides the pinging sound? I found it easy to lose my direction in the shadow realm. Still, top marks for sound and mood here. well-done!

Robin49

18. Oct 2022 · 16:51 UTC

That's a good game, the idea to change from a dimension to another is very smart. A little bit scary but nice :)