LudumData

Notes from a Mad Mage by Razoric

[raw]
made by Razoric for LD30 (JAM)
Theme: The game draws on the "Connected Worlds" theme through connecting past gameplay with present. Everytime you die a ghost will appear and perform the same actions you did on the previous run. The ghosts stack so you can have up to 14 ghosts at a time (totally depending on how much you die). It gets frantic!

Story: While rotting away in prison for over a millenia the Mad Mage has discovered the secret of connecting life with death. Only through the help of past lives will the mage be able to escape the dungeon forever.

Notes from a Mad Mage is a short, action packed puzzle game that may leave your mouse in ruin by the end.

Enjoy!
Web (Kongregate) http://www.kongregate.com/games/Razoric/notes-from-a-mad-mage
Web (Game Jolt) http://gamejolt.com/games/action/notes-from-a-mad-mage/33193/
Post Mortem http://razoric.com/2014/08/making-the-mad-mage-becoming-a-better-designer/
Original URL https://ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-30/?action=preview&uid=27935

Ratings

Coolness 100% 1
Overall(Jam) 3.89 56
Audio(Jam) 3.64 122
Fun(Jam) 4.01 25
Graphics(Jam) 3.73 240
Humor(Jam) 3.52 72
Innovation(Jam) 3.56 127
Mood(Jam) 3.46 195
Theme(Jam) 3.31 318

Feedback

zakchaos
25. Aug 2014 · 20:19 UTC
Love the music,
bit hard for me on laptop touch pad, great graphics tho
could not figure out the mechanic to get past the first puzzle.
SuperPokeunicorn
25. Aug 2014 · 20:27 UTC
Really like the ghost mechanic. Made it really hectic after a while.
cstudios
25. Aug 2014 · 22:31 UTC
DAMN AWESOME!!! Really, I made me happy! I shared it to some of my colleagues.
deadpixelsociety
25. Aug 2014 · 22:35 UTC
FANTASTIC! I love it. The mechanic isn't new, but it's implemented really well. And you had time to put some 'juice' in the game which is really appreciated. Great job all around.
Andrew Adams
25. Aug 2014 · 22:35 UTC
Second playthough I just started blasting everything!!!
John Drury
25. Aug 2014 · 22:43 UTC
Hilarious! Loved this game quite alot. The ghost feature made this game really fun! Played right through to the end :3
OnlySlightly
25. Aug 2014 · 22:43 UTC
That was a ton of fun. Incredibly satisfying as well. Really cool concept!
Miziziziz
25. Aug 2014 · 23:10 UTC
Really fun, took me a while to beat, and dammit I almost had made it with the max amount of lives but I screwed up at the end! really fun and well designed. It's really hard at first, but It got a lot easier once I figured out each areas 's traps, and when i realized I couldn't harm myself with my ghost's fireballs.
LuisDC
25. Aug 2014 · 23:38 UTC
Awesome music and original idea. Great job!
elliottd
26. Aug 2014 · 00:36 UTC
great, lots of fun, compelling mechanic. One thing I don't like is that the top of your head can touch the lava and kill you. player needs a shorter hitbox than the graphic.
jgthespy
26. Aug 2014 · 07:10 UTC
There are so many things that I love about this. Shooting fireballs feels great, the sound effects are hilarious, and the graphics are perfect. Nice work!
Nuclear Napalm
26. Aug 2014 · 14:42 UTC
AWESOME! 5/5 Tons of fun!
The only one thing that I have in my mynd, probably you may add some cooldown for firebals. Right now it becomes easy if you can click really fast))
chrupp
26. Aug 2014 · 14:47 UTC
Nicely done!
Satyre
26. Aug 2014 · 14:51 UTC
Nice. The ghost style is really great. I like that the previous players also can shoot. Solid work.
🎤 Razoric
26. Aug 2014 · 15:13 UTC
Thanks for the feedback so far everyone!
Super Hamster
26. Aug 2014 · 15:49 UTC
Wow! I'm very impressed by the idea and how well everything was done. I was worried that when I got to those evil wizards it would get too hard but I was wrong because it was still possible. Really good innovations, fun, graphics, audio and just overall! Great job! :D
pinion
26. Aug 2014 · 17:13 UTC
Good fun, liked how you could blast things while you waited for your past self.

Only thing was the bridge over the lava seemed a bit touchy and I died the most to that!
Donutttt
26. Aug 2014 · 17:16 UTC
This was awesome! Great idea, well implemented with great graphics and sound. Very nice job indeed.
CodeNMore
26. Aug 2014 · 17:18 UTC
Great controls, graphics, and good (but confusing at first) mechanics.
lkr
26. Aug 2014 · 17:18 UTC
Fun game mechanic with great pixel art - very chaotic after a few deaths :)

The fact that the razor blades and enemies weren't in sync for each life added to the chaos, but in a good way.
Kyoutashan
26. Aug 2014 · 17:19 UTC
It really becomes crazy when you have all your 10+ previous ghosts shooting everywhere. I died a few times more because I lost track of the main character XD

Great job :)
BroCade
26. Aug 2014 · 17:22 UTC
One of the most fun things i have played this jam, infuriatingly addictive! A clever mechanic executed well
Talvara
26. Aug 2014 · 17:23 UTC
Cool game and interesting problem solving involved.
KR-Eddie
26. Aug 2014 · 17:25 UTC
Would like to try it without ghost limit, 1000 fireballs a second sounds fun xD
Music is hilarious, ghoul screams get annoying after a while.
Really fun little action game :)
capsizedmoose
26. Aug 2014 · 18:40 UTC
Love it hahaha
nataku92
27. Aug 2014 · 06:36 UTC
pretty fun
bluemaroo3
27. Aug 2014 · 12:50 UTC
Brilliant fun! Very manic trying to play it on my laptops touchpad. Will definitely be giving it another go on our main pc :D
🎤 Razoric
27. Aug 2014 · 13:47 UTC
Haha yeah I tested it on my Mac laptop (to check performance) and after 10 seconds with the touchpad I was like "nope."
Otrora
27. Aug 2014 · 14:44 UTC
Sometimes enemies can trap you and leave you no choice but to lose all your life at once. That is not good :) Maybe the screams are too annoying at those moments. But beside that, you have some nice ideas implemented there that I will like to see taken to the next step. Well done!
🎤 Razoric
27. Aug 2014 · 15:29 UTC
Yeah that was a last minute issue I discovered at the final hours of the jam I didn't have time to fix. When the screams overlap each other from all the deaths in a row it can be quite jarring. You can also press F super fast for the same effect! :P Thanks for the feedback!
mrexcessive
27. Aug 2014 · 18:02 UTC
Hi there... Loved your game. The physics of the mage fire spell is great, the acceleration away... The sounds especially the piano music, which sounds much like an old B&W film accompianment! Ghosts a good idea also! Great job overall.
Moosefly
27. Aug 2014 · 20:12 UTC
I hate that lava so much. Took me a few tries (I was doing so poorly I just restarted before losing all my lifes :P) but I managed to beat it! Too bad there wasn't a boss at the end waiting for me.

Nice and juicy game. Good job.

Anssi@MooseflyGames
nerd burglars
27. Aug 2014 · 20:27 UTC
Pressing R to reload the game, did not work for me, so every time I had to restart (which sadly, was many times lol)I had to just refresh the screen, but that's no biggie :) The music kinda reminded me of an old black and white western movie. Very unique and challenging game! GJ!
borgi
27. Aug 2014 · 21:24 UTC
Awesome rocket firballs, fun game! Well done!
Once Upon a Team
27. Aug 2014 · 21:42 UTC
Nice music & graphics. SFX are really good too, making this a good action game (camera movements, explosions etc.). Really loved the concept too!

GOOD JOB ;)
yodamaster
27. Aug 2014 · 21:52 UTC
Nice mechanic, but very hard to play.
43iscoding
27. Aug 2014 · 22:02 UTC
The game is ultra fun, in terms of graphics, audio and gameplay! Best Jam entry I've seen so far!
Rob Glen
27. Aug 2014 · 22:21 UTC
Really fun! Love the pace of it, and the music works perfectly with it too.
TravisChen
28. Aug 2014 · 01:05 UTC
AMAZING. Def my favorite game so far.
Linusson
28. Aug 2014 · 06:56 UTC
Really fun and intensive game. Great sound fx and music to go along. I really liked this one. Well done! :)
Manou
28. Aug 2014 · 09:40 UTC
Excellent, top 3.
INC$D021
28. Aug 2014 · 10:27 UTC
It's been said before but.. AWESOME! 5/5 Tons of fun!
Nedd
28. Aug 2014 · 12:13 UTC
Yup, pretty fun game! Took me a few good seconds to ge a grasp of the ghost mechanic, but it was damn awesome after a few deaths!
Franklins Ghost
28. Aug 2014 · 14:13 UTC
The ghost mechanic for solving the puzzles was a great idea and the music worked really well, great game.
MechanicMoon
28. Aug 2014 · 17:46 UTC
Really nice concept! Graphics! And the mechanic of the ghost its nice!
Pierrec
28. Aug 2014 · 18:33 UTC
This is a great idea! Reminds me of Cursor*10, but with more fun because FIREBALLS!
Will Edwards
29. Aug 2014 · 09:21 UTC
+fun!

Really mad mayhem!

The soundtrack was absolutely perfect! Piano really sets the mood :)

Impossible tempo, got to the point where I couldn't actually see the wizard I was controlling due to all the clutter! But I loved every crazy minute of it :D
Jod
29. Aug 2014 · 15:01 UTC
Great work there! I love the slow increase of speed on the fireballs! Music fits the frantic pace as well!
koalamo
29. Aug 2014 · 15:18 UTC
Fun game, ghost mechanic is neat. I think the screenshake on every attack is a bit much. I feel it may be more rewarding if it was on contact with an enemy vs. when you cast. Great work!
Tanner
29. Aug 2014 · 15:22 UTC
Game so good. Made me want to engage with your brand. :D
Pfeyffer
29. Aug 2014 · 16:38 UTC
Awesome game! The connection to the theme is not immediately apparent but it is fun to play. I swear the first few wizard ghosts had a very confused look on their face :-)
Stepwise
29. Aug 2014 · 17:12 UTC
Great game! My hand is falling off, but it was fun to mass up a massive fireball army of death. Am imagining how this would work with more action elements (like a TD variant) vs. puzzle elements! The waiting becomes taxing after a while. But great fun. Super-satisfying to blow stuff up.
Maxom
29. Aug 2014 · 19:59 UTC
Loved this game. Feels very, very well and has a good difficulty! Clearly one of my favorites this year!
vinull
30. Aug 2014 · 01:14 UTC
Nice little game. I didn't quite make it to the end, it became a long run back each time i died and I ended up dying again from lack of patience =)
hamster_mk_4
30. Aug 2014 · 05:34 UTC
Fantastic concept and execution.
SteveSalmond
30. Aug 2014 · 05:49 UTC
Hah that was really cool - nice one :D
liquidminduk
30. Aug 2014 · 08:44 UTC
best name so far haha
I loved how responsive this was, really great gamplay and the art style complimented it nicely.
egor-idiot
30. Aug 2014 · 09:26 UTC
Awesome game! Cool concept and execution. I especially like music and sounds %)
jukimv1986
30. Aug 2014 · 10:09 UTC
Hectic action packed game! It gets furious fast, too many enemies going after the mage, but it makes it even funnier! Great job!
mechabit
30. Aug 2014 · 23:13 UTC
Nice take on the theme and the recorded past selves mechanic. The obstacles don't rest though which means one time the path is clear but the next time it might not be and that messes up the ghost button timings. Good job though
runvs
31. Aug 2014 · 07:51 UTC
Nice concept! This got me really addicted. Sounds are absolutely fun and graphics are nice. Very sweet for this short time!
GeorgeBroussard
31. Aug 2014 · 10:25 UTC
Great entry. Really enjoyed everything about it. Frantic doesn't begin to describe it :)
puppymythril
31. Aug 2014 · 18:46 UTC
Love it. Reminds me of Super Time Force. Main problem I had was not that it was hectic, but cluttered. about halfway through my lives I couldn't even see myself anymore, much less enemy projectiles. It was also a bit too easy to accidentally step on lava while trying to cross the bridges.
bytegrove
01. Sep 2014 · 12:35 UTC
What a fun concept! The feedback from the fireballs and the explosions are really good! And the screams, oh my god the screams. Only annoyance might be that the bridges were a little narrow imo, but no biggie. Nice solid entry!
commodoreKid
01. Sep 2014 · 21:56 UTC
The ghost mechanic is not that original since there are a few titles used it before but not in this kind of game so it counts as original. I used my ghost mages as an army of destruction :D Very good game with everything complete imo.
spotco
02. Sep 2014 · 04:24 UTC
Fun, and a little frustrating!
(Liked the almost-wilheim scream)
xandy
02. Sep 2014 · 20:08 UTC
very cool music&art combined with the little wizzards!
thecolorhacker
03. Sep 2014 · 12:40 UTC
Great entry!
Traumendes_Madchen
03. Sep 2014 · 14:58 UTC
The dying sound is terrifying, I don't even want to know how you made it ;____;
Danman9914
03. Sep 2014 · 22:29 UTC
Screen shake was sooooooooo satisfying. PEW PEW
TowelKing
04. Sep 2014 · 01:01 UTC
good game, I wish there was a way to progress a bit faster instead of waiting for myself to do things faster
ninjascript
04. Sep 2014 · 03:34 UTC
Great mechanic and the art is awesome. Those fireballs feel powerful.
malf
04. Sep 2014 · 07:43 UTC
Great game, after 8-10 deasths I stopped seing anything but it was fun!! :D
chowee
04. Sep 2014 · 18:32 UTC
Excellent entry !

As anounce, the gameplay gets frantic really fast and it is an awesome game, really good job. Graphics are nice and the music and general mood and humor of the game is great !

I greatly enjoyed my time with this ! I return to it now, it's addictive !
H1S2
05. Sep 2014 · 10:51 UTC
what a crazy sloughter house. very funny! great music. Great Graphics. Cool Game!
juaxix
05. Sep 2014 · 14:12 UTC
Nicely done, how did you save all the info of previous sessions?
🎤 Razoric
05. Sep 2014 · 14:16 UTC
I saved all player movements and actions into an array, then assigned the array to a 'ghost' for the next play through.
arhpositive
06. Sep 2014 · 13:54 UTC
Top notch audio, strong visuals and solid gameplay, the only complaint I have is sometimes the lava is too unforgiving when I'm trying to get over the bridge. Maybe it should not kill you if you touch lava while you're also touching a bridge.

Other than that, great entry overall.
vividhelix
06. Sep 2014 · 16:01 UTC
Very cool take on the theme, the shooting baddies make it a bit too hard with all the mayhem - hard to see and dodge their missiles, I think I died 5 times when I was 1 tile away from what I think is the end :(

Great job! Loved the art too!
HeyChinaski
06. Sep 2014 · 21:17 UTC
Awesome work on the pixel art. The sounds are hilarious and the music is great. Really fun to play (although I think any resemblance to the theme is tenuous at best). The sound effect, screen shake and size of the projectiles made shooting them feel really satisfying
hundredhundred
08. Sep 2014 · 01:51 UTC
Awesome job, i really like the game mechanics. Although it gets a bit lagging at times. Nice entry!
Oddly Shaped Pixels
09. Sep 2014 · 07:00 UTC
One of the greatest entries I've seen. The ghost mechanic is super cool and you've added lots of audio and visual feedbacks to everything (screen shake, remaining corpses...) a la Vlambeer ;)
Snicklodocus
09. Sep 2014 · 20:49 UTC
Loved the music and audio! The ghost mechanic was cool, and made the game even more fast-paced. Good job!
radmars
10. Sep 2014 · 00:21 UTC
That was incredible.
zatyka
12. Sep 2014 · 02:29 UTC
That was a lot of fun. Very nice job.
Rage Paint
12. Sep 2014 · 04:06 UTC
Very nice game. As I read through the comments it sounds like I was hitting the lava. I thought the bridge was just disappearing from under me as it would disappear when you died.
sP0CkEr2
13. Sep 2014 · 02:29 UTC
Oh Wow! This was one of the best from the Jam. Added to my favorites.
pikkpoiss
15. Sep 2014 · 22:41 UTC
Utterly chaotic, but in the best possible way. Really cool idea and implementation. Great job!