Crazy that this is your first game, a game jam is the perfect entry point and this is a really nice start!
Really like how immediately evident the theme is here, even without the smart title that managed to include it literally :). Great aesthetic for the house and items too.
I think 3 minutes and the amount of objects to grab sets a well balanced pace for the experience too.
Some critique:
- The characters movement felt very stiff and awkward, leading to moments where it was difficult to try and step your character and its rotation around to pickup an item. Some games play to that awkwardness, but here it just felt regrettably jarring.
- The box hiding under the table felt cheap. If you could set a precedent for objects needing to be found it would be a neat discovery moment, but in this case it just felt unfair.
- Dropping objects in the truck felt very loose and often I had to press space multiple times or move around to try and find what felt like an invisible 'correct location' to drop the item, even when the zone was highlighted blue.
Some suggestions-This is personal preference stuff and all depends on what kind of action and experience you wanted to deliver with this, but hoping it helps you consider more for a post jam-next project moving forward if you get into games after this first experience ^^:
- Reduce the truck size by 2 depth (so 2x4), and have the stacking size of objects be considered when placing them in the truck. This way you'll add an easy to recognize and engage with layer of light strategy, making a player need to juggle in what order they move items into the Truck.
- Remove the energy bar of the sprint, and instead make it so you can't turn while sprinting. This helps move the focus back to the action of moving the objects around and gives more impact to the feeling of holding it vs not holding it, while giving simple moments of contrast as you move around the level.
- Change it so that instead of just losing money while bumping into something, the box drops upon impact too. That'll create a more impactful and recognizable 'oh no' moment and break up your activity, making the trip to a box and the trip back with a box feel more varied. Refining the characters movement while also making it a bit more slippery would make this part of the gameplay loop more tense.
Overall I enjoyed getting to play this entry, well done :).
Play game
MovingOnExpress's itch.io pageResults
Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
Entertainment Value | #4 | 3.000 | 3.000 |
Use of Bolt | #4 | 4.000 | 4.000 |
Aesthetic | #7 | 3.000 | 3.000 |
Overall | #7 | 3.333 | 3.333 |
Ranked from 2 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Judge feedback
Judge feedback is anonymous.
- Funny concept! Reminds me of the spirit of Overcooked and similar party games. This would be extremely fun as a local multiplayer with added silliness in the things to move I think. Very well executed too, mechanics are tight and reliable (stacking objects, etc.). Good job!
Side by side gif of gameplay and graphs (You can use shareX screen recording)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyO9LgwqtxA
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daveranan
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