Red Rat by pragmascript

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

A part of you realizes that there is no escape from this strange experiment you find yourself in. How did I get here? What do they want from me? They? Who are they? What do those strange symbols mean? I lost all hope of getting answers... but maybe I can find a way out. Maybe.

Instructions:

  • Mouse to Look
  • "WASD" keys to move
  • "E" key to interact

Assets:

  • We used freesound.org sound assets with CC0 license
  • We used licensed textures from Poliigon
  • All 3D models were created during the jam

Have fun :)

Ratings

Overall 619th 3.293⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Fun 569th 3.179⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 524th 3.232⭐ 30🧑‍⚖️
Theme 620th 3.296⭐ 29🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 455th 3.7⭐ 32🧑‍⚖️
Audio 496th 2.963⭐ 29🧑‍⚖️
Humor 308th 3.104⭐ 26🧑‍⚖️
Mood 579th 3.37⭐ 29🧑‍⚖️
Given 30🗳️ 32🗨️

Feedback

richjbaron
Apr 21st · 05:38 UTC
![2026-04-20 22_38_21-Untitled_ - Ableton Live 11 Suite.png](///raw/260/b3/z/71d08.png)
xiyuan
Apr 21st · 08:10 UTC
Why can’t I open any of the links?
mc shopot
Apr 21st · 08:13 UTC
I got the game to launch, but I was a little confused by the controls. Oops =) Overall, really cool gameplay I enjoyed it. Thanks!
🎤 pragmascript
Apr 21st · 10:28 UTC
@richjbaron @xiyuan hi sorry about the not working link. Itch seemed to have some server issues yesterday. It works now
anete ainjärv
Apr 22nd · 18:15 UTC
Love the sort of backrooms-y feel the game has. Very nice entry!
Pavlo04
Apr 22nd · 18:19 UTC
The game looks great, but I had no clue what to do. At least I got to drink some Red Bull! Still haven't found the exit though. :(
Xahon
Apr 22nd · 18:58 UTC
I abused the thing that you can see that there is nothing behind the door, so you should not go this way. I understood the overall signs mechanics in the very end where you go on to colored plates. The character controller was quite annoying tbh, it either dissipates impulses too slow or camera direction correction messed up
Thanks for the submission
plutonicrock
Apr 22nd · 19:13 UTC
Lovely conecpt! Still a few bugs but the gameplay was really interesting~
LouDev
Apr 22nd · 19:19 UTC
Great concept! I was definitely confused the first few levels. Probably because I was stumbling into the right answer a few times so I didn't have to learn what the symbols did. But after the doors with the buttons I got the hang of it.
Andrian
Apr 22nd · 20:11 UTC
Can't open any linksI really want to try your game, but I’m having some technical trouble. All I see is a single white line in the middle of a black screen
🎤 pragmascript
Apr 22nd · 20:23 UTC
@andrian I am sorry you are having trouble. The first time the game loads the progress bar is stuck for a long time in the same position, but it will eventually start playing. I also uploaded a working windows version now, so you should be able to download and play it.
Anchry
Apr 22nd · 20:43 UTC
Very neat premise, enjoyed it up until the big color memorization puzzle where my brain decided to quit on me. Could easily see a lot of these as puzzles a co-op experience similar to We Were There. But doing color memorizations on my own was a bit abysmal(for my small rat brain). Really cool concept and well executed!
frozenfire92
Apr 22nd · 20:48 UTC
![Screenshot_2026-04-22_17-47-26.png](///raw/6f9/1/z/725d0.png)

Great concept with some good puzzles, I liked figuring out all the symbols :smile: The shiny graphics were nice and gave me big severence vibes. Keep making games!
Paulsams
Apr 22nd · 21:27 UTC
A friend said that you used the wrong energy drink. But you have to listen to him!

But seriously: at first I didn't understand, but when I decided to think about it, I understood and everything turned out to be easy. Overall, I even liked the puzzles and it was fun.
BlushingCrow
Apr 23rd · 01:56 UTC
I found it a bit confusing at first but I love the polished rooms [reminds me of Portal] and the Red B ull/Red Rat idea is a fun one. Nice use of theme!
LDJam user 423872
Apr 23rd · 15:48 UTC
Looks really good! I drank RedRat 5 times, 5 times I'm going to the new corridor. I'm sure I didn't understand anything.
Andrian
Apr 23rd · 16:07 UTC
I finally managed to play it! The browser versions didn't work at all for me, so I downloaded the PC build instead. Once I figured out the symbols on the walls and floor, everything clicked and the gameplay became much smoother. I’d love to see even more challenging puzzles in the future! Also, the rat analogy is just brilliant!
caeonosphere
Apr 24th · 04:02 UTC
Ohhh, I get it... rat. Very good.

I liked it! It reminds me of a game I made for a past LD, but with a healthier amount of content. I liked the look; you did a lot with a little. Great job!
amirrajan
Apr 24th · 20:29 UTC
Game fails to load for me. All is see is a white rectangle in the center of the screen.
LDJam user 233347
Apr 24th · 21:22 UTC
Labrat simulator :smile: Very enjoyable. takes a fair bit of time to load though.

I love the negative reenforcement :thumbsup: :grin:
LDJam user 372231
Apr 25th · 01:02 UTC
I’ll start with a few minor issues. At the level with the colored buttons the game began to feel a bit repetitive for me. I did not memorize them right away, died, and did not feel motivated to replay that section again. There was also a moment early on where I tried to close a door just to test things, but it did not respond. Later, near the red button door, I stood very close to the left button and when the door opened it pushed me into the wall. I was worried I might get stuck there between the wall and the door, although the door eventually closed. On level two, in the camera area on the right, I noticed a chrome-like object. I am not sure if it is explained later, but during gameplay it felt a bit distracting.

Overall, I really enjoyed the game. Your interpretation of the theme feels fresh, with a subtle 2000–2010s vibe and a strong Hitchcock-style suspense. Also reminded me a bit of Severance and The Stanley Parabel. The experience is very engaging, I enjoyed figuring out signs from the “big brother.” The death sounds are a perfect finishing touch and add a lot to the concept.

My only suggestion would be to introduce another mechanic later in the game to keep things fresh and maintain the player’s interest.

Really great work!
PanDuplan
Apr 25th · 12:32 UTC
Not really into puzzle games however was really impressed by level of polish and how it nicely compressed to webGL. Controls felt a little off sometimes, and I ran into a few bugs, but overall a very enjoyable experience!
Revetoon
Apr 25th · 12:39 UTC
Very cool idea. I like the tutorialization, I think it was very good, especially for a game jam game, so congrats on that :heart:
The puzzles were smart but not impossible, it was the perfect balance for me. I could see you expand the concept and make more levels with even more mechanisms
marks
Apr 26th · 09:38 UTC
I didn't quite get what the tutorial was trying to tell me at first but figured out what's happening few levels later, I think it's smart that players can peek to continue during first levels. When it clicked, I really liked the idea of the puzzles and the design of how the information is given (order, side, etc.), really cool.

Also, found the death zap rather funny.

Great puzzle game, really enjoyed it! Nice work!
VenomousMouse
Apr 29th · 07:45 UTC
Overall great puzzle game. Nicely done.
stuckne1
May 02nd · 14:20 UTC
I had fun playing this. Nice work.
P1x3lc0w
May 08th · 12:37 UTC
Very great entry! I always love games that get away with giving the player minimal guidance, especially puzzle games, as it give the player the opportunity to feel clever for discovering the mechanics themselves. For the color glyphs though, i feel like the introduction was a little bit to literal and would have been an opportunity to start challenging the player a bit more (especially since we would be expecting glyphs related to directions, i feel like a puzzle where one might not immediately realize the colors are what is relevant would have worked great). One minor bug i encountered was that any input you were holding while picking up the energy drink would get struck until you press the button again. Overall a really cool idea and good use of the theme, i liked it a lot!