itch.io

That is completely fine with me! If you're looking for the source code to build it in PICO-8 or another Lua engine, you can find it on Lexaloffle here. It is licensed under CC4-BY-NC-SA, which basically means you can't charge money for software made with the code, and should link back to the original somewhere. If you're only looking to make your own spin-off without my code, no acknowledgement is necessary. Best of luck with your project!

Commenting to say that this project is brilliant, and I hope for a full version. I'm amazed at how evocative yet appropriate the PS1 aesthetic manages to be.

I have also pushed an update that removes some debug code I accidentally left in. Sorry about that!

If you encounter any bugs, post about them here. Please include as much detail about the issue as possible, including any error messages. Thank you!

Hello! Thank you for reaching out. You have my permission to include my Diedream adventures in your supplement. I appreciate being included in the credits. Best of luck with your project!

Thanks for hosting this jam! I'll try to start things off...

What do you want to make?

I am going to make a simple digital toy/game that allows you to ponder an orb. I intend to call it “Orb Pondering Simulator.”

What text (i.e., any media, fiction or not) that you want to draw from?

Two sources provided the inspiration for this project:

• Kenta Cho’s Paku Paku, which has been dubbed “1D Pac-Man.” I appreciate that this probes the absolute minimum of what's required to constitute a “game” – and it’s staggering how little it uses in the way of space, inputs, enemies, and objectives.
• Bennett Foddy’s “Eleven Flavors of Frustration,” specifically this remark: “A game that is completely devoid of frustration is likely to be a game without friction, without disobedience. Games that are perfectly obedient are mere software.” I agree with the sentiment, but I found it interesting how it presupposes that the source of friction should come from within the game. It had me wondering whether friction from outside the game could be a viable source, and set me to thinking that the presumption of playability, when foiled, could perhaps provide that friction. For example, what happens when a game has no need of you – not because it plays itself (cf. beanborg’s Endless Marble Racing), but because it does not necessarily allow itself to be engaged with like a game?

I am also motivated by a series of hermeneutics-related questions that are liable to become their own essay, and I hesitate to try articulating them here for fear of never finishing this post.

What mediums or tools you want to use and why?

I’ll be using PICO-8. It helps keep the scope of the project small, and I find its flavor of Lua a much more comfortable programming language than, say, Python or C.

Why are you scared of participating?

I am a latecomer to coding and game design, and am largely bad at them. Coding is also foreign territory for me in general. I never formally studied programming or computer science, my day job does not involve anything comparable to coding, and I have no friends who code. I’ve never really felt like part of the indie dev community, and I fully expect to embarrass myself.

Diedream is a truly remarkable system. I can't believe how elegant and intuitive it is. I am grateful that, with your rules committed to memory, I always have a game engine to play with in dull moments.

Your work has inspired me to make a few modules of my own:

• Village of Dolls
• A Route Like Water
• Tales of the Blue Tower

If ever you host a Diedream jam, please let me know. I will come running!

It was a delight to see this in the Google Play store! Does this mean there's a chance 868-HACK might come to Android, too...?

That was definitely a bug! It seems Bitsy moved the exit somewhere inaccessible, for reasons I don't fully understand.

An updated version of the game has been released, so now you should be able to reach the autumn and winter parts. Thank you for your kind words, and I hope you enjoy the rest of the game.

Thanks for playing! And thank you for reporting this bug. Crows are supposed to spawn only at the screen's edge. I will look into correcting the error.

Update, 1-3-2021: The bug has been fixed in the latest version. Thank you again for finding and reporting it!

Thank you for the kind words! I appreciate it, especially since this is my first project that didn't start as a Pico-8 tutorial.

This is a wonderful utility! Thank you for making it.

If possible, could you please add some code samples for putting GIF images into P8 files, or for "faking" the GIF effect in P8? Your other tutorials are good, but I did not see anything like this.

I'm the one who submitted the cartridge art.

...I had no idea it would have so many takers.

A much-needed laugh in these trying times! Who knew simple sounds could be used to such humorous effect?

Probably the most creative use of "isolation" I've seen in this jam. Coupled with its zany sense of humor and surprising wordplay, this game is a joy.

This game will make you smile. Lots of heart. It also makes clever use of scene transitions to build a steadily more interesting map.