THE FIVE KINGS by pymiro

[raw]
made by pymiro for Ludum Dare 50 (JAM)

T5K_Banner01.png

Try and prevent the Five Kings from awekening once again, but you might just be delaying the inevitable ...

Grab the chain fragments to pause the rise of the Kings' Statues and try to last as long as possible !

Special thanks to Pataya for the character controller. Otherwise I did all the art, music and code myself.

Still a lot to polish but let's call it done !

T5K_Screen01.png

Ratings

Overall 1120th 3.158⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Fun 1367th 2.316⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 1317th 2.447⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Theme 255th 4.026⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 170th 4.342⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Audio 755th 3.028⭐ 20🧑‍⚖️
Mood 189th 4⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Given 12🗳️ 0🗨️

Feedback

Mosman
05. Apr 2022 · 09:59 UTC
It looks amazing! Very mysterious. Wish there were some elements to make the gameplay a bit more exciting. But love the presentation.
Douglas Driving
05. Apr 2022 · 10:01 UTC
I like the graphic and the mood! There could me some more dynamic in the gameplay maybe - just running around picking keys is not enough
AraTheDev
05. Apr 2022 · 10:06 UTC
nice idea, fantastic graphics and sound. it would have been cool if the spawn was synced to the music. Very good job overall!
ReeceyBoi
05. Apr 2022 · 10:08 UTC
Wooow that was really cool! I don't care if the gameplay was super minimal, the vibe was amazing! I was so excited for something cool to happen, everything from the title and thumbnail to the ending had me hooked. Very ominous and foreboding.

I don't want to critique it much because for art style, which seems to be what you were going for, you did a flawless job, but... it took me a second to understand that the pickups were binding & stopping the kings, and only in understanding that did I understand they were chains. Also some effect when the chains appear & get picked up could've gone a long way.

Loved it 💖
lespaul59
05. Apr 2022 · 10:11 UTC
Love the graphics and the mood. Music was cool but i thought it didn't fit the mood. Still cool entry.
Kulu
05. Apr 2022 · 10:12 UTC
The visuals are so well done and the mood is great! Could have had more elements to the gameplay though, maybe even a time to see how long I survived.
Atom
05. Apr 2022 · 11:11 UTC
Graphics and ambiance are very good even tho the music doesn't really match the mood. The gameplay could have used a bit more complexity since we just run around waiting for something to pop. Good job anyway and congratulation again for the graphics!
Oneiros
05. Apr 2022 · 16:44 UTC
I love the mood. Clearly the type of universe i like to work on ! The gameplay is simple but it fit perfectly the theme of the game jam. Well done :)
WetBurritoSupreme
05. Apr 2022 · 21:05 UTC
Great aesthetic, the music was good too, kept simple but still interesting. Nicely done!
Firstborn Unicorn
06. Apr 2022 · 08:09 UTC
Very mystical and mysterious design, great job!
owca
07. Apr 2022 · 17:25 UTC
Gameplay is simple but the visuals are great. Nice atmosphere!
m.dam
20. Apr 2022 · 19:28 UTC
Awesome visual design, very well done! Very unique and enchanting. The gameplay is obviously a bit too simple but you could make a full game with this as a starting point.
AwesomeAlliterationAlliance
20. Apr 2022 · 19:36 UTC
The gameplay was a bit to simple for my taste BUT I got more "inevitable-vibes" than in most other games I've played. The Audio is great and the visuals even more so. Very stylish and awesome athmosphere. Good job!
kromeboy
20. Apr 2022 · 20:27 UTC
Simple gameplay but a lot of points for style
DamonWakes
20. Apr 2022 · 20:38 UTC
I like it! The gameplay might be basic but I feel as though there's nothing wrong with focusing on great-looking characters and a cohesive style. It certainly feels complete and that's an achievement in itself.

There are a couple of things I think might improve this without vastly increasing the scope. One would be tweaking some of the timings a little: I'm definitely delaying the inevitable here, but not in a particularly meaningful way. I'd like for there to be enough chains that it felt as though I *could* hold the kings back if I were a little quicker, but at the moment I'm spending a lot of time standing around waiting for a chain to appear in the first place while the kings keep popping up decidedly un-delayed. I'd also like a little more audio feedback: a noise when I chain a king, and a noise when they break free (or just grinding while they rise - either option would do the job). I'm also not positive the soundtrack fits. It's not wildly inappropriate, but your characters are super sombre and mysterious: I think some kind of eerie drone might be a better match.

All in all, a satisfyingly polished entry. I think this is probably one that I'll point people towards when I need an example of a jam game - it's definitely one of the best presented that I've come across!