itch.io

The art style and direction is very cutesy. I also raged at the game which I suppose was the intended experience.However, I feel as though the game's boss fight was not all that engaging, since I managed to beat it through simply mashing left click, q,w and e at the same time till the boss died, maybe the game could incorporate more types of knockback threats the player has to deal with so that it doesn't need to rely only on the projectiles to stop the player's progression. The movement mechanic is also great but the levels could use more variation beyond just shrinking the platform sizes and lowering the amount of platforms per layer, perhaps some of the platforms could be hazardous, some could be bouncier, or other such tweaks to the platforms could greatly increase game enjoyment.

I have rated,played and gave feedback on your game, it has potential for sure but does need some problems addressed

This game has a simple core gameplay loop of throwing the player's body at the problem enough times till a solution is either stumbled upon or found by player intuition which is enjoyable enough. The current issues I have with the game are

1.The game's rooms are very dim to the point where I had to increase my laptop's brightness in order to see anything at all, which immediately removed some immersion I initially had when playing the game.

2.While the ambient noise is appreciated within the dungeon, I feel as though it could have been better with some form of ominous music to accompany the ambient noise to really add to the atmosphere.

3.The game would greatly benefit from a faster respawn time as during my gameplay, I noticed that I could not immediately move after respawning, which made the game progression a lot more slow.

4.I noticed there was a limit to the amount of bodies that could be in a room at any given moment, yet no indication of how many bodies were allowed before old ones started despawning, adding an indicator for how many bodies are currently in the level along with how many more can be spawned till the oldest body gets removed would greatly help.

5.The game would greatly benefit from having a tutorial as I noticed there were no controls listed on the game page or in the game itself which was a little frustrating as that forced me, the player, to have to press every key on my keyboard and mouse to figure out the controls manually, detracting from the game experience.

If these issues were fixed and more content added to the game, I could definitely see this as a fun puzzle game based around self torment.

I have rated your game, brilliant art and sound direction.Well done

Brilliant art direction and audio.I learned some new facts about these wondrous creatures placed within the zoo. I will note that the game could be more enjoyable with a wider variety of activities between presentations as during my playthrough, I did feel it gradually become a slog by the 3rd presentation. I also feel as though the theme could have had heavier connections to the story as the current game doesn't feel like it incorporates the theme of the game jam enough. A way I could see it be further incorporated is through the above mentioned addition of minigames between the puzzles and presentations having an animal use it's invulnerable body to accomplish certain tasks. Apart from that though, I can definitely see this expanded upon to include not just fauna but flora and fungi too.

I have played, rated and gave an extensive comment on your game

Here is my team's game https://itch.io/jam/game-name-game-jam-1/rate/4439912

The combat system of the game reminds me of an old removed game on the app store named tiny dice dungeons in how the player has different dice types to choose from and how rolling the same number on 2 or more dice multiplies the damage which is nice. But the game has room to improve as for one, the lack of background music makes battles less intense so adding some sort of battle appropriate background music would help a lot. Another way the game could improve is in dice variety, an example of such variety could be status die, dice that apply status effects like burn or poison that deal damage over time, paralysis or sleep that when successfully hit by high rolling a 6 would either cripple the opponents die to only hit lower numbers or disable their dice, dice that multiply the value of other dice to the left or right of them or even dice that give temporary health to the vampire that decays after a turn or two(the temp health dice is in response to one of the previous comments in which you mentioned your uncertainty about adding a heal dice due to balancing issues). Also as previous comments have mentioned most likely and what I experienced during gameplay, I was unable to select which enemy to target when there was more than one enemy which often led to me missing on a kill on an enemy by hitting the wrong one. Regarding the theme, I could not really see a strong connection to it despite the gaining health on kill mechanic. Perhaps you could've gave the vampire the option to sacrifice a set amount of hp to block any one hit or even gave the vampire a specific weakness the npcs need to use to kill him lest he simply survive on 1HP like a stake dice that later stage npcs would use to actually pose as a run ending threat to the player. Overall this game was enjoyable but could be so much more with the right game mechanic additions and background music to set the tone. The pixel art was also simple but effective.

I have rated and gave feedback on your game

It's definitely an interesting take on the theme. Nonetheless the overall enjoyment I personally had kept decreasing due to the amount of actual paperwork there is. The "Department of Eternal Processing" should not actually play like an actual desk job. Whenever there are games similar to yours, they "simplify and gamify" the experience such that either the text/narration is interesting (ie. Home Safety Hotline), or that the visuals and story captivate you (ie. Death and Taxes). The 2 games mentioned could be further inspiration for a greater game in the future but they also set the standard for the genre. I'd say this game could have had it's main inspiration from Death and Taxes whilst being a fresh take on what it means to be a life auditor. However where it should branch off into originality is how the story is shown to the player. Problem with how it is shown is that it keeps jumping all over the place whilst being easy to pick up on the certain "patterns" given to the reader upon the first reviews section (before all the "life is pain" comments of the souls). Imo, it would be better to focus on one part of the story day by day instead of having it all clumped into one session of reviews (school shooting, freeway accident, tax fraud{?}, blunt force, domestic abuse)*. Even as writing this, the amount of reports needed to be focused upon for the overlying story of ONE incident is maybe too much? I appreciate trying to make a complex game with little words and having quantity, but it really is better to focus down on one of the main topics above and put it into it's own chapter. *Possible to focus on topics you want to shed light on as a game dev. Can disregard those that are either too complicated, or you don't have as much knowledge about. With how the game is right now, the easiest way to improve it without too much more coding is the sound effects and music. There's no audio that further instils that nostalgia of using win95 so that would help a ton for the overall experience. Mainly mouse click sounds, maybe sound effects for Deathy, stuff like that. Kevin Mcleod, although everyone can agree he's a legend for making so much good free music, should not be oversaturated in any game. Even elevators change songs. The BG song could've also been changes to a soft, office like ambiance. Ringing phones, people talking, papers being flipped, all would've elevated the experience for the game. TL;DR, ok game that follows the theme but could use focus for the story it wants to tell. Needs help sound effect and audio wise but nothing truly immersion breaking.

The game is fun in how you need to manage the 3 angels healthbars via applying invincibility to them at the right times to sponge damage along with proper positioning to keep the trio from being surrounded and destroyed. I will say though gameplay wise that the environment doesn't really add much to it as it's simply an open ground with no obstacles from what I can tell, which also makes kiting and dealing with enemies a lot more linear. Good call to have a cooldown on activating and deactivating the halo of invincibility by the way, helps to keep the player from simply using it as a spammable block button. For the boss fight though, I felt it was a little bland as it was very easily beaten through activating halo on either the rogue or the tank and then having them face tank all the projectiles with little to no requirement for any strategic movement at all which could likely be solved by adding more variation to how the boss attacks, like example, having the boss attack from different angles, making them able to dash around, having them attempt to target non invincible members of the trio would all serve to add complexity to the boss fight and make it a more memorable fight. Apart from stuff mentioned above, I would say the art direction was cohesive and meshed well enough with the game's osts to help with player immersion. Overall, great job on the art and sound of the game,the theme was incorporated into the game alright enough to be an important piece to it's gameplay and if the boss fight was more engaging and the environment more varied I could see this be a genuine contender in the survivor like genre.

Hi, Played and rated your game, was a joy to play

Here's mine https://remixphoenix.itch.io/ballpit-brawl

Thoroughly enjoyed this game. Really nails what it wants to show. Though I still have a few qualms with it. Gameplay and everything works and feels fine. Really see the inspiration from 'Joust'(old arcade cabinet game) in the mechanics. I've seen other comments pointed out stuff like "time limits on people" or "lava kills passengers", so I'm wondering why not have different physics for the water & lava falls? Instead of outright being a wall, it could be more fun to have waterfalls repel the player like a trampoline and have lavafalls outright slow down the player. Makes the environment more interesting and might've been possible to do within the timespan. Consider if the game should have an outright reset or restart button next time as well. The one bug pointed out by another comment really sucks cuz you have to wait for time to be out to get another try. Lastly is the music and art. Don't get me wrong, love the main menu's track and subsequent song in game. But that's just it. The one song during gameplay just keeps going even when the game changed scenery. I left this comment for last because not everyone has the time to make/put in more soundtracks for every scene change in a game so consider having more tracks next time. Really helps with atmosphere. The art is good though so no problems there. TL;DR, 'Birb Taxi' has a lotta potential. Movement seems inspired from the game 'Joust' and hits that nostalgia factor visually and mechanically. Environmental factors could take this game to the next level and more songs would help it immensely for scene changes.

The OSTs were a joy to listen to as I dodged and weaved past the projectiles

The minimalist visuals accompany the gameplay well enough so not many remarks there.However, I felt as though the game leaned way more into the bullet hell aspect than the rhythm aspect as when I played it, certain portions such as during bomb where the circles pulse had spots on the field in which I could simply sit the heart there and wait for the entire segment to pas which took a bit away from the rhythm aspect. I think this could be solved by either adding a secondary button that needs to be pressed to the rhythm of the song or perhaps you could add score pickups in the way of where upcoming projectiles would pass through which would make it optional to grab them but at higher risk of being hit or not go for them to have a safer run. The second suggestion would need a scoring system implemented though.

As a previous comment mentioned, Eye should have been the first level displayed due to it's lower difficulty, alongside possible difficulty ratings being attached to make it clear to the player how difficult the level will be.

The OSTs are really solid for the game though so excellent work on that.

I have rated your game, I will say the story is well written

If this did happen to the author irl, my condolences. It does not excuse the lack of elements needed for a better minimalist game however. The game itself is a great portrayal of the theme. It is however, quite lacklustre. As other comments have put it, the game does tell a heart wrenching story about life and death. Whilst the game portrays that emotion clearly (use of good writing techniques), it doesn't help that it might have been even more emotional with the right pictures, art, and audio. Even if crude, any small artworks(drawings) and sombre music could have elevated the experience to a higher level than it is right now. Even if it is a "Minimalist" game, it should at least have some music/visuals to accompany the page viewed by the player. There were also some typos in some places ("baited" breath instead of 'bated' breath) and this in of itself could ruin the immersion of the story greatly to anyone already invested halfway through the game. In fact, because of the typo I needed to reinvest myself into the character again. It's always important to double check for visual novels because of this fact. TL;DR, If it is your first time participating in such a big event, consider planning out gameplay elements whilst writing. At the very least, audio or small visuals could have been a big factor in elevating your story to a higher level. The writing is good, moreover it can be even better after some more experience and learning. Nonetheless the story was exceptional.

Wholesome as it is, the game is indeed quite simplistic. It does what it sets out to accomplish but is also lack luster in that sense. It's nice the cat doesn't get damaged(hurt), and makes it a more lovely experience for cat lovers, however it isn't necessarily needed? So the game doesn't do much for the theme per say. There could be other ways to implement the theme that would impact the gameplay in a more meaningful way possibly. Maybe cat becomes invincible by picking up items of good fortune? Art is decent, Audio as well. Can't help but notice that the lucky cat looks like a regular cat tho. It could have been replaced with a chinese lucky cat(ie, DanDaDan Turbo Granny after capture) for more accuracy to the game name. In summary, wholesome game that has no animal violence but lacks in gameplay and creativity. Quite the easy game to sit down and unwind to tho

sorry it took a while to get to your game, was having some lighting issues on my end

Very ambitious, reminds me of the Chilla's Art collection of horror games on Steam, I liked the abstract retro art style, and the ambience of the game is great. The audio is a little loud though, an option to tweak it on the main menu would be appreciated. A certain section also gets a little too dark at times, maybe a torchlight could be useful. Overall an enjoyable experience.

Rated the game, decent game with potential but needs polish

Enjoyed the gameplay, simple and nice controls. Audio could be set to 50 on start cuz audio should be softer on start rather than loud. Wall jump could use some work. Something like "super meat boy's" wall jump could've been emulated here, even if not 1 for 1. Does not feel intuitive to wall jump rn, needs a buffer for how long you need to run into the wall to have the wall jump to be active. ie, "Coyote Time"(See 'Celeste' game). No "Shift to Sprint" prompt(?). Not sure if that was intentional but it can make or break the experience. Doesn't affect too much for lower levels but makes a difference in how fast someone can retry a stage, so needs consideration. Sprite work was lackluster. Main character(gameplay sprite) could use some more detail comparing them to their main sprite used in the opening. Enemies also need a bit more detail though for the most part are readable enough on screen. Enemies are also somewhat too random at times when they move. Should be a bit more consistent to give player a fair chance. Camera also lags behind too much when moving either direction. Have it maybe move in conjunction with the main character's front(see Kirby's epic yarn cam). Overall decent game, has potential, needs polish.

Rated your game, gotta say I like the change of pace this game had compared to other entries!

Cozy game about rebuilding the universe,the music was soothing and I enjoyed the minigame for cleaning gretchen the cannon.I also got stuck at where beardmage got stuck at but before that happened, I was enjoying the slower pace of this game compared to the other submissions so far

Rated,great art direction and matching audio to boot, could definitely see this expanded upon to be a game where you play as bosses throughout the game against a hero npc that gradually gets stronger with every boss of your's defeated

9/10 Homelanders recommend

Fun concept but the execution could be improved, I noticed that when I attempt to crash into the jets, sometimes I instead bounce off of them, which kills all forward momentum and gets me hit by missiles,Another way that the experience could be improved in my opinion would be to split vertical and horizontal sensitivity into 2 seperate sliders, as Ithink finer control over the mouse sensitivity would go a long way for this game since it's very reliant on mouse movement to direct the superhero. Overall, Solid Homelander experience

Rated your game, was a challenging but satisfying puzzle game to solve with a very creative take on the theme I had not seen thus far

The puzzles were well thought out, had a blast solving these! The take on the theme is very creative and the ost is solid.

I have rated your game, simple but executed well enough to be a fun experience

The concept is simple but executed well enough, definite potential to expand upon this with more types of puzzle mechanics. I had fun with the game though so good job!

I have rated your game, could add more incentives to use the block action as right now kiting enemies works a lot better. Apart from that though the game's art and audio were good

The gameplay is simple and straightforward, blocking didn't really give me enough incentive to use it as all enemies within the game were easiliy kiteable. the art and sound are the best parts of the game though.Combat was a little janky when kiting but overall an alright game jam project

A very creative take on the theme with solid art direction to boot, could very well be expanded upon to truly feed player's innate invincibility complexes

Very creative take on the theme, I didn't even know about people being able to have an invincibility complex till this game. The art direction seems cohesive enough and the gameplay feels like running a slot machine in that I have no control over the outcome once the coin is flipped or the vial is chosen,which while fun the first few tries, becomes somewhat stale as there aren't really any lasting consequences to failure or success in the flips or ways to manipulate odds. Giving the player options to manipulate the odds in or against their favor or having the player's choices affect gameplay more heavily would help to feed into the invincibility complex I feel. 

Game has been rated, solid experience that can become even more stimulating with a movement speed increase to lower downtime between rooms

Solid Incremental game,might need move speed increase to default move speed or have more move speed modifiers accessable earlier, apart from that sentiment, good gameplay loop

game has been rated, make the vinces no longer able to escape the game's boundaries and you've got a solid foundation to build upon for a beat em up

Simple Beat em up, the walking sound is a buit loud compared to the music, floating and out of bounds vinces did spoil the invincibility mechanic for me a bit since the vinces by going out of bounds or floating away, would time out my invincibility, alright game though

The game is alright and I like the mechanic but there is room to improve, best of luck in improving