Baja Blasters: The Toll Bells for Thee by theslate

[raw]
made by theslate for Ludum Dare 51 (JAM)

Made in Unity 3D.​

Music made with 1Bitdragon​.

Sounds with ChipTone by SFBGames.

Audio mixing completed in Audacity.​​ Art created in Aesprite​.

Ratings

Overall 1000th 3.069⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Fun 1126th 2.638⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 1190th 2.31⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Theme 1008th 3.138⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 835th 3.207⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Audio 435th 3.414⭐ 31🧑‍⚖️
Humor 506th 2.979⭐ 26🧑‍⚖️
Mood 1004th 2.9⭐ 27🧑‍⚖️
Given 22🗳️ 32🗨️

Feedback

Hadik
03. Oct 2022 · 11:17 UTC
I like that audio, very good. Not too horiblle art but next time try invest time more into art. Averagly fit into the theme..
LDJam user 297189
03. Oct 2022 · 14:52 UTC
I love the art and the audio, very great 90's look! I wish that the mechanics were a bit different, as only having one bullet in a shmup every 10 seconds makes for a boring game :( maybe have the gun be upgraded every 10 seconds instead?
Dominic Graziano
04. Oct 2022 · 02:45 UTC
Solid game. the limited ammo forced me to make decisions about how to use it.
LDJam user 161618
04. Oct 2022 · 03:21 UTC
Really good audio, Felt like I was back in a 90s arcade playing Raiden as kid. Really nice Developer. Graphics are cute and humorous.
Sodor
04. Oct 2022 · 03:44 UTC
Fantastic audio and really cool game! Great job!!
🎤 theslate
04. Oct 2022 · 04:39 UTC
@hadik: Thank you for playing! The music was fun to make.

@bcollins0000: Yeah, the upgrade every 10 seconds was my original idea, but... I ended up scoping down. Thanks!

@dominic-graziano, @astrydax: Thanks for stopping by the stream!
SuicidalMango
04. Oct 2022 · 04:41 UTC
Owie! I was trying to use my bullets sparingly and was wondering why I wasn't gaining any score. I feel time should have also been a factor when scoring. After dying, I would just let your music play out cause that was low-key a bop and I was a little upset it restarted when the game did. Great job!
lunkums
04. Oct 2022 · 13:40 UTC
I personally love the graphics. They're charming in a lofi sorta way. Not a big fan of the take on the theme. 10 seconds is waaaaay too long between bullets; doesn't feel like I have enough choice as a player. I was confused why Baja Blast killed me when it's supposed to be a delicious beverage!
Inkajoo
04. Oct 2022 · 18:17 UTC
One bullet every 10 seconds just isn't fun, sorry.
kiririn51
04. Oct 2022 · 22:22 UTC
I wasn't digging the game at first (asking gamers to shoot every 10 seconds is a big ask lol) but then I realized what you were going for. I think. The game became more fun once it clicked that the intent is not to kill everything, but to dodge and use your precious bullets only during really tight spots. So yeah, it's neat. Just needs to communicate intent a bit better but that's such an abstract concept and it will never be an universal experience. But hey, trying is what matters most.
kuviman
05. Oct 2022 · 05:59 UTC
Music great, waiting for 10 seconds for a bullet means you need to save them until you really need them, got to score 19, nice game. graphics could do some more work i guess

![owie.png](///raw/7e3/32/z/523f2.png)
snowl
05. Oct 2022 · 10:52 UTC
Love the art but I wish the scoring was based off time instead of how many shots you shot
jamersjam
05. Oct 2022 · 14:28 UTC
This game really needs another thing to do. the game mostly runs off a system of waiting for a shot, shooting, and going back to waiting. This causes alot of problems as the game is very slow, and really could've done with something else to do (projectiles to dodge, a much faster scaling enemy count, etc.) and the art isn't that appealing. the just general size of things feels big, and could've done with a downsizing (and so that more can spawn)

However, the music is fairly good, and the sound design is nice. :thumbsup:

Overall a pretty boring experience with some big highlights in the audio.
Guardaro
06. Oct 2022 · 02:31 UTC
Nice entry! I like the concept, but I find myself really just wanting more bullets. Theme's gonna theme, though, you know? Love the art and sound!
Spike Studio
06. Oct 2022 · 02:35 UTC
Quite difficult game, was fun to go between shooting enemies and dodging enemies. Audio was nice, great job!
nardandas
06. Oct 2022 · 02:41 UTC
Well done on the retro look! The audio fit really really well as well. I found the gameplay a bit slow, but pacing's kind off on a lot of games with this theme. I did find one interaction I *really* wanted to score points, when I made two enemies hit eachother. I think that could be very fun!
LDJam user 237623
06. Oct 2022 · 02:46 UTC
Cool game. I liked that the game focused on dodging rather than shooting. It did feel weird though that you only get points when you shoot. It'd be neat to try adding some incentives for really committing to the pacifist route.

The game played really well though. The controls were nice. The music didn't get old. And everything just worked the way you'd expect.

Edit: I went back and played some more...I got a little hooked. I just had to get the high score![2022-10-05 22_03_08-Baja Blasters_ The Toll Bells for Thee _ ldjam.com _ Ludum Dare game jam.png](///raw/730/a3/z/5275a.png)
rosypenguin
06. Oct 2022 · 02:52 UTC
Straightforward arcade shooter. Highest score I got was 9, I'll try again to get over 10 but I feel that the enemy hitboxes are a tad large. Sometimes I felt like I had 2 bullets but the label said 1? Not sure if it's a bug or if unused bullets get banked. Good work!
Steve7411
06. Oct 2022 · 02:55 UTC
I accidentally fired a shot at nothing with a score of 15, and it cost me my life. It was the most upsetting moment of my entire life. Also, I like the music.
Euler Moises
06. Oct 2022 · 02:56 UTC
very simple game. I'm terrible with Shmups. It took me a while to understand that it takes 10 seconds to load. I was thinking it was a bug. :)


congratulations on the work
rosypenguin
06. Oct 2022 · 02:57 UTC
![12.png](///raw/486/z/52757.png). Not too bad! i eventually got a strategy where I can get the robots to run into the baja blasts to survive longer :D
arya-s
06. Oct 2022 · 03:38 UTC
![Screen Shot 2022-10-06 at 12.35.35.png](///raw/497/a3/z/52771.png)
Did a pacifist run. Similarly to my game, you also don't give points for inaction.

One suggestion: Decrease the hurtbox of the player so that it's a bit more lenient on the player and increase the hurtbox of enemies so they get shot easier.

Solid entry!
Diego Teran
06. Oct 2022 · 03:38 UTC
I like the music and pixel art! Also followed the strategy of blocking baja blasts with aliens. I also agree that didn't like the scoring being only the ones we hit.

Good entry!
Chase of Bass
06. Oct 2022 · 09:10 UTC
Love the title lol xD This was fun! -reaaaaallly liked the music -nice and crispy retro art too! -great job!
🎤 theslate
07. Oct 2022 · 18:41 UTC
@sodor: Thanks for playing! Can't wait to begin SodorJam!

@inkajoo: Well that's your opinion, man. Glad you played it though. Thanks!

@kiririn51: Yeah, every bullet counts. Thanks for the feedback!

@kuviman: Good score! Thanks for stopping by the stream!

@snowl: That's a great idea. Bullets are time, so maybe I should have added unused bullets to your score at the end. Great feedback!

@jamersjam: Glad you liked the music!

@guardaro : You know what they say, leave them wanting more bullets. Thanks for stopping by the stream!
🎤 theslate
08. Oct 2022 · 02:58 UTC
@spike-studio: Glad you liked the audio. Thanks for stopping by the stream!

@nardandas: Thanks! I've been playing around with a 2x1 pixel style, and I'm glad you liked it.

@chris1919: A pacifist point route is a great idea! I was thinking of adding your remaining bullets to your score at the end. 24 is a FANTASTIC score. I am not worried about you at all.
ChrisWiseman
08. Oct 2022 · 06:58 UTC
This reminds me of a game I played when I was a kid by Capcom called LED STORM. Your game has the same frantic action feel with the nice retro graphics. I feel a bullet every 10 seconds is too punishing. But totally understand as we only had 72 hours to build this. My sense if it you reduce the number of enemies and speed up the scrolling for the road / background, it will sort the difficulty balance out. But if you develop this further, I sense you will either refill every 5 seconds or refill a round of bullets. Either way really like this and has a lot of potential. Well Done.
chromaphase
08. Oct 2022 · 10:26 UTC
Interesting graphics ;)
ShaunShepherd
16. Oct 2022 · 07:24 UTC
Cool idea! Getting a bullet every 10 seconds might work if the player had some other way to earn points, maybe linked to the movement somehow?

The art and music is great.