Ludum Dare 33 was an awesome event and after cooling down for a few days and playing some awesome enties, I’d like to give a postjam update.

Underbed Monster – Play now

About the Game

Underbed Monster is a stealth game, where you have to get to under peoples beds without being seen. You can also eat kittens, so the game can’t be that bad!
I actually think this is my second or third best entry in Ludum Dare so far. As opposed to my previous two attempts, it is actually a completed game and not only some broken prototype.

What went right?

• Working with the theme
  Before the jam, I hoped that the theme You are the monster wouldn’t make it because it felt too similar to LD25s You are the villain to me. But when it was announced I had to work with it and I think it turned out great. Next time I won’t have any prejudice against specific themes.
• Using Pixi.js
  While I had some difficulties with Pixi.js (I haven’t figured out sorting yet), it allowed me to iterate faster and to focus on content, less on rendering optimizations. The scene graph allowed me to create scene transitions, a simple effect that makes the game feel way more polished.
• Using Tiled
  When I had the initial concept written down I noticed that this game would require me to build quite some levels. Since I didn’t wanted to spend time on a level editor ingame, I started Tiled that I had installed but hadn’t used before just to check it out. As I’ve seen that it can export .csv-files I immediately started using it for constructing my levels. It is an awesome tool I’ll have in my toolbox for the next LDjam.
• Doing the dirty things
  This time, I forced myself to write the most dirty code possible without any clear structure or “If you do it know you can later…”. You won’t. Due to this the source code of the game is a mess (you can take a look), but it worked and allowed me to get things done faster.
  That also included that some of the “game logic” is actually included in the levels. Walls are not solid because they are walls but because they are on the wall layer. Same with balls/boxes and alike. This allowed me to pixel some new stuff, place it on the wall layer and et voilà, a solid object.

What went wrong?

• Not finishing my toolchain
  I’ve setted up a grunt-based toolchain with automatic CoffeScript to JavaScript compilation including minification but it hadn’t included other gamedev related tasks like spritesheet construction nor image optimization. That should be included in the toolchain for the next time.
  I also plan to include a distribution process for the next LD so I didn’t have to extract all the necessary files manually but get them packed nicely by grunt.
• Not finishing features
  The initial idea for kittens was, that they make noise when they notice you so the people run there. That would’ve allowed to use them as a distraction but that would’ve meant I need to implement pathfinding. Thus I dropped it and made kittens an eatable gimmick.
• Not testing a last time completely before submission
  It seems like I introduced a bug during the final hour before submission. Whenever you get caught by a person, the level should simply restart but actually it resets the game and shows the end screen. That should’ve been corrected before submission.
• Not making music Music
  Yet another silent Ludum Dare entry made by me. I’ll probably never learn.

The future

I haven’t yet started on expanding it due to long working hours but if I get into making a postjam version I’ll post on my Twitter account and may here in the blog. May I never start expending it, who knows.

Thanks

Thanks to all those who commented or lets played my game and to all those who will. It makes me smile if I see people are enjoying my game, preferably with some kind suggestions that would improve the experience.
And a huge thanks to my awesome wife, who has supported and fed me the whole weekend (kinda). 😉

PS: I’d like to suggest a few other games. Misunderstanding for the depth hidden behind some nasty bugs, Poust because it’s awesome and The Slimy Jumper because I know the dev in RL. 😀