Deep Descent by Predominant

[raw]
made by Predominant for Ludum Dare 48 (COMPO)

Deep Descent. Pilot your landing module carefully down into the depths!

ld48-0005.png

Keyboard Controls:

  • Left/Right (Or A/D) to rotate the module.
  • Ctrl or Left Click to thrust.
  • R will reset the run
  • Escape to pause

CONTROLS ARE SENSITIVE - This is by design!

If you have an XBOX Controller I highly recommend downloading the Windows version of the game and using the controller for much more fine control.

  • Left Thumbstick for rotation
  • Button A for thrust
  • X will reset the run
  • Select button will pause

NOTES:

  • Land on the landing pads to refuel
  • Pickup health packs to refill health
  • Avoid hitting the walls!
  • Refueling pads disappear after you use them

Can you get the world record deepest depth score? I'm tracking global highscores in the game!

ld48-0008.gif

Ratings

Overall 230th 3.733⭐ 47🧑‍⚖️
Fun 141th 3.844⭐ 47🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 595th 2.966⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Theme 205th 3.943⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 275th 3.711⭐ 47🧑‍⚖️
Audio 433th 3.163⭐ 45🧑‍⚖️
Humor 322th 2.797⭐ 39🧑‍⚖️
Mood 382th 3.364⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Given 56🗳️ 68🗨️

Feedback

madelfino
25. Apr 2021 · 16:28 UTC
Looks great, nice sound effects and has a steep learning curve! So far, my best is only 69 - made it to the next landing pad at least :)
ElSombrero
25. Apr 2021 · 16:55 UTC
pretty good sound😍love it
AddNone
25. Apr 2021 · 18:41 UTC
A pretty fun and challenging game. Sounds are pretty good also. Good job.
Rouge_dragon
25. Apr 2021 · 21:31 UTC
Cool game! A little bit difficult at the beginning. I like the 8bit like sound effects.
Thoastbot
25. Apr 2021 · 21:46 UTC
Cool game, sounds fit in quite nice, but i got stuck right at the start flying into a hole i could not escape from. An "Escape" button would be great :)
liammasters
25. Apr 2021 · 21:47 UTC
Very tough but in a fun challenging way! The art and physics are so cool. This would be awesome with a good soundtrack.
Panacea
25. Apr 2021 · 21:49 UTC
Nice game! I had fun laughing at myself when I died. Really like the visuals as well.
Hestrateja
25. Apr 2021 · 21:55 UTC
The explosion particles are awesome, on the other hand the keyboard are a little bit awkward. The leaderboard feature is also very neat!
mlkvr
25. Apr 2021 · 23:23 UTC
Has a learning curve but Its all about patience guys stop at every fuel station and go down slowly.
Great entry overall my only addition would be adding the top 3 to the game window so we could see who we are competing with
SciDev
25. Apr 2021 · 23:26 UTC
The game is quite difficult, but the difficulty is just right to keep me playing over and over. Great job! The tunnel did not look quite right because you could see to the other side, but otherwise the art and graphics were very well done.
🎤 Predominant
25. Apr 2021 · 23:33 UTC
Thanks everyone for the awesome feedback already! I hope you enjoy playing the Deep Descent!

* Thoastbot - I added a reset button. You can press R on keyboard, or X on Xbox controller to reset the level, I hope this helps!
* liammasters - I tried my hand at some music, but really struggled to create something that wouldn't be ANNOYING! hehe
* Hestrateja - The keyboard controls are very twitchy, and its a challenge for sure. Making them easier to control had a couple of effects: The game became too easy, it was super easy to get scores in the thousands. Also, it meant that rotation speeds were too slow, so you couldn't quickly react to situations when you needed to. I highly recommend using an XBox controller, it works in the web version and the downloaded versions, and gives MUCH great control.
* Hestrateja - I love the leaderboard, and it was only added as a last minute thing. I think this really helps drive competition and a sense of accomplishment
* mlkvr - I think having the high score visible somewhere could be really useful! Unfortunately I don't think I have time to do this, with the end of the compo so close, and I'm at work at the moment :frowning:
Benno1472
26. Apr 2021 · 01:18 UTC
Super Fun game! I actually like that it's hard to control the capsule with a keyboard because in reality space is hard. For the controller it would be cool if the roll controls were mapped to the triggers instead of the joystick.
### Great job Predominant!
branmevans
26. Apr 2021 · 01:24 UTC
The difficulty of this game is awesome! It’s like flappy birds but so much more fun. This is excellent work!
timepass
26. Apr 2021 · 02:07 UTC
how to rate it?
William Corrin
26. Apr 2021 · 05:20 UTC
I dig it! Its addicting. Could maybe use a background track or something for more ambience.
oxrock
26. Apr 2021 · 05:21 UTC
Lander games like these are classics. They're quite fun despite their simplicity.
Listonos
26. Apr 2021 · 06:32 UTC
Reporting high score of 304. This game won't shatter any innovation records but it is fun and looks great. The turning is pretty sensitive on controller but that's half the fun. Sometimes you get stuck on the walls without exploding but also without a way to get out. A reset button that puts you higher up in the middle would be nice. The refuel platform are little wonky as they refuel even from bottom and disappear as soon as you break contact but that's a tiny thing.
samguy
26. Apr 2021 · 06:46 UTC
Great job! I tuned into your live stream and talked with you briefly while you were still ideating, it's fantastic to get to see where you ended up taking things. This game is hard to get started with but challenging enough to really hold my attention and make me want to get better. Playing on mouse and keyboard is punishingly difficult but I'm enjoying it.
Jeffez
26. Apr 2021 · 06:56 UTC
Really cool Game, to be honest, I miss a background music, but I know how hard it is to create one when you aren't a musician.
And, to simply say how the game is cool : The only thing I can think about when trying to review it is, how the f. the highscore can be more than 1k point.
Loved it <3
BDenis
26. Apr 2021 · 08:02 UTC
Jebediah Kerman would love this game.
Hilvon
26. Apr 2021 · 08:09 UTC
A nice take on the "Lander" mechanics.

Keyboard controls make steering a bit finniky - easy to over-rotate.

the esplosion effect is a bit over the top. Mor my taste you could do with smaller size, but add more diversity to particle speed so the explosion looks less uniform.
Martynas
26. Apr 2021 · 09:26 UTC
Nice relaxing game if you're into masochism, enjoyed it very much!
Lomna
26. Apr 2021 · 10:30 UTC
This game has proved that I should never be allowed to go near spacecrafts. 😂
Voxel Forest
26. Apr 2021 · 11:16 UTC
Very fun game, the very sensible controls made the all thing pretty funny.
Acdia
26. Apr 2021 · 14:00 UTC
You know that situation, when you think "this is a bad clone of ..."? But how about "this is a massively improved game, using the ... mechanic"? The comcept is well known and often used, but this game is good! The visuals are pleasing and the map is difficult, but you get better at it. After dying some time with my keyboard (I have no controller :( ), I decided to dig out my Arduino and continued dying with a joystick taped to my ruler.

"Can you get the world record deepest depth score?" - Definitely not! But I might have the world record highest death score. With that being said there is only one question left: On what kind of fuel is this thing running, that the explosion is that big?!? XD

Edit: This game was on my "potentially good games" from the jam. It fulfilled my expectations.
LDJam user 237413
26. Apr 2021 · 14:11 UTC
Cool game, it is one of those you get a little better every time. Not good at the game, just better! Nice graphics and good entry!
karlipoppins
26. Apr 2021 · 17:13 UTC
the xbox controller made a huge difference. I love lunar-type games and this was an awesome take on it. I loved the mechanics and gameplay (thanks for adding some healthpacks!). A space-themed music would have been awesome as well. Really well done overall!

![descent.png](///raw/b56/z/3db50.png)
Chrispy977
27. Apr 2021 · 01:56 UTC
Very difficult to control even with the xbox controller, I had to be very precise. Overall pretty fun, feels classic and simple.
PD Dev
27. Apr 2021 · 05:24 UTC
Playing this game was really fun, though the controll are a nightmare to learn. Also love that huge explosion effect when you die. I think the game cood do with some spacey music, though.
Fabian G
27. Apr 2021 · 11:21 UTC
Nice game, although I didn't do very well (keyboard). I would loose control of the ship and crash most of the time. But it felt exciting, good job!
nessie
27. Apr 2021 · 12:06 UTC
That's a pretty solid game. I laughed so hard at how bad i was playing it. I will definitely try it with my Xbox controller afterwards. Improve my self-esteem hashahs. Amazing!
Krassenstein
27. Apr 2021 · 14:08 UTC
Dude, this game feels so great. I love games that use this control system! Wonderful job!
TheWinrawr
27. Apr 2021 · 21:59 UTC
Fun lunar game, my highest score was around 265. It's really really difficult, but if you were going for the QWOP/Getting Over It style of gameplay then you nailed it. It's a simple game with simple mechanics, but it has a high skill ceiling which I like - the more you play it the better you'll get.

I'm not really a fan of the sensitivity of the turning controls though. The turning itself has acceleration, and I would've preferred it if the ship just rotated at a fixed rate instead. I also think the ship should have a visual cue when it loses health, like flashing red briefly - I didn't notice that hitting the rocks lightly would make me lose health.

Overall, great work on the game. I had fun trying to go as far below as I could.
wowa
28. Apr 2021 · 10:09 UTC
It takes some time to get use to controls but then they feels right and it makes fun, and it's kind of addictive :D
etom
28. Apr 2021 · 10:29 UTC
Wow! I loved it! Hard on the first try, but with the controller it gets much easier. Great stuf! I would loved it on mobile!
Daegonz
28. Apr 2021 · 12:02 UTC
I said on your stream I that would try and beat the high score but after a lot of introspection I finally accepted that I was not good enough to beat it.
Took some time to get a grip on the rotation but i eventually managed to get it.
Fun little game, as said above i'd definitely see a mobile version for this.

Good job :)
m11
28. Apr 2021 · 14:13 UTC
So much fun! Lovely art style, and a lovely explosion effect!
Attala
28. Apr 2021 · 16:05 UTC
Played with keyboard and the highest score I got was 180. I'm happy with that :) Kudos to nice graphics and a general mood you've created. Good job.
Javier Belmer
28. Apr 2021 · 18:14 UTC
Heya! Unfortunately I can't play your game, even the Web version, but I wanted to thank you for playing and commenting on our game! All the best, man! ^^
MichaelHaughian
28. Apr 2021 · 20:04 UTC
This might be the only LD game I've came back to play! If the controls were even off slightly it wouldn't work as well as it does, very fun.
nyanpierre
28. Apr 2021 · 22:08 UTC
its sooo hard x) or I'm just bad ? x) i dont know, good job
Sentmoraap
01. May 2021 · 17:27 UTC
Fun game. Somehow the cubes are pretty neat. But one you have learned the physics, it looks like the game doesn't get harder as you progress, it's a matter of how long do you last without making a mistake.
AndideBob
03. May 2021 · 19:44 UTC
This game looks really pretty and you were right, it was much more fun with a controller. I still couldn't manage to get even close to these highscores... 223 was the best I did. I love the big explosion when dying! I think some music would have been nice, and the plaforms to refuel could have been a bit more foregiving, because they disappear when you land on them and bounce. Other than that this is a really solid entry, well done!
Frank Gevaerts
03. May 2021 · 20:59 UTC
Looks very nice, and the sounds are good as far as I got, but I didn't get very far. My reflexes are not anywhere near good enough to control this lander