Deep Space Beat by Srynetix
Hello everyone, this is my second Ludum Dare and my first released 3D game! :tada:
It's a simple endless 3D tunnel game set in space, with a cool music track. :sunglasses:

Use the arrow keys on your desktop, and use the on-display keys on Android (more difficult to play on Android sorry, couldn't make the accelerometer to work without causing a seizure to everybody).
Have fun!
Ratings
| Overall | 239th | 3.722⭐ | 20🧑⚖️ |
| Fun | 444th | 3.333⭐ | 20🧑⚖️ |
| Innovation | 810th | 2.472⭐ | 20🧑⚖️ |
| Theme | 655th | 3.222⭐ | 20🧑⚖️ |
| Graphics | 140th | 4⭐ | 20🧑⚖️ |
| Audio | 97th | 3.861⭐ | 20🧑⚖️ |
| Humor | 516th | 2.25⭐ | 20🧑⚖️ |
| Mood | 325th | 3.444⭐ | 20🧑⚖️ |
| Given | 19🗳️ | 9🗨️ |
(1) The enemies have a predictable pattern, but move so fast that it feels like "last moment" dodging isn't an option. That sort of snap judgement has the potential to make things more exciting imo (instead of just forecasting which side to hide in).
(2) For the duration of my playing, I didn't experience any moments where I needed to just hold down an arrow key for 2-3 seconds straight and make a sharp turn. I think that sort of variety in the pathing could prove exciting in addition to the routine small nudging.
I felt the movement was a little too "darty" but I think if you made the enemies come in a little further back or widen the playfield it would make the game feel smoother.
Hope you enjoyed the jam :)
@the-neon-shark You are right about the enemies, I added them in a hurry and took too much time on other things instead of the gameplay. Replaying now they are quite hard to dodge, but with practice you can quickly go to 30000 :wink: And yes, I wanted to have sharper turns, but because of my bad collision shapes you could pass through the tunnel and navigate into space :sweat_smile: Thanks for the recommendations :)
@nodice Good point, originally the tunnel was deeper so you could see the enemies coming.
1. Using arrow keys when you also have to use your mouse to click retry is awkward, it would work much better with WASD (or both if you could also press a key to restart).
2. The camera could **really** use some easing/damping. It's really difficult to keep track of what's going on when moving the camera around.
Those are the only two things I disliked. I dig your art style and the music was catchy. Good job!
Of course, the gameplay is basic, but I enjoyed it :)
Game used flattery on me at the second attempt :up:

Yes, you are both right about the camera, easing could help with the sharp movements and the enemies, and as-is it can be frustrating sometimes :smile: (it's my first released 3D game, the next one will have quality camera movements I hope!)
Good point on the mouse/keys combo, it IS awkward to switch between the two, maybe everything would work only using the mouse.
@limbo Thank you ! Sorry about the taunts, that something I like to add in my games :sweat_smile:
@alexhall Thanks, great job on your new highscore :grin:
Yes, on the run, the enemies are "easier" to avoid because they keep the same speed, but your ship is at full speed instead.
I played Torus Trooper years ago, I did not even remembered :smile: Maybe that why I chose this art style :)
@quinn-patrick Thank you, I wanted to add items to make the gameplay vary a little, but time was flying fast, I had only a few hours remaining and no music, so I choose the music :musical_note:
My first run was pretty hard to see what was going on because I just happened to steer up near the ceiling and it made it hard to see the rest of the tunnel. When I stayed closer to the bottom of the tunnel, it was a bit easier to see where I was and where the enemies were so I could dodge. Maybe it would be easier to see if the camera tried to stay in the center of the current tunnel segment instead of sticking to the player. Then you could see the whole scene. If that makes the game too stale, you can kind of combine the 2 approaches and have the camera center itself halfway between the player and the center of the tunnel. Then it would show most of the tunnel, but still follow the player a little bit.
It would be nice for the movement speed to be like half of what it is. I found I was trying to tap a direction for only fractions of a second so I didn't fly outside the tunnel. It would probably feel better if I could hold the button for a second to get the same distance. I don't think moving half as fast would really be a downside. Most of the time I was tapping a direction, then not pressing any buttons for a few sec so I think you would still have enough maneuverability.
@solrun Thank you for your review in depth. :smile:
Good idea to clamp the camera between the center of the tunnel and the player position.
For the movement speed, I really like going at full speed in the game. But you're right, I should have set the speed lower for easier controls.