Hello! My name is Daria, I’m a 2D artist, and this is my third Ludum Dare Jam. It’s also the first time I’ve decided to write a making-of post about creating assets in a short time!

Since I've never posted here before, I can't include any links in this post — including the link to our game Pulse Advance. So if you'd like to check it out, please look it up on my profile. Pretty please?...

Because we’d love to know if you like it or not — criticism is always welcome, so we can improve for the next jam!

So, this is the third time I’ve had a great concept in mind, only to be wrecked by the cruel reality that it’s impossible to create all that I want perfectly in 72 hours (at least for me). We had some awesome ideas, but in the end, it mostly came down to: “How can I wrap up the whole story in just a few images with a few hours left before the deadline?”

This is the third time it’s turned out like this: …mostly because I rarely drew post-apocalyptic robots before, I think.

Speaking of robots - I’m a huge fan of Simon Stålenhag, so while creating the art for Pulse Advance, I took inspiration from his masterpieces. Well, the result is more like “we have Simon Stålenhag at home.” But hey, at least I tried :D

I also wish I had more time to polish the UI and to write a proper ending sentence instead of something like “ooooooh, a girl standing mysteriously in a field with rabbits.” But still, the charm of a game jam is the opportunity to make a whole game in a short period of time. And I'm glad it somehow worked out! Mostly thanks to our teamlead/programmer/writer/game designer @DazyLude, who always comes up with the best ideas and suggestions, and to the team he brought together.

For me, the measure of “is our submission great or not” is answering the question: “Do I enjoy playing our game myself?” And I’m happy to say that I love playing all our silly little games a lot - including Pulse Advance!

So go check it out and leave a comment - I read all of them, and I really appreciate everything you write about our games!!! Every kind word we receive heals at least one nerve cell I lost while making the art. Love y’all! ❤️