As I had some stuff to do for uni, I decided to do things really relaxed this time. I spent two evenings making this little game using Bitsy. A game about cozy places and enjoying the small things. My interpretation of the theme is what "the more you have" implies: "the less you have, the better it is". The snow storm audio in the game is Creative Commons by videvo. That's why I opted out of "Audio" category.
@flankstaek I so wanted to add this! Sadly it's not possible with Bitsy. Having audio at all is a hack. Playing a hidden Youtube video for the sound ;)
Huh, so that's what a walking simulator is like? I had stayed away from the genre because I didn't think I'd like it, and it seems I was right. None of the objects I pick up are _supposed_ to do anything? The NPCs are giving me quests, but that's just flavour text, it's not a task I can actually complete?
Sorry, I'm new to the genre, so I can't yet tell if I dislike your game because it doesn't live up to what the genre can offer, or if I just dislike the genre in general.
Cute characters though!
Oh, and the walking controls are weird: sometimes, the character keeps walking in a straight line after I release the key, and this caused me to automatically enter and the get out-of-bounds in the tree house.
@gelisam: I wanted to add more interaction/ people reacting on what you found. But that doesn't seem to be possible with Bitsy (the engine). So this really is just a playable narrative right now :) I also noticed the bug with the walking controls, good call. Can't change that though, that's due to the engine.
The only thing that can make this game more calming is if I had tea while I played it. I like your approach to the theme and the background sounds were nice.
I really loved the use of items for the cat, having it run ahead of you and making you pick it up each time.
Some minor issues: - The tree and Susan's house are missing walls so you can wander around in the void - the final sentence of the ending is a character too early (the "a" from "a game by..." shows up in the previous page) - I also ran into the issue where the player would walk forward in the last pressed direction. I haven't seen that bug in a bitsy game before, and it didn't happen again when I refreshed; might be a good idea to ping adam and see if it can be fixed.
The text effects (rainbow and the oscillating wave thing) are a really nice touch!
Things that could change (aka super tiny nitpicks): - you can't see the rug when the character is in that space. Not sure if no alpha is a limitation of the engine. - I wasn't sure if being next to a thing would trigger the dialogue or if being on top of it would, so I sometimes accidentally skipped the first box of dialogue for an item. adding a small time gap where you ignore player input for half a second or a second after a dialogue box appears would probably fix this.
Quite relaxing on the whole. I wish more people would make these sorts of entries.
The mood was perfect in this game. I also loved the little effect of fluffy always being a bit ahead of you, gave me more reason to push forward. Susan was nice (:
Well... You never know how much you need one of these kinds experiences until you pick up another one. Thank you, just what I needed this evening :slight_smile: Loved the atmosphere you create! It reminds me of some 'self-care-jam' games, and also of _Lieve Oma_.
I like how, even with a color palette this limited, you still found it important to reserve one color for the interactives.
By the way, just how many flower seeds is Johnny supposed to give you?
(I also expected to see the foxes, but you can't have everything, I guess... :yum:)
@remco Nono, the foxes are all safe in their home due to the frosty weather :yum: Oh I really liked Lieve Oma! It may have been an unconscious inspiration :) Oh and good call with the flower seeds .. probably the nicest bug found so far ^^
I really like the thought of the game, but it really wasn't "fun" or "interesting". I would have liked to feel more agency - there were all these moments that could introduce agency and give player actual choices that could make differences in the game, but alas it wasn't meant to be. I ran through a second time without picking anything up and nothing was different... A missed opportunity.
The controls felt sticky? It would be nice if the movement weren't against a keyboard repeat where there was a delay before moving, and the fastest way was to tap faster...
I really liked the little touches that were in the presentation - like the rainbow texts, wobbly texts, etc.
@tuism: Thanks for the feedback! The lack of agency is due engine constrictions. I wanted characters to react on what you pick up, but there doesn't seem to be a way to see if the player has the item or not.
Cute! Refreshing after a whole bunch of games about shooting or stabbing things. Have you made other things with Bitsy before? What do you think about it as a development platform?
Nice storytelling and nice mood. I like the cute text effects and really all I could wish for would be more episodes and perhaps a bitsy little more rewards for going off track exploring. I had fun playing it. And I think it was just about the right length for the contents.
@jjjason: I made a couple of smaller things with Bitsy before, but nothing really finished. It's really limited, but also really fun. Really forces you to focus on making a game and telling a story and don't "waste time" on graphics or coding :) Definitively could recommend toying a bit around with it!
Simple small game :) Good job with the art style! And I also like the effects on the text. Well done and all the best! Pls feel free to play and rate my game: https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/40/split
I had to take some time to rate this, because this entry somewhat stands out, due to not really having any gameplay. It was an interesting experience, because it was so simple, and it had a nice atmosphere. I also liked that you didn't drag this out for ages without adding anything new, since it would have gotten boring. Also the graphics are super nice!
Good positive spin on the theme. It's hailing outside and I've got a warm cuppa right here so this was a good moment to play.
Afterthought: you know, I was annoyed with the theme because it would (and did) give rise to many negatively-themed or "reverse" games, but I didn't even consider reversing it like you did, which now seems obvious. Thanks for sharing and good night.
This was an adorable game. Just adorable. I see the spin you put into the theme, but still I can't say that it fits. However what's lacking in theme has in charm. Just lovely art, relaxing sound, a cute and simples story. The interactions with the objects don't really give anything more than filler to story, and in spite of not having a real progression, I can't say I wasn't amazed at the whole feel.
The story was linear and simple, but it did have progression, with start, middle and end.
Overall just a lovely great game, I really enjoyed it in spite of the theme. Congratulations!
I'm a huge fan of minimalistic art so I liked it very much. The game and narrative itself is very positive and sweet. I would just add some calm music to make it obvious that it is a positive game. I honestly expected something terrible happen to the character, since I've heard that windy snow blizzard which added more of a thrilling/horrorish mood to the game :) . Overall, really nice game.
@iluvatar: Thank you, that was an interesting perspective with the sound! A let's player actually put calm music on top of the ambient sounds as you suggested and it worked really well :)
Really cute, i enjoyed this. Good choice of colors, and i loved emphasis on detail in the environment (trehouse, fox den...). What I like specially on these games is that it sets the mood and let you use your imagination, good job! :)
Such a cozy game! I like small graphical motifs like the brighter areas being interactive. Wasn't sure at first how the theme fit but after reading your description, I found it super charming. This game was very nice, great job!
Minimalist game with an enjoyable mood. I liked the cat that follow you. I was expected a little twist in the story or the gameplay at the end to fit the theme but finally I appreciated that the game stays very sober and cute even if it sounds like a misinterpretation of the theme !
@edmond00: I looked at what the theme implies: "the less you have the better it is" vs. the more you have the worse it is :) But honestly I twisted the theme a little to make something positive and cute out of it ^^
Comments48
Sorry, I'm new to the genre, so I can't yet tell if I dislike your game because it doesn't live up to what the genre can offer, or if I just dislike the genre in general.
Cute characters though!
Oh, and the walking controls are weird: sometimes, the character keeps walking in a straight line after I release the key, and this caused me to automatically enter and the get out-of-bounds in the tree house.
I really loved the use of items for the cat, having it run ahead of you and making you pick it up each time.
Some minor issues:
- The tree and Susan's house are missing walls so you can wander around in the void
- the final sentence of the ending is a character too early (the "a" from "a game by..." shows up in the previous page)
- I also ran into the issue where the player would walk forward in the last pressed direction. I haven't seen that bug in a bitsy game before, and it didn't happen again when I refreshed; might be a good idea to ping adam and see if it can be fixed.
Great entry!
Simple and calm, nice concept/storytelling. Good job @tinyworlds
Things that could change (aka super tiny nitpicks):
- you can't see the rug when the character is in that space. Not sure if no alpha is a limitation of the engine.
- I wasn't sure if being next to a thing would trigger the dialogue or if being on top of it would, so I sometimes accidentally skipped the first box of dialogue for an item. adding a small time gap where you ignore player input for half a second or a second after a dialogue box appears would probably fix this.
Quite relaxing on the whole. I wish more people would make these sorts of entries.
I like how, even with a color palette this limited, you still found it important to reserve one color for the interactives.
By the way, just how many flower seeds is Johnny supposed to give you?
(I also expected to see the foxes, but you can't have everything, I guess... :yum:)
The controls felt sticky? It would be nice if the movement weren't against a keyboard repeat where there was a delay before moving, and the fastest way was to tap faster...
I really liked the little touches that were in the presentation - like the rainbow texts, wobbly texts, etc.
Estética interessante, jogo simples mas bonito. Parabéns pelo projeto. :flag_br:
Good job with the art style! And I also like the effects on the text. Well done and all the best!
Pls feel free to play and rate my game: https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/40/split
The rainbow and waveing text is awesome!
Afterthought: you know, I was annoyed with the theme because it would (and did) give rise to many negatively-themed or "reverse" games, but I didn't even consider reversing it like you did, which now seems obvious. Thanks for sharing and good night.
The interactions with the objects don't really give anything more than filler to story, and in spite of not having a real progression, I can't say I wasn't amazed at the whole feel.
The story was linear and simple, but it did have progression, with start, middle and end.
Overall just a lovely great game, I really enjoyed it in spite of the theme. Congratulations!