The Story of the First Ants by Category5Kawaiiju

[raw]
made by Category5Kawaiiju for LD34 (JAM)
Once upon a time, a man thought it would be funny to play a joke on his mom and sister. Middle middle middle, now we have ants.

---

A while back I was in a used book store and I bought a few books that I judged based on their covers because I was in AP Studio Art and my concentration was "Myths, Legends, and Folk Tales." I ended up barely using them. However, I started reading one of them at bedtime several years later, because the stories were no longer than four pages each, the font was pretty big, and there were pretty pictures on occasion.

A few things I didn't realize:
1. This book was published in 1902
2. "The Book of Nature Myths" has myths from all around the world, but most of them are Native American
3. Almost all of the Native American myths in this book are super sad. This book is actually really depressing
4. There are a few European myths in here. I do not know from what era, nor do I know from where exactly--I'm just guessing they're European because there's kings and queens and villagers. Also, the artwork would suggest it as well. But anyway, the European myths don't?? Make any?? Sense??

I picked my favorite myth from this book and made it...interactive. It is European in origin, and it's called The Story of the First Ants. It is super f*cked up in the best way. I hope you guys love it as much as I do.

Theme: Two Button Controls (the only two buttons you can use are the up and down arrows, even on menus)

Also available on my Game Jolt page: http://gamejolt.com/games/the-story-of-the-first-ants/113970

Ratings

Coolness 24% 2115
Graphics(Jam) 4.67 17
Humor(Jam) 4.53 4
Mood(Jam) 3.60 227

Feedback

timburbank
15. Dec 2015 · 05:27 UTC
The visual novel format works remarkably well for a 113+ year old myth
Taffaz
15. Dec 2015 · 18:54 UTC
That was a cool story, your artwork was really good and I especially liked the jokes you put in there. I also don't know how to draw oil.
MrJoshuaMcLean
15. Dec 2015 · 20:14 UTC
Ohhh so THAT's where ants came from. I never knew! Great humor and a very interesting story. Personally, I wish there were more actual "game," and hitting up and down together is a bit finicky. But overall good stuff.
scorched
15. Dec 2015 · 20:35 UTC
531,926 is my score :D
Good comics, wish the story was unlinear :-)
Saranyaan
15. Dec 2015 · 20:36 UTC
This looks great and that story is both so wrong and so amazing!
Eldraev
15. Dec 2015 · 21:21 UTC
Very cute. The illustration were just the best, especially when they added more context to the situations. Love the humor
pvwradtke
16. Dec 2015 · 03:28 UTC
I liked the drawings, and the voice over was appropriate.
TheBreakfast
16. Dec 2015 · 03:39 UTC
Not too many jam games tell a story, so it was good to see. I also like how the art had its own flavor that went beyond just the story that was being told.

Maybe a couple additional smaller games between the "chapters" of the story could have helped improve the game aspect a bit. In any case, it was a charming experience :)
adamk33n3r
16. Dec 2015 · 07:12 UTC
Great art. Cute voice. Fun time.
qwetro
16. Dec 2015 · 08:27 UTC
Love your arts :)
TRAB
17. Dec 2015 · 04:06 UTC
Really enjoyed the story aspect (drawings were fantastic and occasionally hilarious), so much so that I forgot why I was watching it, because I had forgotten it was a game. Voice acting was very well measured and delivered. The game aspect of it was less than enjoyable, however, and while I enjoyed the tie-in to the story, it didn't keep me coming back. Again, excellent work on the majority of this! But in the future, maybe weave story and gameplay tighter together.
oz2mura
17. Dec 2015 · 09:31 UTC
Loved the art, voice acting, and the choice of story, I had no idea where it was going, and that ending, lol. Should definitely make more little treats like this, a good way to get in touch with old tales in a amusing way.
equiposalchicha
27. Dec 2015 · 16:49 UTC
That was a cool story to know, the graphics looked really fun and so some of the dialogue. Wish it would have been longer...!