Dig Deep Get Gold by Tim77

[raw]
made by Tim77 for Ludum Dare 48 (COMPO)

This is a rhythm/timing game where you try to collect as much gold as possible within 1 minute.

You choose left or right at each branch to decide which way to go. If you time your choice just right, you get a speed boost.

This is my first game jam entry (Ludum Dare 48 Compo). The theme of the jam is "deeper and deeper".

Total development time was about 16 hours.

Play it: https://tim77.itch.io/dig-deep-get-gold

Source code: https://github.com/timcode77/ld48

I used:

  • Godot Game Engine 3.3
  • Krita 4.4.2
  • Reaper DAW 6.2

Ld 48 (DEBUG) 26042021 121055 pm.png

Ld 48 (DEBUG) 26<em>04</em>2021 12<em>11</em>32 pm.png

Ratings

Overall 457th 3.455⭐ 58🧑‍⚖️
Fun 306th 3.545⭐ 58🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 297th 3.491⭐ 58🧑‍⚖️
Theme 445th 3.589⭐ 58🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 742th 2.804⭐ 58🧑‍⚖️
Audio 328th 3.355⭐ 57🧑‍⚖️
Humor 581th 2.024⭐ 44🧑‍⚖️
Mood 625th 2.969⭐ 51🧑‍⚖️
Given 63🗳️ 103🗨️

Feedback

PookiPoot
26. Apr 2021 · 01:17 UTC
You know this kinda reminds me of a song, J-Live Them thats not. I love how the music picks up pace the faster you go. You did a great job on the rhythm and simplicity execution on this.
🎤 Tim77
26. Apr 2021 · 02:30 UTC
@pookipoot Thanks for your kind words!
zondarg
26. Apr 2021 · 02:46 UTC
That was cool, kind of a vector style game with unique graphics style. Very nice also was the accelerating music. Since I could not get the HTML version to start I downloaded the source and played it in-Engine. There I noticed the music is generated to match the speed, nifty! Wondered how it keeps pace and matches the rythm. :thumbsup: (and thanks for playing my game too!)
Luc-creationallabs
26. Apr 2021 · 03:26 UTC
I find this type of game really interesting because the simplicity of it doesn't detract anything from the game, this kind of mechanics put me in a hypnotic/flow state so fast, it's quite amazing. Really cool game, well done.
KeyLime
26. Apr 2021 · 03:28 UTC
It was a neat idea to choose which branches to take but it got a little repetitive
PixelPortalz
26. Apr 2021 · 03:28 UTC
Really unique, and I kept playing to see if I could time it to reach max velocity. (I kept failing because I have dumb fingers). I also like the black background, the geometric lines, there is a minimalist purity to it!
Billnotic
26. Apr 2021 · 03:28 UTC
Nice and simple style. It doesn't really feel like I'm doing much digging though.
ThatmanRobin
26. Apr 2021 · 03:29 UTC
Really liked the concept, was actually fun to play and liked the minimalist graphics.
aevek
26. Apr 2021 · 03:29 UTC
I really love how clean this is. It's a beautifully simple concept in theory but I wasn't able to get a perfect run in my several attempts. Would have liked the option to use different keys than arrow keys though because my keyboard doesn't have any :(. I persevered and had a lot of fun with this. Excellent work to make something so deceptively simple so well.
kristinamay
26. Apr 2021 · 03:29 UTC
Very cool! I really got into the vibe, it's simple yet satisfying.
CorbenG
26. Apr 2021 · 03:29 UTC
Super addictive! Love the input buffering. It felt great when the sound started going super fast and I got in the flow. Speaking to that, the game felt at its best when it kept me in the flow, right in my skill level, and so making the mechanics speak to that would help keep players engaged. The speed up is a great way to do this, but maybe less of a slow down on mistakes would let players keep in the flow rather than be punished severely,
TomekS
26. Apr 2021 · 03:47 UTC
Quite interesting game, and the difficulty builds up nicely, Solid for only 16 hours. I am wondering about another version of this, where you don't have time limit, but go for highscore, and die if you reach the crossroads without having chosen the direction before.
liammasters
26. Apr 2021 · 03:48 UTC
Cool game, simple and effective. I like the speed boost mechanic, it adds a layer of complexity. I'd like to see a version with more obstacles or something. Awesome job!
🎤 Tim77
26. Apr 2021 · 03:56 UTC
@zondarg Hey - thanks for your comment! I'm chuffed you went the extra mile to download it and look at the source code. Slaving the individual notes to the timing was a key part of this. It caused me the most headache on the first day! Well done again on your game!
🎤 Tim77
26. Apr 2021 · 04:34 UTC
@aevek Thanks for your comments! I totally agree - I should have included more key possibilities.
🎤 Tim77
26. Apr 2021 · 04:37 UTC
@corbeng Thank you for your comments. You are exactly right - I need to tweak the mechanics to let the player stay in a flow state - great idea. Also - less of a slow down would be a great way to do it. Thanks again!
samguy
26. Apr 2021 · 20:35 UTC
Fun quick little game! I like that the better you do the more difficult it becomes and the timing is different every time because of it.
japes
26. Apr 2021 · 21:11 UTC
solid mechanic, simple but addictive, like the minimalist design. satisfying to nail some perfectly timed switches. Sound is great too, minimalist but effective.
ForeverTrash
26. Apr 2021 · 21:14 UTC
Congrats on your first compo entry! It's super well done for your first time. I like how it gets kinda stressful the more boosts you get and the faster you go. At first I thought it was super simple but then the faster I went the harder it got. Nice sound effects too. Good job.
PhthaloGold
27. Apr 2021 · 00:34 UTC
Nice elegant game. It definitely nails everything it tries to be - rhythm/timing game that fits the theme. The speed up effect for combos/chains kept the tension and engagement high nicely - you will get a higher score, but it is harder, a simple progression mechanic. I felt compelled to give it a second try to attempt a higher score. Great work!
darthone
28. Apr 2021 · 06:11 UTC
I wish the timer was adjustable, sometimes the games felt short. All around great first compo entry!
antonishig
28. Apr 2021 · 09:10 UTC
Awesome! I mean, it is really simple, but also strongly addictive.
I dug and got 48 gold!
🎤 Tim77
28. Apr 2021 · 09:28 UTC
@antonishig That's a REALLY good score!!! Well done!! :D Thanks for commenting on my game too. :)
🎤 Tim77
28. Apr 2021 · 09:29 UTC
@darthone Good suggestion... Version 2.0 will include this! ;) Thanks for commenting.
deadmanjw
28. Apr 2021 · 11:34 UTC
I like this game as this was the first rhythm game that i have played in the compo and its a really good take on the theme. With a few more branches and different rhythm combos would be a good game.
Nazorus
28. Apr 2021 · 11:56 UTC
Very simple and elegant game, I had a good time with it. It's satisfying to build up speed and listen to the music get faster and faster, I got 39 gold. Good job!
Tyler Roberts
28. Apr 2021 · 12:36 UTC
Super simple and fun game! A perfect compo submission, great work. I really enjoyed how the sounds sped up as well. Once you get going it gets pretty tough too
iuunno
28. Apr 2021 · 20:18 UTC
As others have said the slowdown from missing a input feels pretty rough if you have a good chain going. The other thing I noticed happening was when I was entering flow and going fast, I would end up forgetting to input if i was continuing to move down the same branch. My brain processed moving down the same branch as not having to do anything. Maybe you could indicate the need to input every segment with some sort of visual reminder? Or let the player continue down the path the path they are on without inputting, or not slow if you dont input and are continuing down the same path. Or maybe its not really a problem, I bet muscle memory would take over if one played for long enough.
My Sweet Whomp
28. Apr 2021 · 21:49 UTC
Super simple game but it's a big achievement for a first gamejam. Keep going!
C4Scar
29. Apr 2021 · 03:10 UTC
Nice game, relaxing and stressful at the same time. It felt really smooth and intuitive.
Bamallama
29. Apr 2021 · 03:50 UTC
Really cool idea! I wasn't entirely sure if I was supposed to keep pressing the direction I already was going when I first started playing, so that messed me up a bit
GeneralSturgeon
29. Apr 2021 · 17:28 UTC
I really liked the flow of the gameplay. Would be nice if you added some extra obstables or three/four way splits. Good job!
My Sweet Whomp
29. Apr 2021 · 19:14 UTC
We played your game on stream yesterday, here's a link to the VOD if you want to have a look :smile:
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1004121404?t=01h38m02s
BlackOpsBen
29. Apr 2021 · 19:22 UTC
I managed to get 40! This was really fun! I tried repeatedly! Very simply but very elegant!
Gazal
29. Apr 2021 · 19:43 UTC
Simple but great! Very nice flow and kind of hypnotic. Congratulations!
🎤 Tim77
29. Apr 2021 · 20:08 UTC
@paulloz Thanks so much for playing my game! Really fun watching someone else play it. I appreciate it, man. :)
🎤 Tim77
29. Apr 2021 · 20:09 UTC
@generalsturgeon I like the idea of multiple splits and obstacles! Thanks for your comment! :)
cavedens
30. Apr 2021 · 01:01 UTC
Interesting concept. Keep up the good work
🎤 Tim77
30. Apr 2021 · 01:31 UTC
Thanks @cavedens. Can you elaborate? What in particular did you find interesting? Is there anything you think I could do to improve it?
Webox
30. Apr 2021 · 01:40 UTC
This is a super simplle yet veeery effective game, the interpretation of the theme is super cool. I think the idea behind the main mechanic has a lot of potential, you can add better GFXs on top of that mechanic a simple progression system and you have yourself a cool mobile game (it's a game super compatible with swiping). This seems like the addictive game that you'll spend hours trying to get a better score.

If you want to expand it, I'd make a more elaborate loosing condition, time can work but maybe add a way to replenish time, so you can have infinite matches with super high scores when you master the game.

Great job!! Simplicity at its finest! :D
JoeDev
30. Apr 2021 · 09:57 UTC
Simple but very fun and addicting. My high score was 44, and at that point I think it was going too fast to rely on my eyes so I just had to trust the rhythm haha. Which I think is indicative of a good rhythm game?

A little bit of variety added to it I think would have gone a long way, such as some hazard randomly placed on the non-gold branch sometimes to punish the player for choosing wrong (even if they are on-rhythm).

I had a good time, good submission especially in the 16 hours like you said! Good job :)
DWink
01. May 2021 · 00:47 UTC
It has such a cool feel - very...sci-fi? It's definitely one of those addictively simple games.
euske
01. May 2021 · 06:45 UTC
I love this. It's kinda abstract game but very innovative. You did a pretty good job for the first time!
katamary
01. May 2021 · 06:59 UTC
From my point of view it requires adding variety in progression. However it's nice work!
Magnanix
01. May 2021 · 07:05 UTC
It took me 3 goes to finally hear the song in the background, calm tunes slowly humming :). Max gold I could get to was 42, had a nice streak going then lost it XD.

Nice work!
snip_man
01. May 2021 · 07:50 UTC
Got 33 first game and then I cheesed it by just mashing the right arrow the whole time. I suck at timing but enjoyed the game.![cheesed.jpg](///raw/928/13/z/41e21.jpg)
Keppu
01. May 2021 · 14:00 UTC
I've not read any of the comments so I write my review as a pure first experience.

I always enjoy clever one-mechanic games like this. It's all about timing correctly.

Visually the game is minimalistic and here it could benefit from using more player animations, particles, etc when the player gets the timing correct. There is a good amount of room for juiciness and satisfaction from the successful player action.

The audio follows the art as being minimalistic, but that's not necessarily bad. It's kind of hypnotic. One thing that could improve things would be to add more "umpf" to the audio. Maybe use more audio channels for the sound effects as now it feels a bit muffled.

The theme fits the gameplay as player descents deeper. This could serve gameplay more if there would be something more deeper. Like more difficult patterns, twist and turns, etc.

Overall nice entry. Well done!
LDJam user 236545
01. May 2021 · 14:51 UTC
Once I got into the rhythm, I got up to 31! It was a simple game, but I enjoyed it.

One thing that would have made things more interesting would be to start zooming out over time, forcing people to choose between branching paths that might have more or less gold. Even just having to calculate 2 or 3 steps ahead would be a really interesting challenge.

Great job on your first LD!
Phlip45
03. May 2021 · 18:33 UTC
Great Job! For being such a simple game it really does get you into that flow state that rhythm games tend to pursue.
José Bonilla
04. May 2021 · 04:28 UTC
An amazing idea and well executed, the rhythm game combined with the binary tree is one of the cleverest of the compo. I love it. If you improve graphics and audio a little bit and introduce a little bit more variety you could very well publish that game into the mobile store. I'd play it for sure. Congrats!
tucan
05. May 2021 · 01:09 UTC
Cool game! Really simple yet fun and kind of hypnotic! Good job!
PROJECTaroid
05. May 2021 · 18:44 UTC
Fun game and really cool concept. I like how you approached the theme, nice work!
rhoff95
08. May 2021 · 13:52 UTC
This is a really fun game. I would want to see tips on how to boost in game, since without that is was very boring. Once I figured out the boost, it was a ton of fun. Music and SFX speeding up with gameplay is really great.
Jason Wilson
13. May 2021 · 16:53 UTC
I had a lot of fun with this game. The audio was great. The visuals were minimalistic, but worked well for the design of the game. It took me a bit to get the timing for what made a good move. Having some other visual indicator to indicate your timing would be a great addition. Maybe having the outside circle pulse or change in shape would work.

Overall, great game. Well done for you first jam!
loyance
14. May 2021 · 01:00 UTC
That's a very neat idea with the rhythm game - first time I've seen it here personally. For some reason the audio had a lot of crackling noise (probably just web issue), so I mostly had to time it just visually. Got the highest score of 34. It's pretty simple, but it's a well-executed clean concept.