Hit the streets in your creep mobile/ute (or "pickup truck" for the Americans) and harass as many women as you can before you crash.
In the context of the competition's theme, "An Unconventional Weapon", my game has you wielding the power of the male gaze in your quest for street harassment.
This actually happens to people on a daily basis. "Catcall Simulator 2015" tries to undermine the power of the male gaze as a weapon through visual & audio cues, making players feel uncomfortable with the power they're handed.
Game includes multiple endings and Oculus Rift support! Seriously though, try find the hidden/good ending.
---- CONTROLS ---- STEER - Tap Left/Right arrows HORN - Click the horn (click it specifically) - you can hold it down
You cannot STEER and sound the HORN simultaneously. Therein lies the challenge.
---- HELP ME ---- Q: I keep crashing!
A: Watch the gauge above your steering wheel. Think of it like a see-saw - you have to keep it centred by continuously tapping the arrow keys. The further it goes off centre, the faster it moves.
Q: How do I score points?
A: To score points, you have to deplete the gauge above each woman's head by holding down the horn as long as possible. They will slow their walk and look afraid when you succeed.
Q: You're incentivising being a creep. Why are you so awful?
A: You can actually win the game without harassing anyone.
I definitely don't know whether I should be offended or amused by this.
Either way, clearly a job well done: great graphics and audio, and although the controls are a little weird (why do I have to spam the left/right keys for steering, rather than just holding them?) this is extremely polished for a 48h game.
That was surprisingly... creepy, especially the music. One of those games I will remember, and I'm not sure if it's in the good way. Great job overall! :)
Yeah sorry, the game is much harder than I anticipated. I dramatically changed the gameplay about 3h before submission and didn't have time to balance it particularly well.
The most advice I can offer is that you have to repeatedly tap the arrow keys quite rapidly, rather than holding them. Holding them does nothing.
I will probably provide a link to a post-compo version with annoyances like that fixed. Thanks for trying it out!
No unfortunately, there is an ending that does what you're trying to achieve, but you have to activate it another way. In hindsight I should have enabled that ending for your method too, but I barely got this finished in time, and sleep deprived me didn't think of that.
But I have put that on the list of post-compo changes. Let me know if you find the hidden ending! I recorded some crisp as hell sound effects for it in my housemate's car.
Its really nice to see more message games in Ludum Dare.
I think that the atmosphere created from the graphics and sound effects is really effective at evoking the creepiness of the situation.
I don't think the game design quite fits the message... catcallers don't crash their cars very often. Nonetheless, I'm really happy you tackled a difficult subject.
A very interesting little game! The audio and graphical design is spot on (apart from the horn not being immediately obvious). The topic it deals with is pretty serious too. It's an unconventional weapon in video games, but unfortunately less so in real life...
I do agree with evilseanbot that the gameplay could be refined for a more impactful delivery. On the simplest level, switching the steering to hold controls would make more sense, and I think having to honk multiple times would make it sound like the harrasser was trying harder to attract their attention (which could make it creepier, and maybe reduce the gamist element).
I kinda wish you had either allowed for A and D keys to be used for steering or made the horn a space bar press instead of mouse. The controls were akward. I liked the fact that the steering bar doesn't allow you to sit on exact center; it's either left or right of center, which made the steering quite like real life in a sense.
@RockhopperGames: Yeah, it was a constant battle between making the game stick closer to the unconventional weapon message, and making it an actual game. I experimented with a bunch of mechanics but settled on the OK, but very flawed steering one. For a while, I had a brake button instead, and your goal was to not let more than X women get offscreen with their health bars still not depleted. But that ended up trite as you needed a flood of women to spawn to make it challenging, and that just made it look ridiculous.
@Crowbeak: Agreed, the problem is the hidden ending works by clicking something else onscreen, so I didn't want horn to be space bar. The steering mechanic was a last minute addition, so the controls ended up quite convoluted. I will fix that in a post-compo version - offer W/D controls in addition to the arrow keys.
@Adreqi: Well, it's very unconventional in a game. That it's very conventional in real life is a sad thing, but my expectation is that if anyone who actually has done this themselves plays the game, they'd feel very uncomfortable about it because of the presentation here (while I think playing from the perspective of those being catcalled themselves wouldn't have been very powerful at all IMO).
Very uncomfortable, in a way that really sends a message across. I disagree with people saying it's sexist, as I think the point is to show how unsettling this sort of behaviour can be. Thanks for making this!
This is such a great game, and i'm going to tell people why with out spoiling anything, This game in my opinion, isn't a game about a horn as a weapon against women, but a game which is a weapon against harassment. I got the secret ending, and the message is loud and clear.
Do not judge a game simply by the way you are playing it, some games mirror the users intentions and this is one of them.
A great entry, I scored low on fun for obvious reason, as for theme, regardless of if you designed this game as the unconventional weapon against harassment or not, it deserves 5 stars. Takes guts to show off something like this in the current climate.
Personally, I feel this game has a strong enough message that it doesn't need a fail state. Just having it last a certain amount of time and seeing how many points you can get would be a viable alternative, and possibly highlight how safe the harrassers are in this kind of situation.
More interactivity in the harrassment could keep involvement high, and maybe make the message hit harder if you wanna keep working on it after the Dare. There's a lot of space on the screen that could be used for more controls, like making rude gestures out the window once you have the womens' attention.
I got the special ending! Well done "serious" game, doesn't come across as too preachy, and looks polished enough. The audio and colors are very eerie and fitting.
I suspect the "offended" people above didn't play the game. Playing through, the reactions as well as finding the "secret ending" (Or win state, as I call it) make the point pretty dang clear.
Unless they are pro-girl-honking? Then... well.. yes, this could be offensive, I guess.
The game itself, had what it needed to have. The looks and sounds worked together real well to produce a fitting atmosphere. And it had a message.
This was an unsettling game. The effect of the subject, the music, and the way that the girls looked after you "killed" them left me feeling like I had done something seriously sick and wrong. Well done on portraying such a cutting message. After reading the hint about "clicking on another part of the screen" I managed to find the hidden ending. Thank you for putting that in there XD I'm not rating it on Fun or Humour, because I feel that it doesn't really fit into those categories, but everything else is rated very highly. Again, well done!
This was a clever entry, thought it was well thought at and presented. Nice to see someone try and approach the theme with a message. Also figured out how to win the game without harassing anyone and liked how simple yet effective it was. Well done.
Comments43
The question is, is the catcalling killing the girls or the drivers?
Either way, clearly a job well done: great graphics and audio, and although the controls are a little weird (why do I have to spam the left/right keys for steering, rather than just holding them?) this is extremely polished for a 48h game.
The graphics are great.
The most advice I can offer is that you have to repeatedly tap the arrow keys quite rapidly, rather than holding them. Holding them does nothing.
I will probably provide a link to a post-compo version with annoyances like that fixed. Thanks for trying it out!
With a bit more work, this could be an amazing piece of art.
But I have put that on the list of post-compo changes. Let me know if you find the hidden ending! I recorded some crisp as hell sound effects for it in my housemate's car.
I think that the atmosphere created from the graphics and sound effects is really effective at evoking the creepiness of the situation.
I don't think the game design quite fits the message... catcallers don't crash their cars very often. Nonetheless, I'm really happy you tackled a difficult subject.
I do agree with evilseanbot that the gameplay could be refined for a more impactful delivery. On the simplest level, switching the steering to hold controls would make more sense, and I think having to honk multiple times would make it sound like the harrasser was trying harder to attract their attention (which could make it creepier, and maybe reduce the gamist element).
Nice work for 48 hours though!
Good idea though, nice way to deliver a message.
@Crowbeak: Agreed, the problem is the hidden ending works by clicking something else onscreen, so I didn't want horn to be space bar. The steering mechanic was a last minute addition, so the controls ended up quite convoluted. I will fix that in a post-compo version - offer W/D controls in addition to the arrow keys.
@Adreqi: Well, it's very unconventional in a game. That it's very conventional in real life is a sad thing, but my expectation is that if anyone who actually has done this themselves plays the game, they'd feel very uncomfortable about it because of the presentation here (while I think playing from the perspective of those being catcalled themselves wouldn't have been very powerful at all IMO).
Do not judge a game simply by the way you are playing it, some games mirror the users intentions and this is one of them.
A great entry, I scored low on fun for obvious reason, as for theme, regardless of if you designed this game as the unconventional weapon against harassment or not, it deserves 5 stars. Takes guts to show off something like this in the current climate.
Great job. Extremely impressed.
More interactivity in the harrassment could keep involvement high, and maybe make the message hit harder if you wanna keep working on it after the Dare. There's a lot of space on the screen that could be used for more controls, like making rude gestures out the window once you have the womens' attention.
Those are just some thoughts I had though >.<
Unless they are pro-girl-honking? Then... well.. yes, this could be offensive, I guess.
The game itself, had what it needed to have. The looks and sounds worked together real well to produce a fitting atmosphere. And it had a message.
Really good work! Thanks!
I'm not rating it on Fun or Humour, because I feel that it doesn't really fit into those categories, but everything else is rated very highly. Again, well done!