In the Great Black Out of 20XX all digital data known to mankind got destroyed or corrupted. Ayla lost all her childhood memories she stored in a cloud. On accident she finds a hint on where her lost data might be. Finally her hacking skills come to the ultimate test. Is the data still intact? What is her past?
The Game
DEEP DIVE combines Bullet Hell with Memory Games. You got 10 Seconds to memorize a pattern. After that you can fire Orbs every second at the direction of your Mouse Cursor.
- Tried to reupload (didn't work) because the music was playing too late
v1.1 - Made control instructions in room 1 clearer - Fixed some capitalization errors in texts - Moved player in room 1 so you need to move to the exit and don't stand on top of it - Made the timer start in the rooms without enemies properly - Removed spaces between barriers in room 3 so you can't shoot through them anymore - Made the text on last screen faster - Added in room 8 the proper barriers - Made the music on title screen start faster - Fixed a bug where it was possible to die even after touching the exit
v1.1.1 - Removed dashing and skipping title screen by clicking the mouse button
It is my first game ever actually (with a beginning and an end that is). I did everything by myself and from scratch (except the glass cracking sound, but that was public domain). Totally forgot to add some insights. These 3 days were tough. Don't got the full 72 hours because of important privat stuff. Hated the theme... Was nervous the whole time... Boy oh boy. But I learned a lot! And I'm glad I made it in the end.
The gameplay is fun, the style is really neat looking, and it's an interesting concept for sure. The only problem I had is when I had to dash it locked me from being able to attack sometimes?
For a first game, amazing job. Honestly, really fun with a great concept. Two things, 1) Tighten up the controls, it would make gameplay so much more fun. 2) Make the game a tad more upbeat and exciting; maybe make it a bit more visually interesting and the bullet battle a lot more exciting (fixing the movement might help with that). Other than that, amazing job! This game is a jam. Please keep developing this!
The art is just incredible . Love the art, love the audio , love the theme of the game . Amazed too by the fact that it is your first game and you made it alone because the game design really work well . As mentionned by other the control feel a bit clunky and the game might lack some stress moment during bullet hell (but I love the slow pace of the game that set the mood) . Hope you continue to make game or game jam and I am looking forward to it . (don't know if it is the intentional but I love the fact that your main character look like sarah kerigan as zerg queen and the eye look like the overmind)
I added a Mac Version now. It doesn't show up on this page for whatever reason, but on the itch.io-site you will find also a download! Thanks for making me aware :)
Edit: Now it shows up. Was taking it's time - oh well.
@oakhardt - great, thanks! I was able to play it without issues
Nice little puzzle game, I'm a big fan of puzzles. Kept forgetting to dash to dodge obstacles!
Great visual polish! Maybe needed a bit more on the SFX side. But great entry overall.
One thing that might have been interesting to try is to remove the need for a mouse. But I'm not sure it would have worked as well with just keys... but more retro?
I'm actually stunned people like the music so much (it's my fourth track I ever produced and I'm still really insecure about my abilities in that regard), but it really makes me happy! Thank you!
Really liked this game! The art and music is great and the gameplay is fun and interesting. Although, I do wish shooting was faster, as I feel it takes away from the memorization aspect if you don't need to get them all within 10 seconds. Super great work overall though!
The art styles works so well! I didn't know the character could move for the first three levels! and the bouncing orbs and the limited boundary works well together!
Very nice pixel art and creepy music. i kept clicking to shoot for some reason even if its not in the controls. i wouldn't limit the shooting and the dash, would be more fun and exciting.
Thanks for commenting! Yeah the automatic shooting came from my first idea at making a game like Vampire Survivors. So I left it in, but now I also think it would have been better to give the player only one chance to destroy all fuses in ONE go in 10 seconds with bullets on demand or click (maybe just 10 of them) - so you really need to memorize them, but that idea came very very late. I made 8 of the 10 levels in the last two hours of the jam. At my play testing I didn't like the fact, that you destroy say 7 of 8 fuses and have to wait 10 seconds again without anything to do (in the rooms without enemies). Sorry for the long reply, but I liked both of your critics and wanted to share my thought process :D
Thanks for sharing your experience! Yeah I'm aware because a friend of mine told me the same thing! I just uploaded a new version where the player don't stand directly on top of the exit in the first room. So you have to move now! Also added clearer instructions on first screen about the movement itself. Thanks for playing!
I quite enjoyed the relatively slow pace of this one. It was calm and relaxing, in spite of all the terrible projectiles flying at my face. Excellent job, especially for your first outing!
Nice game. The art is sparse but consistent, sort of minimalist. Music was also nicely moody. Gameplay-wise what I was missing the most is more/better control. I would rather shoot the bullets on click when I need to, not on an auto cooldown, and the bounces didn't seem to be useful. I also wanted to hear when the dash is ready (maybe to even see a timer for it), I didn't really feel like using it unless absolutely necessary.
Thanks for your critic! Yeah I also think being more in control (also tighter controls in general) would be nice. First I wanted to make an auto-attack/shooting game like vampire survivors. I just left it in. I also wanted to make a sound cue for the dash (while doing it and being ready again), but focus shifted to other things (the sfx for the timer was also a very late addition). Only added a orange flash (and her hair being orange) but that really isn't enough. Some people even forgot they got a dash ability! But oh well all that really came to me in last few hours of the jam :) Made 7 of the 10 levels in the last two hours actually. Thanks again!
I really liked the graphics, the colors and the general mood of the game. The music went very well with the minimalistic art style. You really nailed it :)
Quite an interesting take on the theme, I can't really place it in a particular genre. It's simple, but there's enough going on to stay interesting. The two enemies were too much for me though, I'm really not good at bullet hell games 😅
This was amazing! Super challenging, maybe even a bit too much for a game jam, but I found myself really invested and kept pushing till I got to the end. The art and color scheme are amazing as well!
Pretty good game I might tell. Good sounds and graphics, but the game looks too dark for me. Maybe it would better to make the green color lighter or change the color of the backgound to something lighter?
But the game gets too hard for me ~on 5th or 6th level) Also I think I may have had some control issues with the Player character dashed himself when he shouldn't.
This game is so good. I love the innovative mechanics of having to balance avoiding the projectiles whilst memorizing the position of the numbers. The only part I think that could be improved is that the movement feels a bit difficult to clunk sometimes. Honestly a perfect entry!
Thanks for your critic and feedback! I thought about it for a while and I think I know the problem. Did you click to shoot? By clicking she is dashing. Shooting is automatic every second. I removed it now and uploaded a new version. Normally she should only dash by tapping Shift, Alt, Ctrl or Space. I don't know why I left left click to dash in. Feels pretty unintuitive, because you don't dash at the direction of your mouse cursor.
I agree on it being too dark. I think in fullscreen it is alright, but in the very last hour of the jam as I uploaded my cover art I was thinking to myself "Boy oh boy this is way too dark!". Couldn't fix it in time unfortunately :( Next time I also want to make a game more colourful.
Thanks for playing our game! Your's was amazing!! very easy to understand, a nice little story, several levels that progressively increase in difficulty, good music, no bugs. Excellent 10/10 The last level was pretty challenging, I had to repeat it at least 3 or 4 times to clear it, but it wasn't frustating at all because I knew that I can make it, I lost because I made a mistake and not because the game was unfair. Congratulations for this game
Hi! Thanks for playing and your feedback! I'm rather curious what you mean by erratic movement? Erratic movement of the orbs (bouncing of the walls / that can be sometimes unfair), enemies (on their repeating 2D path) or the player? Some people click to shoot, but clicking actually activates the dash. Shooting is automatic every second. Could that be it? It is an oversight on my part. I removed it now in the new version. I think some people got confused by it. And it is unintuitive, because you don’t dash at the direction of your mouse cursor.
Good short game! It provides good challenge with survival + memorization. After couple failures, I completed the game 😄. My only suggestion is to give dash meter to tell player if dash is allowed or not.
Smooth level transitions, love the sounds!! Really comfy visuals, easy to read, also cool mood! The puzzle solving element and multi-tasking part of the game is fun too! Kept my brain occupied c:
Pretty graphics! Gameplay was smooth and I liked the storytelling between the levels! Tutorial was well woven into the game and everything was very clear and easy to understand. Difficulty curve was also well balanced.
The movement felt bit slow and while I was happy that if you did not break all barriers in 10 seconds they stayed broken I felt like it took a bit away from the remembering the order part. These were minor thing, I really enjoyed the game! Well done!
Pretty cool! One minor annoyance is that there are several things to pay attention to at once when each round starts. Sometimes when I was reading the story text the numbers would disappear before I memorized them, or enemies would kill me.
I liked the dodging and shooting, and I liked that if I run out of time I just have to wait a bit for it to become my turn again.
Thanks for playing and your suggestion! Really glad you kept going! 😊 I added now a dash meter with sfx into the post jam version (got requested a lot actually - thought of it by myself but time was too short). Now I think you can get a good idea of when you are allowed to dash with or even without looking at the character.
Thanks you for your lovely feedback! Really happy and glad you enjoyed it! Actually I got myself a few times confused while play testing it. Thought that was a good sign 😅
Hi! Thank you so much you took the time and for your positive feedback! Actually I added now a post jam version. In this one everything is a bit faster. You can now shoot by yourself by clicking and also more often. And you also need to destroy all fuses in one go now. Otherwise the room starts over.
Yep the Blackout is a direct reference! I love this movie. Pretty cool someone noticed! And thanks for reading the story actually and your feedback of course!
Thanks for your comment! At first I thought it was a cool idea you got 10 seconds while you can read. But that only works in the first few rooms. When enemies are in the room you can't really do that. A little too much going on. Now I think a classic dialog box would have been nice (maybe even in between rooms) while the game is waiting for your input (but wouldn't had the time to implement anyway I guess...).
Yeah I thought it is a good idea to let the player go through another 10 seconds of survival if he didn't manage to shoot all fuses and let him have another go. Was also a bit afraid people might get frustated.
Now I added a post jam version. In this one it is not possible anymore and you need to finish the room in one go, but you can shoot more often and by yourself by clicking. Character and bullets are a little faster. I think it is a good compromise (actually want to add a difficulty setting), but overall slightly tougher!
Thanks again for your feedback and sorry for the long text!
Comments54
Also, main girl really nice!
I added a Mac Version now. It doesn't show up on this page for whatever reason, but on the itch.io-site you will find also a download! Thanks for making me aware :)
Edit: Now it shows up. Was taking it's time - oh well.
Nice little puzzle game, I'm a big fan of puzzles. Kept forgetting to dash to dodge obstacles!
Great visual polish! Maybe needed a bit more on the SFX side. But great entry overall.
One thing that might have been interesting to try is to remove the need for a mouse. But I'm not sure it would have worked as well with just keys... but more retro?
Thank you for your lovely comment!
I'm actually stunned people like the music so much (it's my fourth track I ever produced and I'm still really insecure about my abilities in that regard), but it really makes me happy! Thank you!
I agree on all points. Maybe I will consider to develop it further. Really made me happy to see your comment! Thank you so much!
Thanks for commenting! Yeah the automatic shooting came from my first idea at making a game like Vampire Survivors. So I left it in, but now I also think it would have been better to give the player only one chance to destroy all fuses in ONE go in 10 seconds with bullets on demand or click (maybe just 10 of them) - so you really need to memorize them, but that idea came very very late. I made 8 of the 10 levels in the last two hours of the jam. At my play testing I didn't like the fact, that you destroy say 7 of 8 fuses and have to wait 10 seconds again without anything to do (in the rooms without enemies). Sorry for the long reply, but I liked both of your critics and wanted to share my thought process :D
Thanks for sharing your experience! Yeah I'm aware because a friend of mine told me the same thing! I just uploaded a new version where the player don't stand directly on top of the exit in the first room. So you have to move now! Also added clearer instructions on first screen about the movement itself.
Thanks for playing!
Thank you so much!
Thanks for your critic! Yeah I also think being more in control (also tighter controls in general) would be nice. First I wanted to make an auto-attack/shooting game like vampire survivors. I just left it in.
I also wanted to make a sound cue for the dash (while doing it and being ready again), but focus shifted to other things (the sfx for the timer was also a very late addition). Only added a orange flash (and her hair being orange) but that really isn't enough. Some people even forgot they got a dash ability! But oh well all that really came to me in last few hours of the jam :) Made 7 of the 10 levels in the last two hours actually.
Thanks again!
Oh thank you so much for your lovely comment!
The old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything..." 🎶
Thanks for game, it looks complete, not often you can see here such games haha (my game is not complete at all :C)
Gameplay is challenging and interesting to play, I have died many times, but wanted to try again and again.
It's very cool when graphics so minimalistic and looking stylish 😎
Solid entry, good luck on LD51!
Good sounds and graphics, but the game looks too dark for me. Maybe it would better to make the green color lighter or change the color of the backgound to something lighter?
But the game gets too hard for me ~on 5th or 6th level)
Also I think I may have had some control issues with the Player character dashed himself when he shouldn't.
But overall I like this retro-style game.
Thanks for your critic and feedback! I thought about it for a while and I think I know the problem. Did you click to shoot? By clicking she is dashing. Shooting is automatic every second. I removed it now and uploaded a new version. Normally she should only dash by tapping Shift, Alt, Ctrl or Space. I don't know why I left left click to dash in. Feels pretty unintuitive, because you don't dash at the direction of your mouse cursor.
I agree on it being too dark. I think in fullscreen it is alright, but in the very last hour of the jam as I uploaded my cover art I was thinking to myself "Boy oh boy this is way too dark!". Couldn't fix it in time unfortunately :( Next time I also want to make a game more colourful.
Thanks for checking it out!
Thanks for your feedback and kind words! I also think the controls could be worked on.
Thanks again!
Oh, thanks for the cool lyrics! I like that song :D Just listened to it because of you!
Also thanks for your kind words and the wishes 😊
Really glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for your comment!
Thanks for giving it a try and the kind words!
Your's was amazing!! very easy to understand, a nice little story, several levels that progressively increase in difficulty, good music, no bugs. Excellent 10/10
The last level was pretty challenging, I had to repeat it at least 3 or 4 times to clear it, but it wasn't frustating at all because I knew that I can make it, I lost because I made a mistake and not because the game was unfair.
Congratulations for this game
Hi! Thanks for playing and your feedback! I'm rather curious what you mean by erratic movement? Erratic movement of the orbs (bouncing of the walls / that can be sometimes unfair), enemies (on their repeating 2D path) or the player? Some people click to shoot, but clicking actually activates the dash. Shooting is automatic every second. Could that be it? It is an oversight on my part. I removed it now in the new version. I think some people got confused by it. And it is unintuitive, because you don’t dash at the direction of your mouse cursor.
After couple failures, I completed the game 😄.
My only suggestion is to give dash meter to tell player if dash is allowed or not.
The movement felt bit slow and while I was happy that if you did not break all barriers in 10 seconds they stayed broken I felt like it took a bit away from the remembering the order part. These were minor thing, I really enjoyed the game! Well done!
Exellent art and sound. Beautiful color palette. I got great pleasure! Great job!
I liked the dodging and shooting, and I liked that if I run out of time I just have to wait a bit for it to become my turn again.
Thanks for playing and your suggestion! Really glad you kept going! 😊 I added now a dash meter with sfx into the post jam version (got requested a lot actually - thought of it by myself but time was too short). Now I think you can get a good idea of when you are allowed to dash with or even without looking at the character.
Best wishes!
Thanks you for your lovely feedback! Really happy and glad you enjoyed it! Actually I got myself a few times confused while play testing it. Thought that was a good sign 😅
Hi! Thank you so much you took the time and for your positive feedback! Actually I added now a post jam version. In this one everything is a bit faster. You can now shoot by yourself by clicking and also more often. And you also need to destroy all fuses in one go now. Otherwise the room starts over.
Thanks again for checking it out!
Yep the Blackout is a direct reference! I love this movie. Pretty cool someone noticed! And thanks for reading the story actually and your feedback of course!
Thanks for your comment! At first I thought it was a cool idea you got 10 seconds while you can read. But that only works in the first few rooms. When enemies are in the room you can't really do that. A little too much going on. Now I think a classic dialog box would have been nice (maybe even in between rooms) while the game is waiting for your input (but wouldn't had the time to implement anyway I guess...).
Yeah I thought it is a good idea to let the player go through another 10 seconds of survival if he didn't manage to shoot all fuses and let him have another go. Was also a bit afraid people might get frustated.
Now I added a post jam version. In this one it is not possible anymore and you need to finish the room in one go, but you can shoot more often and by yourself by clicking. Character and bullets are a little faster. I think it is a good compromise (actually want to add a difficulty setting), but overall slightly tougher!
Thanks again for your feedback and sorry for the long text!
Good job!
Also no arrow keys control, and the controls are very messy.