I figured that judges sponsoring specific categories would judge the top scoring games in those categories and the rest of the judges would split up and judge the remaining games.
Since this jam is labeled as being connected with "Game Jobs", I expected that every submitted game would at least be played by a professional who might be looking to hire in the future. To me, that was the point of this jam. I took time away from my work, away from my family - away from my child - because I thought this was an opportunity to showcase something to professional devs and possibly set myself up for a job in the future. I know you mean well; but, honestly, this is really upsetting.
Quick question: when you say "of every game they'll evaluate" - does this mean they won't look at all the games? Or did you just mean that no one judge will play every game?
Another small suggestion: you could drop the space/E buttons entirely and rely strictly on swarm placement/collision. For example, if I position the swarm over a weed, every fish that collides with the weed would "eat" the weed a bit more until the weed is removed. Same with hiding from predators - I would just need to move the swarm to the center of the anemone and they will hide in it as long as they are swimming within its borders.
1) I really appreciate your concept here! I, too, thought of the "using bodies" mechanic, figured there would be a ton of those, and decided to do something funny instead.
2) I watched your devlog. I've also recently done an audio narrative-based game for a jam, so I KNOW what a pain the recording can be! For my narrative game I broke down each line of dialogue into a short sentence, copied each line to a unique row in a spreadsheet, recorded each line in a separate file, and named the recording with the line of dialogue + a "key" that was listed in the spreadsheet + a version number. This allowed me to track re-recorded lines and keep things organized. In my case, I also recorded each line with several different emotions and character variations (happy, angry, scared, annoyed, arrogant, concerned, etc...). This helped me define the character and find the emotional arc of the narration.
I agree about the "press enter" being annoying after a while. I hadn't considered using a sound effect replacement - thank you for the great suggestion!
I've been debating the difficulty ramp up for a while. I originally wanted to add in accessibility features for those with motor restrictions, but I knew I wouldn't have time. I settled with slightly speeding up the action as you progress, but only very slightly. I think this is something I'll need to tweak and playtest.
Seriously, thank you for taking the time to play and comment! I highly appreciate it!
It was a whole phase before I won. I had moved the ball to be centered with the anemone and then it just wouldn't move in any direction. Sorry I can't be of much more help than that.
Interesting mechanics. I like the innovation here.
I know it's tough doing a game jam, but if you continue working on this, one suggestion is be to allow the players a chance to orient themselves before they are required to take actions.
Really? Dying/Failing is a big part of figuring out what isn't the correct color in the color pattern, it is especially necessary on the later levels. So, failure is necessary to progress.
Wow, thank you SO much! I can't tell you how much I appreciate your kind words. I've been debating doing a YouTube channel, maybe I should!
I actually recorded each line about a dozen times - each time with a different emotion/attitude, then I used them like puzzle pieces to figure out what the "emotional arc" of the story should be. I'm so glad it worked! =)
Thanks! Yeah, if you step on a square that is out of color order, but part of the "guaranteed" solution path, you'll die but won't leave anything behind so you aren't blocked from returning there when it is in order.
The art in this is the greatest thing I've seen in a shooter in FOREVER!
I also <3 that you had a non-binary character give their pronouns.
The gameplay was difficult. I was grateful that I could just hide at the start and not engage the enemies, but I couldn't finish the game, so I'm really sad I couldn't see the ending. =(
I really like what you were doing with the enemies. The tanks "getting tired" mechanic was a clever way to create an opening. I really liked what you were going for and the character design was AMAZING!
I love the diversity of the adorable characters in your game! This was really funny and I love the concept! Great job!
I actually tried something like this in real life. I walked through a major city that is...uh, not known for its friendliness...so I decided to smile at and wave "Hello" to everyone who passed by. I counted the percentage of people who returned my greeting, who just smiled, and who avoided me/ignored me/glared at me. The later was FAR more common. I then repeated this in another major city known for networking - it was the complete opposite!
