LudumData

Tiny Friends :) by daflamingpotato

[raw]
made by daflamingpotato for Ludum Dare 56 (COMPO)

Helpful Tips:

Player death will reset the level if you get stuck (Or, press R to reset the entire game)

HTML game window may appear small on some resolutions / browsers

Recommend Windows .exe for best experience

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Description:

A cozy 2D platformer about a Big Guy and a bunch of Little Guys who follow him around (like his children.)

--The tiny guy can get into small spaces where the big guy can't!--

“For small creatures such as we, the vastness [of the universe] is made bearable only through love” [Cosmos]

Game made with love for Ludum Dare 56

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Controls:

  • Use WASD to move around, Spacebar to jump

  • Press E to interact with pink objects

  • Collect tiny friends (with the yellow auras) by running into them

  • Hold SHIFT + LEFT CLICK to throw your tiny friends

  • Thrown friends can be controlled.

  • Press CONTROL (immediate) or TAB (cycle) to switch between player and tiny friend

  • Recall your friends at any time with RIGHT CLICK

===========================================

Tools / Plugins used:

  • Game made in Godot Engine 4.3

  • https://sfxr.me/ used to generate sound effects

  • SilentWolf leaderboard plugin

Link https://github.com/BaconEggsRL/ld56
Link https://baconeggsrl.itch.io/ld56
Link https://baconeggsrl.itch.io/ld56
Original URL https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/56/tiny-friends

Ratings

Overall 272th 3.022⭐ 48🧑‍⚖️
Fun 210th 3.196⭐ 48🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 137th 3.478⭐ 48🧑‍⚖️
Theme 230th 3.261⭐ 48🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 314th 2.122⭐ 47🧑‍⚖️
Audio 240th 2.534⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Humor 264th 2.195⭐ 43🧑‍⚖️
Mood 303th 2.452⭐ 44🧑‍⚖️
Given 49🗳️ 69🗨️

Feedback

Machinic
06. Oct 2024 · 23:58 UTC
Very cute sound effects!
Mechanics seem fun -- I got stuck on the first level after getting the key - not sure if that was me missing something, not being able to throw the guy over the wall, or just the limit of content made for the jam.
franklyn01
07. Oct 2024 · 00:11 UTC
Very interesting mechanic! Using CONTROL as a key in a WASD controlled platformer is a bit risky, I accidentally closed the tab twice :D
richjbaron
07. Oct 2024 · 00:12 UTC
Also couldn't get anything to happen after grabbing the key. Not sure what's up :( Otherwise a pretty nice entry!
🎤 daflamingpotato
07. Oct 2024 · 00:20 UTC
Press E to use the key when next to a pink wall--works on my machine.
I'll have to troubleshoot if others are still having issues!

Edit: Recommend using chrome browser. Other browsers such as Firefox will open the game in fullscreen and break the viewport size which is required for the camera to work correctly

Edit2: Seems like an issue with Godot html export settings and viewport scaling settings. Should be sort of fixed for now although the game may appear small and locked in the top left on some browsers.
pres2300
07. Oct 2024 · 04:13 UTC
I got the keys to work, but quickly got stuck with what to do with the green hexagons. It seemed maybe I softlocked because I moved all the hexagons into a corner I couldn't get out of? Other than that, nice job on the movement, sound effects, and play style. It was a bit awkward at first, but I'm sure with time you could get used to it.
🎤 daflamingpotato
07. Oct 2024 · 04:32 UTC
Agree resetting is not the best. For now I recommend player death which will reset positions of objects.
Otherwise you can press R to reset entire game
ThaProfesional
07. Oct 2024 · 13:25 UTC
Cool concept. Had a great time playing - managed to beat it :) Had fun trying to figure out where to go, what to do and more importantly what to do with my little guys.

Controls felt good and were easy to pick up. The sound effects were really nice. I kind of wish there was a bit more going on graphics wise, but also kind of don't. What's there had a ton of charm and everything gelled together.

One thing I did miss was music. I think I just need noise to fill the void..
JEMH2K
07. Oct 2024 · 13:55 UTC
Awesome concept. Love smart puzzle games like this; very innovative! I would love to see this idea fleshed out in the future.

![Screenshot 2024-10-07 145444.png](///raw/949/d5/z/66333.png)
adjo
07. Oct 2024 · 18:11 UTC
Some fun puzzles in this, finished in about 200 seconds!

I did find the controls a bit confusing, I kept pressing the wrong buttons :sweat_smile:
SkyyStorm
07. Oct 2024 · 18:20 UTC
Fun game, with cool sounds, and the concept is great. With some music and a few sprites it would be even nicer, but a cool concept.
AdamG
07. Oct 2024 · 18:23 UTC
This is really cool. It took me a little to figure out the controls, but once I did the rest of the game was really fun to go through. The puzzles from controlling a guy you could throw worked really well, I would love a "full" game with this mechanic
gdman
07. Oct 2024 · 18:26 UTC
Interesting idea and puzzles, reminds of some retro or flash games, especially with that art style. Need some time to reread controls. Always wanted to toss some friends around.
Dfyzet
07. Oct 2024 · 19:31 UTC
I LOVE this concept! The idea of levels - it's beautiful. The controls are a bit complicated, but once you get it - you can't stop! Maybe a post-jam version?
Dianavi
08. Oct 2024 · 01:12 UTC
Wow, cool! It's not easy to program, and the controls are really smooth for this type of game. Well done!
And you are alone ! Bravo !
PlasmaPuffs
08. Oct 2024 · 02:18 UTC
This is a really good idea, and I think the colors used in the game went well with each other! My only suggestion would be to add some music, but I do understand how hard it is to just make everything else in two days. Good job!
James-Tanm
08. Oct 2024 · 02:25 UTC
Great jam game: simple premise, well coded, with enough content to really get a feel for it. I wish there had been at least one puzzle that required the use of multiple balls, but for 48 hours it was really good. I like the sound effects, and the graphics are simple but engaging. I think the far right puzzle was definitely the hardest. Took me a while to figure out how to get the speed required
Avi
08. Oct 2024 · 08:54 UTC
Clever idea! I liked the usage of the 2ndary smaller character to solve puzzles. I struggled a bit with one of the levels tho, my character kept getting stuck behing the ball.

![Screenshot 2024-10-08 at 9.53.03 PM.png](///raw/a3d/11/z/67cbe.png)
diomont
08. Oct 2024 · 09:38 UTC
Very neat game, I can really see the concept being expanded a lot, and I like the that you can use the little guys to push objects around while the big guy acts as a wall. Not sure if it was intentional, but switching control to a little guy while he's flying will completely stop him, which can give another layer to puzzle solving by stopping him from overshooting a platform or something.
A puzzle that required more than one little guy would have been cool, since you never needed more than one. Maybe some buttons and moving platforms would be useful to design something like that.
Kirass
08. Oct 2024 · 17:34 UTC
Cool idea! Super!
SdCorpse
08. Oct 2024 · 20:54 UTC
I really enjoyed this puzzle!
LDJam user 352490
08. Oct 2024 · 23:50 UTC
Tried speedrunning, got under 30 :)

![tiny_friends_2.png](///raw/ae0/65/z/68217.png)
Clare_Chan1738
09. Oct 2024 · 18:28 UTC
Pretty cool game and interesting take on the theme! The movement and throwing mechanics were really smooth!
ShadowMitia
09. Oct 2024 · 19:02 UTC
Very interesting mechanic! The controls are maybe not the most intuitive, especially if you have to switch around often. But otherwise very cool!
mdsalomon
09. Oct 2024 · 19:35 UTC
Solid work! Mechanics were interesting and worked without any issue. I feel like there's still a lot of space for this concept to expand and develop, I hope you keep building to it.
Junyi_Chen
11. Oct 2024 · 08:36 UTC
I like this neat game! Mechanism is match with the puzzle, great potential to extend more levels!
MaximeG
11. Oct 2024 · 15:10 UTC
Waw nice game, I love the concept, it was really fun to play.
Good job!
Conor Wilson
12. Oct 2024 · 05:04 UTC
Cool concept! Once I had figured out the controls (which, if I was to give any feedback, I would say that they're a little unintuitive without reading the instructions directly), I had a blast getting through all the puzzles!

Reminds me a little of Thomas Was Alone :)
henk
13. Oct 2024 · 19:42 UTC
Neat! A hexagon is an odd choice for a rolling object :P
bentglasstube
13. Oct 2024 · 19:43 UTC
Very fun concept, my biggest complaint was that it was too short :). The controls were a little confusing, and it wasn't clear why I needed multiple tiny friends, but the mechanics of the puzzles were super fun.
Danial Jumagaliyev
14. Oct 2024 · 20:07 UTC
Simple graphics, nice and neat concept, and probably one of the few puzzle games that use the theme well this compo jam. I think this game requires a step-by-step tutorial rather than a wall of text explaining the controls, and it would have been nice to see a level where you would need to use all four little guys to beat it.
Amikatag
25. Oct 2024 · 19:15 UTC
Went through this nice game, that was quite fun ngl