Ok. So I was super skeptical of tower defense as a mechanic for a climate game, but then I saw what you were doing with direct action protest and a police at a coal mine, and knowing the history of police/military/pinkerton confrontations at industrial sites I was like yeah this could work really well even without knowing the specific protest movement you are referencing. Mechanics I noticed that I think mimic reality well: 1. your protesters disappear when they get too many others moving into them (crushed?). 2. A protester that gets surrounded by too many police disappears (arrests?, beatings?). Along the lines of what we know from history about these types of confrontations in general you might consider AI behavior changes in more challenging levels as the clock gets lower or your protester number gets lower (increased defender aggression, increased speed etc) to mimic the devolution into violence. Before spending time making your art/anims (which I think will make or break your game in terms of hitting the right note with your call to action) I would definitely make your levels bigger relative to the number of characters, add streets, building obstacles etc. Having that "map" up for a moment before play begins is also a good idea.
Viewing post in Ende Gelände Prototype - Climate jam 2025 Sprint 2 jam comments
Thanks a lot for your feedback!
Honestly, I was kind of tired last thursday and didn't feel like the prototype worked as I had hoped, so my upload was very bare bones. I already have some art in the works and have thought a bit more about how to make it work.
Yes, atm the protesters have "health" so after too much contact with police they "die". I will see if this is something I should keep and/ore make it more clear.
My greatest challenge definitely feels like it's going to be to make the AI interesting and challenging while still feeling "realistic". I'm not a programmer really, but I hope to be able to put together at least a few levels with some progression in difficulty.
If you want a little peak at what Ende Gelände looks like here's two short videos! Thanks again for taking time to give me feedback :)
You might have a color change or some other indicator with the police that makes them go from not affecting the health to doing so. I know in my own country that has a long history of racial injustice protesting for issues that affect minority vs majority communities the police action is very different. Many protest movements plan around it. Back during the first term of glorious leader, before he lost and then won again, there were lots of reasons to protest, just as now. When we saw police dogs or other signs of militarized escalation the call would go out among the protesters to move white people and elders to the front. Then the police would scale back down. It was very overt and I didn't know it was a thing until I was in it and asked to move to the front. Seeing it first hand gave me a lot to think about as a cis white male. I know we are limited on time during the production phase, but if there are aspects that you see as important for others to know perhaps unique to the movement you are covering or the issue that make workable mechanics, they might be something to think about. I noticed a few spectators in those videos. There may be something there to consider as well, on the one hand those communities bear the point source pollution of the mines, on the other those are also the people whose livelihood is in that coal.
Yeah, that's a good idea. I definitely think it's important for thing like that to come through if possible. I have unfortunately not been at an Ende Gelände action myself, so I don't have a first hand source, but I'm sure things like that come into play. I'll see what I have room to incorporate. Thanks a lot for all the thoughful feedback!