Cricetus Crevice by MagnesiumNinja

[raw]
made by MagnesiumNinja for Ludum Dare 57 (JAM)

You are a hamster, seeking the Wheel at the Center of the World.

GIF4-7-20253-00-51PM-ezgif.com-resize.gif

Delve through claustrophobic tunnels, dangling on a precarious system of ropes and pitons. Harvest metals to ward against the dangers waiting below.

screenshot_3.png

Will you discover the mystery waiting at the end?

(All controls are explained in-game)

Ratings

Overall 75th 4.11⭐ 43🧑‍⚖️
Fun 107th 3.927⭐ 43🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 56th 4.125⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Theme 70th 4.288⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 310th 3.915⭐ 43🧑‍⚖️
Audio 178th 3.782⭐ 41🧑‍⚖️
Humor 172th 3.551⭐ 41🧑‍⚖️
Mood 234th 3.89⭐ 43🧑‍⚖️
Given 50🗳️ 94🗨️

Feedback

Isaac Hisey
08. Apr 2025 · 00:29 UTC
Pretty tough! Fun puzzle.. platformer... I guess?
Good tutorial, good art and sound.
Great theme use. Wild and imaginative idea.
Well done all around.
🎤 MagnesiumNinja
08. Apr 2025 · 00:53 UTC
Thank you so much!
maximumoverkilt
08. Apr 2025 · 01:38 UTC
I dig this.
HDVR02
08. Apr 2025 · 02:09 UTC
I like it a lot! Very interesting idea and mechanics! Great game!
jnur
08. Apr 2025 · 02:12 UTC
Fun! Really great idea, I'm really impressed by the fact that you managed to implement it so well so fast. Pretty tough, but not too bad. By the way, it looked like the game may have just frozen at the end of the load (the web version), but it did eventually start up. So if anyone else is having the same issue, just stick it out - it's worth it
2009yasha2009
08. Apr 2025 · 02:12 UTC
Wow! This mechanic reminds me of Worms and their ropes – super cool! Thank you for your work and the soft, lovely graphics!
wheelsx
08. Apr 2025 · 02:13 UTC
The swinging mechanic was good. The slower pace made it feel more mysterious.
dhdorr
08. Apr 2025 · 02:13 UTC
pretty nice rope swing mechanics, it all seemed to work very well

only issue i found was that you get stuck in place when you piton on the floor (as opposed to the ceiling or wall)
WetBurritoSupreme
08. Apr 2025 · 02:27 UTC
Woah, really great set up with the puzzles and limits placed on the player. We did a similar game for our jam but spent most of the time fighting 2D physics, really clean game! Bonus I really like the laser soundeffect, makes for a nice rhythm to go along with swing through the spikes!
LDJam user 259103
08. Apr 2025 · 02:31 UTC
I really like this mechanic! I do think the difficulty maybe ramps up a bit fast - try as I might, I was unable to make it past the large cavern in the laser section - but this is a clever concept and is quite well-put-together. Well done!
Yubs
08. Apr 2025 · 03:16 UTC
woah.

this was so clever, really impressed by this one. Lots of polish and good effects.

The lighting was really nice, the slow but growing noise of *the wheel* was great.

I liked the slow build up in mechanics, and also how it kind of encouraged a "cheat past with as few pitons as possible" made it fun to challenge myself.

Incredible game, nice work!
I_POTS
08. Apr 2025 · 04:15 UTC
This is very interesting! There is also a cute little hamster inside
Radjax
08. Apr 2025 · 04:26 UTC
Loved it! This was so fun to plan a route through and the polish was great. Really cool mechanics and adorable to boot.
Dywanix
08. Apr 2025 · 10:30 UTC
Great idea! I really enjoyed playing it
izzqz
08. Apr 2025 · 12:03 UTC
Like this mechanic! Whats inspired it?
JulioCezar
08. Apr 2025 · 12:06 UTC
I really like the rope and balance system, it's one of the most different system that I seem on jam. Good job mate!
JackShadow
08. Apr 2025 · 14:52 UTC
Currently one of the best experiences of this LD. I really liked the rope-swinging puzzle idea, and how the puzzles gradually get more challenging without overwhelming the player with mechanics. Nice one!
LDJam user 304226
08. Apr 2025 · 16:05 UTC
Woah, really interesting and cool experience to play through, it was challenging, interesting and fun. Really really awesome! The wheeeeeeeeeel
Cure
08. Apr 2025 · 17:57 UTC
I've come back to play this more twice now, such a creative set of mechanics! Love the aesthetic and vibes and controls and just everything, great game.
pigeon_dp
08. Apr 2025 · 19:14 UTC
Ultra fun game. When i started it i had to play to the end. Everything is great. One thing I'd change would be to implement some sort of cooldown between boosts, as you can spam then and get out of some shady spots :)
LLlarsO
08. Apr 2025 · 21:26 UTC
I'm a big fan of the main character in this game! :)
Really cool connection between the game mechanic and the hamster, who was walking in his wheel. Great idea!

I like that every anker point is also a save point and that you could undo your actions. The swinging mechanic was fun, but the dash didn't work all the time correctly (maybe I did something wrong?)

The difficulty ramped up pretty quick.

The graphics were good and I really enjoyed ramming through the ressources. It felt very satisfying. :)
swordguy47
08. Apr 2025 · 23:18 UTC
This is such a cool concept that's honestly executed really really well. The audio 'juice' really sold me; I love how there's a subtle dial/ticking noise whenever you're using the charge mechanic. Makes it even more satisfying to use and smash into crystals.

The amount of polish and well executed level design is awesome. I would believe this was a Steam game if I didn't know better, haha. Also really like the concept; watching the hamster run up against its "hamster ball" while the rest of the game has this serious atmosphere made me smile
Anderson Job Loeffler
09. Apr 2025 · 23:30 UTC
Super engaging game, I was completely hooked! The mechanics were interesting and the game design was really well done. I like that it is just a tiny bit punishing. Once I realized there was a story unfolding, It got me convinced to beat the game; really fun twist at the end hahah. Awesome job, keep it up!
Tetracold
10. Apr 2025 · 11:21 UTC
Very nice and atmospheric, both the art direction and sound design is really great here!I like ho the elements glow and contrast nicely with the very dark environment by adding some color

the physics feel very nice and the mechanic is creative, felt encouraged to see if I could skip certain parts by taking advance of the physics anchoring myself in just the right spots and I am resourceful with my pins.
Mikhail_Shchapov
10. Apr 2025 · 13:36 UTC
I like this game, nice mechanics and interpritation of theme, the gameplay is easy and hard at the same time - balanced perfectly. Art is good, hamster is my hero.
Alem26
11. Apr 2025 · 09:19 UTC
Really innovative controls, the game is challenging but doable.

The art is really cute and the sound effects are also on point.
Had some issues with the controls when moving horizontally where my muscle memory messed up using S for extending the rope and made it a little frustrating, but nothing major!

Great game overall!
DurkaGames
11. Apr 2025 · 10:40 UTC
Was hard to me. Nice entry!
Ronalchue
12. Apr 2025 · 14:20 UTC
Very interesting mode of movement, nice to jump. It's rather difficult to say. In the end, it's very cool
JHax
13. Apr 2025 · 15:17 UTC
Very cool idea, the central mechanic feels really fresh to me! I love the mixing of the cute hamster protagonist with the spooky sort of cosmic horror of the general setting.
Haoro
13. Apr 2025 · 20:24 UTC
Very nice mechanics, I really like the hamster x)
Samilon
16. Apr 2025 · 16:00 UTC
I love this! Its a really cool concept!!!! Hope to see more of it.