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A jam submission

Invasive SpeciesView game page

A Love Story
Submitted by BroodyGaming — 8 hours, 14 minutes before the deadline
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Invasive Species's itch.io page

Results

CriteriaRankScore*Raw Score
Overall#14.3944.394
Theme#14.7274.727
Creativity#14.9094.909
Story#14.9094.909
Presentation#24.5454.545
Gameplay#33.9093.909
Horror#63.3643.364

Ranked from 11 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.

How did you choose to implement the Theme: The Untamed Wilderness in your game?
It takes place in a large old forest covered in blackberry vines.

Did you implement any of the optional Bonus Challenges, and if so, which ones?
Main character can turn into various creatures, she confronts the enemies with these abilities to protect herself by at one point turning into a very angry bear type creature.

Did you create your game in RPG Maker?

Yes

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Comments

(1 edit) (+1)

WOOO!!!!! congrats on winning the jam!!! this was an absolutely magical game and it definitely deserved to be #1 in all those categories!! <3

man, i show up to two jams and you win both of them HAHA. next time i'm gonna go for the win >:)

HECK YEAH!!!

Developer(+1)

ahh! Haha thank you!! I had a lot of fun with this one. Ohhh I rly hope you do do the next one, people have some really cool ideas! 🐠🐠🧜‍♀️

Submitted

I REALLY LOVED THIS GAME !!!! The story blew me away-- I didn't get a chance to finish it before the rating period ended but I'll come back and leave a comment when I do. The characters are so great, and I love the way the forest looks and the vines are conveyed. Whenever I first started playing and saw the vines, I hoped there would be a section where I'd get to climb on them and I was so excited! It was so effective at making me want to continue playing. Great job!

Submitted(+1)

I just finished it ,.... omg... that was gorgeous! I loved it so much.

Developer(+1)

thank youuuuu!! I’m glad the vines were rewarding. I really was going for that feeling so I’m so stoked it worked. Giving the players lots of things they can see that they will be able to go get but - not yet, so hopefully it feels cool and rewarding when it actually happens. i had a lot of fun with this one, thank you so much for ur kind words! 

(+1)

This was actually quite a great game, I really liked the story of the game and the characters. The narration part was also really beautiful, it was a really heart-touching game.

 I actually did do some research on Gylphosate, and it does harm humans and plants. Infact, If a large amount is swallowed, glyphosate can cause nausea and vomiting. It can be very irritating if it is left on your skin or eyes. Glyphosate has been associated with respiratory effects (lung and nose), such as irritation in the nose, or asthma, in people using glyphosate products, which explains why Dulcis was having headaches and nausea. 

Adding all the cult things in the game was quite a touch, it felt quite realistic too, the father did give quite a scare, he looked he would strangle me like an ant, and the mother had one of those strict teacher faces we see in Christian schools.

Overall, it is my favourite RPG game!

Developer

Thank you so much! I’m glad it struck a chord with you. I live in a place that’s constantly fighting against blackberry bushes (they’ll take over ur house if you stand still too long lol) and I liked the idea of both extremes of that. I don’t like to use poison to kill things that are inconvenient to me. It’s harder and slower to fight then back by hand but better for everyone in the end. 

Plus I really like weird sad stories haha so that’s what I end up writing most of the time. Super glad you enjoyed it!! I really enjoyed making it. 

(+1)

You've heard me gush about your game enough I'm sure, but just to re-iterate over on the dev-side of things...

I really like a ton of the implementations to this game making it, well, *game*-y! I liked being able to transform into other creatures, and I liked the little easteregg of reaching the cave before we find out about the bear inside later, haha!

Maybe it's because I'm used to your type of entries, but I can see how your usage of different textures may be somewhat visually overstimulating to some people.

I think the part I struggled with the most was the ending segment, because I was caught in between different little fires when just turning in one direction, then back and closing myself in, but again that might just be a me/player error 😭

I also had a bit of an issue with accidentally getting caught in a spot I couldn't see/off screen (as a cat, if you climb too high somewhere, and press the jump option and move to the side, you can clip somewhere above the map that I can't see, and I did have to restart in that instance).

But I think your games just keep getting better with each new one you work on!

The feeling of a religious, cult-like thing being the villain/big bad in this story felt very believable and as Axel mentioned, glyphosate is a really harmful chemical that can harm humans *and* plant matter, and it was a really unique and cool way to tie into some realism into this game!

Thank you again for sharing such a powerful story with us, and I look forward to more that you create! :>

Submitted(+3)

This was probably my most anticipated game from the jam and I was right to trust the hype!

Okay, here's my review

Things I really liked
  • Superb writing as always. You're an amazing writer and that's no surprise, but your writing appears to get even better with each new game.
  • Beautiful story. It was sad and tragic, but at the same time it didn't feel like it had an unhappy outcome. The ending was absolutely beautiful. There definitely was "sad magic" in there and that's one of my favorite things in a story.
  • Great use of parallaxes. Again, this is something to be expected when it comes to your games. But in terms of parallax use, I think this is your best work and the forest was beautiful.
  • Really charming art style and graphics. I've told you this before: your first game I played was a bit rough in terms of graphics, but you've improved a lot and this game is proof of that. There was a lot of attention to detail. For example, the cat's running animation or all the different mushrooms, flowers and other details you can find in the forest. I even found a small cave where something was taking a nap and I loved that. I bet that was a gnome!
  • The music. You struggled with it but you made it! The results were really nice! The final version of "Our Hands" was definitely the best one! I also really liked the music that played when something bad was happening.
  • The horror. At first sight, this game has no horror. But trust me readers, it has a lot of horror. Real horror. Everything surrounding the Glyph cult was really creepy, the mother had one of those "uncanny valley" faces and the father was a great villain to hate. Also, glyphosate is an actual horror from real life, since it has greatly affected the health of many people around the world (in some places, it has greatly increased occurrences of cancer and congenital disorders/deformities).

Aspects that have room for improvement
  • There were some glitches. The game can still be completed (or at least I managed to do so), but I reckon they might cause some players to feel frustrated.  For example, at times Rubi could phase through everything (it seems to be triggered after changing back from the cat form).
  • Rubi's hair. What you attempted with the party members being part of her hair was pretty smart. However, at times it didn't look good. Like part of her hair was separated and left behind. Your idea was really neat, but it definitely needs some rework.
  • This might be related to my pc/keyboard, so I guess this one can be ignored: there was a scene where suddently the text was automatically skipped really fast. I had to close the game and load a previous file.
  • The foreground (the vines with thorns) was a bit...visually intrusive. This is probably just me, but it made me feel kinda dizzy at times.


Overall experience: beautiful game with a hauntingly beautiful story and a great mix of emotions achieved through superb storytelling and a fitting soundtrack. This is, in my humble oppinion, your best game yet, and the story will definitely stay with me for a while. I already lamment the outcome of the characters, but at the same time, I'm happy they found each other and found freedom.

Keep on sharing your amazing storytelling skills with the world, Chevie! Consider me a fan of your works!

Developer(+1)

!! Thank you for taking time to play and write this fantastic feedback!! There were so many risks and new things I tried and it's always always a learning experience haha. I put a lot of love for my personal forest into this game. I live out in the woods and it's a magical place that's easy to take for granted. I really enjoyed pulling inspiration from all of the big big tall trees that surround me, covered in moss and ferns and fungi haha. You're completely correct on all the improvement suggestions. The hair thing is so funny, I AGNOZIED over it haha and eventually left it as is. I wanted the hair to be all 4 party members at first but that looked even more disjointed and I just couldn't figure out a better solution so it is the way it is as a mix of hair and flower petals haha. Maybe with more experience or a future different engine I can make it how I picture it. The way this community and you give with your advice and helpful points is really amazing. Especially with things like the vine border. I wanted to try something LIKE that but I'm just me and what I experience is different from the next person, so telling me that it made you feel dizzy is SO helpful, or I would never know, you know? It definitely needs some fiddling, I know it blocks some of the balloon icons too during some cutscenes. On the list! 

I feel a lot of passion about the environment and healthy land practices. I really enjoy weaving a bit of reality into the supernatural of my games. That way hopefully people learn something and walk away with a good message in their heart. Really really happy it struck a chord with you and REALLY excited to keep making stories to share with y'all!! <3 

Submitted

I'm playing it on the website, and at the moment Rubi transforms into a cat, I can't continue. I can't leave the map, and I can't climb in any way. Still, I've liked the aesthetic and tone up to this point.

Developer

oh no! Thanks for giving it a go. Are you hitting spacebar to jump onto the vines or are you unable to move at all? If ur on solid ground you have to jump (space) to get onto the vines. 

Submitted(+1)

Yes, I used the space bar and even tried it with a controller, refreshed the page and nothing worked. Today I tried again and it was already working, I don't know what the problem was. I've been able to play the complete game without any issues. The graphics are unique and creative, but I feel that smaller elements could be better distinguished from the rest, like Momma Birds. The detail of the narrator addressing the player is quite interesting. I feel it lacked the horror component I was expecting, but the story has a dark aura that caught my interest from the beginning, and I think it has a good development and a fitting ending. I really liked the main characters, both in appearance and personality. I think the mobility could be improved when Rubi transforms; at times, it was difficult for me to control him in cat and bird mode, but still, the gameplay was interesting. It's been a good experience!

Developer

oh phew I’m glad it worked for you in the end!! Thank you so much for giving it a go and for the feedback. Every jam I try new stuff and try and walk away with a better understanding of that skill and these comments really really help! Super appreciated. 

Submitted(+2)

Great game with great story.

Host(+2)

This was an awesome story.

Developer(+1)

Thanks!! Had a lot of fun making it.