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Yuuka's Defense for Sunflowers's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Visuals | #1 | 4.737 | 4.737 |
| Audio / Music | #10 | 3.737 | 3.737 |
| Use of Theme | #11 | 3.684 | 3.684 |
| Overall | #20 | 3.579 | 3.579 |
| Gameplay | #25 | 3.237 | 3.237 |
| Story / Writing | #28 | 1.868 | 1.868 |
| Challenge | #29 | 2.763 | 2.763 |
| Concept | #31 | 3.237 | 3.237 |
Ranked from 38 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Team Members
DinPixels
Streaming Permission
Yes
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Comments
Yuuka love, yay. I was frustrated at first, because Suikas move as fast as you do, but the fact that you move faster while jumping spices it up quite a bit. Solid aesthetic, digging the vibe.
Ohh yeahh, that would be much easier! Thanks for suggesting it (and trying out the game of course =<=)!
Now that you mentioned her health bar, I guess I've been having that one idea for a while but never implemented it. So this game was the first one to include it. That health border/frame is one of the things that I really had fun making of (especially when it finally worked)!
Also, the quote 💀💀
i am sorry i am a bit rushing to finish my remaining games so i did not survive until the time ran out but
it looks and sounds super clean, the idea of switching forms is cool but i don't know why i would be tiny except to go through the tiny hallway
mashing to shoot is kinda annoying since the lil dudes have a fair amount of hp but i would also easily believe im doing something wrong
Hi, it's totally okay and thanks a lot for trying the game still!
As for the modes, I agree, no much have been added regarding the level's layout which is why the form's usage is lacking. The brief patch at the very least demonstrates their usage.
As for the shooting mechanic, it was pointed out by the others too, I just haven't added an option yet for holding the input to shoot simultaneously. You still managed to kill a lot of goblins in just a short amount of time 👀 (imagine the mashing of the buttons).
Now that the controls have been mentioned out again, I'll definitely include this fix in the next patch.
Love the pixel art! I really like how almost everything in the game is in the form of pixel art. It's very beautiful. Regarding the game itself, at first, I was complaining that the front tree and bush silhouettes are obstructing my vision, but then again I think it's a nice addition to increasing the game challenge. I'm not sure how to properly use both Yuuka's modes (the big one and the small one) so I ended up just using one mode almost all the time. I also realize that if you change direction rapidly when walking on the soul, you can gain a lot of souls. Pretty sure that one is a bug.
I streamed the game here around minute 42 in case anyone is interested in watching it.
Hello! I'm sorry it took a while, but thanks a lot for playing the game and also giving your thoughts!
I agree with the silhouettes obstructing the view, but I have not made any changes on that part yet in the latest patch, but I will fix that on the next one though! Certainly, it adds some challenge to the game, but I really didn't intend those to block certain areas' visibility.
As for the different forms/modes, you're right as there's not much things, such as different types of enemies and levels, to use their modes with accordingly.
The issue on rapidly getting in and out on a spirit orb's area, which spams the time gained, is a bug; I only encountered this when testing the game after the submission, but I haven't mentioned it back then in the page as I completely forgot about it. This issue is now fixed with the small patch.
I really appreciate it having these games being played on streams! There's a live (and blind) commentary regarding the game's pros and cons, and overall delivery of their execution. Still, I missed it, and so I'll watch the recorded stream!
Absolutely gorgeous presentation - I did not expect this level of polish from a one-man effort. The detailed and aesthetically pleasing pixel art style makes the game stand out amongst others in terms of production value, it almost feels like a well-done tech demo for a full game!
The gameplay is interesting concept-wise, but the actual execution leaves quite a bit to be desired. The main issue is that the core mechanic: switching between dekai and chibi seems almost irrelevant, as there aren't any notable speed differences, you don't need the extra jump height much, and dekai's power is always significantly stronger. Having different types of enemies or maps which necessitate this kind of switching (a deep tunnel that only chibi can navigate, or a tall cliff that only dekai can jump up to) would be a great improvement.
As another player also mentioned, the large timer increase you get from the souls make time management completely trivial as well. The time increase being 1-2 seconds should be enough, in my view.
Overall, I think this is a high-quality jam game. Good job!
I'm sorry that it took a while to respond to your feedback, but still, I appreciate your thoughts very much!
Also glad to know your thoughts regarding the pixel art! I was really focused on that part so it did consumed a lot of time (instead of balancing all the aspects).
Regarding your thoughts on the mechanics, I applied your suggestions on the forms' usage within the entire area and the gained time for the timer itself. Now, by getting souls you can only get 0-2 seconds, and thereby, there are times wherein time is not guaranteed to be extended, and the forms are now relevant in respect to the new level layout; I added a tight area in which only the chibi form can traverse in whilst there are high platforms in which only the dekai form can reach. Although, I haven't added other types of enemies yet, so the variety of bullets won't be emphasized with their differences and usage.
There are fixes based on other feedback as well.
As for the execution, I highly agree, and even with the small patch that includes the fixes from the aforementioned, I believe that it still lacks the execution; I'll take my time on building on what I've envisioned for the game.
Overall, thank you very much for the feedback!
A fun game! I like the form switching mechanic and the art is very impressive! Also, I really appreciate the comprehensive instructions page! I think the pacing could be improved a little bit though. For example, you could spawn the enemies in waves and give the player some time to rest. Good job overall!
Glad to know your thoughts regarding the given instructions, mechanics, and art!
As for the waves, I haven't thought about that, but I had the idea that such numbers would increase after a certain amount of time has passed in means of changing the spawn rate, i.e., via the spawner's timer. I'll take your suggestion in consideration!
Also regarding the time for resting, certainly it would be a good factor in the gameplay as aside for taking a break, it could be also applied for getting upgrades from a shop, etc. I'll add this one to the To-do list too.
Wait, I thought this was supposed to be plants vs zombies.This definitely has the feel of something that serves as the foundation of something larger, something more comprehensive. There wasn't much perceivable difference in gameplay between the two sizes (although I have to admit shooting large bullets is more fulfilling than small ones.) Also thought it's really neat discovering all the little details to the stage, they're a really nice touch!Glad that you've mentioned that! The title was a bit misleading now that you've pointed it out.
The thing is I originally planned the game to have tower defense elements, e.g. seeds are dropped, plant them anywhere, and nourish them to grow as tall sunflowers that shoots petals and annihilates the goblins,
ghosts, and whatnot. The primary objective is to protect a single, massive mother sunflower that preserves the balance of the souls and life in the given world/area.I discarded the idea when I was near hitting the deadline (was heavily focused on the art that time, my bad), and was not able to change the name afterwards.
About the gameplay, I agree with you. There's nothing much gained when switching forms, maybe making the dekai form time-limited (and add some ways to access the form) but an overkill in stats would do the job? I'm still uncertain with this aspect and will have to figure out how the gameplay would be balanced and whatnot. Additionally, regarding the bullets, the larger ones do deal much more randomized damages so they're pretty satisfying and convenient to use.
Speaking about the details, I intentionally placed their orders and how they're scattered all over the world so I'm happy that you've noticed them (albeit rather repetitive)!
Overall, I still plan to continue working on the game so thank you so much for the feedback!
This game is gorgeous. One of the best looking jam games I've ever seen.
As for the gameplay, I think it lacks some kind of escalation in difficulty. As it is, the only thing limiting a player's score is their patience. It could also use some i-frames: what eventually killed me was getting sandwiched between two Japanese goblins, which made a "brrrr" sound and instantly drained all of my remaining health.
Thank you for recognizing the visuals! I love making art so it means a lot to me.
Regarding the dynamic difficulty, I completely forgot about that area, and it seems that long sessions of gameplay does not reward the player (even enough). As for the i-frames, I'm not really familiar with it so I'll search it for a while; I'll do something about the pesky Japanese goblins' knockbacks to Yuuka.
Generally, thanks for the feedback!
Fantastic pixels! My finger is sore from pressing the K button. If there is a way to recover my lost HP, I can play on it forever! The SFX sounds too loud for me though
Thank you! I'm really used on pixel medium and would like to practice more.
Regarding the shooting mechanics, I guess it's really difficult to keep on smashing the same button. I also see that it is difficult to switch between forms.
I'll make a separate release for patches with your suggestions ^^
Completley insane. The pixel art is the best I've seen in the jam so far, the mechanics are polished, and the game just feels like a complete experience. It even has finished menus, and paralax scrolling. I cannot comprehend how one person was able to make this in just 3 days.
Happy to know you had a good experience with this game!
As for the whole process, it was kinda unhealthy since I pulled an all-nighter for this, especially within the remaining 12 hours (but I am replenishing myself with adequate sleep later on).
Regardless, I enjoyed making the characters, parallax backgrounds, and decorations so much I had to finish it.