LudumData

KunoNoOni's Magical Star Saga by KunoNoOni

[raw]
made by KunoNoOni for LD27 (COMPO)
KunoNoOni's Magical Star Saga is a platform game made in the style of those old NES platform games. This game is HARD!

Everything is explained in the game but for completeness here are the controls

LEFT/RIGHT - Move
SPACE - Jump
M/U - Mute Music/UnMute Music

Tips
----

You start with 48 health. This will make more sense when you read the instructions in game.

The health timer begins the moment the level begins and keeps counting even if you pickup a heart. This is not a bug. Time stops for no one :)

You can jump if you're on a platform or if your falling. But you can only jump once. There is no double jump. This is very important to remember. All the jumps in this game can be made.

I know I said it above but I want to say it again. This game is HARD but it is very completable. I did it twice in a row myself. If you remember the tips above you'll have no problem with the game.

I cannot make music. I recommend you press M on the title screen to MUTE the music.

Please enjoy my submission! I hope you have as much fun playing it as I had making it. :)
Web(Flash) https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/53747017/KunoNoOnisMagicalStarSaga/Game/MagicalStarSaga.html
Source https://github.com/KunoNoOni/MagicalStarSaga
Original URL https://ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-27/?action=preview&uid=6464

Ratings

Coolness 100% 1
Overall 3.13 483
Audio 2.32 674
Fun 2.93 550
Graphics 2.78 618
Humor 2.64 346
Innovation 2.32 986
Mood 2.63 630
Theme 2.68 944

Feedback

SecondDimension
27. Aug 2013 · 00:39 UTC
Wow, this is phenomenally hard! Was OK once I figured out how to jump whilst falling though. Well done on your game
ix
27. Aug 2013 · 01:06 UTC
The idea of jumping while falling is a good one. Something about the controls feels off, though; perhaps its the lack of any momentum (real or visual) in the controls.
Ossi
27. Aug 2013 · 01:06 UTC
Some really tough jumps and the health draining really gave a sense of urgency. Perhaps the contrast on the character to the background and the blocks can be adjusted, I felt like it was a bit tough to see exactly when I reached the absolute edge of the platforms. Since this game requires you to keep moving, stopping to judge distance can cost you your life! Also a pretty funny premise for the story, great job!
brogrammers
27. Aug 2013 · 01:09 UTC
Neither me nor my brother could manage to do the second jump ):
Dracae
27. Aug 2013 · 01:14 UTC
WAY TOO DIFFICULT! (Or I'm just horrible at platforming XD )
Anyways, mostly everything is pretty nice!
borden
27. Aug 2013 · 01:15 UTC
Too hard for me!
Nice graphics.
BenWhi
27. Aug 2013 · 01:28 UTC
Probably one of the most solid games I've seen so far this LD. The falling jump was a little tricky at first, but it kept me playing over an over! Good design, story + music!
🎤 KunoNoOni
27. Aug 2013 · 01:30 UTC
Appreciate the feedback. As ix says, the secret to making the jumps is to run off the platform AND THEN jump. Not every jump needs this technique though but a majority of them do.
Mr.Greenhat
27. Aug 2013 · 01:33 UTC
You were right about the fact that it is really hard! But I like games that are some of a challenge. Nice little story too! :)
itidus21
27. Aug 2013 · 01:42 UTC
I beat it in about 23 minutes of play. Haw haw haw.

Best game intro ever.
Fireblend
27. Aug 2013 · 02:20 UTC
Hah, I was stuck at that second jump for a while, but finally figured it out. Probably should have mentioned you could jump while falling in-game :P anyway, great work! It's still pretty hard, but the controls are pretty tight. I do feel like the theme was a bit tacked into the game though.
anmorales
27. Aug 2013 · 02:37 UTC
Really hard game, but I like it, nice work!
netgrind
27. Aug 2013 · 02:48 UTC
Took me a bit to realize I could jump while falling. I kept slowly jumping later to find out where the hit box ended to discover I could jump at any time.
prettymuchbryce
27. Aug 2013 · 03:49 UTC
Very hard. Once I realized I could jump after falling I could at least get to the second block. The controls were tight. Good job.
Tangible Games
27. Aug 2013 · 03:56 UTC
Hard, which is great! Great, which is hard :) Thanks for the game!
TimKaidem
27. Aug 2013 · 04:07 UTC
The difficulty of game is off the charts!
Laelien
27. Aug 2013 · 04:41 UTC
Hard indeed, but very fun. Excellent.
A little comment though. The hitbox for the stars you've got to pick up is a little tricky, and the star had fun just hovering above my head, leading me to become a bloody mess just a second later before I could realize I didn't pick it up :P
Fun and stuff for sure !
leafo
27. Aug 2013 · 06:22 UTC
interesting game, way to unforgiving though! You should spawn at last star when you die or something.
Jason
27. Aug 2013 · 13:53 UTC
I like the mechanic of jumping while falling, but either I missed it, or there is no mention of it in the game. Made it really difficult until I read the comments here. Also, maybe ramp up the difficulty a little bit slower.
nolann
27. Aug 2013 · 16:28 UTC
a bit hard for me but I liked the graphics
PhiL Blunt
27. Aug 2013 · 19:26 UTC
Pretty hard, but enjoyed playing.
funkbob
27. Aug 2013 · 19:35 UTC
Very fun game, liked the falling then jumping mechanic. Got stuck on the 4th level for a while, managed to do the 5th first go :-) Def no easier, this is in the vain of super-meat boy etc,
🎤 KunoNoOni
27. Aug 2013 · 21:45 UTC
Again I appreciate all the feedback.

@Laelien yeah this is because the hitbox for the player is half his height. In hind site I should have increased the hitbox of the stars :)

@Jason nope you didn't miss it. There is no mention in the game. I did however mention it in the tips above...
"You can jump if you're on a platform or if your falling. But you can only jump once. There is no double jump. This is very important to remember. All the jumps in this game can be made."

@funkbob yeah the 4th level gave me problems too :) I actually had to update the 5th level as it able to be completed without losing any health!
Croze
27. Aug 2013 · 22:18 UTC
That was pretty fun :D Made it to the second level and almost beat it before I rage quit haha, you should continue developing this and maybe having a difficulty level ;)
zatyka
28. Aug 2013 · 02:18 UTC
Seriously, this thing is awfully tough, and can get quite frustrating. I finally made it through though....but man, when I fall down 2 levels of floors, I just want to chuck my keyboard against the wall. If that's what you were going for, it was a phenomenal success. I mean this all in the nicest way possible of course :)
DuFF
28. Aug 2013 · 02:25 UTC
This game is really hard! I would have liked to play through the whole game but the first few jumps are killing me. Nice work though.
Joxno
28. Aug 2013 · 02:26 UTC
Incredibly difficult and invokes roughly the same feelings that "I wanna be the guy" does, but does get a bit addictive
JimmyDelaney19
28. Aug 2013 · 02:29 UTC
Once you get the double jumping down, the game is pretty fun. The music kinda drove me crazy though. I will hear the level 4 village music in my sleep tonight.
nathanhoffer
28. Aug 2013 · 03:44 UTC
Redonkulous! This is very hard. Nice work even though I'm frustrated :)
ZYXer
28. Aug 2013 · 04:01 UTC
Awesomely funny background story. Made me laugh. Graphics that fit the game's style. But I must say, the game is really hard. I gave up when I got the first star after I had failed 50 times or so...
🎤 KunoNoOni
28. Aug 2013 · 23:57 UTC
I'm glad you all like it! Yes it is hard. Very hard. Just like those platformers on various the systems. Those platformers where you scream at the TV and want to throw your controller at. Where you swear once you beat it you'll never play it again! But its one of those games that once you do beat it you feel good about yourself for do it. That is the game I made.

As for the music I did warn you all, I am no musician. LOL. You can hit M on the titlescreen to turn off the music.
lulzfish_4
29. Aug 2013 · 02:00 UTC
Definitely hard, but not overly frustrating. The graphics are bad, but I like the backgrounds. I like that the mute buttons are idempotent.
Anachron
29. Aug 2013 · 02:26 UTC
You are HARDCORE. Excellent rainbow!
zillix
29. Aug 2013 · 02:47 UTC
really really difficult, but rewarding. great job!
lekochen
29. Aug 2013 · 03:02 UTC
Completed! Excellent level design. I found that level 5 is the easiest one :P
futuristteletex
29. Aug 2013 · 07:48 UTC
brings me back to the days of dangerous dave =).. was hard for me tho =)
zeh
29. Aug 2013 · 16:16 UTC
Very hard (I had to double-check the description to realize the jump mechanic). Maybe too much text in the beginning too. Nice entry though! With some amount of polish it'd be a great platformer.
ratalaika
29. Aug 2013 · 17:07 UTC
good job
panurge
30. Aug 2013 · 10:48 UTC
The falling/jumping trick was neat. It took me a while to get used to because it's so counter-intuitive but that was part of the fun. This game was maybe a little too tricky for my old fingers but I enjoyed it a lot. Nice mood and general aesthetic.
🎤 KunoNoOni
30. Aug 2013 · 13:52 UTC
Its really good to here you all liked it :) Thank you.
Endurion
30. Aug 2013 · 16:00 UTC
Not too hard, but having to start all over is really annoying.
ChronusZ
30. Aug 2013 · 16:36 UTC
Very difficult, I love it :) I think it might've been a good thing to make the stars checkpoints, though. It's nearly impossible to get all the way up in one go. I liked the fact that you have to jump after falling, it really messes with my platforming ideology!
Niavlys
31. Aug 2013 · 09:01 UTC
At first it seemed that it was impossible, then I read the description and found out about the jump mechanic... I finally beat the game :) It was challenging and fun, well done!
graytest
01. Sep 2013 · 14:07 UTC
Once I figured out I could jump while falling it was a bit better. But the game is still too hard. Especially considering that it is hard from the very first level. A bit of ramp-up would have been nice. Also a tip on the falling-jump thing in-game.
BlackBulletIV
03. Sep 2013 · 11:15 UTC
Way too hard; it kind of felt unfair. I do the like the mechanic of jumping while falling, even though I couldn't really get used to it.
Christina Nordlander
06. Sep 2013 · 19:53 UTC
I was stuck on the second jump for ages until I realised that I could jump while in the air. Once I got past that hurdle, this was quite a decent, hard platformer, if not pushing the envelope in any way. The graphics are a little bit crude, but not bad, and I like the main character sprite. I enjoyed the obvious excuse plot, and it's cool that you made a different tune for each level.

I'm proud to say I beat it, but my thumb aches now...
🎤 KunoNoOni
06. Sep 2013 · 21:32 UTC
Thank you all for the feedback, I really appreciate it.

@Niavlys @Christina Nordlander Congrats to the both of you for beating the game!
Steve Cochrane
14. Sep 2013 · 03:36 UTC
Nice work, it's pretty fun and polished, and the music's really not bad :)
TobiasW
15. Sep 2013 · 21:27 UTC
I think you could've put the info that you can jump while falling a little more prominently in the description - for example where the controls are. It's easily overread where it is right now!

After I understood that, I could actually manage the second jump, haha. The controls are pretty tight, but the game was is still too hard for me.

The intro was pretty cool!
GeorgeBroussard
16. Sep 2013 · 02:20 UTC
Agree with most comments above. I could not grasp the jumping mechanic until I read your longer description above. It's pretty counter intuitive, but I can see it being an interesting mechanic. The game is punishingly hard :) Harder than I'd recommend for a compo game, but great job for 48 hours. I think I'd prefer the mechanic if the *only* way to jump was from falling, so you don't get the two mixed up and confused?