Awesome entry! Took me like 20 mins to beat.
Really enjoyed the puzzles and the polished art/music/sounds.

How many secret gravestones are there?

Lovely game! The synthwave-y music reminds me of Undertale a little bit. The mechanic of digging graves to summon twin souls is a very unique and brilliant idea, bravo! It was a bit hard to get the hang of at first though

Awesome look and feel! It took me a while to get the hang of it but I had a lot of fun.

I gotta say it, ya got me.

I saw this get played during a friend of mine's stream, and I had fun unraveling the concept with him. He was finished when he got across the finish line but I could see a tantalizing bonus objective just out of reach - that, and the mysterious presentation of the game kindled a hope in my heart that there'd be even more secrets to unravel.

Watching secondhand wasn't exactly the same as playing it myself! The way that I was able to build upon understanding through experimentation did feel very good (just like you said in the description!) and I ended with a very clear understanding of the rules. It gave me renewed appreciation for the 'history' that the game tracks for me (I figure you know what I mean) as I experimented to see what I could do.

I'm not sure the best way to ask (since I don't want to spoil things for other folks) but is there a way to validate if I found all of the hidden stuff? I got to a point where I couldn't find a way to proceed but I wasn't out of things to interact with, if that makes sense.

The fact that I'm asking about it here definitely confirms that your design had the right hooks to pull me in (and it still hasn't let go!)

After thinking about it in post, my one wish is if it was a bit faster to dig. There are other parts of the gameplay that were memory testing in a way that isn't my most favorite, but I now understand and appreciate that it's all pretty much necessary to make the process of unearthing the mystery more interesting.

The time to dig seems like it's not absolutely critical to me, though - maybe a compromise would be to make digging take one shovel swing (rather than the usual three) after dealing with one of the main objectives? Maybe you've got different perspective on this, I'm curious if it was something you considered.

Regardless, that's a minor piece in a rich gameplay experience. Thanks for making the game, and I hope to see other cool things you might make in the future!

Thanks for bringing this to today's stream. Great job on the atmosphere of digging particle effects, standing slightly into the blocks, and the tonal shift of music after the intro. The volume increase caught me off guard but I was able to turn it down some and it was smooth sailing. I also don't understand the purpose of the T-shapes built into the background on if they serve a purpose.

I really like the memory aspect too, its a good skill to train so I've been looking for it in games recently. Have you ever played the board game Gobblet? It reminds me a bit of that with the playful feel and uncovering treasure, or in this case, digging up graves.

Ohhhh I just got the title pun! 🤣

@diego-teran @doctor-zeus there are just two secrets to find, one on either side of the world. They’re both tricky to reach, but hopefully simple to find. It’ll say on the end screen how many you read.

@doctor-zeus I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed and that all the moments landed! Dig speed was so you had a chance to cancel, as the operation often can’t be simply undone, and it’s easy to dig the wrong spot. It taking time also incentivises you to learn rather than brute forcing every possible combination, though perhaps not as important in the late game. I’ve got a larger project in the works with similar vibes that I’m really excited to share in a few months, and will sooner or later be looking for testers if you wanna get in touch.

@nbumgardner Thanks for the stream, was very fun to watch and see chat solving it alongside you! :heart:

@justcamh Thanks for the thoughts on the digging duration. Your logic makes sense to me, I can easily imagine the unfulfilling scenario that comes from digging without purpose, so a nudge to slow down and act more deliberately is useful.

Also, it's good to confirm that I didn't miss something - I was hoping to go even further beyond the more-hidden of the two, but I couldn't find a spot to get to any further.

And yeah, I'd really enjoy doing testing-type stuff! It's exciting to hear that you've got a project in the works. My social media presence is basically zero, but I've got an email address linked from my Github page (https://github.com/SamBumgardner) if you ever want to send a message my way :thumbsup:

Unfortunately seems unplayable on the Downloadable file :( - I can dig up the two orange spots but I get softlocked from then onwards

Excellent concept and efficient design! I liked discovering the rules of this strange world by myself. One of the most enjoyable games i've played this far in the jam.

Didn't manage to beat the game but I loved every minute. The mechanic is genius and tutorials just the right amount. Favourite entry so far :) The only thing I'd throw in is to have a Portal-style simpler puzzle first for the player to get the ah-ha moment on the double-dig and box-destroy mechanics before unleashing the big level. Such a slick implementation though - you nailed this

Awesome! A little bit confused at the very beginning but soon get the perfectly designed machanics. 13 minutes cost but didn't reach the 2 hidden tombs, which is a small pity.

Graphics and music on point. The mcng and mrng mechanics blew my mind when they finally hit me. Beat it in 30 minutes and found one secret.

Good job and congratulations!

The more blocks I dug out the more laggy the game became... but other than that it was fun figuring out the way to get up to the left side secret. The graphics are very nice.

As always, focusing on some neat idea and polishing the concept of game from a jam to the limit. This one is no exeption, I love your style. I did find a bit cumbersome the "memory" mechanic without any hint towards what color and height will each spirit have, so you basically end up digging everywhere. I did enjoy how the second level forces you to learn more about the system and even take out some blocks in order to build what you are looking for, so I ended the game with a very good flavor. Congratulations!

A fun and unique concept! Visuals are very fine, nice particle effects and color work. I like the no-handholding approach. Music is well-made and really builds the atmosphere, even if synth is not my cup of tea.

The only problem I see might be for the colorblind folks, as color information is very important here and not really supplemented by anything else. That doesn't really matter in jam terms, but might be of interest for your larger project.

The downloadable Windows version is sadly broken. I spent several minutes feeling stupid, not knowing what to do next, and it turned out that it was just bugged :laughing: After you dig the two initial orange spirits out and the music changes, the game just freezes. You can't move, no buttons work. Luckily, the web version works just fine.

The world didn't end this time. We'll see about the next :wink:

Amazing game, I really got into the puzzle and I appreciate the show of faith in the player's ability to "figure out stuff", well done.

Amazing game, I've never seen a similar concept. Really well tought out and executed! I managed to beat it, although I was stuck for quite a while at the left side. For whatever reason I didn't think of digging in the upper left platform, and I'm pretty sure I dug out all the souls on the bottom.

I really struggled with this game. I think what threw me off is that I was looking for logic in what spirits appear depending on where you dug, when there isn't one. I think because of the way this page says 'try applying the scientific method'. It's a cool puzzle for sure, just wondering if a tad more information would have been nice. The art and music are great by the way, and I really like the overall vibe.

You really don't miss! 27 minute clear, I had a slow start. Loved it! Keep em coming <3

Cool! It took me a while to understand, but once I realized what was happening it was a piece of cake.
I was enchanted by the music.

Congratulations for the game.

Very cool atmosphere! I also had increasing amounts of lag in the web build as the number of blocks grew. I'm afraid I've softlocked myself by digging away the lowest of black blocks, but maybe I just need to look elsewhere.

I will be coming back to this one for sure.

I like the concept a lot, and graphics are really neat, but I got a bit annoyed at some point, mostly because the digging mechanic is a bit slow, and you need to dig every block over and over, which adds up and end up being a bit tedious. I love the fact that the game does not explain anything, but I think the exploration and réflexion is a bit hindered by the fact that everything takes more time than it should, and you have to memorize the position of everything if you don.t want to dig the same spot over and over. Maybe keeping a visual information when the soul comes back to the grave would help. I'd be glad to come back to the game if there is a patch in the future, because that put aside, it's great work as always !

You're built a really cool experience here, especially the introduction and the gradual unravel of the mechanics. Awesome stuff!

Really ~~grave~~ great concept, excellent execution. I ran into performance issues on the web version which upped the platforming difficulty :sweat_smile: but otherwise a superb entry! Edit: oh, and excellent work robotmeadows on the soundtrack, what an absolute banger

Soundtrack was absolutely fucking banging, game was fun. I only managed to find one secret though, didn't see the others. But I had a good time

I love this strange little experiment slathered in ooey gooey juicy goodness and drenched in that THICK chiptune GRAVY. I dig it. You dig? GREAT use of theme and huge innovation points. This scratches an itch I didn't know I still had.

Very cool. Visuals and presentation are amazing. I love the little silhouette guy and his lantern. I appreciate the simple objectives, but the task of digging and looking for matching spirits felt mostly like brute force trial and error, rather than solving a puzzle. Great job overall.

I really enjoyed the puzzle game part of this. The mechanic was simple to grasp, yet had enough depth to feel fresh. I only found one place where I had to break a block in order to use it in another combination, which is an aspect of the mechanic that could be further explored. I didn't enjoy the memory game part of this. The graphics and music are on point. The effects are really good, and the game feels responsive, and gives enough feedback. Cool game, good job!

cool as always! the design lends itself well to player exploration with its cryptic/vague story, mysterious orange spirits and gravestone text, and simple control scheme (and the extra thing at the top left i forgot about until i already finished XD).

am really tempted to go back and figure out the secret (hoping maybe it clears up the messages on the large gravestones maybe? hehehe), but the digging can be tedious especially for a second playthrough. i think the digging could have been sped up slightly for digging up spirits, but left the same rate for when you are digging to destroy blocks to prevent accidentally breaking it

there were a couple aha moments i had but the biggest one was towards the end when i had to destroy a block to pair it with a different block. i got stuck for a while just trying to find a match for everything and when i started climbing the blocks and saw there was one specific block i needed and no other matches for it, it suddenly clicked like ohhhhhhh lmao i seeeee. heck ya

When I entered the game, I thought there was no music. Was just after I apocalypise'd the game I knew this was gonna be awesome. I got kinda confused in the beggining, but afterward I really managed to enjoy the game. You two did a great job!

What a great idea to make the blocks evolve on different inclined planes, it gives crazy possibilities to make incredible levels.
It took me a while to get the hang of it, but that's when the fun starts.

Character movement is well balanced.

The pixel art style is well mastered, as is the chiptune music, which goes very well with the atmosphere and style of the game.

Gravedigger that I am, you saved my night!

It's a nice surprise and I had a great time.

Thanks for your game, congratulations!

Are there any other secret tombs to read?

This one was very unique, and interesting to go through. I really did like the puzzle idea, but I do think it's a bit too vague on what to do. You really do have to experiment a lot, which by itself wouldn't be so much of an issue, but I think people would drift away from the game quickly, considering it's a game jam entry. Good stuff though!

Really good presentation! I did find the game a bit tedious after a while, since it takes a while to dig and there really isn't any logic involved to matching, it's more trial and error. I also think the camera could just follow the player instead of locking to specific regions. Great work!

I really enjoyed this one - simple graphics, well executed and great themeing. Took me a beat to get going, but once i did, i was hooked - i like having to figure things out myself!

Great entry, congrats!

I'm not sure if this is normal, but after watching a beautiful world-destroying cinematic, I lost control of the character.


this is super neat! i looove the visual aesthetic, everything fits together so nice. and the music is incredible, could listen to just that alone.
the game idea here is interesting, i really like the idea of building platforms for yourself to travel further upward. i could totally see the world extending further and further up, with different areas and secrets to find (which you already explored a bit with this version!)
i do think there could be something further added or changed to the current mechanic to complete the picture, currently it does feel like just trial and error. it would be cool if you had agency over what color you dig up, or something like that. an extra dimension to the puzzle solutions, beyond just falling into what the game has pre-designed.
other than that, this was very enjoyable :) nice job as always!