LudumData

Social Signal by Yueyao Wang

[raw]
made by Yueyao Wang for Ludum Dare 59 (COMPO)

Testing Upload

LMB - Click/Drag Items RMB - Remove Items from Slots

A 2D puzzle game about social cues, in which players must indirectly express their needs by combining environmental clues. Rather than selecting a single correct answer, players “encode” messages by dragging and arranging multiple visual cues, then send them to observe how NPCs interpret them. Each combination leads to varying degrees of understanding or misunderstanding, transforming communication itself into the game’s core mechanic. Through simple yet engaging scenarios, the game explores how signals are constructed, distorted, and interpreted in everyday social interactions.

Hello everyone!! This is my very first Ludum Dare, very exciting about it! IDK why I can't run my game in this LD website, anyone knows what might be the issue?

I love this experience, and willing to hear any feedback!!<3

Link https://kamikawanatsukinatsuki.itch.io/social-signal
GitHub https://github.com/kamikawanatsuki/SocialSignalCode
Original URL https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/59/social-signal

Ratings

Overall 206th 3.226⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Fun 241th 2.817⭐ 32🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 131th 3.452⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Theme 95th 3.984⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 156th 3.452⭐ 33🧑‍⚖️
Audio 54th 3.75⭐ 32🧑‍⚖️
Humor 61th 3.25⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Mood 138th 3.483⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Given 23🗳️ 35🗨️

Feedback

LDJam user 424955
Apr 20th · 03:02 UTC
love the audio
LDJam user 409682
Apr 20th · 03:04 UTC
I liked the idea. The hot teacher definitely caught my attention :)

Got stuck on the second level. I wasn’t quite sure what signal I was supposed to give.
pres2300
Apr 20th · 03:54 UTC
Nice little game with great audio! I don't really feel like there was any sense to the items I picked to create a signal and ended up just grabbing things at random, but I think the idea has a lot of potential. Nice work!
nathmate
Apr 20th · 04:58 UTC
> IDK why I can’t run my game in this LD website, anyone knows what might be the issue?

The embed guide might help

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

Very often it's the resolution being off.

Agreed with @pres2300 that I couldn't tell how the order mattered and was mostly picking things at random, but it was interesting to go into a new scene and try to contextualise everything.
Jacat
Apr 20th · 05:08 UTC
The hand-drawn art style is really charming, and the background music is so relaxing. Honestly though, I got stuck on level two, hahaha. The 曼波 hidden in the BGM was such a pleasant surprise.
mdotedot
Apr 20th · 05:52 UTC
Got stuck on the second level. The music was excellent and the between screens are nice. Indeed inside LD it isn't working but the website was. Great job!
sinemual
Apr 20th · 05:54 UTC
Great graphics and music! The gameplay concept is simple, but it’s hard to figure out what’s expected of me. I only made it through the first level =(
LDJam user 331502
Apr 20th · 06:32 UTC
It's a nice game. But it's really hard to understand the logic behind the choices. It would be nice if there were some hints or clues. But otherwise, it's a pretty interesting take on the theme.
Placeholders
Apr 20th · 06:48 UTC
so cute! loved the concept and the artstyle was nicely done :)
Alex Mulkerrin
Apr 20th · 10:27 UTC
That is a really catchy tune and it suits the vibes of trying (and failing) to communicate. I liked how many different reactions to the wrong combinations there were. Hardest one was the second level as I didn't notice the teardrop at first. Really promising concept that was creatively used in the levels. I always like to see a game with simple intuitive controls :)
WormKingBoo
Apr 20th · 16:39 UTC
Love the cute art and music! Very relaxing to play :)
LDJam user 389806
Apr 20th · 17:22 UTC
Yay, I passes all levels!
I love the proposal level, the background actually changed based on my selection. I got it on my second try, so happy :D

I feel the way it currently gives hint is too easy (did other people not notice lol). I would prefer more text hints explaining the reasoning behind things instead of being handed the answer.
DzejPi
Apr 20th · 18:07 UTC
Aw yiss, that's finally some original take on the theme. Really loved the adorable music, cute artstyle and over-all finally some heartwarming entry, which is unusual for this theme!

It is very good that you have included hints, because some levels took me a bit of trial and error to me, but at least I could see different reactions. But on the other hand, I got the lost girl level right on the first try, so, watch out!

Some images have transparent bits and pieces where it feels like they probably shouldn't, but that's absolutely no biggie, and probably a result on the hand drawn art style.

Loved this one, well done!
Shiyuue
Apr 20th · 22:27 UTC
A clever little 2D puzzle game that turns communication into the puzzle itself. Instead of picking one obvious answer, you build meaning by combining visual cues and seeing how NPCs interpret them, which makes every interaction feel fresh and interesting. The concept is simple, but it says a lot about how people express needs indirectly and how easily messages can be misunderstood. Charming, thoughtful, and surprisingly relatable.
🎤 Yueyao Wang
Apr 21st · 00:22 UTC
Huge thank you to everyone who played my game!! I was struggling picking topics when I see the theme, had many plans and throw many of them away and I finally come up with this... Initially I did tried text hint but I got many feedback saying they are stuck, and the flashing existed too, but I bet it's kinda hard to notice so I amplified it. Again really appreciate the feedback from all of you!! It took me so much effort and I literally went crying when I see all your lovely comments TvT. It's an amazing experience participating in Ludum Dare :)
Whiteowl4399
Apr 21st · 01:08 UTC
Manbo!
digital bacon
Apr 21st · 02:18 UTC
Lovely game, really enjoyed the music and the spot SFX. Interesting idea, and I did like the progressive hinting system -- I needed that on a couple of levels. Loved the handdrawn art (especially the background for level 5).

Well done, a fun little game!
Big Nose
Apr 21st · 02:29 UTC
Very good music and art. Chill game with simple mechanics
rezonanc
Apr 21st · 09:44 UTC
web build doesnt work for me. i cant do anything
Deng
Apr 21st · 11:16 UTC
Interesting game! I love the rhythm and graphics, you also inspire me on how to improve hints to attract player's attention.
MossGames
Apr 21st · 12:31 UTC
Very interesting concept! The aesthetics are cohesive and I enjoyed it very much!
Avhatar
Apr 21st · 20:28 UTC
Nice beach episode anime vibes. Love how much effort went into the art. That said, some of the social situations went completely over my head — my Slavic brain just isn't wired for this stuff =) Big thanks for including hints for slower folks like me!
kanhao
Apr 21st · 22:24 UTC
对于人与人之间社交的符号与信号的这一选题非常深刻，曼波音乐可爱捏
FrowsyFrog
Apr 22nd · 03:21 UTC
The idea is interesting, although sometimes I can’t figure out which objects to use
Roroto Sic
Apr 24th · 11:51 UTC
A very interesting gameplay ! I love the music and the overall mood !