Signal Back! by sinemual

[raw]
made by sinemual for Ludum Dare 59 (COMPO)
  • You're a scientist who's received a strange signal from space. You need to send a response.
  • To send a signal, place the block next to the antenna and press the green button.
  • For each signal level you send, you earn money.
  • You can use the mouse wheel to rotate the block.
  • Goal: 200 signals.
  • To sell, move the block to the black hole.

  • A game for the Ludum Dare 59 competition!

  • Completed solo! - Compo Mode.

  • VFXs from Epic Toon Vfx.

  • 3 sounds from freesound.

  • Play in your games: https://www.twitch.tv/sinemual

Ratings

Overall 122th 3.553⭐ 49🧑‍⚖️
Fun 133th 3.383⭐ 49🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 121th 3.489⭐ 49🧑‍⚖️
Theme 153th 3.638⭐ 49🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 84th 3.798⭐ 49🧑‍⚖️
Audio 119th 3.38⭐ 48🧑‍⚖️
Humor 56th 3.307⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Mood 178th 3.304⭐ 48🧑‍⚖️
Given 46🗳️ 73🗨️

Feedback

mdotedot
Apr 19th · 20:24 UTC
Thank you. I have now conceived a real RSI injury .. ha ha .. just kidding. Like the art style and the effects. Well done!
William Corrin
Apr 20th · 04:43 UTC
I really love the atmosphere with the scientist and the chalkboard you have going on. I figure this is kind of a take on an idler game combined with a bit of a puzzle game? It was fun! Really solid entry all around, there weren't any shortcomings.

Also - your Steam game looks wild...enslaving Gnomes? You monster :laughing:
🎤 sinemual
Apr 20th · 05:05 UTC
@mdotedot haha, thanks for feedback!

@william-corrin yeah, there's a little bit of clicker gameplay and a little bit of puzzle-solving here. Thanks for the feedback!
Thanks also for checking out the Steam page—I hope you'll join in on the mayhem when the game launches!😜
LDJam user 297990
Apr 20th · 07:06 UTC
This was really fun once i got the hang of it!

Here is my record :D

![Screenshot 2026-04-20 at 09.05.03.png](///raw/60c/84/z/707fd.png)
Nikiroz
Apr 20th · 08:55 UTC
I like the scientific pose the scientist is standing in 😄
🎤 sinemual
Apr 20th · 09:07 UTC
@fredrik-andersson Thanks! HOW did you do that?
🎤 sinemual
Apr 20th · 09:10 UTC
@nikiroz It's pretending to be an antenna, hahaha!
LDJam user 297990
Apr 20th · 10:32 UTC
@sinemual Even higher, haha! I think this is maximum possible though.

![Screenshot 2026-04-20 at 12.31.21.png](///raw/60c/84/z/708cd.png)
Domenixius
Apr 20th · 11:42 UTC
Super neat little game you have here... even if it is very rude..
![Screenshot 2026-04-20 133939.jpg](///raw/15b/d5/z/7091c.jpg)

I feel like a way to deselect after purchasing the wrong turn would have been nice. Also gaining income passively instead of clicking multiple times would have been more comfortable. A small animation for the scientist would have also elevated the game! The game is a smitch on the easy side which is good for a jam game! I do feel like the descriptions especially for the third block could have been better, what does it mean no blocks nearby?

Loved the atmosphere and music and it really sparked my need for optimization!
criatura_nocturna
Apr 21st · 00:57 UTC
I liked conectivity/optimization part of it, until i ralized 'spamming' the $600 pieces is the easy way to success. Overall a really charming game.
🎤 sinemual
Apr 21st · 03:21 UTC
@domenixius Thanks for the detailed feedback! You could sell the block for half its price. I was thinking about passive income if I made a full-fledged game, but in this format, it seemed more fun to just tap around, and if someone doesn’t want to think, they can turn the whole thing into a clicker =) What I regret most is that I didn’t have enough time for animations on the blocks and characters. I also agree about the description of the third block; the next day I read it and realized that the block itself looks like it has sockets and inputs, but the idea is that it should just be an antenna—meaning it shouldn’t connect to anything, and there shouldn’t be any blocks within one block’s radius of it.
Thanks again for the feedback! If you get 200 signal points, the text will be slightly different =)
🎤 sinemual
Apr 21st · 03:22 UTC
@criatura-nocturna Haha, the balance turned out just right! Thanks!
Rafa Fiedo
Apr 21st · 08:08 UTC
nice game!
I wish that there will be some feedback when the 'block' is selected and able to rotate.
Like that logic math puzzle and these multiblocks
These 'cookie clicker' games are always addictive for me!
TermiGht
Apr 21st · 13:08 UTC
The controls were a bit cranky but it was an enjoyable game. :)
MaggardJosh
Apr 21st · 17:13 UTC
This was fun! Enjoyed working up to adding in the 3x multipliers, controls were a little clunky at times. I wanted to keep playing after I reached the goal but didn't see a way to exit the win screen. Great entry!
Makintosh
Apr 21st · 17:42 UTC
![m.png](///raw/248/86/z/72121.png)
It's a cool game, and I've played it a lot. I'd like to see the top view and have more space.
cogcomp
Apr 22nd · 05:45 UTC
Interesting concept. The graphics were really good as well. Well done!
🎤 sinemual
Apr 22nd · 06:02 UTC
@rafa-fiedo , @termight , @makintosh , @maggardjosh , @cogcomp
Thanks for playing! Yeah, if only there were a couple more hours in the day, haha!
Rafa Fiedo
Apr 22nd · 07:32 UTC
@sinemual
haha, I know that feeling to much!
Avhatar
Apr 22nd · 08:47 UTC
Cookie Clicker with puzzle elements — interesting, unexpected.
CrociDB
Apr 22nd · 11:18 UTC
Pretty solid entry! I feel like I took too long to understand that I had to connect the blocks to one another, but after that it was really nice. The execution was flawless. Also, thanks for stating the obvious (that I'm so ugly, duh). =D

![Screenshot 2026-04-22 131639.png](///raw/fc8/2/z/72424.png)
LDJam user 407524
Apr 22nd · 13:00 UTC
This is my type of game, i really enjoyed thye idea and fiddled around with the blocks for a bit. I am gonna come back to it later and actually try to score something decent. A little bit uncomfortable regarding UI and controls, but that is totally expected for a compo ld
Meta-link
Apr 22nd · 14:26 UTC
Cool game ! Really polished, art is well made and the gameplay is easy to understand yet makes it fun to build our signal.

Good job :slight_smile:
GideonGriebenow
Apr 22nd · 18:07 UTC
Hey. I played for a bit, but didn't get very far. I did lose a couple of blocks while dragging them and releasing off the board, but later realized that I sold them that way! But I have to go now for a meeting/workshop. I gave you your 20th rating :)
🎤 sinemual
Apr 23rd · 05:03 UTC
@crocidb I'm sure we're all good-looking =) I spent a long time thinking about what to write—a message to humanity or some words of wisdom—but after staring at the alien model on the screen for a while, I realized, well, the one in front of me is pretty ugly. It made me think that we probably aren't the epitome of beauty to aliens either, haha!

@mcramon, @meta-link, @avhatar, @gideongriebenow thanks for playing!
LDJam user 49756
Apr 23rd · 11:02 UTC
Pretty nice game, it took me a minute to understand how to play but it's really fun once it's done! It would have been nice to be able to continue to improve the system after the 200 points (i may have just not found the way to do it if it's already possible)
Sariiger
Apr 23rd · 11:15 UTC
Really fun game! This is the theoretical maximum score, right?
![signalback.png](///raw/564/b2/z/726fe.png)
FrowsyFrog
Apr 23rd · 17:50 UTC
It was interesting! I liked being able to stack blocks one after another, although at first I wasn’t sure if I had to connect everything from a starting point or something like that. I also liked the variety of graphics for the amount of time. Very good!
🎤 sinemual
Apr 24th · 05:57 UTC
@mortith
Thanks! Yeah, that would be great to add!

@sariiger
To be honest, I don't know, but judging by the comments, this is the highest score! Thanks!

@frowsyfrog
Thanks for playing!
brawnyfrogmouth
Apr 25th · 13:23 UTC
This was a lot of fun! I liked the puzzle mechanics and how they interacted with the upgrades. The way the cursor got projected onto the "playing field" grid felt a little off to me, like I had to click the block directly below the one I actually wanted to select. I did get a signal strength of 324, it's cool that you can get much much larger highscores too :)
🎤 sinemual
Apr 26th · 04:20 UTC
@brawnyfrogmouth
Thanks for playing! Yeah, I didn't have enough time to polish the controls =)
WeGlove
Apr 26th · 08:48 UTC
A bit unintuitive, but otherwise a neat optimization game
Mersaries
Apr 26th · 09:54 UTC
It's a very exciting game. It's a puzzle game, but it's not boring! It is clear that there is a potential for improvement and the introduction of new blocks. Thanks for game.
Zamizmi
Apr 26th · 10:04 UTC
Quite fun incremental puzzle game! Had to read the instructions way too many times to understand how the rotation works.

I struggled first to understand when the grabbing was read correctly; I think there is some room to improve the feedback when a box is active,eg with a hover color.

Well done!

![Screenshot 2026-04-26 at 13.02.21.png](///raw/f8c/d5/z/72be3.png)
marks
Apr 26th · 12:26 UTC
Cool incremental + puzzle combo, and love the small effects! I liked the choice to have 2 endings, adds more replayability.

I had an issue figuring out that you need to rotate the blocks as well as needing to align them with the plugs but got there in the end.

Had some good laughs from the t-posing characters, really enjoyed the game!
WeirdBitGames
Apr 26th · 16:11 UTC
A really cool and clever game. The music is really chill and very appropriate too <3.
bentglasstube
Apr 26th · 19:55 UTC
I really enjoyed the music and art in this one. Especially the alien's message at the end :) The gameplay itself was a little dry, but it's a solid base for something you could explore more by having obstacles or something that impede your ability to build. Great work.
🎤 sinemual
Apr 27th · 03:38 UTC
@weglove, @mersaries, @zamizmi, @marks, @weirdbitgames, @bentglasstube
Thanks for playing and thanks for the feedback!
LDJam user 424632
Apr 27th · 20:01 UTC
Good game, nice music, but I would like to see the system of clicking on a block to pick it up improved - that would definitely make the experience even better :)
GrayMansion
Apr 30th · 11:27 UTC
Such a good game. Really like puzzles. At first I didnt know how to rotate but then I get it. The endscreen is funny. Thank you for the game
Sirplop
May 01st · 21:32 UTC
A short puzzle game, makes good use of the theme. Funny ending, good audio, an enjoyable play all around. Good job!
w2k
May 07th · 10:36 UTC
Good game.It took me some time to realize that the block was actually a rotatable plug though.