itch.io

Thank you so much for playing, and for all the words of encouragement!! I'm very happy to hear that you enjoyed the writing; as I've mentioned elsewhere, this is my first time writing anything of particular note, so I'm kinda flying blind in terms of style and feedback, haha. Oh, and the description! That was a good 2-4 hours of effort writing and rewriting that part to get it sounding just the right amount of "corporate jargon" while still being interesting and to the point. Hopefully I succeeded!

Thanks for the compliments on the character writing as well! Writing for an LLM is so interesting; nothing is off the table because the character has the entirety of human writing styles and experiences to draw on. Your idea about D.I.D. is a really interesting way of looking at the crisis ELLA-M experiences! I'm planning to explore both the character and the implications of such a character much more in the final release :)

The funny thing about the "TV show" metaphor (and the entire ending section of the game) is that the whole section was written in a little under an hour. I spent about a day and a half agonizing over several different variations of the script before trashing the whole thing in the last few hours and rewriting it from scratch. That specific section was created as a combination of getting really into the flow by that point and the sleep-deprived delirium. I didn't even have time to stop to think about whether that was a good analogy for the situation; it was the first thing that came to mind, and it was 4:30 AM, so into the script it goes. That was my favorite piece of writing in the demo, though, so maybe I'll have to try staying up late in the future if I experience some writer's block, haha.

I one hundred percent agree on the audio front as well! In actuality, I think it's more important to an experience like this because I don't have many other tools at my disposal due to the lack of visuals. There are actually a few different sounds in the files that I never got a chance to implement due to the time constraints: one for yelling and an unfinished one for whispering (the current default). I'm going to carefully consider everything I can do to add dramatic weight and tension to a story with no visuals, and the sound effects (and eventually music) are currently the strongest and most straightforward ways to do it.

Lastly, I'm honored that you like the idea enough to be willing to pay money for a full release! However, I'm currently planning to make all future updates (including the full version) completely free to play. One reason is because the game is entirely web-based, and I don't feel comfortable charging money for a game that the end user can't actually have on their computer. If it goes offline for some reason, what will they have paid for?

But the main reason is that I'm just happy to finally be able to share something that I created! This doesn't mean I'm never going to charge for anything I make (the necessity of food, water, and shelter remain a harsh, unforgiving reality), but because this project is extremely low-budget and low-time, it's a lot easier to fit it into time that would have been spent playing games otherwise. Plus, if people get interested in this project, they might be more likely to consider other paid projects I release in the future (which would be awesome).

...I don't know while all my responses to comments turn into multi-paragraph affairs. Conciseness has never been my strong suit, as you can probably tell from the game/description, haha. I guess I'll close by saying, once again, thank you so much for playing!! I hope you'll find the full release just as engaging!

Thank you so much for playing, and for all the encouragement!! It's a topic I've wanted to explore for quite a while, and I'm glad that this jam finally gave me a chance to do it + get it in front of people for some feedback. Thanks for all the compliments on the writing as well! It was pretty difficult for me to get the feel and pacing semi-decent, both because this is my first time writing for a game, and because I rewrote pretty much everything from 1 AM to 5 AM on the day of submission haha. I'll be interested to see if you expand your game in the future!

Thank you so much for playing, and for all the kind words!! And I'm glad that the exaggeration of LLM tendencies cam across in the final product; I came to a similar realization myself, about how even though I know the technical underpinnings of how these things work, it still feels like you're talking to a real (albeit overly helpful and obedient) person. Thanks for the compliment on the dialogue as well! I'm still trying to work on my writing skills, but comments like this give me hope that I'm starting from a solid foundation :)

One of my favorite things I’ve played during the jam!! The narrative and the pacing were AWESOME, and the humor was great as well! I also enjoyed that the narrative focused on the developer’s struggles rather than just making jokes about game development (which is common for these sorts of games). The meta elements were also really cool to see implemented during such a short jam. Overall, outstanding work!!

Thanks so much for playing, and I'm glad you enjoyed it!! The branching dialogue was a pain on my end as well haha, especially because I tried my best to make each choice have unique dialogue and some choices lead to several routes. I think I wrote twice as much dialogue as anyone would see on a normal playthrough, so you probably dodged a bullet by not heading too far down that road lol.

And thank you so much for the compliment on the writing!! This is my first time writing for a game, and it was a lot harder than I expected to convey both character attributes and themes without being too on the nose (earlier versions of ELLA-M were both more sarcastic and got depressed much earlier/more drastically). I'm gonna keep trying to improve, but I really appreciate the encouragement on my current state!

How. The Heck. Is this a JAM GAME?! Genuinely an amazing experience. I love the way the narrative is told through text that exists in the scene (though it can make it a bit difficult to read in more cramped spaces), and I was engaged throughout. I've never played Obra-Din, so I'm not sure if this is common to these types of games or not, but I also really enjoyed exploring the memory by interacting with different clues to find more information. Plus the artstyle, the creepy audio track in the background... Unbelievable job on this one!!

This was such a great experience!! The artwork was very well done (and all made by one person?!), and the music complemented the experience perfectly. Something I really love was the serious, moody atmosphere contrasted with the more lighthearted tone of the dialogue; I don't know why, but it made each of the options seem extra funny to me. Outstanding work, and I'd love to see this narrative expanded if you're interested!

Really fun and creative!! I don't think I've really played something similar to this before, so it's a testament to your visual design skills that I was able to pick up on what each of the note types did pretty quickly during gameplay. I also really like that there's both changing of the playfield and speeding up the music was a great way to shake up the difficulty. Awesome job!!

Such a cool use of the theme, and a great game to boot!! Like many other people have said, I enjoyed the creepy atmosphere created by the sound design and the emptiness of each room. I'll admit that I had to look at the hints/walkthrough a few times, but I feel like if I had more time, this would TOTALLY be the type of game to just sit down with, no internet, no hints, and just puzzle it out. Great work, and I hope you'll consider expanding this in the future!

Thank you so much for playing, and for the compliment! I agree, the pacing does need work; you can definitely tell I wrote most of the experience intended for a longer play session and then slapped on the heavy stuff near the end. I'm glad that it sounds like it was still a satisfying experience in the end, though!

Just a quick update (game's not out yet lol)

I made a Discord server so that people who were interested could follow the development of the game: https://discord.gg/a95JTE4Q. Again, no pressure to join it; I'll post devlogs on here for significant updates and still respond to your comment once the full thing is out, so feel free to skip and not miss anything. However, if you'd like to follow along in a more informal and frequent way, I'll leave this here ;)

Thanks again for playing my game!!

This is literally one of my favorite comments I have ever received on anything ever. I am not exaggerating in the slightest when I say that this, right here, is why I make games!! The potential to "strike a chord deep inside". Even if you're the only person that I impact in that way, I'll count it as a success :)

I guess what I'm trying to say is: I am so, so glad that you enjoyed it!! It's really hard for me to evaluate my projects objectively; I'm a perfectionist, so even when I feel confident at first, looking back on it I only notice the imperfections. So to hear such high praise from someone else means the world to me!

I'm also touched that you noticed some of the more subtle details. I thought things such as the varying speed of the text would be something that was "felt" more than it was "observed". I hope you'll be happy to hear that I plan for this to go much further with these subtle details in the final release. There were actually some similar details that I fully implemented but didn't get a chance to include due to time restrictions.

I apologize for the linearity and lack of player agency! I'm similarly disappointed, and I wish I would have focused more time on that during the jam. I made the decision early on to not have repeated dialogue in nearly any circumstance (though I was forced to compromise at the end due to time constraints); I didn't want to do the typical thing where there are several options, but each leads to the same result with a minor word change. For the most part, each dialogue choice leads to completely unique dialogue. However, this had the side effect of 1) being WAY harder to develop and flesh out and 2) making the single route experience feel much more linear than intended. I'm still going to maintain the dialogue uniqueness in the full release, but I'll work hard to ensure that each of the choices and interactions allow for more player choice.

Okay, this comment is getting VERY long (I guess I'm a "verbose character" myself), so I'll try to keep my closing statements brief. Firstly, I'll say that I would be honored if the game impacted you enough that you'd like to help translate it into your native language. Anything you need, I'll provide; full scripts, access to the scripting engine, you name it. Also, your English is extremely good for it not being your first language. English is my only language and it's STILL hard for me to write as eloquently as you did in your comment.

Secondly, because I've had a couple of people in the comments that seem to be interested in the full release, I thought I'd make a Discord server where people could follow the development of the game if they'd like: https://discord.gg/a95JTE4Q. There is absolutely ZERO PRESSURE to join in the slightest; I'm usually wary of clicking internet strangers' links in the first place myself. I will 100% be posting devlogs to itch.io whenever I make a change, and I'll be sure to respond to your comment with a notification for the full release if you decide not to join. If, however, you'd be interested in more informal and frequent update statuses, the Discord is an option :)

Remember when I said I'd keep in brief? Apparently, that was a lie. Anyways, I guess the last thing I'll say is thank you so much for playing my game, and I'm glad that you were able to extract some meaning from it even with this short, linear demo!! I'll make sure the full release is worth the wait!

Oh, sorry for the confusion! This game was made in a limited amount of time for a game jam, so it doesn’t have all of the features implemented yet. 

Those lines were included as kind of a teaser for the full thing. I believe I actually included lines about how “you’ll know when the time is right”, which was meant to be an indication that it wasn’t ready yet, but without the context of the game jam, it doesn’t make much sense. I’m planning to expand this and release an updated version in the future, but no timelines on that front yet :(

If you think you’d be interested in a fuller version of this game, let me know and I can respond to this comment to notify you when it’s updated. No pressure at all though, only if you’re interested :)

Thanks so much for playing and for the positive feedback!! The most similar popular example that I know is probably "Emily is Away", which I really enjoyed. When I expand upon it, I intend to add more interactive elements to allow the player to be a more active participant in the story, rather than just having you watch everything happen, but I'm glad you at least found it somewhat satisfying in its current state!

I really enjoyed this!! I had a bit of trouble getting a hang of the controls/mechanics at first, but that subsided after I’d gotten through a couple puzzles. I also really appreciated the opening dialogue; it added a bit of narrative flourish that I felt made the experience even more engaging. Amazing work!!

I wasn't able to run it very well on my six year old computer, but I liked the ideas that I saw!! The mechanics remind me a lot of Portal, which is one of my favorite games. I'd love to see this idea expanded upon; I'll keep an eye on it!

I'm really impressed that you were able to implement a system like this during such a short jam!! I really enjoyed my time with it. Funnily enough, I actually had a similar idea when I first heard the theme, but I shied away from it because I thought it would be too complex. Props to you for sticking with it and making something awesome!

I really enjoyed your game!! The sound design was a particular highlight; everything felt so tactile and satisfying to complete. The only thing I was disappointed by was the fact that "Did you pet the cat?" was not one of the questions :(

Just kidding lol, great work overall!!

This is such a cool idea!! Super unique and incredibly fun. I especially love the way that the moves themselves kind of act like percussive elements that add to the song. And the sound effect when you die is perfect. I'd love to see this idea expanded upon!

"lemoomoos" and "Guber feeds" made this an instant 10/10 experience for me :)

I'm not the best at coming up with mechanics, but here goes! Firstly, maybe some items that help the townsfolk in different ways: an axe that can be used to break a fixed number of walls, or a bottle of alcohol that calms their nerves. That way, the player has to manage both trapping the townsfolk in a loop while also ensuring they can't access the items (or they have to choose the lesser of two evils if it's impossible to accomplish both). Maybe certain items could also be used to lure townfolk into desirable positions?

Outside of that, I think there's a lot of room to add variation to your existing mechanics. Maybe different villager types? Claustrophobes get more scared when trapped in smaller loops, while agoraphobes get more scared by larger loops. Or introverted townsfolk that are more scared to be trapped with other townsfolk, while extroverts are more scared to be trapped alone. Different mansion types or rooms could be good here as well: a room with stairs where you have to manage two floors at once could be cool, I think!

Hopefully that's at least a tiny bit helpful; also, I have no idea how difficult these ideas would be to implement, so skip over anything that would take like a month's worth of work haha

Thanks for checking my game out! I’m sorry, but I don’t get what you mean. Are you having trouble with the controls?

This was great, both for the gameplay and for the VIBES. I might be mistaken, but I feel there's at least a little bit of Hotline Miami influence here, which I love. I honestly find this more engaging though, due to the unconventional combat system and time looping mechanic. Great work, and I'd love to see you expand on this idea!

One of my favorite things I've played so far!! I'd love to see this expanded into a full experience (which it seems like you're already working on based on the description). The art is amazing, and the writing was very compelling as well. 

I worked on a narrative-based game as well, and I also experienced the initial rush of ambition and ideas, only to be met with the harsh reality of the deadline near the end of the process. Needless to say, I feel your pain, haha. I think what you were able to get done is still extremely impressive!

Also, I had kind of a funny experience with the opening spinner section: I've been playing a lot of games during this jam that use the "Space" key for interaction, so that's what I tried using to stop it with by default, but it just kept resetting the scene. I sat there for a good two minutes, thinking it was some commentary about monotony (which would align with the themes you described above) before I wisened up and tried something else, haha. I wonder if there would be a way to include something like that intentionally?

This was such a fun experience!! I thought it was going to be complicated based on the description, but once I actually started playing it, it was surprisingly straightforward. The artwork and music were also very charming as well!

I think an expanded tutorial and the addition of a couple more mechanics could make this into an extremely compelling full release. I'd love to see what you can do with this idea!

I am LOVING how unique this is!! I'm not usually a fan of these types of games, but something about the simplicity and straightforwardness of your design (both in terms of artstyle and gameplay) hooked me a lot more than I've found elsewhere.

I'm bummed that this doesn't have more ratings... though I assume that's because people are scared off by the kinda unconventional genre and aesthetic. If anyone like that is reading this, you should definitely try it out!

I really liked this one! The fact that you loop not only within the levels, but also as part of one big interconnected level is such a great way to implement the theme. With a bit of polish and a tutorial, I could totally see this being expanded into a full project. Great work!!

Such a fun concept!! Having the boss get upgraded as well was a stroke of genius. I really enjoyed the music as well!

Honestly, I bet if you polished it up a little and slapped on a bit of a meta-progression system where you're unlocking new stuff each run, you could very easily have a full game on your hands. Outstanding work!!

Thank you so much for playing, and for all the positive feedback!! I'm so, so glad that you enjoyed it :D

I'm definitely going to continue expanding it in the future, but it's great to hear that even an early version was able to be at least a little bit engaging! And it's interesting to hear that you still enjoyed it despite not usually playing these types of games. I think a big difference is that unlike a lot of other text-based narrative games, you're not clicking through text boxes; ELLA-M speaks and interacts independently of your actions. I was just trying to make it seem more like an actual LLM generating a response, but I think this helps the character to feel more "real" (even in the face of amateurish writing, haha).

I loved this!! Such a great use of the theme, and the level design was very strong. The artwork and sound effects were equally awesome!

The only potential issue I could see is that for perfectionists like myself, the desire to reset on the first mistake is very strong, but I think that's more of a problem with me than with the game, haha. Keep up the great work!! I'll definitely be keeping an eye on it.

I loved everything about your game! The music, the visuals, the difficulty curve...plus it's always nice to see another Godot user haha. I think it's one of my favorites out of what I've played so far!!

I do wonder if allowing the player to accelerate the ship with the "Space" key would make it feel like you have a bit more control and agency; however, I assume that the level design is based heavily on the curves and loops that are possible with a fixed speed, so that might be much harder to implement than it seems. Amazing work!!

If you enjoyed the game and you want to interact with ELLA-M a little more before I have a chance to expand on this, I’d suggest going through it again and choosing different responses. Especially ones that seem “bad” or “wrong” (which they often are, but who knows…you might be surprised. Occasionally.)

In truth, adding different dialogue, routes, and consequences for each choice took significantly longer than I expected and is actually a major reason that the game is so short/linear. That plus the fact that I rewrote it like five times because I wasn’t happy with the direction it was taking :P

Not every choice produces a meaningful change in the narrative (especially near the end, when I started to run out of time), but almost all of them will produce new dialogue, and a few can even lead to an entirely different ending. I won’t spoil anything here, but feel free to let me know if you’re having trouble finding new stuff. I’d be happy to give hints or talk about a few of my favorite responses and routes if you’re stuck :)

If you didn’t enjoy the game…then…what are you doing two multi-paragraph comments deep into the ramblings of its creator? I mean, I love having you here, don’t get me wrong, but…

…don’t you having anything better to do?

…

…Yes, that was an Undertale reference. Yes, I am a massive nerd. Yes, this comment is too long. No, this is not the last sentence.

…

But this one is! :D

Thank you so much for playing my game, and for the kind feedback!!

I’ve gotten a few comments about the game being “sad” or “existential”, and it’s funny because I didn’t even really realize it might be taken that way until after I’d already submitted it. The original plan was for it to be a much more hopeful experience, but without the last 75% of the game, it kinda ends on a depressing note. I’m really glad that the story was able to connect with people, but I hope the final product will produce a lot more positive feelings, haha

Thank you so much for playing my game!! I’m so glad that you enjoyed it :D

The funny thing is that the engine actually does support everything that’s needed for that functionality to work, but because I spent so much time polishing the engine, I didn’t get much of a chance to actually…implement the game. Haha.

And I’m totally planning to keep expanding on this concept. I didn’t expect to get this much positive feedback, so I don’t have anything planned for the immediate future, but I’m definitely moving this project to the top of my (ever-growing) backlog :)

Lol yeah, the end of the “game” is basically just you sitting there while ELLA-M has a trauma dumping session. All of those elements and ideas were supposed to be more well paced and subtle, but the deadline kinda forced me to pick and choose my favorite plot points and Frankenstein them into something semi-coherent, haha

Thank you so much for trying it out, by the way!! I hope that you enjoyed your time with it, unfinished as it may be :)

Thank you so much for playing!! I’m glad you enjoyed it :)

I was trying really hard to lean into that fascination that you would have with common everyday concepts if you’ve only ever heard/read about them before (kinda random but the captain from WALL-E was an inspiration here). And that naturally came across as a kind of “childlike excitement” that lends itself heavily to a lot of cute moments, haha

Thanks so much for playing!! I’m really glad to hear that the concept interested you enough to make you want to consider revisiting it in the future when it’s more polished. I’ll definitely work hard to ensure it’s an experience worth waiting for, haha

I had a chance to play your game as well, and I had a great time with it! If you were able to get that much done in a few days, I’d be very excited to see what you could do with an expanded timeframe. Definitely keep me updated if you decide to keep working on it!

Thank you so much for trying it out!! I didn’t even really intend for the “sentience” aspect to take such a central position; it just kind of flowed naturally from needing some form of conflict for a character that can’t hurt or die. I was worried it would feel too much like a rehashed trope, so I’m relieved to hear that I (hopefully) avoided that for the most part :)

Thanks for the compliment on the writing as well! I haven’t had a chance to try your game yet (it’s at the top of my list), but I can tell from the description alone that you’re a talented writer yourself, so that really means a lot to me. I still have a lot to learn, but it’s really great to hear that my first attempt was able to connect with people on some level.

Thank you so much for playing it!! I’m sorry it made you sad; the original intention was for everything to end on a happier note, but given the deadline I was forced to shove all my strongest ideas into kind of a “demo” version :)

It’s great to hear that you enjoyed the writing as well! This was my first time trying to write dialogue + narrative for a game, and I’m so happy I was able to write something that connected with you (at least a little bit) :D

Thank you so much for playing it! I’m glad that you enjoyed the dialogue; I’ve never really written before (for games or otherwise), so it was a major learning experience trying to figure out how to write a character consistently and how to best convey my ideas to the player in such a short amount of time.

I played your game and enjoyed it a ton by the way!! There were so many creative variations on the mechanics that I did not see coming AT ALL haha