{"author_link":"\/author\/dustoutgames\/","author_name":"Garris","author_uid":"33993","comments":[{"author_name":"ViliX64","author_uid":"29167","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 3:53am","epoch":1429501680,"text":"Please check your links, the Windows link leads to 404: Not Found."},{"author_name":"Garris","author_uid":"33993","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 3:57am","epoch":1429501920,"text":"Link fixed! Thanks for the heads up."},{"author_name":"Lord bobyness","author_uid":"20383","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 4:14am","epoch":1429502940,"text":"This has to be one the best looking games I've ever seen in ludum dare! I'ts not that it's complicated but it is really quite pleasant! The music loop was short but complimented the game very nicely."},{"author_name":"Havacore","author_uid":"19064","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 4:25am","epoch":1429503600,"text":"Music was awesome, the mechanics were sweet, and the graphics were simple, but really well done.  Only thing is that I couldn't for the life of me figure out where to go after getting on the clouds."},{"author_name":"Jonathan Porta","author_uid":"50740","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 4:27am","epoch":1429503720,"text":"This game is rad! I love how you slowly introduce abilities to the player. It makes the game play feel nonchalant and relaxed. The art style is great. But, I think my favorite part is being able to fly a kite across the ground. My childhood would have been so much better if your version of kite was real!"},{"author_name":"Armanky","author_uid":"22901","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 4:33am","epoch":1429504080,"text":"This is the kind of interesting gameplay mechanic I'd hoped to see with this theme!  I'd really love to see a fully fleshed out platformer with kite mechanics.\r<br\/>\r<br\/>As much as I like this game, I have to say that it's way too easy to die and dying is way too unforgiving.  I think some sort of health system would have improved it, since going back to the beginning is so frustrating. Otherwise, this game is really pleasant and creative and cool."},{"author_name":"Leandrus","author_uid":"31764","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 5:17am","epoch":1429506720,"text":"Nice game. I love the music, the art, the felling.\r<br\/>Good work. Thanks for sharing."},{"author_name":"vini60","author_uid":"49640","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 5:56am","epoch":1429509060,"text":"Really well. Simple and not complex games are the best imo."},{"author_name":"BMacIntosh","author_uid":"15030","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 6:03am","epoch":1429509480,"text":"Very pretty game. I, too, was stumped at the cloud section. There were two leaps of faith to lower clouds, but I couldn't see anything after that."},{"author_name":"CodeNMore","author_uid":"33942","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 9:02pm","epoch":1429563420,"text":"This game looks, sounds, and feels amazing, and fits the theme well! I enjoyed it!"},{"author_name":"CarlsonAndPeeters","author_uid":"28902","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 9:06pm","epoch":1429563660,"text":"Very nice stuff! Great use of theme. Had a very Nintendo-y vibe to it with the visuals and music. I agree that the death mechanic was a bit too punishing; maybe let the player keep the upgrades they've gained?"},{"author_name":"Phil Strahl","author_uid":"47131","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 9:07pm","epoch":1429563720,"text":"Really cute art style and music. Gameplay also works nice, the kite is unconventional as a weapon (however, I am not quite convinced how that would work, but hey, that's just me). Design-wise I would have kept the player's abilities after a death because after the third time the stupid bat killed me with one hit, I was pretty much done (but hey, that's just me). Either that or some kind of a health bar, because the controls are also a little unusual, to quote the AVGN here: &quot;Up to jump? UP TO JUMP?!&quot;. How about controlling the kite with WASD, the player with the arrowkeys (or vice versa), space to jump and left Ctrl to attack? Or at least space to attack and keep the up-to-jump-button. But again, that's just me being incapable of unfamiliar button-mappings.\r<br\/>The music was nice too, the 8-bit sounds very fitting (haha, the dog!) but clashing a little with the CD-quality music. Overall I'd liken the mood to Rainbow Islands for some peculiar reason. Nice one!"},{"author_name":"sorlok","author_uid":"28370","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 9:37pm","epoch":1429565520,"text":"Perfect use of the theme, and lots of fun! Some checkpoints would have been helpful, and a few of the controls were hard to remember (could have combined glide and ledge grab into one key). Great game overall!"},{"author_name":"Kronics","author_uid":"52960","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 10:47pm","epoch":1429569720,"text":"Wow, very hard! I really liked the graphics, and the idea."},{"author_name":"hexdie","author_uid":"39984","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 10:58pm","epoch":1429570380,"text":"Not too bad! I really like the visuals and the music! And this is a good take on theme! That said, I have a couple criticisms. I got stuck right at the beginning for a while because I couldn't figure out how to climb that wall. I got stuck again when I had to use the kite to get onto the cloud, it seems like the hit detection there is a little off or weird. Lastly, I couldn't figure out where to go on the second screen of clouds. Nice work though!"},{"author_name":"Wow","author_uid":"45791","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 11:06pm","epoch":1429570860,"text":"Wow, a very pretty game, cute and I loved the art. Thank you so much!"},{"author_name":"Jungle","author_uid":"48998","time":"Apr 20, 2015 @ 11:12pm","epoch":1429571220,"text":"Very good game!!!! Pretty good graphs. The mechanics is great, making player attack, climb, glide!!! I really enjoyed!"},{"author_name":"catchthefloaty","author_uid":"38619","time":"Apr 21, 2015 @ 6:38am","epoch":1429597980,"text":"Brilliant!!"},{"author_name":"chromebookbob","author_uid":"49589","time":"Apr 21, 2015 @ 8:39pm","epoch":1429648440,"text":"Good game! I like the graphic style, and the music fits. Sometimes it is hard to latch onto ledges with your kite though"},{"author_name":"dcolgan","author_uid":"2293","time":"Apr 21, 2015 @ 8:51pm","epoch":1429649160,"text":"Very cool mechanic!  Would have appreciated some checkpoints as others have pointed out."},{"author_name":"Liam :D","author_uid":"20786","time":"Apr 21, 2015 @ 11:47pm","epoch":1429659720,"text":"Man, flying kites sure has changed since I was a kid! Really cool game, I like it :D"},{"author_name":"cdgugler","author_uid":"15070","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 4:24am","epoch":1429762740,"text":"Awesome idea! Graphics and audio were great.  I did manage to somehow pull myself underground at the far left side though."},{"author_name":"tummyache","author_uid":"7321","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 6:23am","epoch":1429769880,"text":"Probably my favorite so far.  It's extremely whimsical, all the pickups feel meaningful and are easily understandable.  The music was great, this was all around amazing."},{"author_name":"zuraguerra","author_uid":"50810","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 6:37am","epoch":1429770720,"text":"i love the mechanics :) so new"},{"author_name":"Frenchie","author_uid":"43979","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 6:51am","epoch":1429771560,"text":"Really well done! Although I must admit I seem to have hit a glitched area and fell through the clouds :( It was all the way on the left side and pretty far up BTW. I was just walking and all of a sudden fell through"},{"author_name":"Davikin92","author_uid":"50202","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 6:54am","epoch":1429771740,"text":"I loved the Zelda\/Final Fantasy town-style theme. It makes me feel that this peaceful start is going to lead to some dark environments or epic battles. You should make the ledge grab controls a little simpler, by just holding down Space and releasing it when the kite is in position."},{"author_name":"Garris","author_uid":"33993","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 7:48am","epoch":1429774980,"text":"That's actually a pretty good idea Davikin92. I may give that a shot for the post-compo version."},{"author_name":"retrophantom","author_uid":"48958","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 8:38am","epoch":1429777980,"text":"interesting idea"},{"author_name":"Yword","author_uid":"26150","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 9:04am","epoch":1429779540,"text":"Wow, the idea and mechanics are very unique and innovative! Well done!"},{"author_name":"lebrokholic","author_uid":"52405","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 4:23pm","epoch":1429805880,"text":"Good job! Very bright and positive game."},{"author_name":"scorched","author_uid":"48268","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 4:28pm","epoch":1429806180,"text":"Poor little wolves :-) Nice one, can you make a fullscreen mode in web?"},{"author_name":"SledKnight","author_uid":"52123","time":"Apr 23, 2015 @ 11:34pm","epoch":1429831740,"text":"Very nice.  I've played this the longest of any so far.  It's a little frustrating having to start completely over, considering there's a place where you fall through the clouds, and it's not clear where to go after you first climb the clouds (over the house).  Over all, very good.  Old-school difficulty rating... lol"},{"author_name":"SledKnight","author_uid":"52123","time":"Apr 24, 2015 @ 12:04am","epoch":1429833540,"text":"Whew... I did FINALLY reach the sun..."},{"author_name":"Garris","author_uid":"33993","time":"Apr 24, 2015 @ 12:59am","epoch":1429836840,"text":"High five! :D"},{"author_name":"daltostronic","author_uid":"39875","time":"Apr 24, 2015 @ 1:09am","epoch":1429837440,"text":"This is nice! You also could, in your 360 version enable two analogs to control your character."},{"author_name":"Nanolotl","author_uid":"4470","time":"Apr 24, 2015 @ 9:19am","epoch":1429866840,"text":"Really well done. Best use of theme I have seen so far. The graphics were simple, but fitting. With a bit of tweaking to the colour palette they would have been perfect. Amazing job."},{"author_name":"simon.parzer","author_uid":"50444","time":"Apr 25, 2015 @ 9:39am","epoch":1429954440,"text":"This feels like a complete game, almost like it was done in more than 48 hours, congratulations to that!\r<br\/>You have to completely start over when you get hurt. Then you have a hard time hitting those enemies with your kite, which makes the game a little frustrating for me. Save points would have been nice."},{"author_name":"ChuiGum","author_uid":"22408","time":"Apr 25, 2015 @ 6:58pm","epoch":1429987980,"text":"Awesome idea! Perfect with the theme and perfect with the innovation! It took me while but it was fun. A few puzzles here and there, great job Dustout! :D"},{"author_name":"Andrew Quartermain","author_uid":"38469","time":"Apr 25, 2015 @ 10:15pm","epoch":1429999800,"text":"Really great game. A nice simple idea and it plays really well. It is really unforgiving though - one hit or unlucky fall and you're back to the start."},{"author_name":"fleegle2000","author_uid":"5313","time":"Apr 26, 2015 @ 1:32am","epoch":1430011620,"text":"Good clean graphics, unique choice of weapon and interesting use of it. I noticed a bit of weirdness jumping next to ledges, and the difficulty might scale up a bit too quickly, but otherwise a great entry!"},{"author_name":"6DownStudios","author_uid":"39552","time":"Apr 26, 2015 @ 3:27am","epoch":1430018520,"text":"Really great work!  I love innovative platforming ideas like this, made for some really unique gameplay.  Everything is very well presented too, pacing's good, the pixelart style suits the mood quite well, and the music is spot on.  Kudos!"},{"author_name":"rogueNoodle","author_uid":"21449","time":"Apr 26, 2015 @ 2:30pm","epoch":1430058300,"text":"Awesome entry - the character was simple yet the animation fit perfectly. Great music, unique mechanics. Only two things I'd look at - getting rid of the blind jumps (unless leading to a super secret area or something), and making the collision a little more forgiving, particularly when attacking bats."},{"author_name":"Big Cow","author_uid":"51323","time":"Apr 26, 2015 @ 11:29pm","epoch":1430090640,"text":"very good! very innovative and fun mechanics. cute art, too!"},{"author_name":"SiENcE","author_uid":"10298","time":"May 1, 2015 @ 10:25am","epoch":1430475600,"text":"Cool Idea to use a kite in a game.\r<br\/>\r<br\/>I wouldn't use this as weapon and handling is a bit complicated. But the athmosphere and kite is very good!"},{"author_name":"mystakin","author_uid":"28484","time":"May 3, 2015 @ 6:46pm","epoch":1430678460,"text":"I like this game. The kite implementation is fantastic and the visual design is adorable."},{"author_name":"Crowbeak","author_uid":"16689","time":"May 5, 2015 @ 7:15am","epoch":1430809800,"text":"This is a neat and adorable idea, but even knowing that I can look around with the kite, it's frustrating to try and figure out what to do. The kite can't go below the player, which means making leaps of faith which, if missed, drop the player back to the beginning of the game and requires the player to cover a lot of ground all over again. Grabbing cloud ledges with the kite seemed broken until I realized that you can only grab at the very edge -- the game gives no indicator of that. Eventually I got stuck because I just couldn't find a new place to go."},{"author_name":"ButtonMasherBros","author_uid":"11937","time":"May 7, 2015 @ 4:10pm","epoch":1431014700,"text":"Pssst - you are in todays Ludum Dare to Believe! Check it out! - https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=DTrb1Vurkpk"},{"author_name":"dvdfu","author_uid":"51259","time":"May 7, 2015 @ 8:34pm","epoch":1431030540,"text":"Very solid game mechanics and presentation! Interesting weapon choice, too."},{"author_name":"Jupiter_Hadley","author_uid":"27744","time":"May 11, 2015 @ 3:22pm","epoch":1431357420,"text":"Love the graphics, really nice use of theme! I included it in part 9 of my Ludum Dare 32 compilation video series, if you would like to take a look :) https:\/\/youtu.be\/eqkTJc6zIls"}],"images":["ld32\/33993-ce292325232d3265035abd790f8ebf09.jpg","ld32\/33993-878943bd3b8b06f5a6d3fd2b97d24fc7.jpg"],"links":[{"url":"http:\/\/dustout-games.itch.io\/can-you-reach-the-sun","text":"Web"},{"url":"http:\/\/dustout-games.itch.io\/can-you-reach-the-sun","text":"Windows (Recommended)"},{"url":"https:\/\/www.dropbox.com\/s\/sbh3ydk7kk5uenj\/KiteKid.gmx.zip?dl=0","text":"Source"}],"metadata":{"g_key":"11092","g_author":"33993","g_event":"LD32","g_eventkey":"27","g_subevent":"COMPO","g_urlkey":"11126","g_title":"Can You Reach the Sun?","g_status":"UCHK1","g_place":"104","g_commentcount":"49","g_site2_node_id":"0","g_hide":"N","g_has_icon":"Y","g_rqueue":"0","g_random":"0"},"nds":[],"node":null,"orig_images":["http:\/\/ludumdare.com\/compo\/wp-content\/compo2\/\/444368\/33993-shot0-1429491052.png-eq-900-500.jpg","http:\/\/ludumdare.com\/compo\/wp-content\/compo2\/\/444368\/33993-shot1-1429510472.png-eq-900-500.jpg"],"text":"EDIT: Anyone having trouble figuring out where to go next, keep in mind you can look around by moving your kite. The camera will pan to follow it. This can be useful in finding new places to jump, glide or grapple.\r\n\r\nUPDATE: Added xbox 360 controller support. Just download the alternate version listed on the itch.io page.\r\n\r\nCan You Reach the Sun?\r\n\r\nMade in 48 hours for Ludum Dare #32 \"An Unconventional Weapon\"\r\n\r\nYou're a kid with a kite. Defend yourself from coyotes and bats (with your kite) and try to reach the sun!\r\n\r\n\r\nIf you enjoy the game, consider following Dustout on Twitter @DustoutGames, or check out our website http:\/\/www.dustout-games.com\r\n\r\nThe game tells you how to play it, but just in case:\r\n\r\nCONTROLS:\r\n*note: not all abilities are available from the start.\r\n\r\n-Move with arrow keys\r\n-Hop with up arrow\r\n-Press up arrow while running into a step up to climb\r\n-Hold space and use arrow keys to move the kite\r\n-Press E to attack\r\n-Hold space, move your kite to a ledge, and press W to grab it.\r\n-Press Q to soar\r\nInstall instructions\r\n\r\nNo install needed. Just download and play!\r\n\r\nPSA: With the exception of the very first skill you pick up (attack) the game should auto-save every time you get a skill (sparkle on the ground). If the game is restarting from the beginning AFTER you've picked up the second sparkle or later, *please* let me know in a comment. The game becomes very unforgiving if checkpoints don't work properly for you, and I don't want this to be too frustrating.","title":"Can You Reach the Sun?"}