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Essence's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Artwork | #1903 | 3.630 | 3.630 |
| Creativity | #4692 | 3.074 | 3.074 |
| Enjoyment | #5151 | 2.593 | 2.593 |
| Audio | #5157 | 2.481 | 2.481 |
| Narrative | #5478 | 2.037 | 2.037 |
Ranked from 27 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
How does your game fit the theme?
The game is about storing time, and then 'spending' that time again, so you sort of bend and loop time. Also, you have to collect a 'Loupe' :D
(Optional) What would you like to be called if GMTK features your game?
Daniel
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Comments
pretty art
Glad you enjoyed playing :D
Time control is a pretty cool concept! I loved the art style and music, but it seems like the music kind of ends after a while. Still, great atmosphere and fun gameplay!
If possible, please consider rating my game too.
Ah, yes, I forgot to properly test the music, I'll make sure to fix that after the jam's over!
At the moment the battery of my laptop died, and I don't have charger available until somewhere around noon, so I'm responding to comments on my phone. I shall check out your game once I have a proper charger again :D
Short and simple platformer with fun mechanics. I wish there were more levels, the idea for the mechanics had potential but i understand given the 4 day limit :)
I love the artstyle and animations, the feeling is awesome but it lacks some sound effects. There is something else you might have not noticed during testing and more people must have pointed that out, but the music stops looping after a while.
Both audio and visuals should work toguether to make the experience as inmersive as possible, although i must say the animations are amazing, maybe a subtle walking animation would make the game more inmersive if you want expand it a bit ;)
Awesome work, keep it up 🍞
Ohh, I really wanted to add more levels, but since this is my second game, I'm not really good at level design yet :) That combined with the time constraint led to me just doing something without a particular goal :P
Ah, I always thought the music looped, never really properly tested it, thanks for pointing that out!
I also really need to get into making SFX, never done that before so I'm curious how it'll go :D I agree good audio can make a game a lot more immersive!
I also forgot to add the walking animation, and unfortunately, I only noticed that about 30 minutes before the deadline :)
I'll definitely continue working on this project after the jam, and I'll try to encorporate all of your feedback in future versions!
Glad you enjoyed playing, and thanks a lot for your feedback :D
Sounds awesome, i'll play it once it's finished :)
really cool concept, way more polished than a lot of other games that I played!
Love the concept of storing and releasing time, but I would've loved to be able to use this in a more intelligent way, in the last level I didn't even use it since I thought that it wouldn't really do anything, because I would slow down the vines, but also myself, but maybe I was just lucky ^^'
Ahhh, yes, I agree that the game was not really a 'puzzle platformer', more a sort of timing platformer(which was not intended btw). Due to my planning I only had the last 1 or 2 hours for level design, and since this is my second game, I'm not the best at that either :)
I really would've liked to make more use of the mechanics in the game, since I myself also really like puzzles! I'll definitely focus more on making use of the mechanics in future versions!
Thanks for the feedback :D
(btw, you weren't really lucky in the last level, that was just bad level design :))
a competent platformer with an amazing art style, I love all the different layers in the background and how they move! Might want to increase the font size on your game page, had to scroll in a lot to read it. Great job!
If you dont mind, please consider rating my game as well :)
I'll probably (re)make the tutorial after the jam is over, and I'll try to encorporate your feedback in the future versions :D
I gotta sleep now, so I'll check out your game tomorrow morning!
The art looks great and the game feels nice and responsive.
Maybe the audio feels a bit off due to the lack of sound effects?
Like others mentioned, I wasn’t entirely sure how the charge mechanic works either.
Good job!
I agree that there is indeed a bit of a lack of SFX, and I think that could make the game a lot more immersive! I'll definitely make the tutorial more understandable after the jam, and also will try to encorporate this in my future games! Thanks for the feedback :D
Amazing art! The C button mechanic is a bit confusing and im still not sure if i get it :(, but besides that good job.
Oh, yes, I agree that the (un)charging mechanic can be a bit confusing, because it's never really introduced to the player in a proper way. I'll definitely try to make the tutorial more clear! Thanks for the feedback :D
The idea is really nice, I got confused as well with the charge mechanics. I couldn't understand what uncharge changes, it felt that I was going at the same speed all the time! But well done for your second game, it was my second one as well and game dev is definitely a steep hill to climb!!
You have a very nice atmosphere already, so if you could improve the tutorial part then the game would be really nice! :) When I got stuck (the second time with the vines), I would have loved more space in the level to experiment what the mechanics did!
Oh, yes, I agree that the mechanics are a bit poorly introduced to the player. Basically, what charging does is slowing down time, and storing that up as essence. Uncharging spends that essence and speeds up time (to be able to uncharge, you need to charge for at least an equal amount of time). Charging and uncharging speed and slow down time for everything except for the player.
I understand that this could be a bit confusing when not directly explained in the game, and that's my fault for not introducing the mechanics properly, not that of the player.
I'm probably going to remake the levels to make a proper introduction to the core mechanics, and to reduce the overall difficulty curve of the game. Thanks for the feedback :D
Oh that makes much more sense now! From what is written on the game page, I thought that uncharging was changing the player speed... Definitely makes a lot more sense and explains why I kept dying!
Ooh, I reread the description, and I agree that the mechanics are a bit vaguely and maybe even a tad misleadingly described. I have updated the description to explain the mechanics a bit more clearly! Thanks for the feedback again :D
Beautiful artwork and atmosphere. Got confused a bit with the charge mechanic but got it after few die and retry :)
Ah, yes, I agree it can be a tad confusing at first, seeing as the mechanics are introduced a bit poorly :)
The art is absolutely fantastic! I also think the time charge is really interesting and neatly implemented, and the level designs use the mechanic effectively for some great platforming puzzles. Although I don't think it completely fits the theme...?, it's still a very cool mechanic on its own, and I can see it being expanded into a larger game.
Anyway, great work!
Glad you enjoyed the game! To be honest, I also don't really see how my game fits the jam theme :) I mean, you need to collect a loupe, but that's about it, I was thinking about some sort of time loop, but I'm not really that good in following the theme. I just think for half an hour, get an idea, and then wreck my sleep schedule for the next few days :D
I am definitely planning to expand this game after the jam's over. Thanks for the feedback!
Very beautiful and surprisingly difficult game.
The difficulty spikes are very appropriate for the short duration of a gamejam game, but also make the game less accessible to anyone who isn't a pixel platformer veteran. No solution to this problem unfortunately.
I agree that the difficulty curve could be a bit steep when the vines are introduced (especially combined with the timer). Since this is the second game I've made, I'm still horrible at level design :) I'm hoping to improve on that, and I myself think the game is still short, even for a game jam game.
I think if I introduced the vines and the (un)charging mechanic a bit more gentle, and make a bit more of a distinction between tutorial and levels, it could definitely help with the difficulty curve, even while preserving the short duration of a game jam game. I'll try to implement this in the game after the jam is over! Thanks for the feedback :D
The art on this project is so nice, I love all the sprites?
Thanks :D
the art is really cool! got a bit confused with the charge mechanic
Ah, I get it, I agree that the charge mechanic was a bit poorly introduced :/ I shall try to make a more proper tutorial. Thanks for the feedback :D
Cute! The artwork is really lovely here. Some of the platforming felt a little tight and the instructions blended in a little too well to the background, but very nice otherwise.
Thanks for the feedback! I'll try to make a bit more of a distinction between the tutorial and the levels, and I agree that some levels are indeed a bit tight. I'll also try to make the text stand out bit more :D
I loved the music and the art. The animations where done so nicly I loved it. It looked really clean and pleasing to the eyes. Some improvements, is how you delt with the "tutrial" I am not a big fan of just slapping text on the screen and I bet you can find an intresting way to teach the player something new.
Ah, yes. I agree with you that the main mechanics were a bit poorly introduced. I shall try to make a bit of a more simple tutorial instead of immediately throwing the player into a level with one line of text. Thanks for the feedback :D
Cool !
Thanks :D