Squirrel The Collector by GroundArc
Overview
Squirrel The Collector is a small 2D grid-based puzzle game made for Ludum Dare 58 (Theme: Collector).
You play as a squirrel collecting items across a forest filled with traps and moving hazards.
Plan your movement carefully — every step counts.
Gameplay
Move one tile at a time on a grid. Watch the timing of traps, study their patterns, and grab as many collectibles as possible before getting caught.
The objective is simple: collect more, survive longer.
Features
- Grid-based movement and timing puzzles
- Simple and clear level design
- Collectibles and score-based gameplay loop
- Compact, replayable stages
Tools
Created with Unity during the Ludum Dare 58 Jam.
| Download on itch.io | https://groundarc.itch.io/squirrel-the-collector |
| Original URL | https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/58/squirrel-the-collector |
Ratings
| Given | 0🗳️ | 0🗨️ |
The only thing that felt frustrating as a player was that certain hazards were inescapable - I always had the health to tank a hit from a bear trap, but it would have been a really bad feeling to get far into the game, and then die to an unavoidable bear trap. As it is right now, some of the bear traps don't feel like they're adding to the puzzle solving gameplay, they just feel like they're a way to force the player to lose health with no decision-making involved, which didn't feel cohesive with the rest of the experience. If the bear traps were optional risks a player could take on to grab extra collectibles, they might feel more at home with the rest of the gameplay :)
I sadly didn't get to the end, because I managed to get myself softlocked pretty far into the game :( After picking up the gun, I couldn't progress from this spot. It looks like the tree may be misaligned, so I never collided with it when I was moving from space to space (or I may have simply been missing something obvious)

At least the music there was super soothing :) It was a nice little zone to get myself stuck in!
I'm not entirely sold on the idea of grid-based 'move on step at a time' movement in a fast-paced game like this. Maybe if movement was continuous and not tied to the grid, the game would benefit from that.