This is it. My first Ludum Dare Game. Mixed feelings.
About the game
You play as a (stylish) shepherd who tries to get his sheep to the endzone of the levels. For each level you get a score depending on your time and the number of sheep brought to the endzone.
Bringing back sheep to the endzone causes them to spawn on the next level. So in each stage there will be more and more sheep making it harder to get them to the endzone.
You can stack up to 6 sheep. But each sheep makes you heavier making jumps (or movement) nearly impossible.
Call sheep to let them go to your position. If you're to far ahead, they won't follow you.
If you're falling down a gap, you'll respawn at the start of the level. You only lose some time. However if one sheep falls down it is lost. It gets only back if you reset the complete level.
My total score was 73.170 points. _Can you beat it?_
Controls
Key
Action
Arrow Keys
Walking
X
Jump
X in Air
DoubleJump
Hold C
Pick Up Sheep
Release C
Throw Sheep
V
Call Sheep
R
Reset Level
Known Bugs
It might happen that sheep will stuck on the ceiling
If somethings like that happen, simply press R to reset the level. Sorry for any inconveniences.
Requirements
The game was made in Java with the LibGDX framework. You will need the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 1.6 or later to play this game. You can download it from the official java website.
Things that went wrong
1. Time management was harsh. I did not provide any code templates for LibGDX (except rudimental collision detection), so I had to implement everything from skratch
2. Graphics took way to long. Next time I have to develop a more simplisitc style for easier and faster drawing progress
3. If I had had more time, I would have included audio. Sadly no baa sound... no chilly music...
Some thoughts: would be nice to be able to see where the thrown sheep will land. Having to guess meant losing my 4 sheep in the second stage all too quickly. XD Double jumping was a cool idea but it wasn't reliable and sometimes didn't go off, which is why usually I advise having a simple jump that feels good to control over 2 inaccurate jumps. I had fun though, and would like to see the idea being taken further after LD!
Also, why mixed feelings? It's perfectly normal not to be able to finish a game completely, and having bugs/missing features/no sound, particularly in your first time. You did well! Just don't give up, making games is tough but very rewarding.
I also think there are some missing sounds. However, I think that the rest of the game was amazing! The art was great, and the game was pretty fun too! Good job!
I agree with all of you, that I should have put some music and sounds into the game. This is the major part I'll be working on for the next Ludum Dare.
This game was also a lot compared with @tex-killer's mentioned Noah's Ark Game, but I have never heard of it before. Except not being that good... I may check it out sooner or later...
Again, thank you for your critics. I will work on them for the next Ludum Dare.
Comments8
Some thoughts: would be nice to be able to see where the thrown sheep will land. Having to guess meant losing my 4 sheep in the second stage all too quickly. XD Double jumping was a cool idea but it wasn't reliable and sometimes didn't go off, which is why usually I advise having a simple jump that feels good to control over 2 inaccurate jumps. I had fun though, and would like to see the idea being taken further after LD!
Also, why mixed feelings? It's perfectly normal not to be able to finish a game completely, and having bugs/missing features/no sound, particularly in your first time. You did well! Just don't give up, making games is tough but very rewarding.
This game reminded me of an old Noah's Ark game for the NES, look: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible_Adventures
In it Noah stacked multiple animals and carried them, much like the sheep in your game.
Good job making this! It seems very polished! :)
I agree with all of you, that I should have put some music and sounds into the game. This is the major part I'll be working on for the next Ludum Dare.
This game was also a lot compared with @tex-killer's mentioned Noah's Ark Game, but I have never heard of it before. Except not being that good... I may check it out sooner or later...
Again, thank you for your critics. I will work on them for the next Ludum Dare.