Girl in a red car by Listonos

[raw]
made by Listonos for Ludum Dare 49 (COMPO)

"Girl in a red car" is a short text adventure game. You were hired to do small maintenance work on a house. But something is not quite right.

Controls: Keyboard (lots of typing)

Play here in a browser

Note, that I am hosting the game on free tier heroku node so it might take a little bit to boot up, if you are first one playing in a while. Don't worry, it will load soon.

Shameless plug, this is a first LD game that is using my own React & Typescript terminal framework web-gash. Feel free to check it out.

Screenshot.PNG

Ratings

Overall 301th 3.417⭐ 32🧑‍⚖️
Fun 323th 3.258⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 291th 3.283⭐ 32🧑‍⚖️
Theme 403th 3.167⭐ 32🧑‍⚖️
Humor 229th 2.897⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Mood 59th 3.862⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Given 23🗳️ 40🗨️

Feedback

Iluvatar
04. Oct 2021 · 07:37 UTC
It's funny that I played 4 games so far, and 3 OF THEM WERE TEXT BASED GAMES, haha! I love the genre is getting the love it deserves.

This was a lot of fun. I really like the colorful text interface. It helped me a lot to organize my reading and thinking. Extra points for the black background and text, reminds me of playing 80's text adventures :) Very well done.
AppoxGames
04. Oct 2021 · 07:53 UTC
First time I actually play a text based game. Didn't think I would enjoy it but it really enhanced the mood since you create the world in your head instead of letting it be defined by graphics. I enjoyed it, thank you.
Debone
04. Oct 2021 · 08:01 UTC
There's a small bug where you can't really go from the hallway to the study, but the study is available as an option. Another thing was that as a terminal, I was expecting auto complete or shortcuts (i for inspect) of the options available as going around would be much quicker :) But I can see how that could be dropped in the time limit.

I enjoyed the first exploration around the house, but I missed a bit what I was intended to do. As I understood, I'm a handyman and somehow I ended in this empty(?) house. The only thing I fixed was the noisy door, because I assumed I should do, but after going through all the rooms, there was no "Oh, here you are, we need this xyz fixed". I'm curious what a resonance collider is :P
candlesan
04. Oct 2021 · 08:05 UTC
This game is so delightfully retro but with modern conveniences like the tab-completion and the colors for the different types. Reminds me of playing the infocom Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy game.
pinkemma
04. Oct 2021 · 08:06 UTC
Neat concept! The tab complete is a very nice touch. I do wish it used the more standard actions though, like look, take, <name of exit> to go, etc. Some synonyms would be nice as well (read -> use, etc)

It's a bug that study is listed in landing at the start and not ... after?

I also can't seem to go to the living room.

Very intriguing though!
TheGreenWorm
04. Oct 2021 · 08:07 UTC
The "go study" keywards doesn't seem to work, but I enjoyed looking (or reading) around in this house, picking up bananas and emptying trash cans ^^
🎤 Listonos
04. Oct 2021 · 08:09 UTC
@iluvatar Wow, 3 out 4 games being text is pretty funny. Thanks for playing and kind words.

@appoxgames I am glad you liked it. It's not for everyone for sure.

@debone There is some story craziness going on that I don't want to spoil so maybe something go messed up with the study, noted. Auto-complete should be working, you just have to press Tab, just like on unix systems. On the off-chance you wanted to give it another go, here is a small hint. There is "inventory" command and you can "inspect" items in it. Edit: I have fixed the study, apologies for that.
🎤 Listonos
04. Oct 2021 · 08:21 UTC
@pinkemma @thegreenworm Thanks for playing and also pointing out the bug. I have fixed it and both living room and study should be enterable again.
m11
04. Oct 2021 · 09:49 UTC
Nice concept, and excellent writing :)
shellofagirl
04. Oct 2021 · 15:17 UTC
I love the high contrast graphics and smooth feel. Text based games got me into gaming as a kid so the nostalgia was pleasant. <3
MikoziQ
04. Oct 2021 · 18:58 UTC
After getting done with the tasks

Pros:

- I loved the storytelling
- The variety of objectives and items is a nice touch
- Liked the color palette and contrast design
- React used, a man of culture I see
- Imagination works wonders here
- I actually wondered if repairing specific item might have... **unforseen consequences** :smirk:

Cons:

- Storing people progress could be super easily achieveable by using LocalStorage (until cache is dumped)
- Missed opportunity on Easter Egg (Can't say due to spoilers)

Great entry overall! I enjoyed it very much!
MikoziQ
04. Oct 2021 · 18:58 UTC
After getting done with the tasks

Pros:

- I loved the storytelling
- The variety of objectives and items is a nice touch
- Liked the color palette and contrast design
- React used, a man of culture I see
- Imagination works wonders here
- I actually wondered if repairing specific item might have... **unforseen consequences** :smirk:

Cons:

- Storing people progress could be super easily achieveable by using LocalStorage (until cache is dumped)
- Missed opportunity on Easter Egg (Can't say due to spoilers)

Great entry overall! I enjoyed it very much!
3mpty
04. Oct 2021 · 20:16 UTC
Interesting concept, I really like the subtlety of the mechanic I won't spoil for other users, although maybe it could have ramped up a little faster, I didn't notice it until objective 5.

Definitely a great twist on the normal text adventure formula, I like it!
junjunlowpoly
05. Oct 2021 · 00:10 UTC
I read a lot about old school command based text adventure games (like deadline from infocom) but this was the first time I played one myself. I enjoyed it!

It's impressive to make such a short story self-contained and with proper twist in the end. There are also plenty of the hints in the middle. I like how the structure of the house is similar to the structure of storytelling so that you get scared by the painting every time you explored a room (or come back from completing a task).

The interface resembles terminal so much I couldn't help typing things like "cd (a place)" or "ls"(instead of "explore").

Something minor but nice to add is silly responses when an invalid command is submitted. They can also hint at the truth while making the experience more enjoyable.
🎤 Listonos
05. Oct 2021 · 11:20 UTC
@mikoziq I appreciate the suggestion about localstorage. I have to look into it and saving state for my framework in general. Thanks for playing a great review.

@junjunlowpoly Different negative responses is a great idea, it is such a staple of adventure games. I will keep it in mind for next time. Thanks for playing and great review.
zimny11
05. Oct 2021 · 12:26 UTC
I love text based game! I just wish there were shortcuts for command, like P for pickup, E for explore, etc. Beside that solid game. Also, how many bananas are in this fruit basket?! XD

Well done!
jeremyfa
05. Oct 2021 · 13:08 UTC
I managed to go to the attic, change light bulb and a gather a lot of bananas, but now I'm a bit stuck.

That said, the mood is great, the overall (text) game looks good and React seems like a good fit for that!

Other people said it, but being able to save progress would be very useful for that kind of game, and probably easily achievable using localStorage.

Nice game!
BOOtak
05. Oct 2021 · 15:10 UTC
Oh no, I pressed "Ctrl+W" to erase last word and closed the browser tab :) Twice! Oh well, some habits are too strong.

About the game: Oh wow, I think this is the first text-based game on Ludum Dare I was able to finish. Wery well-thought, with nice tasks and interesting story. Well done!
OminusGalaxy44
05. Oct 2021 · 15:19 UTC
This game was pretty fun and I didn´t expect the ending. It was just kind of annoying having to re-type things if you make a typo but other than that, solid game!
Arttu Halonen
05. Oct 2021 · 15:32 UTC
A neat throwback! Cool idea for a jam game!
jka
05. Oct 2021 · 18:26 UTC
Good writing, nice creepy vibe. And good job on that terminal framework! :thumbsup:
Masaru
05. Oct 2021 · 20:26 UTC
I had never played a text-based adventure game before (not my thing at all), that was a very cool experience. I ended up being a bit lost, just looked at my inventory and used everything left randomly until I got an ending, it was a weird interaction to say the least but man was that a cool entry. Very well done !
EvokeSoul
06. Oct 2021 · 14:22 UTC
This is a really interesting game and you were right it was a lot of typing and I enjoyed the typing XD
nyxkn
07. Oct 2021 · 21:13 UTC
This was beautiful! Really well written and very intriguing. Commands were a bit long to type and it took me a while to realize I could use tab completion, but then it was quite smooth. Might have been cool to also use the typical one-letter shortcut aliases for the commands.
Good game! The whole terminal realization was very well done and felt buttery smooth.
LaurenceOgden
07. Oct 2021 · 23:37 UTC
Seemed to get stuck after tasks. Noticed that the living room and study swapped places which was fun.

If you're going to give us busy work whilst you set up the real plot, could you make them more interesting? I'm not asking for minigames, just something less mundane and fetch-quest-y.

Pretty good overall, I like your web-gash system. Seems like you've got just the right number of commands to make everything work and memorable.
guimoliveira
09. Oct 2021 · 16:24 UTC
I got a bunch of bananas from the endless fruit basket...
```
I have following items in my inventory: list of tasks, trash bag roll, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana,
banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana,
banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, ​
banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana,
banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana,
banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, banana, tool box, simple instructions, flashlight
```
But when I went to calibrate the "Resonance Collider" I had to eat all them.
```
I have following items in my inventory: list of tasks, trash bag roll, tool box, simple instructions, flashlight
```
Nooo! :sob: lol Great game!
Michael Feldman
09. Oct 2021 · 16:26 UTC
It's good but the very last line could use some work. I think I got it, but either slight modification to the paintings or that last line would have made a big difference for me. There was no mention of **anyone** standing in the road until that last line.

Great use of theme, great use of technology. I think some sound effects would have been a nice touch, maybe with an accompanying volume command
Taft Punk
13. Oct 2021 · 13:56 UTC
I haven't run into too many text adventure games in this jam so far, it was cool to see one. Maybe allowing some alternate commands would have been nice, I kept wanting to use "take" and "look." But it went pretty smoothly once I realized I could use tab complete. The color coding was helpful.
wafflesys
16. Oct 2021 · 18:14 UTC
I was hesitant at first but this is a really good text game. I enjoyed playing it a lot. The ambiance is *really* good!
Ah, and as others noticed the fruit basket has infinite bananas. Don't know if this was done on purpose or if this is a bug haha.
wafflesys
16. Oct 2021 · 18:14 UTC
I was hesitant at first but this is a really good text game. I enjoyed playing it a lot. The ambiance is *really* good!
Ah, and as others noticed the fruit basket has infinite bananas. Don't know if this was done on purpose or if this is a bug haha.
Osborn Tyler
17. Sep 2022 · 12:56 UTC
When choosing a [top rated dating sites](https://www.sfweekly.com/sponsored/the-best-dating-sites-for-singles-that-will-boost-your-personal-life/), it is important to make sure that the features that it offers are worth the price. For example, you may not have to spend much money on a free dating site, but you might not get the same results. Paid dating sites will often produce more matches, and you should consider paying for a membership.