itch.io

Agreed. A bit contrived, but something had to emphasize reversal.  Thanks! :)

Thank you to everyone who left comments!  

The big post-jam will be applied shortly (along with all the footnotes that document changes I made to the game).  Hope that should most, if not all the problems that were found over the last couple weeks.

Thank you.  Much appreciated.  :)

The game is ready to play, now!  Thanks for your patience, everyone! :)

Ah, I see the time of your review.  A buddy of mine and I were doing final debugging and I know at least one the builds something was seriously wrong and I had to fix it.  I wonder if that was the build you caught.  I thought I had posted on the page a request to NOT have this game reviewed until it was ready, but that must have been when Itch was down or was going down, but the post never made it to the page.

Anyway, the game is done, debugged and ready.  I have no issues getting it running, now.

Ohhh nooo, this project was still in development when you tried to run it.  I was more worried about getting something up and I was sure I had posted on the page a request to NOT have this game reviewed until it was ready.   I guess I tried to post it around the time when Itch was down for a while... :(

Well, it's ready, now.  A buddy and I did a full play-through of the game and fixed any minor issues we had that showed up.  IF you want to give this another shot and actually see what sort of game this actually is, that would be great!

Thank again for what you said!  I'm in the middle of another jam right now, but I'll certainly have to take a look at this game again when  chance provides me with one!

This puzzle/challenge game rocks (figuratively and literally).  Now it's time to crash (like a rock).

Weird music aside, let's not forget; you did this all yourself:

• The graphics
• The music and sound effects
• The code, pathing and other content needed to play this game

You did not require a team to create this game. This was all you.  Frankly, I think there should be bonus points for anyone who solo devs and makes a game.  That commands respect in my books, since being able to use the math AND the art sides of your brain at the same time is no easy feat.

I did not say the music was bad.  I said it was crazy.  Two very different things. :D

Also, glad to see your NES feel ranked as high as it did.  It was deserved.

Round 5 fish count: 4043.  Finally a game I can beat!

You may need to bear with some bad jokes, here, but something about this seems a bit fishy...  Then again, the narrator runs on, he's carping and whaling with barely any porpoise... I'm just net that kind of buoy, sea?  Anyway, I'm hungry for dinner.  What's the catch? :)

Not sure how, but I missed this one when I was going though the game (Guess my mind had gone with the wind, like a bird)...  Good thing I noticed at the last minute!

Notes:

• Likely related to your engine, but the frame rate and music started getting really choppy during gameplay, probably related to how you were drawing the fishys in the river (which is when it happens). I guess the game could not bear the strain of so many fishies left in the river...
• I think there are too many cups of coffee available during gameplay.  It does make it kinda easy to max out how quickly you can fill the map with fishmongers.  I had around $700 leftover when I started round 5.  I turned my hungry hungry hippos into a bunch of caffeine addicts.
• Bonus Point: You can restart your game and play again!

Oh, this is the best submission here (I can't rate my own, to be fair). It is not the most complex, not the craziest, not the most intense, not the largest, but it ticks EVERYTHING that makes a jam game right and it fits the purpose of this jam like a cat fitting in a box 2 sizes too small for it.  Only a handful of titles are getting a full 5 for the NES feel (from me) and this is certainly one of them!

Notes:

• Gah!  Falling skeletons are still deadly!  ;-;
• No pause button!  BOOOOOO!  How am I supposed to write my review while the game is still running! :(

This must be my new drug, because it's ridiculously addictive.  You are making it difficult for me to review other games!!!  Nice graphics, fun gameplay, good puzzling effort on your part!

Notes:

• Something is wrong with level 10. The game will not acknowledge the number of princesses I have rescued and  an attempt to restart the level left me with a starting score of -4.  I was unable to continue from that point.

Well, I certainly had some fun playing this one.  I got a final score of 22050 points.  It looks great, plays well, sounds fun and your little in-game story suits the mood and feel of game well.

If I have one gripe, it is that the game does not feel like an NES game at all.  This would have been far better suited for some sort of Super NES jam where the feel for it would have been near-perfect.

DUCK DUNGEON!  A-WOO-OOO! 

Nicely done.  This is a very good piece of work and is a shining example of an NES Jam submission done right! I like the mechanics with all the little enemies doing different things on the board.  Curious to see hearts used as component for unlocking a door instead of health.

Everyone, listen up and take some notes. THIS is what a NES-style game FEELS like, LOOKS like SOUNDS like and darn well PLAYS like.  If I could give a 6 for the NES Feel, I would! You nailed this one well!

Notes:

• Music track does not automatically loop around while the browser screen is off focus.
• I kept dying at level 4, much to my annoyance, but that's more on me since wasd key layout is not my forté. :D
• Bonus Point: ... And I thought I made some weird music tracks for MY game.  This one takes the cake, ice cream AND even the freakin' cherry on top!  I WANT MY CAKE BACK! ;-;
• I got the boss crash as well and I got a HUGE list of errors the webpage generated.  The first comment I saw was "InternalError: too much recursion".  You (probably) have a endless loop/while somewhere within your boss script.  Probably should check the variables you used for that.

Score: 16610, Upgrades: 4, Grade: B  I suppose I could have done worse! :D

This is another example of what happens when a game maker focuses on making a game LOOK, FEEL, SOUND and PLAY like an NES game, which is exactly what this jam is all about.  You have something here that could have easily been a $19.99 game found in stores!  

This is one of the shining examples of an NES Jam game entry done right!

Notes:

• I noticed a weird bug when trying to jump through a thin floor; not only did I not go through the floor, your script for centering the map to the player shook for a little bit.
• Kinda weird to see the assassin look like he is spasming while falling.
• Bonus Point: Yay, a pause button!
• Bonus Point: I like the thunder effect and the way it shook up the palette in the game.
• Bonus Point: Among the most creative musics of all the submissions I have reviewed!

I appreciate your feedback in various problems you have found in the game and the post-jam patch continues to be updated and improved upon! 

You're gonna get mentioned...  mwah ha ha ha...

Thank you for your screen capture.  You helped me find ANOTHER bug in the game.  The palette for the player should have been the Fire Armor upgrade, not the grey scale palette.  Somehow, the wrong number was set for the endgame.

Anyway, glad to see you managed to play my game.  All the best!  \ o /

No doubt you want your submission to be perfect and I sympathize with that; I want the same for mine, which is why I say something.

Yeah and sadly it needs a bug patch, though one of the game endings is playable from start to finish. 

Anyway, keep being yourself and keep enjoying the games! :D

What an interesting game, for sure.  This is well-made, well-presented and well-packed with fun.  I couldn't win any rounds, and I don't care.  It was still fun!

Notes:

• Oh, those snowmen are cheap!  XD

Now, THAT is the power of music! Smashing your instrument into the enemy! I like the upgrade options, though I feel the dice re-roll is painfully expensive, especially early on.

Notes: 

• When flipping between CONTINUE and QUIT, the QUIT stays lit up.
• Ouch, I got completely destroyed in stage 3.
• When starting a new game, I was taken right to stage 3.  Needless to say, I did not last long.

Dang, when you play these game, you reeeeally play them!

This is a nice little puzzle game and waaay more fun than I was expecting.  My high score was 207, even with getting hit by a spike or two. 

Notes:

• Is there some sort of music playing in the background?  I can 'just' hear something, but I cannot make it out.

Well, enough monkeying around.  I managed to save the princess and it did not make me go bananas! I guess gorilla warfare suits me.  Go ape against the baddies and save the babe!

It's like every element of monster and nature is out to stop me from rescuing the princess! What is going on in this day and age.

This game has a very solid concept, dynamic and end result.  Took a bit of figuring out at the end to win, (and at the beginning with all the times I fell off the wall), but it was definitely a fun play!

I wWas not sure what to do at first, but it did not take long to realize what I had to collect those coins across the map.  That the coin locations are randomized across the map helps to make each attempt it's own challenge, especially with all the enemies chasing the player around.  Nicely done.

Notes:

• No pause button?
• Noticed when the enemies tried to do around corners that they would rapidly flip between different directional sprites.
• Bonus point: The teleporting mochi has it's uses!

Yay, I found the kitty!  

Short and sweet. I do like the visuals and feel of the game.

Notes:

•  Is there supposed to strange-looking static effect on the screen?

It has a good vibe and good feel.  The gameplay mechanics are farily good, aside from a button issue (see below).

Notes:

• No pause button?
• Relying on shift as an active controller 'button' killed the game for me.  Windows does not like repeated use of the shift button, which makes it next to impossible to launch an attack or even play the game due to the shear number of interruptions in gameplay. 
• "You are dead" only covered the bottom-right corner of the screen during the boss battle.

Too bad you did not make more progress on this game.  While it is fairly easy to traverse, you have the mood and setting down.

Thanks.  I don't try to be nasty when I point something out.  I always aim for the best game I can produce when making one and I assume everyone else shares a similar belief, so if I notice something, I say it.

Oh my kuro, the introduction alone was worth it when clicking on this game!  I certainly had fun poking the behinds of all those horses with my lance! :D

A short retro game?  Very short, indeed.   Short does not mean bad, luckily, and this worked out fairly well!

Notes:

• No way to skip the introduction?

I like it.  It's cute and her attitude feels unusually familiar...  I read in comments that you said you were not done.  You should finish it, when you can!

Notes:

• Respawn attemped to happen twice in a row.
• Took me almost 10 times to get the first dash right.  Looks like you cover a shorter distance if you start moving, THEN press dash, rather than trying to both at the same time.
• One time after a respawn, the game automatically moved the ghost into the bottomless pit. I guess the ghost has a death wish...

I'll be honest, I have zero idea how to play this.  I was mashing buttons in the hopes of finding some way to win. I am guessing it is some sort of turn-based stealth game, but that is the best I can figure out.  It looks interesting, at the very least.  It looks very good and it's easy to tell the effort has been put into the game!

Notes:

• Health does not recover after 'try again'.

It's too bad this did not have more content. This has some serious potential and should be further developed!

Notes: 

• You can save all the princes you want by repeatedly hitting the switch to the prison cell on the first screen!

Interesting.  I will call it that.  The gameplay works out alright, even if it felt a bit slow to move around the map. The abrupt ending was a bit unexpected, but it was fine gameplay.  I only died 7 times along the way! :D

Notes:

• Enemies tend to roam around the screen after the player knocks them out of bounds.
• Player can still move around while being spoken to...?
• While being sucked in by the purple monster, player's x-position was suddenly moved a LOT to the right after attacking with a sword.
• An ant got stuck along the grave stones. Look like it has something to do with the wrap around used for path finding.
• In the room with the tree dungeon, travel north is partly blocked off due to bush obstacles, but they only show up along one side of the map.
• There is a noticeable frame rate drop while the torch is equipped.
• You don't get a health recovery when you buy the +1 Heart at the shop?
• Was not able to screen capture it, but a bug was stuck in the walls into the tree dungeon.
• Shift is not the best button for an action key, given what happens with Windows systems.
• After I rescued the 2nd person and talked to him, the game... ends? 
• Bonus: Nice to see the player can wrap around a path blocker while walking into one.

It's a decent start, for sure!  If you have the chance, this could go for a more developed build!

Notes:

• Is the crab supposed to get 20x bigger towards the end?  I did find it amusing, but unusual.

Will I succeed?  Will I fail? PFFT!  Failure is GUARANTEED if I am playing it! :D

I had 'some' trouble when I first tried to play it, but I am able to figure thing out quickly enough and gain some ground in the game.

Notes:

• My fly kept getting killed off long before it ran out of health.