MAGS November “Worlds Collide” (VOTING til Dec 20)

Kastchey · Sat 02/12/2023 20:14:25

Quote from: jwalt on Sat 02/12/2023 17:27:31Get a total system lock up on Dreamscape.
Spoiler
Went past the grate, using the crowbar. Entered the sleeper's room. Can't seem to get out of the room, and movement toward the left side gives me the "clock" and locks up. Haven't been through the hole in the wall on the other side of the alley. Not sure of cause, but my system can't seem to handle it. Had to do a system restart.
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Thanks for trying the game! I have made a quick fix. I couldn't reproduce the exact issue you encountered, but your feedback led me to discover another gamebreaking error in the same room that had slipped my mind yesterday night.

Just noticed your second response when I was previewing, glad to hear it finally worked ok. I do think it's a game issue, the custom GUI I made is a bit wonky at times. Something to do a better job with after MAGS, I guess.

tbook · Sun 03/12/2023 09:00:24

Quote from: The Great Underground Empire on Sat 02/12/2023 19:20:39Phew, thank you! 😅 I finished it around 1AM my time and was worried I missed some gamebreaking bug in my half awake brain. 😄

We've just played your game and it was very fun

Planet dating simulator.
We had a good time, the comedy was on point

tbook · Sun 03/12/2023 09:20:33

Quote from: Kastchey on Sat 02/12/2023 20:14:25
Quote from: jwalt on Sat 02/12/2023 17:27:31Get a total system lock up on Dreamscape.
Spoiler
Went past the grate, using the crowbar. Entered the sleeper's room. Can't seem to get out of the room, and movement toward the left side gives me the "clock" and locks up. Haven't been through the hole in the wall on the other side of the alley. Not sure of cause, but my system can't seem to handle it. Had to do a system restart.
[close]
Thanks for trying the game! I have made a quick fix. I couldn't reproduce the exact issue you encountered, but your feedback led me to discover another gamebreaking error in the same room that had slipped my mind yesterday night.

Just noticed your second response when I was previewing, glad to hear it finally worked ok. I do think it's a game issue, the custom GUI I made is a bit wonky at times. Something to do a better job with after MAGS, I guess.

The art is stunning!
Seems like a part of a bigger game, do you intend to continue with it?
I loved how the menu looked and the in game graphics were crazy good for a MAGS entry

Kastchey · Sun 03/12/2023 10:37:39

Quote from: tbook on Sun 03/12/2023 09:20:33The art is stunning!
Seems like a part of a bigger game, do you intend to continue with it?
I loved how the menu looked and the in game graphics were crazy good for a MAGS entry

Thank you! Yes, definitely part of a bigger game. The gameplay as it is now probably makes little sense with the noise alert not really doing anything, so the game is more of a prototype, not even a demo. I had intended to make certain actions trigger different levels of noise, ultimately leading to the player being captured if they are not careful enough, or if they leave the streets without some sort of distraction. But I didn't have time to implement it.

I have already added some things to the game (unpublished - it wouldn't be fair to update as long as the competition is still ongoing) and I'm hoping to continue afterwards, or at least add it to the projects that I'm switching between

Stupot · Wed 06/12/2023 14:47:37

Sorry for the delay in setting this up.

I was very happy to see a lovely crop of FOUR games for November. And they all look great. I trust you've all started playing some of the games already, but you still have until the 20th to vote for your favourite.

Vote using the poll at the top of the page.

	Wagu Ogambo -- A Reality on the Norm game by jwalt
	The Play of Life by tbook
	Dreamscape: Silent Serenade by Kastchey
	Worlds Literally Collide by The Great Underground Empire

The Great Underground Empire · Wed 06/12/2023 16:21:34

No worries, glad you're feeling better!

I also really enjoyed everyone's games, you all did a great job!

tbook · Wed 06/12/2023 16:30:57

Let's just say that it wasn't so obvious to me how to spend my vote.

I went with Wagu Ogambo. I felt that it was the closest to a full game.
World Collide was very fun experience, I really enjoyed it but the problem for me was that it was only one room.
Dreamscape had the best looks, it was in more serious tone and I think I was feeling more like something lighter that day.
Wagu was funny, the characters were fun, lots of humor, nice locations, I liked it!

Kastchey · Thu 07/12/2023 05:02:26

I've played through all the entries, here are some thoughts:

jwalt's Wagu Ogambo -- A Reality on the Norm game:

Spoiler

Very simple on the puzzle side but enjoyable. I loved the "map" in the form of the characters lined up, very clever! I haven't played RON all that much so I could have missed some jokes, but I had fun nonetheless.

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tbook's The Play of Life:

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Despite the moments where MAGS time constraints bit off some of the puzzles, this one felt the most like the classic point'n'click adventure game. I liked the interpretation of the theme, and the consistent graphics and nice animations added to the overall enjoyment.

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The Great Underground Empire's Worlds Literally Collide:

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This was super fun! I absolutely adored the geek humor and the cute graphics. To finish the game, I had to replay it three times (loading doesn't work - you might have forgotten FillSaveGameList() somewhere, perhaps?) but the dialogues are so fun and well-written that re-reading them was a pleasure.
(Also, I'm so gonna nominate this planet as Best Character this year)

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My vote went to:

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Worlds Literally Collide. You had me at "Eat my ice!"

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jwalt · Thu 07/12/2023 14:55:45

Quote from: Kastchey on Thu 07/12/2023 05:02:26I've played through all the entries, here are some thoughts:

jwalt's Wagu Ogambo -- A Reality on the Norm game:
Spoiler
Very simple on the puzzle side but enjoyable. I loved the "map" in the form of the characters lined up, very clever! I haven't played RON all that much so I could have missed some jokes, but I had fun nonetheless.
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The stuff I do with RON is, very likely, well outside the canon for a RON game. RON's story lines are pretty disjointed, and some of the older, establishing games take more fiddling around to get to run, than I'm willing to devote to them. I'm, mainly, stealing the backgrounds and characters.

Regarding this month's entries:

Spoiler

I felt both Play of Life and Dreamscape had above average graphics. Dreamscape left me wanting much more, which is not a bad thing. Even asked a friend to look at Dreamscape, since I felt I might have been missing something. I found three sleepers; my friend only found the one. Making me wonder if there were more than three? In the end, Worlds Literally came out on top, because that's the one I enjoyed the most.

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Kastchey · Thu 07/12/2023 16:01:54

Quote from: jwalt on Thu 07/12/2023 14:55:45
Spoiler
Dreamscape left me wanting much more, which is not a bad thing. Even asked a friend to look at Dreamscape, since I felt I might have been missing something. I found three sleepers; my friend only found the one. Making me wonder if there were more than three?
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Spoiler

No, there are three of them, congrats on finding them all! Initially, I was planning a noise system (the vertical bar in the top left corner) that would alert the patrols if you're not careful enough. That would limit the choice of actions within a single playthrough and push the player to search for more subtle solutions instead of, say, just bashing your way into the house with a crowbar. But alas, no time! That's probably why the game feels like there's something more to be discovered, but there actually isn't.

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The Great Underground Empire · Thu 07/12/2023 23:41:46

Quote from: Kastchey on Thu 07/12/2023 05:02:26The Great Underground Empire's Worlds Literally Collide:
Spoiler
This was super fun! I absolutely adored the geek humor and the cute graphics. To finish the game, I had to replay it three times (loading doesn't work - you might have forgotten FillSaveGameList() somewhere, perhaps?) but the dialogues are so fun and well-written that re-reading them was a pleasure.
(Also, I'm so gonna nominate this planet as Best Character this year)
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My vote went to:
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Worlds Literally Collide. You had me at "Eat my ice!"
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Ack! I never thought to test my save load functions!

Thank you for catching that! (Update: just fixed and reloaded, turned out I accidentally just made the Restore GUI visible with the main menu button instead of running RestoreGameDialog. Saves and loads worked in-game, just not from that menu.

)

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And thank you for the kind words, it really means a lot to me! It's just fun doing this with so many talented creators!

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The Great Underground Empire · Thu 07/12/2023 23:44:56

Quote from: jwalt on Thu 07/12/2023 14:55:45Regarding this month's entries:

Spoiler
I felt both Play of Life and Dreamscape had above average graphics. Dreamscape left me wanting much more, which is not a bad thing. Even asked a friend to look at Dreamscape, since I felt I might have been missing something. I found three sleepers; my friend only found the one. Making me wonder if there were more than three? In the end, Worlds Literally came out on top, because that's the one I enjoyed the most.
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Aw, thank you too! Everyone did fantastic, I'm so glad you enjoyed it!

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Ponch · Sat 09/12/2023 15:46:14

Voted! Really great roster of games this month.

heltenjon · Sun 10/12/2023 15:30:58

Whoa, four great entries! You all did really well!

My thoughts about the individual games this month:

Wagu Ogambo -- A Reality on the Norm game by jwalt:

Spoiler

It's been a while since I've played the RON games, but even though I couldn't remember all the characters' traits very well, this worked out fine and was a fun play. It's a funny story, and while the puzzles mostly consist of doing things in the correct order, I didn't mind. I agree that using the characters as a "map" is a good idea (I've even done that myself

) that saves the player from walking around too much.

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The Play of Life by tbook:

Spoiler

Great story. It looks like you had intended to include some more content, if the unused inventory items are anything to go by. The design seems to be a mix of different ideas - walking between locations or movement through a sort of map, for instance. Cool use of the same locations in daytime and at night. I like the puzzles and the story, but I don't think they are completely integrated. Like gathering money before knowing the price of admission.

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Dreamscape: Silent Serenade by Kastchey:

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I want this game now! Exceptional in art, mood and puzzles, but of course, it isn't finished. I broke the game by entering the dreamscape while wearing the helmet, for example. I found multiple solutions to puzzles, three sleepers, but no way to complete the first task. Is there one? I made a decoy, but had no place to put it. This is the only entry with challenging puzzles this time.

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Worlds Literally Collide by The Great Underground Empire:

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Great humour and a really fun, yet short play. I liked the literal take on the rules. Constant breaking of the fourth wall and a rounded game.

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I basically liked all four games and think all of them could be worthy of my vote. I'll give it a think before I decide.

Kastchey · Sun 10/12/2023 20:21:21

Quote from: heltenjon on Sun 10/12/2023 15:30:58
Spoiler
I want this game now! Exceptional in art, mood and puzzles, but of course, it isn't finished. I broke the game by entering the dreamscape while wearing the helmet, for example. I found multiple solutions to puzzles, three sleepers, but no way to complete the first task. Is there one? I made a decoy, but had no place to put it. This is the only entry with challenging puzzles this time.
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Thanks so much! Yes, the game is unfinished, but I'm glad you still enjoyed the atmosphere and the prototype puzzles.

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As you figured out, there is no way to complete the first task. I only had time to implement 2 & 3, plus some elements that would lead to 1 but make no difference if you set them up, like the decoy (there IS a place to put it, though

I dare you to find it).
As for the helmet error, ehh, this is what I get for posting an untested last minute entry. Thanks for letting me know, I've fixed this in the version I'm working on outside of the competition.

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Stupot · Tue 19/12/2023 09:56:52

Last chance to vote, folks

Stupot · Wed 20/12/2023 21:42:14

Thank you to those who voted.

The winner of MAGS November is. . .

Worlds Literally Collide by The Great Underground Empire

Well done, TheGUE. I'll be in touch seen about setting the theme for January.

Kastchey · Wed 20/12/2023 22:24:21

Congrats, The Great Underground Empire! A well deserved win

The Great Underground Empire · Thu 21/12/2023 02:52:33

Oh dang, thanks everyone! It really means a lot. I'm just glad we all had fun being creative together!

heltenjon · Fri 22/12/2023 08:53:31

Congratulations, The GUE! Funny game and a worthy winner! Now how about that Not My First Apocalypse world...

MAGS November “Worlds Collide” (VOTING til Dec 20)

What is your favourite game of MAGS November?