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PULSE's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Polish | #4 | 4.125 | 4.125 |
| Sound | #9 | 4.000 | 4.000 |
| Art | #14 | 4.312 | 4.312 |
| Overall | #21 | 3.604 | 3.604 |
| Atmosphere | #23 | 3.938 | 3.938 |
| Gameplay | #46 | 2.938 | 2.938 |
| Theme | #97 | 2.312 | 2.312 |
Ranked from 16 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
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Comments
loved this game, when I first stepped out of the ship I instantly got that same sense of wonder when I first played Mario Galaxy and Outer Wilds. I did encounter a few bugs such as upon restarting it spawned me in the planet lol.
Overall a really really good game! Good job!
You built a really cool planet. Everything runs smoothly. And all ths in just a week? Incredible.
I didn’t really get what I was supposed to do, so I just wandered around eating mushrooms until trees grew and oxygen appeared… and then I died lol.
The game gives me good Outer Wilds vibes
This is very impressive. Even though i couldn't manage to finish the game (, if there even is an end to it) , i love the subtle changes in the environment as time went on. It's also rare to find games that actually allow you to traverse a "planet" in a sphere, so I'm even more dumbfounded on how you managed to pull this off in a jam. I might have to dock some stars for Theme, although i could see some lose connections being made here.
Thank you for playing it!
I am well aware that the game struggles to find it's identity. Even if intentions are clear, the state of decay is not painted like I wanted. I overscoped a bit and the entire game loop took a hit in design and clarity.
I like the graphics and the idea is pretty cool. Got a bit lost but I found my way eventually, well done
Thank you for trying it! I also get lost in there. I hadn't time to place some landmarks - this was really important. I even scaled the planet 10 times before releasing it.
From the graphical standpoint it's amazing, sound design and controls are satisfying. Just jumping around the asteroid is great, but I have 0 clue what to do.
Hi there! Thank you for taking your time to try my game! Really sorry about the objective clarity, I guarantee it won't happen again in any of my games!
Love the atmosphere and vibe of this game! i can definitely see the Outer Wilds influence. The visuals and music are quite nice, and I loved realizing the planet was changing! I was also confused about what to do, and only picked it up from the comments. I didn't have much luck completing the other ending, though, since the grass balls were just too difficult to get to behave, and I kept getting lost trying to find where to take them. Love the overall idea though, would love to see where this goes in the future! Great job :)
Indeed, I've made the grass balls too hard to maneuver, the hold right click didn't get a chance at polish, it's supposed to help carry those things, but even I have problems using it.
Those music loops gave me Outer Wilds vibes instantly and I'll forever be grateful for finding those. Will take the time to polish it and update what is currently in.
One of the best ones for me! Truly loved the atmosphere and the sound. And all in one week? Madness.
Hi! Thanks for trying it. Got really lucky finding that music - love it also. Was just a biiit overscoped and got hits in important parts, unfortunately.
I started playing it and was blown away by how well it works (it feels like a game made by a true professional). The art is incredible and the controls are completely smooth. Technical-wise, it’s amazing. As other comments mentioned, after walking around for a while, eating mushrooms, throwing mushrooms at the whirlpools, etc., I wasn’t quite sure what to do next.
I’ve seen in the comments that you have to take the grass balls to the ‘wounds’. I tried several times but I can’t manage to do it, they’re too volatile. Although the intention isn’t clear, I can think of a solution without abandoning the original idea. The character could have a sort of inventory that only holds the stick, which is only stored when you pick up a ball in your hands. If, when you pick up the grass balls, the ‘wounds’ started singing or making a different/shrill sound, the player would go over there and try things out. I’m going to follow you because I think the game has a lot of potential. Congratulations!
Appreciate you trying the game and thank you for the follow!
I do have plenty of experience with quickly prototyping things, coming from a background of prototyping lots small mobile games.
As for the game, until I decide if I'll move forward with it, I'll polish it in it's current state and keep it updated. I would love to go all in on a project, but my forte is not programming and I feel I might take too much time until release. I'm looking for ways to find a programmer, but If I don't have any luck soon, I will go all in on a project, limiting it's scope to my skills (scope limiting and quick iterations being what I'm trying to learn by jamming).
As for the gameplay, I love the sound idea, however, since I'll keep the scope as is for Pulse, I was thinking of making the ball pokeable and with a particle system (imagine leaves) flowing towards the wound (a more clearly defined wound, that s also a problem). This way, the players can poke the ball, carry it, and break it on release over the wound. The inventory/hotbar is an idea I'll keep in mind for when expanding the game.
Initially, those balls were meant to also harm you - seeing how difficult it is to carry them (they have a wind simulation script and it fights you), I removed it's ability to harm. I'll also study a few ways to guide the player towards the end, or trigger it some other way, rather than a simple trigger collides, as is now. The general loop and endings got serious hits, I'll make sure this won't happen again!
Thanks again for playing Pulse and I hope your next crash is on a more forgiving planet!
I simply must know. Is there an actual gravity mechanic, or are you just rotating the planet?
It's impressive either way. Well done!
Well, the gravity is just a force that pulls you towards the center of the planet. So I have something like a GrowthController which controls the growth of the planet (10 mins). From there on, I adjust things like gravity, sky, offsets for some things etc, based on the progress of it. Throughout the middle of the jam, I actually thought that going the other way around - making the player smaller and not grow the planet - would be the better way. I still think it might be the better way actually - encountered a lot of issues with what I have now.
Cool art, I like the look of the HUD
Thanks for playing, loved designing that HUD and I still have lots of ideas for improving it!
I really like the whole terraforming idea! super interesting, but possibly 1 sub objective while running around would round it out, otherwise this was awesome.
It actually has a bigger objective, save or fail in saving the planet, but I made it really hard for people to notice the wound (which doesn't quite look like a wound) on the surface!
Really well made! not sure i figured out everything but i acknowledge that effort you put in! good stuff :)
Don't beat yourself up for it! It was my fault. The game has a bigger objective, but it's too hidden! Got no time to polish the gameplay loop. It actually has 2 endings, one where you save the planet, one where it dies.
Very cute game! I really enjoyed the art and the gameplay felt quite smooth, as mentioned by another comment I initially struggled a bit to understand the goal but aside from that the game is very well done! Excellent job!
Appreciate you trying it, and I totally understand the objective frustrations. I tried making it so the player realizes things but I failed. That's ok, a lesson learnt!
It is impressive that you created such a playable game in such a short time. The camera angle and movement style are highly interesting, along with the mechanic to open and close the mask. The atmosphere is also very well done. However, I did not really know how to advance the level; I just kept running around, eating mushrooms, and returning to the spaceship to restore oxygen. Overall, my experience was excellent.
Thank you for taking the time to play it! I am well aware of the goal not being made clear. I rushed the endings. The marks on the planet (pulsing edges) are not very clear - they should resemble a wound. Using the stick, the player needs to figure out that the grass balls (don't know how to call them) that grow in the grass can be carried to the wound, broken over it to heal (I know, it's really tough to realise this, my bad). The ending is triggering when the player goes at the hole, after the planet fully grows (10 mins in), but the endings aren't clear either.
Managed to do this with about 2 sleepless nights, but I also used lots of assets pre-owned or pre-made. The gravity and the planet itself took more than I thought it would, so polish, audio and the gameplay loop design got a hit.
I really enjoyed playing your game, gave me Outer Wilds vibes, nice effect with the spherical gravity. I especially liked the UI being attached to the visor, that was nice an satisfying to open and shut. I wasn't too sure on what to actually do in the game other than eating mushrooms and trying now to die? Thanks for creating this, you did an excellent job!
Hi, thank you for playing. I had less time to invest in polishing. The ending is triggered when the planet fully grows and the player goes at the hole. Since the losing end is more on the decay theme, I invested less in the winning one. The pulsing sign on the ground supposed to be the planet's wound. Bringing those spherical plant made thingies and poking them above it should heal it. Then the ending would still be triggered at the hole.
Glad you enjoyed it, I had the same Outer Wilds feeling while creating it. The entire gravity growing system took me more than I expected so it stole time from the polishing side. I implemented like 20% of the sounds and effects I had in mind. Same for the loop design. But happy I finished it.