Play Game
The Link's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Aesthetics | #96 | 3.941 | 3.941 |
| Music | #100 | 3.588 | 3.588 |
| Theme | #194 | 3.765 | 3.765 |
| Sound | #221 | 3.118 | 3.118 |
| Mechanics | #332 | 2.941 | 2.941 |
| Overall | #337 | 3.059 | 3.059 |
| Story | #391 | 2.059 | 2.059 |
| Fun | #418 | 2.647 | 2.647 |
Ranked from 17 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
How many people worked on this game in total?
1
Did you use any existing assets? If so, list them below.
No
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Comments
Will look out for future updates - I tried to do the two instances as you suggested, clicked Host room on first, Join Room on second and tried clicking different names and Join/password but I had no way to enter password from the first (or I could have missed it).
Really enjoyed the menu music and the aesthetics though of what I could see! Best wishes with future updates!
Thank you so much for giving it a try and for the detailed feedback! 😄
I think you may have run into one of the rough edges of the current alpha prototype. After creating a room, the password is generated automatically and displayed in the room window, but it's clearly not obvious enough if several players have missed it. That's definitely something I need to improve.
I'll be spending some time after the jam polishing the UI and overall user experience to make the process much more intuitive. And thank you for the kind words about the music and aesthetics — I'm really happy those parts worked for you!
This looks interesting. Would like to try it out but figuring out how to get another person to coordinate to play at the same time isn't as easy.
That's completely understandable 😄
One of the biggest challenges with the current version is definitely getting two players together at the same time. I'll be working on improving the user experience and making the interface and onboarding much clearer in future versions, so it's easier to understand how to get into a game and start playing.
I'm also planning to add a bot companion mode after the jam, which should make it much easier to experience the game even when a second player isn't available. Thanks for taking a look at the project and for the feedback!
I had to use the workaround to try the game (two instances on one computer) so I only had a small taste of the game, but I liked what I saw! Love the aesthetic and the shooting felt solid.
Thank you so much! 😄
I'm really glad you were able to try it using the workaround, even if it wasn't the ideal experience. The game is definitely designed around two real players cooperating, so there's still a lot you weren't able to see.
It's great to hear that you enjoyed the aesthetic and the shooting mechanics — I spent a lot of time trying to make the atmosphere and combat feel satisfying. Thanks for giving it a chance and for the kind feedback!
A really ambitios online coop only idea. Realy hard to evaluate but feels that a lot of heart and soul was put into it. Fonts and music reminded me of a Satellite reign game.
Thank you so much! 😄
You're absolutely right — it was probably a bit too ambitious for a jam project, but I really wanted to build the entire experience around the idea of a connection between two players. A lot of heart (and probably too many late nights 😅) went into making it work.
And wow, the Satellite Reign comparison is a huge compliment! I'm a big fan of cyberpunk aesthetics, so I'm really happy that the music and visual style gave you those vibes. Thanks again for taking the time to play and leave feedback!
Hi mate, I really like the main menu it was satisfying and the font and music is a top notch keep up for the good but unfortunately all the buttons are working perfectly fine except the create room button 😔 I was unable to play your game because it can't load into the game
Thank you for the feedback and for the kind words about the menu, music, and font! 😄
That's actually very strange. It might be related to the screen resolution or UI scaling somehow. I haven't encountered this issue myself yet, but your report gives me a good lead on where to investigate.
I'll try testing the project on different screen resolutions and setups to see if I can reproduce and fix the problem. Thanks for taking the time to let me know about it!
I really liked the interface style, and the background music was honestly very good. The whole presentation has a nice cyberpunk vibe to it. Unfortunately, that’s about all I managed to see. I couldn’t create a new game or join an existing one. The game seemed to detect a couple of servers, but no matter what I clicked, nothing really worked
Sorry about that — that's actually my mistake! 😅
I created a simulation of two public servers, but I didn't have enough time to fully implement them before the jam ended, so right now they are a bit misleading.
To play the game, you need to select Create Room, choose a map (unfortunately there is only one available at the moment), and share the generated room password with a second player.
The second player should then select Join Room and enter that password in the Password field.
You can also launch a second instance of the game on the same PC and connect from there. However, I recommend playing as the first player (the host), since that instance is responsible for enemy spawning and controlling the game flow.
Thank you for trying the game, and thank you for the kind words about the music and atmosphere! 😄
It looks amazing and interesting sadly that there are no other players. With workaround worked, and yes the musik and athmosphere together feels really nice but i think the most potencial is coming only with a real player :)
Good job its great that you where able to finish it during jam.
Thank you so much for the feedback! 😄
I completely agree — the core idea of The Link is built around the interaction between two real players, so the game really shines when played in co-op.
After the jam, I plan to continue development, add a bot companion mode, and create new maps so the game can still be enjoyed even when no other players are available. Hopefully, over time, the project will build a small but active player community 🙂
I used the workaround running two instances of the game on the same PC to check it out. Music and graphics are great and would love to try this properly with another player.
Thank you so much for playing my game and leaving such a nice review! In upcoming updates, the mechanics will be improved and expanded. 🙃
I liked the idea and visuals of the game. i was not able to get a game going though. It's very ambitious to make a multiplayer game in a jam. pretty amazing you got it finished.
Looks cool, but unfortunately, I didn't manage to play it. There were two lobbies visible, but I couldn't connect to either. Even when I created my own lobby and tried to join with a second instance of the game, nothing happened. :(
You should really upload a YouTube video of the gameplay! The music and the menu are awesome, very atmospheric!
Thank you for giving it a try, and I'm glad you liked the music and atmosphere! 😄
The issue was most likely caused by running both players on the same PC. The main gameplay is controlled by the host (Player 1), and when the host window loses focus, the game effectively pauses — enemies stop spawning and time stops progressing.
After the jam, I plan to add a bot companion mode for the main map and future maps, so the game can be enjoyed even when a second player isn't available. I also like your idea about a gameplay video, so I may add one in a future update!
the game looks really cool, however was not able to play it
As a workaround, you can actually launch the game twice on the same PC. Create a room in one window and join it from the second window using the room code. If you do that, I recommend playing as the first player, since that instance acts as the host.
Not the ideal solution, but it should let you try the game and see how the connection mechanics work!
I can't find anyone to play the game with :(
I'm sorry to hear that 😥
As a workaround, you can actually launch the game twice on the same PC. Create a room in one window and join it from the second window using the room code. If you do that, I recommend playing as the first player, since that instance acts as the host.
Not the ideal solution, but it should let you try the game and see how the connection mechanics work!
Ok I'll try that solution. Thanks
I tried it and I can say that the graphics are captivating, the mechanics are interesting, but I'm not sure what to do other than hold out as long as possible. I tried moving the two pawns above the red buttons, but as soon as the electrical connection turns red, you're teleported back to the starting point. The only thing left to do was kill the enemies and hold out :D
And that's absolutely right! Only one map is available for the game jam—core defense, where you simply have to hold out. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough time to make more maps during the game jam time. That's why two more maps are marked as "Coming soon" when creating the room.
Thank you for playing my game (even though it's not easy solo 😅).
Very cool and ambitious project. I really loved the aesthetics and overall presentation. Great job!
Thank you so much! 😄
I'm really glad you enjoyed the aesthetics and presentation. I spent a lot of time trying to create the right atmosphere and visual style, so it's great to hear that it worked for you.
Thanks for playing and for the kind words!
Super impressive you were able to get multiplayer working for a jam project! I was having some issues trying to test singleplayer, especially since the game was exported to open in fullscreen instead of windowed.
I was able to play a little just from alt-tabbing, though the game seems to fully freeze if the host application is unfocused. I am a sucker for these type of aesthetics though so I can definitely see this game being fun with some more polish.
I'm pretty sure I saw someone's lobby online while testing, it would've been nice to join public lobbies and chat with people.
Unfortunately, I didn't have time to implement the public lobby mechanism during the jam. 😅
You're absolutely right: if player 1 (the host) switches from one game window to another, the game controls will freeze. Since the jam deadline was very tight, I had to implement the game controls on the host side. After the jam ends, the game controls will move to the backend, and this bug will be fixed.
Thank you for trying out the game in single-player mode! 🙏
If you liked the game's aesthetic, you can continue to follow the development after the jam. I plan to spend many hours fixing current mechanics, adding new ones, and polishing the gameplay experience to make the game even better. 🙃
I realy love the aesthetics - dark theme, bloom. Looks really cool!
Sad could not try at full scale because didnt expect it is coop. As everyone I read comments only afterwards)
I’m planning to continue developing this game even after the jam. A dedicated single-player mode will be added (the link main mechanic will still remain, but in a slightly different form), and I also want to add the ability to play with a bot so the main maps can still be completed even when no other players are online.
And of course, I hope the game becomes more popular over time and eventually builds up a regular player base online 😄
Wish you the best luck and success!
Thx a lot!
Hi like the others I tried to download and play it. I like the Aesthetics and the GUI. Nice. Look forward to playing it one day when it's up.
The game is actually available 😄 It’s designed specifically for two players, since the main idea of The Link is the connection between them.
One player needs to create a room using “Create Room”, and the second player joins with the code through “Join Room”. The instructions are also written on the game page 🙃
Great I'll give it a go
Thank you very much, I hope you like it 🙃
I tried to play it and downloaded the game, but unfortunately I couldn’t join a room, and I also couldn’t get the solo mode to start
Sorry for the confusion 😥 Right now you can only join private rooms using a password shared by another player. Unfortunately I didn’t have enough time during the jam to implement public rooms with open matchmaking.
The game is still an early alpha prototype, so some systems are very limited at the moment. Thanks a lot for trying it and for the feedback!
same
Tried to play this but apparently I need a 2nd player.
You can invite a friend and try the game together 😄 The main idea behind The Link is the connection between two players, so the whole experience is designed specifically for co-op gameplay.