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RPG Maker MZ Touch the Stars Game Jam

Hosted by Nick_Komodo, StudioBlue · #rpgmaker

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A jam submission

AstronomiconView game page

Atmospheric puzzle game inspired by celestial navigation

Submitted by SB — 6 hours, 30 minutes before the deadline

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Astronomicon's itch.io page

Results

Criteria	Rank	Score*	Raw Score
Fan Favorite	#76	2.373	2.600

Ranked from 5 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.

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Comments

HawkZombie2 years ago

I really enjoyed the art of this one, VERY well done. However, the lack of any real communication led to me guessing what I should be doing. Also, the puzzles were interesting, but easy to overthink, and some were simply just spinning a dial. Was it all either because of bugs or because it wasn't that great of a puzzle? I'm unsure. I did like how it randomized the orientations, however.

Suggestion: Even without dialog, it’s still possible to convey things to the player on what they should be doing. Maybe give an example puzzle or two for the first levels to show the ropes, then leave the player to figure the rest out. A puzzle game should be about logic, NOT guessing until you get it right.

SBDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

Thanks. I'm glad there was something you did enjoy.

You are correct: it was a bug. I've fixed it up by now, along with adding more prompts to clear things up. A tutorial of sorts would be good, but I was running out of time :c Will work on communication skills, I guess.

AI SinSubmitted2 years ago

I had some issues with the game. First of all, it isn't clear where we are supposed to go with the star map. For the first one, I had to randomly find it. For the third one, the game just randomly jumped me to the right spot after some looking around. The second one didn't even activate.

Every other puzzle was glitched for me. Wouldn't even pop up the sextant and skipped straight to the roulette, but couldn't complete those roulettes-they were pretty clearly glitched.

Very little explanation on what you are supposed to do. There was no "look for the dipper" or w/e. No option to say, see a big map of stars and then zoom in on your target. The left side is just static so no idea what the point of that is for even since it has no bearing to the gameplay. I guess aesthetics maybe.

The roulette was kind of confusing even on the ones where it worked.

Submitted

SBDeveloper2 years ago

Thanks for playing.

Yeah, there is a glitch. I wrote about it in the game description under 'IMPORTANT.' As you know, I can't do much else before the jam ends.

I'm already reworking the part with the sextant since it was (clearly) rushed. And so on. (I think I've already said this multiple times in the comments, so.)

The left side is static because that is how a sextant works. You measure the angle between the Earth (the horizon) and the stars.

AI SinSubmitted2 years ago (3 edits)

Just note that when people are browsing the games, they might not see your description or dev logs or other posts on the main page at all. They might only see the contest page (if they even see that). Remember also that the judges may or may not see the descriptions. Even assuming they did, they might not remember by the time they get to play a game.

I understand that it is supposed to be a sextant, but there are some issues there. With a lack of any real clues, it ends up detracting instead of adding. Like I said, I don't really get what it is there for when it has no real bearing to gameplay aside from aesthetics when you could be giving clues instead.

Also, what sextant are you using? I don't think I've ever seen a two scope model before. Usually it is one scope and thus horizontally, the two images would move together, not separately. A single scope makes it easier to find what you are looking for since you have one eye to look at the overall picture if you need to reorient yourself. Even with a dual scope sextant, I don't see how you would keep the horizon scope from moving without a lot of extra mechanisms, which would introduce additional chances for mechanical errors and mechanical errors can be deadly at sea. 1 degree off can send you to a completely different continent in some cases assuming you ever found land again.

Also, a two scope model would reduce how you can use the sextant unless you, again, had some complex mechanisms set up. You'd only be able to measure in one direction realistically instead of being able to measure from a variety of angles.

A better option would be to give a clue that is easily identifiable.

For example, have a drawing of the constellation you are looking for that the player can pull up. Get rid of the left scope altogether and make it one image with the left side (or right side) the static horizon image where you only move horizontally. Have the other half also move vertically and perhaps show an angle. Then either have a large skymap where you can see where you are looking to some extent (move the sky and have the scope be a zoom in) or have some instructions on what angle you are looking for. Have it so you are supposed to look for a specific image on the horizon side and then adjust by x angles (not really what a sextant is for, but meh).

SBDeveloper2 years ago

I am not sure what to say to your comment except 'Yeah, I know.'

Yes, people may not see my description. That's why I don't plan to leave this bug in the game. But I can't fix it now, so.

Your suggestions about sextant are very thought-out. But then again, I am working on it already. Specifically, I am adding pictures of the constellations you're looking for; and prompts for the stars.

Your deep dive into the problem is interesting, but I have no clue how you expect me to pull that off. A split-screen? Well, I like the idea, but I am not doing it for this.

AI SinSubmitted2 years ago

See bifocals and magnifying glasses.

Like I said, have a star map that you can clearly see. At default settings, the sextant view basically acts like a magnifying glass. Make it so that when you scroll horizontally, you scroll the star map itself and not the scope. When you scroll vertically, you control half the scope's view (similar to a real sextant).

Basically, a circle split in half. Half the circle is the horizon view. The other half of the circle is the sky view. Have it basically act like a magnifying glass in that it zooms in.

SBDeveloper2 years ago

How would you program it? Do you have an algorithm?

AI SinSubmitted2 years ago

Probably very similar to what you already have.

First you'd want to combine the two images so each image shows half their current image. Then have a background map that you scroll (this could be done a few ways, but if you are using plugins, something similar to Map Zoom, except for a specific view).

You could potentially have three of the same image at different sizes, say x5 size for the scope views and x1 for the star map. Tile each image horizontally and use alpha masks or something similar to hide the parts of each image that shouldn't show.

Set it so that each image is moved at the same time instead of just one.

Have the horizon lens's and star map's Y sensitivities to 0 (You don't want either really moving in the y directions) and the star map's sensitivity to 0.2 for X. This way, when you move 5 px on the 5x larger (zoomed in) maps, you move 1 px on the smaller (zoomed out) map.

SBDeveloper2 years ago

I will look into masking; didn't even think about that.

My setup is much simpler: You move the pc around a map. That's it.

SeaPhoenixSubmitted2 years ago

I thought the art and music of this game were very nice, and the idea of celestial navigation puzzles sounded very promising (and the game mechanics were unique too for an RPG Maker game), but unfortunately I had a difficult time figuring out what I needed to do. For instance, in the screen where the sextant is defined, I tried looking for stars that matched the image on the left, but couldn't find them, and after moving the right "eyeglass" around randomly I saw a twinkling star and that turned out to be the correct position, but I'm still not sure why. So I would suggest making it more clear what the objective is.

Overall, I think this game has a lot of potential if you decide to keep working on it. :)

Submitted

SBDeveloper2 years ago

Thanks for giving it your time!

For what it's worth, I didn't intend for it to be cryptic; quite the opposite. Time constraints are... evil.

Not sure I will be expanding on the game's idea, but I don't intend to leave it as it is.

kinstothegameSubmitted2 years ago(+1)

Hello I played your game and let's get into business here is my review:

The game has a nice feel I wished I see a stormy weather while navigating but I tried every star puzzle at the cabin.. I could never make one work. My progress ended all the same with every block I chose.

Your Demo is very nice and I can see towards where your ideas are leading. The only thing I miss is a guide telling you what you should do and I think a Quest Marker plugging or something like an event you create to guide the player in the game would be a nice addition. I know time was short but you did a lot for me to end up saying that the Ideas are there and I look forward to an update in the future because I really like your creativity.

Submitted

Consciousness - The Mirror Gates - Touch The Stars

SBDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

Thanks for giving it a try!

I will look into implementing different levels of difficulty... if I actually will be able to work on the game in the future, that is. Since I was using a contest's version of the engine, it may be impossible.

If you ever will be in the mood to try it out again, I recommend starting with the third constellation; it's the easiest one.

Elijah KangSubmitted2 years ago(+1)

I'm surprised that no one voted for your game yet. It was a lovely short experience! Very clean pixel art and presentation is really great. I got stuck on the part where you align the dots. I'm not quite sure how the puzzle is solved but I'm assuming it has something to with Ursa Minor? I think you should at least give a brief tutorial. Some more minor feedback:

Increase the dot size and make it a color that contrasts so it's easier to see
Allow the player to rotate in any direction
Highlight which part of the piece moves when the player hovers over (I accidentally misclicked many times)

Btw, the music box melody is peaceful and well made! Good job on the game!

Submitted

SBDeveloper2 years ago(+1)

Thank you for stopping by! Funny enough, I've planed on adding all the things you've listed but ran out of time.

Yes, you're supposed to make a constellation shown on the prompt. One of the screenshots on the game page reveals the solution for the Ursa Minor. (Thought the position of a constellation dictated by the sextant is randomized every time.)

I will pass along your comment about the music box melody to its creator; she deserves all the praise c: