I really like the mechanics, the sound, the graphics, and the mood. The way the pallet changes is very cool. Unfortunately, I didn't find it fun to play. Having to keep returning to the fountain is frustrating, especially in a game that makes the player want to explore.
I got the concept immediately, and what a great concept it is. But my goals were not very clear. While the tantalizing glimpses of other areas kept me coming back after dying, it eventually became too cumbersome to start over.
Nice idea and great atmosphere. The music really adds to the mood. It was very frustrating trying to explore while worrying about making it back, but I'm guessing that was intended. Good job!
I'm not so sure I've understood the game. There's no way to collect all items, right? And for some reason I have the ability to die just a few squares away from the fountain.
I love the way things change when she starts to get older. I kept exploring a little, then running back to the fountain to 'replenish'. After a few times of doing that, it felt like she started aging more rapidly. Nice touch! I wasn't exactly sure what I was supposed to be doing, but it was still quite fun exploring.
Incredibly concise idea that turns out to be a sophisticated take on the age old question of "is immortality worth it?" The subtle audio and visual changes that come with age, and the desperate struggle for that one last tile to get to the fountain before death really stick with me. Fantastic job.
Wow, I didn't know you would making a game for this Ludum Dare.
I liked the concept and the ideas you wanted to express in "Fountain", but gameplay is way too much frustrating. Nobody likes backtracking, it's like:
"Sure, I'm getting old, I could return to the fountain or keep exploring. Exploring is exciting because you discover great stuff and going back to the fountain and here again is boring, is not a challenge, I've done it and I could do it again"
I get that backtracking is part of expressing the idea, but I think it adds too little to the game(gameplay wise) compared to how frustrating makes it.
SuperHexagon was one of the hardest things I've played in my life, I loved it because it was a challenge and you designed it so it wouldn't be frustrating. Maybe that's what happens with "Fountain"'s design, it needs to challenge the player with something else that's not time management, it's hard to know.
Anyways, sometimes you just want to make a game about a thought you had and you just want to create it without caring about other details.
This would have been great, but you die so quickly -- You barely have enough time to get back to the fountain after collecting each thing, meaning you pretty much need to know exactly how to get back each time. The concept you have is pretty awesome, and I love exploration games, but I think this would work a whole lot better if it was slower paced. Great job.
Very nice game, graphics are great, music is pretty good. Very nice mood. Clever take on the theme. This is actually one of only a few LD games that I vote N/A for humor on. Good luck and keep at it! p.s. I'll beat hyper hexagonest one of these days
A sophisticated game, full of possibilities. Of which I got 3 ^o^// Nice how succinctly you were able to express the concept, and you nailed the theme without needing to name your game "You Only Get One Fountain" or something.
The fountain itself kind of looks like Marvin the Martian. Is that just me?
I can only echo what others have said. It was an awesome idea which had great audio, great visuals and a very cool take on the theme. BUT... sadly I didn't find it fun. I really wanted too, but I felt like I was being punished for exploring. If I went too far I wouldn't be able to make it back to the fountain in time and I would die... yet if I stayed near the fountain there really wasn't much to do. Definitely makes you think. But like they say, you can't have your cake and eat it too ;)
Strega: Nice use of subtle graphic changes to indicate the passage of time and aging. I liked that you conveyed the message of the game the gameplay itself.
thought-provoking and touching. your game connects to the theme on so many layers.
spoilers: in the end i just stood there next to the fountain, wanting to collect all the things, but knowing that if i stepped away from the fountain i would soon die. forever young, but with no purpose.
Great take on the theme. I wish there was a bit more clarity as to what those objects were that I picked up, but it could just be that I didn't get far enough. The audio and visuals really worked well together on this to build up the mood. The color changes in the world were really effective.
Interesting. I was able to find about 11 unique items, I think, though I only managed to get 4 simultaneously. I tended to just do long suicide runs to explore the map rather than make multiple trips back to the fountain.
The concept is great, however (and maybe it was a bug or me not finding the right way to go) you get to lose pretty fast if you don't do frequent round-trips to the fountain. This limits the exploration time a bit too drastically, removing somehow the fun of the game. The game itself is very polished: change in aspect, music and therefore global atmosphere as long as we age... great mood!
Moody and atmospheric, cracking graphics and real charm. Actually quite haunting, especially with that soundtrack and the gradually draining colours. I found it a little difficult to empathise with the player character, but perhaps the mysterious aspect was the point...
I like the idea and what the concept expresses (if my interpretation is correct). Not necessarily a "fun" game, but certainly an interest experience for what concerns me.
I liked the concept and the atmosphere (credits to the music and visual effects) but something in the gameplay didn't work for me - maybe the difficulty in knowing if you have time to come back - and it couldn't keep me hooked for long.
Wow, Terry. You have a unique gift for realizing an idea in all aspects of execution. That said, it is of course a bit frustrating to play a game that is designed to thwart completion. I do realize that is part of the point. :) Gameplay is a little unclear though - there is no indication of anything to collect and I didn't realize there was anything out there until I read the comments. Then again it could be argued that there is purposefully no goal.
The mood is well set by the gameplay and music. With the title as it is, the aging process was easily understood. The game got pretty hard when aging because not only would the path become unclear but quite suddenly your movement would slow down to a crawl. I've played VVVVV, so I can imagine that you meant the game to be hard. But the purpose, goal, mechanics and other was not so clear and in this game I got a bit too little in return for my exploration to keep me curious. When I did find something it disappeared and I didn't have a clue if it did anything, changed anything. I can imagine that with a bit more work it can really be journey of discovery and wonder.
I saw this in a recommendation, and, what can I say? Every word is true. Great graphics (remind me of early Zelda), beautiful music. I like how you've shown the character's aging: not only in the character sprite, but also in landscape colour washing out and the music going away. The speeded-up aging makes a lot of sense and is a nice challenge. I can't really say much about it, it would dilute the experience.
I have no idea whether it's winnable, but I'll be coming back to this one after voting has ended.
I think I'll wrap up my voting here and end this LD on a high note.
Wow, great use of the theme. The audio and visual cues add a really nice touch! Reminds me of a slowing heartbeat, which may have been the intention? Overall a really good game, it accomplishes a lot with very little.
Comments86
So then: mission accomplished. =)
I liked the concept and the ideas you wanted to express in "Fountain", but gameplay is way too much frustrating. Nobody likes backtracking, it's like:
"Sure, I'm getting old, I could return to the fountain or keep exploring. Exploring is exciting because you discover great stuff and going back to the fountain and here again is boring, is not a challenge, I've done it and I could do it again"
I get that backtracking is part of expressing the idea, but I think it adds too little to the game(gameplay wise) compared to how frustrating makes it.
SuperHexagon was one of the hardest things I've played in my life, I loved it because it was a challenge and you designed it so it wouldn't be frustrating. Maybe that's what happens with "Fountain"'s design, it needs to challenge the player with something else that's not time management, it's hard to know.
Anyways, sometimes you just want to make a game about a thought you had and you just want to create it without caring about other details.
Hoping to see more games from you soon!
Great game, loved the little details.
Another time I was chilling near the fountain with 1.
Good luck and keep at it!
p.s. I'll beat hyper hexagonest one of these days
The fountain itself kind of looks like Marvin the Martian. Is that just me?
Eventually everybody leaves the garden unexplored, get over it! Thank you for this game.
Nice use of subtle graphic changes to indicate the passage of time and aging. I liked that you conveyed the message of the game the gameplay itself.
(This is a team account)
spoilers:
in the end i just stood there next to the fountain, wanting to collect all the things, but knowing that if i stepped away from the fountain i would soon die. forever young, but with no purpose.
And was it just me, or did the fountain get weaker and weaker every time I used it?
This limits the exploration time a bit too drastically, removing somehow the fun of the game.
The game itself is very polished: change in aspect, music and therefore global atmosphere as long as we age... great mood!
Congratz Terry =)
Incredibly well fitting with "You only get one".
The light was brighter
With friends surrounded
The nights of wonder
With the title as it is, the aging process was easily understood.
The game got pretty hard when aging because not only would the path become unclear but quite suddenly your movement would slow down to a crawl. I've played VVVVV, so I can imagine that you meant the game to be hard.
But the purpose, goal, mechanics and other was not so clear and in this game I got a bit too little in return for my exploration to keep me curious. When I did find something it disappeared and I didn't have a clue if it did anything, changed anything.
I can imagine that with a bit more work it can really be journey of discovery and wonder.
I have no idea whether it's winnable, but I'll be coming back to this one after voting has ended.
I think I'll wrap up my voting here and end this LD on a high note.