Formation Tactics: Line Breaker by wdebowicz

[raw]
made by wdebowicz for Ludum Dare 59 (JAM)

Find optimal formation to battle your opponent, and control his whole base area to win.

  • Every not used unit in reserve can be used during next wave.
  • Units can attack top, left and right
  • If your unit is attacking enemy in front while having friendly unit behind, attack damage increases
  • Units that reach the enemy base, are occupying the space and blocking it
  • To remove red enemy tile from your base, click on it paying 2 resources

Controls:

mouse - create formation (can click or just hold the LMB)

space - send signal to attack

formations-tactics.gif

Ratings

Overall 452th 3.545⭐ 35🧑‍⚖️
Fun 196th 3.727⭐ 35🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 117th 3.894⭐ 35🧑‍⚖️
Theme 815th 2.288⭐ 35🧑‍⚖️
Audio 507th 2.906⭐ 34🧑‍⚖️
Mood 789th 2.734⭐ 34🧑‍⚖️
Given 21🗳️ 24🗨️

Feedback

Big Nose
Apr 21st · 02:49 UTC
this was sick, I love using the pincer maneuver
Sheepolution
Apr 21st · 12:34 UTC
Took me way too long to beat this (wave 57). I'm still not entirely sure what the optimal strategy is, but it was interesting to think on keeping reserves and how to place blocks. Nice one!
xiyuan
Apr 22nd · 01:40 UTC
22波就过关了,但是不知道为什么一对一的时候结果好像偶尔不确定,总的来说这是一个很有趣的游戏
Tyrannas
Apr 22nd · 23:02 UTC
![Capture d’écran du 2026-04-23 01-00-04.png](///raw/3bf/z/7263c.png)

Yay ! Really sceptic at first since I didnt really understand the mechanics of the second row and storing units but once I got the hang of it it actually got really fun ! (Discovered the tile unblocking at the end, it was not really clear what tile unlocking for 2 units meant in the tutorial). but well played, super simple graphics but very cool game.
Tyrannas
Apr 22nd · 23:03 UTC
(Also you should probably opt out of audio, unless my computer has a problem I didnt have any sound, same for humor)
dqso
Apr 23rd · 06:52 UTC
Beautiful puzzle! I got stuck in a situation where neither side could take the other's territory — turned out I just hadn't read the rules properly 😁
🎤 wdebowicz
Apr 23rd · 08:30 UTC
Thank you for all the feedback folks! Just updated the rules to make it more clear.

@tyrannas what browser/os are you using? I can hear the sounds on all devices I tested (win/mac/android)
ditam
Apr 23rd · 08:35 UTC
Interesting puzzler! Nicely polished too. I beat it in 24 waves - probably the last 10 or so were fighting over the only couple spaces the opponent had, because I didn't realize I can clear tiles for a while :) It seems like the opponent never clears their tiles, which is a huge handicap.

Having the scoring units shape the battlefield for the future rounds is an interesting mechanic, but I wish there was a bit more strategy to this. Maybe there could be more bonuses depending on the formation? (e.g. synergies across multiple columns, special shapes with special effects, or some passive use for the 3rd row.)
🎤 wdebowicz
Apr 23rd · 20:59 UTC
If someone like a challenge, than the best result I've seen whas victory by 13th wave!
LDJam user 377546
Apr 24th · 12:20 UTC
![Screenshot 2026-04-24 141220.jpg](///raw/ac2/c5/z/72916.jpg)

I played for quite a bit, probably 10 tries or something over 30 minutes, but I was not able to create a strategy that seemed satisfying. I always ended up grinding over two columns until I won because the opponent cannot clear tiles.
Not sure how to improve my issue without doing some testing, maybe if the blocks from behind could move up and merge with the first block so they can help with the damage on the sides.

I will keep thinking about it, I like the general idea and concept, but something is missing for me to enjoy it. I will let you know if I come up with something 😁

Other than that, polished entry, no bugs encountered, audio could be improved, I think the sound effects stack up and get louder if multiple get triggered.
Quanthon
Apr 25th · 17:50 UTC
Fun and interesting! I had one similar concept: every square has its ability, like attacking, healling, buffing. It's a auto-chess game. Your game is a great!
niterich
Apr 25th · 17:52 UTC
Very interesting puzzle game! I enjoyed the minimalist presentation and I'd like to see what this would look like as a 2 player versus game. That being said, I agree with the others who say the game kind of drags on, especially at the end. My strategy was to go column by column, and once I got down to 2 or 3 empty columns it felt impossible to make any more headway.
Mastoast
Apr 26th · 10:25 UTC
Great entry, it's rare to see a tactical game on these jam format, and you add interesting options.

I felt a bit soft lock early in the game, with no way to unlock the situation, and every turn were the same. Also, you should be careful when playing the same sound multiple times, as it does not sound good when it happens. You can easily fix that by adding a random pitch when playing a sound effect.

![Screenshot_20260426_121606.png](///raw/8fe/72/z/72be8.png)
Jhonny111
Apr 26th · 22:58 UTC
Had a hard time with the final push but i figured it out. Great game.
blubberquark
Apr 27th · 05:43 UTC
To be frank, I don't see how this uses the theme at all. Neat game though.
Jajo
Apr 27th · 12:37 UTC
Really good use of simple rules to create complex behaviours, and aesthetically very nice despite the simplicity
The Big Lost
Apr 27th · 14:53 UTC
First attempt finally won at wave 112 🙁 Second attempt wave 31 😐 Third attempt wave 17 😎

Surprisingly addictive gameplay! The strategy is fun and feels original, although the endgame tended to get quite "grindy" in the games I played.

Also, I don't know if it's a bug or not, but you can kinda cheese the early turns by attacking before the opponent has had time to place all their units.
Zettelkasten
May 01st · 11:21 UTC
Very fun!
![victory.jpg](///raw/5de/1/z/72fe8.jpg)
JustinMullin
May 01st · 11:45 UTC
Hey that's cool! Very unique gameplay. I'd be really interested to see a full analysis of all the strategies that crop up if you got really good at this game. It's quite fascinating. Reminds of me Wolfram's and Conway's cellular automata rules, where it might actually be quite complex. Thanks for the game!
Gecko64
May 01st · 11:57 UTC
Very cool gameplay, enjoyed the strategies but the ai should be able to delete stuff aswell for more funky gameplay. Other than that great game!!
🎤 wdebowicz
May 01st · 12:41 UTC
@gecko64 thanks for feedback, it can in a post jam version. If you want to try it is linked above!
LDJam user 268934
May 01st · 15:32 UTC
Cool puzzle game, original game design. There is a lot possible with this. AI opponents ( levels)
Multiplayer. Different shapes portals. You can turn this concept into a full game !
Dennis
May 01st · 16:21 UTC
![bird.JPG](///raw/025/a2/z/72ffa.jpg) Victory
blinry
May 01st · 18:43 UTC
Nice, abstract strategy game! It was fun to explore the rules.

At first, we thought we were losing badly, but the game allowed us to turn that around quickly, which was very satisfying! A bit more variety in enemy pieces might have been nice. We didn't quite understand the "more attack with piece behind" rule.
LDJam user 374028
May 01st · 20:25 UTC
Perfect game! I think this game made me understand why the pawn captures diagonally in chess and it also reminds me of Epaminondas' oblique order. Congrats!
Verbante
May 02nd · 08:10 UTC
Cool game. It was a bit difficult to end the game in the post jam version. Maybe a lower goal might make things a bit more tense
almost
May 03rd · 22:53 UTC
Simple concept but some unique strategy. In the later part of the game I found that I could exploit the fact that the opponent was overcommitting to columns where they already had some of my spots and I could ignore that, place elsewhere, and take their other columns to limit their options.
Madbarron
May 04th · 00:57 UTC
Very cool! Easy to understand and satisfying to play all the way to the end.