Ludum Dare #54compo
Hexed
You control one end of a line. Trap your opponent to win.
Controls: Mouse or Touch or Keyboard
- Mouse: click corner next to highlighted line end.
- Touch: tap corner next to highlighted line end.
- Keyboard: QWEASD to move (customisable); Backspace undo premove; Escape cancel all premoves
Uses server side code written for a previous Ludum Dare game - https://github.com/penteract/pubsub.
post-compo Bugfix: make it less likely that a losing player in a multiplayer game doesn't see the last move and is left waiting in the game (if this still happens, refresh the page to get back to the menu and let me know)
#### Strategy guide:
You want to end up with control of the largest region. Staying as close to the center as possible helps with this, since it means you have a large region of free space on the outside, and it also makes it easy to maneuver to the side you want to be on. If both players are following this strategy, they usually go in opposite directions around the center (clockwise and anticlockwise) until they meet or nearly meet, then both turn around. This repeats a few times, and in a close game the players end up thinking very carefully about timing for their final meeting in a small region. If an opponent deviates from this strategy, they can usually be sealed into a smaller region than you.
Controls: Mouse or Touch or Keyboard
- Mouse: click corner next to highlighted line end.
- Touch: tap corner next to highlighted line end.
- Keyboard: QWEASD to move (customisable); Backspace undo premove; Escape cancel all premoves
Uses server side code written for a previous Ludum Dare game - https://github.com/penteract/pubsub.
post-compo Bugfix: make it less likely that a losing player in a multiplayer game doesn't see the last move and is left waiting in the game (if this still happens, refresh the page to get back to the menu and let me know)
#### Strategy guide:
You want to end up with control of the largest region. Staying as close to the center as possible helps with this, since it means you have a large region of free space on the outside, and it also makes it easy to maneuver to the side you want to be on. If both players are following this strategy, they usually go in opposite directions around the center (clockwise and anticlockwise) until they meet or nearly meet, then both turn around. This repeats a few times, and in a close game the players end up thinking very carefully about timing for their final meeting in a small region. If an opponent deviates from this strategy, they can usually be sealed into a smaller region than you.
Comments16
PowerOfSin2 Oct 2023, 06:27
Feels like playing a tight Tron race, but turn based.
It's pretty fun, I assume especially so with another human, but I can see there being some dominant tactics. I mostly won by blocking off the bigger chunk of the map and then flood filling it until the opponent runs out of moves first.
Having some dynamic obstacles on the map may help keep it fresh.
I worried controls will be a bit weird at a glance, but it's pretty comfy to play.
It's pretty fun, I assume especially so with another human, but I can see there being some dominant tactics. I mostly won by blocking off the bigger chunk of the map and then flood filling it until the opponent runs out of moves first.
Having some dynamic obstacles on the map may help keep it fresh.
I worried controls will be a bit weird at a glance, but it's pretty comfy to play.
LDJam user 3742612 Oct 2023, 07:48
10/10. Very fun and interesting game! Love the option to play vs the computer.
Tesseract2 Oct 2023, 12:57
Thanks for the feedback.
@september-xyzx Premoves are moves you play moves when it's your opponent's turn (you don't commit to them until the opponent plays) - this speeds up the game in multiplayer or against the slower AI, particularly when you're cut off from the opponent and just filling in space.
@september-xyzx Premoves are moves you play moves when it's your opponent's turn (you don't commit to them until the opponent plays) - this speeds up the game in multiplayer or against the slower AI, particularly when you're cut off from the opponent and just filling in space.
Kinami2 Oct 2023, 17:46
Simple and elegant!
The graphics are simple, but that feels in place with the abstract board-game like game! I feel like it could be clearer which side you are playing (maybe your side could be green, the opponent could be red?)
In any case, great game! 😄
The graphics are simple, but that feels in place with the abstract board-game like game! I feel like it could be clearer which side you are playing (maybe your side could be green, the opponent could be red?)
In any case, great game! 😄
LCStark2 Oct 2023, 17:54
An interesting take on a classic game! Nice idea with the time-based AI versions, it took me a moment to get used to how that works, but it's pretty fun to try and beat them all. The controls are pretty good - I was wondering if it wouldn't be better to have the keys make more of a hexagon on the keyboard (e.g. using WE, AD, ZX for controls), but the controls you have don't cause any issue for me. Bonus points for having both keyboard and mouse controls!
Tesseract2 Oct 2023, 20:52
@LCStark Thanks for playing. I would have used that layout if the hexagons were rotated 30 degrees (so corners pointed sideways and not vertically). I could have used something like `2`, `WE`, `AS`, `Z` ; but I think those are more awkward to reach. You can change the keybindings while playing a game by clicking on the one of the keys shown in the bottom right and then pressing the key you want to use for that direction.
goddzeproject3 Oct 2023, 06:23
The gameplay is reminiscent of the old checkered paper game, where each player takes turns drawing a piece of the checkerboard. A good continuation of this idea. I would also like to add the ability to choose the size of the field to control the playing time;)
LDJam user 2374133 Oct 2023, 08:19
This is cool. It looks it could be/was adapted from a board game.
Nice one getting multiplayer working in a short period of time.
Interesting stratergies could be used here. Nice one
Nice one getting multiplayer working in a short period of time.
Interesting stratergies could be used here. Nice one
Tesseract3 Oct 2023, 08:50
@goddzeproject I don't know the pencil & paper game you're talking about, could you tell me more about it. I have played a similar one on a 16x16 grid where each move is at right angles to your previous one, but I thought I invented it.
There's an option in the menu to change the board size.
There's an option in the menu to change the board size.
mahalis3 Oct 2023, 15:48
This is cool! Minimal and challenging—embarrassingly I have still yet to beat the Medium computer player. I’m impressed you got multiplayer working too; I’ve never attempted that for a compo game, I end up with enough things to debug just on one machine :sweat_smile:
LDJam user 2800364 Oct 2023, 06:56
I thought this was simple, but a lot of fun to play. Impressive that it seems to have online play, AI, and matchmaking? In a compo game?
cheesepencil6 Oct 2023, 03:00
Great execution, it looks nice. Found a multiplayer opponent immediately, too. That's pretty rad if you got multiplayer working that well in a compo game XD
Compasslg6 Oct 2023, 03:06
Really fun game, best suited for playing in class :)
Tesseract6 Oct 2023, 03:09
Thanks @cheesepencil, your multiplayer opponent was me - I made a version post-compo which I could leave open and would notifies me when someone joins. It does work without me being there, and you can test it using 2 (or more) browser windows, but it doesn't send notifications when someone joins and disconnects people after around 5 minutes of nothing happening.
cheesepencil6 Oct 2023, 03:15
lol absolute legend
My biggest issue with it is just that I couldn't figure out what "premove" meant, and I could never get backspace or esc to do anything. Honestly, this wouldn't have been an issue if it didn't say that on there, since it doesn't seem to be an essential function, but it did bug me a little.