Cosmic Castaway by Perrin

[raw]
made by Perrin for Ludum Dare 50 (EXTRA)

A young woman finds herself on a strange airship on a journey to nowhere.

This retro lucasarts style adventure game takes you on an escape-room style experience as you piece together the mystery of why she's truly there and what part your must play in a grand scheme.

SS1.png

SS2.png

Ratings

Given 29🗳️ 15🗨️

Feedback

LDJam user 212364
06. Apr 2022 · 22:42 UTC
Cool game although a lot of the time I was just getting frustrated. I was able to solve the map puzzle easy enough but then for the music box puzzle I wasn't able to find papers by the door for the longest time. There was no indication they were there, I just accidentally moved my mouse over them at some point. Outside of that the text was way too fast and I kept missing things that were said, it should have been a click to continue thing rather than automatically continuing.

I got the second and third endings but I don't want to wait around for 20 minutes to get what is presumably the first ending. And trying to extract the device.zip kept saying that it was corrupt. Apparently the default Windows zip system didn't recognize that it was encrypted with a password so I had to download another program to get to it.

Overall great game though, I liked that you took advantage of knowledge from playing it a second time as well as that it is being played by a person on a computer. Unfortunately though, I'm not able to rate it at all, the options aren't showing up on this page for some reason. Let me know if that gets sorted out.
ciderpunk
06. Apr 2022 · 22:44 UTC
Kinda stumped, I solved the map puzzle and have a stone tablet but yeah... stuck...
loving the art style tho, very cool!
underfoot
06. Apr 2022 · 23:29 UTC
Definetly captures the vibe of old lucasarts/sierra games (including the difficulty lol). Also i always love a good musical puzzle!
Porcus_Pie
07. Apr 2022 · 00:29 UTC
Oh I loved this. I imagine you opted out on ratings as part of it being an "Extra" game, which is a shame I would have rated this highly. I never played the old Lucas arts games, but from what I have seen it seems like you matched the vibe really well. The puzzles were real head-scratchers and I loved figuring them out, with the map one in particular actually forcing me to break out a notepad and plot everything out. The added touch of having to go into the files, replay the game and do all of these meta-game elements really just made my jaw drop, I had so much fun I can't lie. My only real complaints are that the music papers were not easy to see, and like jogy34 said I did have to download a separate extraction program to use the password (7zip worked well). I think it would have been a fantastic touch at the end to be able to go back into the game after using the secret file, and see some difference. I just had a lot of fun with this, fantastic work
vivyhasadream
07. Apr 2022 · 00:39 UTC
the vibe is cool, but I wasn't able to solve any of the puzzles. Maybe there could be some clues/hints to help? so at least the players could experience more of the story.
subvertissement
07. Apr 2022 · 01:30 UTC
very nice! took me a while to solve the map puzzly, mostly because i missed some upper parts of the shelves. the music box was easy, being a musician, but i can imagine it being confusing for non-music folks.

nonetheless, this was highly impressive for a jam game! amazingly done!
luquio
07. Apr 2022 · 02:07 UTC
I love the art. Not my kind of game for sure. But very impressive nonetheless.
Whysguy52
07. Apr 2022 · 02:29 UTC
i loved this. I got 2 of the endings and i'll try for the third. Why no ratings? did you intentionally opt out of getting a rating?
Huitre
07. Apr 2022 · 02:51 UTC
Cool ambiance and strong retro vibes. I have to say I didn't manage to solve many puzzles in the 20 minutes!
My one piece of feedback would be that it felt like the verbs were not used too much, for example using Look on the Desk papers gave a description of the paper, and I didn't think to 'Use' them at first to read them. I kept wanting to use the old Lucas Arts keyboard shortcuts too :smile: !
Dunusoor
07. Apr 2022 · 02:55 UTC
cool art scheme, didnt entirely get what was going on. the choice for controls was unique.
thefatgalaboo
07. Apr 2022 · 03:05 UTC
Not gonna lie, this really stumped me. Enjoyed playing it though! Love the art and the mood.
NeoHermes
07. Apr 2022 · 07:56 UTC
the vibe is cool, i really enjoyed playing ! :)
LDJam user 282870
07. Apr 2022 · 10:26 UTC
This game is well done, very well done. You have an excellent interface, a well thought out story.

It's Infidel, meets Leisure Suit Larry. Infocom and Sierra Online.


Thank you so much for this wonderful experience.

What type of interface did you use in Unity?
Did you use their UI Handler?
Was it setup for 2D?

Just curious.
fizzbark
07. Apr 2022 · 10:38 UTC
Typically I find games made for jams have this predictable little emotional journey. They start of as a curiosity, filled with potential and sparkle. As the minutes slide by the game reveals its nature with each reveal removing a lot of potential until by the end where they typically outstay their welcome.

This game was the complete opposite of that. From the start I was pretty sure I knew what I was in for, staring down some generic game retro gameplay and a daunting 20 minute timer. That did not turn out to be the 20 minutes I expected, well done on a fantastic experience that went out on a high.

That password is terrifying given the action you have to do with it, I hope you know that.
amkingTRP
07. Apr 2022 · 12:44 UTC
Unbelievably good for a game jam; my wife and I are both old school Lucasarts / Sierra adventure fans and loved playing this.
Also excellent use of the timer, maybe the most stressed I've felt playing an adventure game since Monkey Island's grog/prison lock puzzle.

Would really like to see a post-mortem/making of for this; especially covering technologies used and puzzle design.
Sodoj
07. Apr 2022 · 13:40 UTC
Damn, this is SUPER good for a jam game, even for the Extra category! It strikes just the right notes with me as I'm a huge fan of old point and click games. Very good stuff!
lolopupka
07. Apr 2022 · 15:18 UTC
I like the art style! Great job!
MartensCedric
07. Apr 2022 · 15:24 UTC
Any chance to get a Linux build? I want to try this!
Ntimi
07. Apr 2022 · 15:58 UTC
That was fun. I liked the puzzles, challenging enough but still solvable. :)
I'm a fan of the old LucasArts point and click adventures, so this was familiar territory. And I like the style of the end.
Daniel Dewaswala
07. Apr 2022 · 16:24 UTC
Nice art, I have not played any point and click adventure games so I did not know what was happening.
his-games
07. Apr 2022 · 16:43 UTC
A cosy point and click game. Sometimes felt awkward to interact with objects, but otherwise felt really clean. The art is very nice, too!
Brachistosauro
07. Apr 2022 · 17:44 UTC
Very cool, I was able to get to the second ending. The puzzles definitely felt satisfying. The one thing which bugged me a bit was that the text went too fast and I couldn't understand the ending dialogue. But overall, an excellent game!
Pixelydian
07. Apr 2022 · 19:33 UTC
Loved the nostalgia of this game and style. I didn't beat it because I got stuck, but perhaps I'll visit it again later and try again. :) For what I did get through, very good execution and you captured my attention from the start!
Szatku
07. Apr 2022 · 20:11 UTC
Some problems with interact with object, but nice graphics and mood. Really difficult point and click
Chocolat-Endive
07. Apr 2022 · 20:35 UTC
Loved everything in this! The reversed melody on the piano reminded me of loom actions. You've mastered the breaking of the first wall. The only thing I would do to improve the game would be to correct one typo. At one point, a NPC tells "the land *ws* a total bust". That's really a minor thing.

Really enjoyed it (and enjoyed reading your posts during the making of the game), well done!
halflemonstudios
07. Apr 2022 · 21:49 UTC
The game has a nice atmoshere. Unfortunately I am not very good at/fond ofthis style of gameplays, so my overall experience was not that good. Some (hopefully constructive) criticism.
- Texts were hard to read, too fast and constantly moving. I think already printed letters shouldn't move and there could be longer pause after all is printed out.
- Hints. I had no idea what could I do. Others talked about puzzles. I couldn't solve them, because I couldn't even find them! I was wandering around and trying to do push/pull/pick/... random objects, but nothing worked, only looking. Adding some boundary effects on objects which can be handled would be wonderful.
- Keep promises. From start the game kept telling me that I will understand at the end. When it was time, only a credits scene came up.
- Show if an action is selected.

No rating possibility for me.
LDJam user 243929
07. Apr 2022 · 22:46 UTC
Presentation and gameplay-wise it was really good though, the inspiration from old adventure games is strong and it works well. The story is intriguing although I didn't manage to experience it until its end - the puzzles were too difficult for me hah. Nice throwback with those retro controls too!
gamescodedogs
07. Apr 2022 · 23:17 UTC
Oh, my Monkey Island vibes are so strong now :) Absolutely love the game's style, great job!
ludevum
07. Apr 2022 · 23:58 UTC
Glad I managed to solve the puzzles, they were good and challenging but not impossible.
And what you have to do in that ending! I've never seen something like that before in a game, it was fun.
The text was a little fast at times, I wish I had more control over it.

Nice job!
Alex Stewart
08. Apr 2022 · 00:03 UTC
Nice art style! I love these kinds of adventure games!
BiOs3008
08. Apr 2022 · 00:18 UTC
Uh looks a lot of work, nice style :)
Rory Soiffer
08. Apr 2022 · 01:25 UTC
The amount and quality of art is extremely impressive for a game jam. I wasn't able to solve any of the puzzles, but I'm not used to old-school adventure games.
KingOfSpill
08. Apr 2022 · 04:03 UTC
This was such a fun time! I loved the meta-ness of the narrative and the use of hidden files and multiple endings was very neat. Also, the puzzles were classic LucasArts style, by which I mean total moon logic haha.
fatPenguin
08. Apr 2022 · 07:55 UTC
Amazing that you made this alone! I love those classic point & click adventures and I think you did a really good job in reviving some of those nostalgic moments.

The controls were intuitive as they work the same as in most other games and the puzzles were great.

My only feedback would be that sometimes the text scrolled too fast for me and sometimes I would have liked to skip dialogues I already now.
A nice to have feature would be highlighting of interactable spots.

Overall Great entry :slight_smile:
gamesplusjames
08. Apr 2022 · 09:47 UTC
This is so cool! It's great to see a classic-styled adventure game entered! Great work :)
cloudinksk
08. Apr 2022 · 10:25 UTC
Interesting quest with perfectly matched music. On my first attempt, I failed to solve the puzzle and ran out of time. The graphics refer me to the great games for Commodore Amiga and MS-DOS. Thank you for a great 20 minutes spent. I will save the game on my computer and try to get through it later!
Zerox
08. Apr 2022 · 19:05 UTC
I enjoyed this game I think team can do big and best projects
ugly_robot
08. Apr 2022 · 19:32 UTC
Loved the art in this game, and enjoyed the metanarrative on nostalgia ;)
Yeah, really just a treat to live in that strange and beautiful world for a bit - thanks for creating it!
RubixNoob13
08. Apr 2022 · 21:05 UTC
It's a shame I can't rate this game, because I had a lot of fun. I spent time googling things that I apparently didn't even need to look up before I ultimately figured out what the heck I was doing. Since I'm an old school gamer, I remember a lot of the old point and click try to solve the puzzle with no idea what you're supposed to be doing games, and this one was pretty awesome! Great job!
tompudding
08. Apr 2022 · 21:42 UTC
Wow that was very impressive! I think I got lucky with the map puzzle by clicking around, but the stone tablets were cool and the ending was creepy. Great job!
Itskdog
08. Apr 2022 · 22:51 UTC
I like how you were able to make this game for the Jam. The music was nice. I think the art to use some polish. I also think there should have been a simple click and do something first. Maybe in the first room, you find something on the floor and then use it right way. It will make people feel like they are doing a job (I'm not really good at these types of game:))
Longsilvr
08. Apr 2022 · 23:04 UTC
Duuude this is amazing! I love point & click and this is definitely up the same alleyway as the old school lucasart games. I couldn't really solve much, but I know maybe with time I'll figure it out. Maybe some more logical clues could help there. Aside from that, excellent jam work! Congratulations!
saintchristopher777
12. Apr 2022 · 00:49 UTC
This looks great, LucasArts style adventure games are definitely my jam! I'm focusing on games with ratings enabled for now, but downloading this to play later!