Dronazon by theMule

[raw]
made by theMule for Ludum Dare 53 (JAM)

Just a little game to deliver more packages than the competition!

If you find the competition following you, watch out! It wants your box!!!

Secret buttons: Holding 'q' will slow your drone to a stop. Pressing 'r' will reset the competition, it was a debug tool, now it's a cheat code ;)

made with javascript, html/css

I've added a link to itch.io page that has a few adjustments and adds touch for mobile play, but I'm not updating the LD version as LD's embed is basically inaccessible on many mobile screens and that's what most of these changes are for.

Dronazon v0.2 changes: - added touch support for mobile devices - fixed bug that locked horizontal player movement on ground - adjusted competition movement speed - added pause state so a player can read the directions before playing - gave draw precedence to player drop zone

Ratings

Overall 967th 3.182⭐ 24🧑‍⚖️
Fun 833th 3.159⭐ 24🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 551th 3.386⭐ 24🧑‍⚖️
Theme 408th 4.091⭐ 24🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 1061th 2.386⭐ 24🧑‍⚖️
Given 24🗳️ 38🗨️

Feedback

publicidadeba
02. May 2023 · 02:12 UTC
What a clever concept, especially for a debut game! Your use of AI was impressive and it's clear that you put a lot of thought into the game's design. Congratulations on a job well done, my friend!
chunderfins
02. May 2023 · 02:46 UTC
fun arcadey gameplay, great control!
Tommeh
02. May 2023 · 03:00 UTC
Brutally difficult but moving around stealing the AI's package is really fun. Good job on the AI since he really does put on a challenge. Good job
PartySquadMember
02. May 2023 · 04:23 UTC
AI is a gamer. Fun simple concept that has playability. As you mentioned the creature comforts would be great, but there's always next time! Fun stuff!
Gog
02. May 2023 · 06:49 UTC
Vey enjoyable game loop.
Blue Pin Studio
03. May 2023 · 01:15 UTC
Not bad! I managed to get a drone following me around because i think i picked up his box. but i dropped it and managed to continue playing .Its very hard to beat the computer drone :( Nice entry!
Doctor Fun
03. May 2023 · 03:06 UTC
It wasn't always clear where the goal was. Sometimes the green goal would not appear, but the game seemed fine with me delivering to the opponent location instead. During one playthrough, I stole a package back and forth with the AI for a bit and then it gave up for the rest of the game. Pretty decent game in general!
Colin Misbach
03. May 2023 · 03:47 UTC
Wow, that AI is no joke! The only times I could beat it were when it broke twice and stayed in the corner :smile:

The boxes were challenging to pick up because of how fast you move, and how your movement grinds to a halt if you touch the bottom of the screen.

But it's a fun, fast-paced duel and I liked the simple concept, but could have a high ceiling for skill expression. A chaotic but entertaining experience!
Gerrit
03. May 2023 · 09:40 UTC
Nice game, it took me a few attempts to beat the ai ^^ well done! Music and some more graphics could make this game even more addicting :)
🎤 theMule
03. May 2023 · 19:29 UTC
Thank you everyone for the feedback! It's my first game, and as you all noted there are a few bugs to work out with the AI and the drop zones not always updating correctly, and adjustments in the collision physics. I plan to keep improving it tho!
Rezioz
03. May 2023 · 20:00 UTC
A rather original gameplay, but the IA is nearly unfair x) I couldn't win a single game :/
Panpukin
06. May 2023 · 11:04 UTC
Very cute game! Love the enemy AI, I was very offended when it took my box, lol.
HagamosVideojuegos
06. May 2023 · 20:03 UTC
Impressive, despite the limited graphics and lack of sound, the gameplay stands out for its simplicity.

The AI worked well in the first game, but in the second it got stuck and I was able to take advantage of that. However, this is not something to be considered in these cases.

I really think it's quite good, although the AI might be a bit too fast. You have to be very quick and have good control to win, which isn't easy to achieve at first. Despite its limitations, it's well done and I really enjoyed playing it.

Congratulations!
AshDuong
06. May 2023 · 21:15 UTC
Not bad, but the controls are rough at times, with your speed accelerating without deceleration, and very strong friction when you touch the ground. And as people mentioned, the AI is pretty tough, so it was a good challenge.
LDJam user 282870
06. May 2023 · 21:34 UTC
cool idea for a game. Initially I thought I was the red guy!!
Roboolet
06. May 2023 · 22:38 UTC
Cool idea, not a lot to dig into but it's a solid proof of concept.
jdemattos
07. May 2023 · 03:59 UTC
Very difficult, the enemy drone is relentless and makes very few mistakes if any. R button helped to see win condition, but didn't pop up. Generally an excellent execution and would like to see it elaborated! Chees.
alpacalypse
08. May 2023 · 07:37 UTC
Great first outing, plays clean, challenging but not impossible opponent, no big bugs.

However, on the itch hosted version ause and drop package seem to both be on space bar, which makes dropping packages an odd experience. Also, the game only uses WASD despite being keyboard-only, even though most players are right-handed, which is a bugbear of mine. WASD is the standard because it's normally paired with a right hand on the mouse. Without that constraint I think it's appropriate to allow both WASD and arrow keys for movement.

Lastly, the game puts out various game data into the browser console window. I assume that's for debugging/dev but you might want to remove that when preparing a game for release just as a general polish thing. Not a big deal though, I only noticed because I took a quick look at the javascript.
LDJam user 166918
08. May 2023 · 15:29 UTC
AI freezes sometimes, and the game doesn't always start on the first try, but that's a good game. It looks and plays like an Atari game, which is cool and it is fun.