Ludum Dare #48compo

Dreadnought Parlance & the Magic Pearl

by decrementedpalindrome

Overall★★★★★★★★★★3.65

Fun★★★★★★★★★★3.88

Innovation★★★★★★★★★★2.90

Theme★★★★★★★★★★3.92

Graphics★★★★★★★★★★3.20

Audio★★★★★★★★★★3.47

Humor★★★★★★★★★★2.88

An underwater bullet hell game.

Dreadnought Parlance (that's you) has finally discovered the location of the long lost magic pearl amongst the sands of the ocean floor. Unfortunately you aren't the only one here - the imperial navy has followed you! With a limitless supply of mines, torpedoes, and who knows what else, they won't make recovering that pearl easy.

Guide the submarine through anything that stands in your way and claim what rightfully belongs to no-one!

The HTML5 version has some delay to the audio so get a downloadable version if you can.

You can see what the game looked like at the end of the first day here: http://www.decrementedpalindrome.com/games/LDJAM48/EndOfDay1/

I haven't tested the macOS version so let me know if anything is wrong and I'll see if I can fix it.

Tags: #bullet hell, #pirates, #underwater

Genres: shooter

Comments17

liammasters26 Apr 2021, 00:08

Cool take on an arena swarm game. The oxygen meter is a nice added mechanic. I felt like it would go from 0-100 in difficulty real quick but overall very fun. The music fits nicely.

ty_26 Apr 2021, 12:34

aw man, i didn't know there was a pearl! i made it to the bottom and was a bit sad when i didn't see anything immediately. but it was really fun! had me playing for a good 15 minutes. the audio is really nice too!

Scoobyben128 Apr 2021, 07:36

Fun game! The upgrade system sucked me in and I played to the end. Cool mechanic with the constant fire mode - saves me holding down a button to fire like I'd otherwise be doing the majority of the time, and by the bottom it starts to become an active detriment.

My only real criticism would be that when the sea bed starts approaching, the effect used makes it really difficult to parse the action in the foreground - as the background is trying to force a perspective, but the bullet dodging is still all in the original one.

Poorwill28 Apr 2021, 14:06

Nice entry! During playing it I wished there were at least some oxygen pick ups in the sea. But I guess it would be real hassle to balance with the incremental system and the rest of the gameplay.

BoxedMeatRevolution28 Apr 2021, 14:16

I fought off the navy and claimed the pearl! Very fun upgrade system. It really makes you feel a lot stronger each time you get one.

Likirus28 Apr 2021, 14:25

Really fun game, I like that the upgrades were all meaningful and had a real impact, unlike upgrades that are like +1% damage and you can hardly tell you got one. I played long enough to buy every upgrade in the shop, but I wasn't able to find the pearl.
I agree with @scoobyben1 though: The perspective change near the bottom had me really confused for a while.

todward28 Apr 2021, 14:31

What a blast. Loved it to blast all that mines and torpedos with my fully equiped submarine. Graphics at the bottom get a bit trippy but after all really well done game.

ruruie29 Apr 2021, 23:52

I can feel the spectre of Admiral Jacky Fisher looming over my shoulder as I play.

leekanarchism30 Apr 2021, 21:46

Really well made and polished game! I was thoroughly hooked from the start, and the upgrade system and ever-increasing bullet-hell-ness kept it engaging throughout. It's also the perfect length to play as a game jam game :)

The music is really catchy too!

LDJam user 2454719 May 2021, 23:59

The blue sea could use more detail, the goal is straight to the point, I just wish more oxygen was available from the start, as the upgrading mechanic for me at least seems a little too much. The music is great though, nice job!

cavedens10 May 2021, 00:26

fun little game. Good job

Sephy12 May 2021, 09:57

Awesome game! Not sure if missed anything but I wished you could buy upgrades whenever you wanted, not just after you died.

Jonathan Lorenz15 May 2021, 14:16

I didn't understand waht you were supposed to do. I try descending, destroying a mine as quicly as I can and going up for oxygen, but it never worked. I don't know if I missed something about the oxygen. Other than that, I liked the idea.

mikouaji15 May 2021, 21:12

Very nice, the upgrade system is nicely balanced, everything plays well and the music is catchy :)

BinaryPrinciple15 May 2021, 22:20

Nice entry!
My recommendation would be to add something that gives me oxygen, while I´m stationary, like a plant or old vessel, I would have to keep and eye on for the torpedos while getting oxygen, and empowers exploration.

Laaph15 May 2021, 22:35

I love the catchy music! This is a fun game!

Also love the "how to play" screens! Very nice!

ChrisAP15 May 2021, 23:04

The song is really catchy, however the beeps get really loud and kind of disturbing. Some sort of encouragement could help the game, since I kept looking for the pearl at the bottom and yet I only found invisible walls. The mine, character and coin have cute art tho! Keep it up!

Other games by @decrementedpalindrome

★3.63

★3.93

★3.63