LudumData

The Lost Robos by almightyzentaco

[raw]
made by almightyzentaco for LD27 (JAM)
Years after the extinction of mankind all life on earth has ended, and the planet has grown cool and still.

But somewhere deep within the earth something is stirring! Help Mankind's creations, the little orphaned Robos, to navigate their way to the surface where the sun can breathe new life into their drained power cells! Each Robo only has TEN SECONDS to act on each level before their power cells run dry. Find a way to overcome the limitations of each individual by working together.

Think. Cooperate. Overcome.



Controls

Arrows to move
X to jump
Z to activate special abilities
UP raises the shield above Robo #3's head.
R to restart the current level
SPACE to pause all Robos and halt their power cells draining
1,2,3,4,5 to select the corresponding Robo.
Windows http://gamejolt.com/games/platformer/lost-robos/17141/
TRAILER http://youtu.be/gUVc7ZQLC74
Original URL https://ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-27/?action=preview&uid=25879

Ratings

Coolness 100% 1
Overall(Jam) 3.86 32
Audio(Jam) 2.98 243
Fun(Jam) 3.53 73
Graphics(Jam) 3.53 222
Humor(Jam) 2.48 271
Innovation(Jam) 3.65 56
Mood(Jam) 3.56 84
Theme(Jam) 3.89 21

Feedback

Will Edwards
27. Aug 2013 · 11:12 UTC
The 'web' version is a bit ... linear!

Seriously, if there's a browser-game-version, I'd love to play it.
Moosefly
27. Aug 2013 · 11:31 UTC
Nice setting and solid gameplay, a tad too hard for me, only made it to "Switchbacks" before giving up.
dom2d
27. Aug 2013 · 12:13 UTC
Woah, really great work here. Good variety, lots of levels, really cool stuff! Congrats!
vanderZwan
27. Aug 2013 · 13:51 UTC
I second what dom2d said - great work. The ten second limit is both a fun addition and a huge stressfactor :D
myachin
27. Aug 2013 · 13:53 UTC
Good work! Very nice puzzles, pretty graphics, good levels!
Mekuri
27. Aug 2013 · 14:02 UTC
This is a very nice puzzle game! Nice puzzles, and nice to see a game with lots of well designed levels! I really like how you utilized the theme.
N427
27. Aug 2013 · 18:25 UTC
Really good work, the puzzles were great!
Tanser
27. Aug 2013 · 19:37 UTC
Very interesting game, though the beginning screen with your company or what it is stays a bit too much if you ask me, other thing is after skipping the intro - because I watched it in Youtube (Very nice one btw, you got like from me!:) ) it seems that the controls get bugged and I cannot move or do what so ever.
Love the art and the idea, good job!
🎤 almightyzentaco
27. Aug 2013 · 22:41 UTC
The controls aren't bugged, you have to press the corresponding number to activate your robot - number 1 for the main robo.
🎤 almightyzentaco
27. Aug 2013 · 22:43 UTC
If you run out of time you have to press R. I shouldn't have counted on people reading the introduction. Bad conveyance on my part. Ah well, too late now. :D
Alex Rose
27. Aug 2013 · 23:53 UTC
This is awesome! Absolutely loved it. I didn't know how to complete Farewells though, I used 2 to push 1, 3, 4 and 5 up, allowed them to jump on his shield, then pressed his switch, I let 5 do his digging, 4 went and pressed the other switch, but I couldn't find where 3 was meant to go, so I failed :( .

Really amazing though. Great Lost Vikings feel to it (and the grey robot looks really Daft Punky, was that intentional?). Great effort, my most played game this LD.
KhaoTom
28. Aug 2013 · 01:40 UTC
This has really good gameplay and I love that Intro sequence!
Beanalby
28. Aug 2013 · 01:45 UTC
Great, loved playing the lost Vik...er, Robos! :)
Serishmus
28. Aug 2013 · 01:48 UTC
One of the best I've seen! I love the gameplay and the use of the theme is perfect.
Diptoman
28. Aug 2013 · 11:21 UTC
Woah, we used similar concepts. XD
Great work! You should've kept some way to speed up the intro sequence though.
BumpkinRich
28. Aug 2013 · 11:22 UTC
Really nice piece. Well done.
Aslai
28. Aug 2013 · 11:33 UTC
The graphics are very cohesive and fit a very charming style. It was also very fun! I hope to see you at the top of the charts. Keep up the good work!
GSM Productions
28. Aug 2013 · 12:58 UTC
Great stuff! Very impressive intro and polished feeling. The only thing I couldn't get to work (unfortunately kept me out of the game) was the special abilities... Maybe that's because I am not on a qwerty keyboard, so I'm using a layout switcher... But I could never get the shield raised... :( Still a solid experience, and the trailer was a nice touch!
🎤 almightyzentaco
28. Aug 2013 · 13:56 UTC
Hey, thanks for playing! You actually raise the shield by pressing up on the keyboard. I realized the game controls were a little confusing and I didn't do a great job of explaining things. Live and learn though.
ratalaika
28. Aug 2013 · 16:52 UTC
good job
panurge
28. Aug 2013 · 17:22 UTC
When I saw the title, I thought it would be cool if this were inspired by 'The Lost Vikings.' And I was right - it is cool! It's pretty awesome, in fact, with great level design and a nice aesthetic. I really enjoyed playing it.
🎤 almightyzentaco
28. Aug 2013 · 20:09 UTC
If you die make sure you press R! People seem confused and think the game is broken, but really I just wasn't very clear in stating that you ALWAYS HAVE TO PRESS R to restart. Hope that helps.
NiceAlexanderAS
28. Aug 2013 · 22:31 UTC
Nice! Best entry so far :D ... lots of levels! :D graphics are awesome!
Vaughn
29. Aug 2013 · 03:43 UTC
Some very high level of polish here. Great game mechanics and detailing. Good use of theme to boot! Box collision/gravity was a little wonky, and some, erm glitches were afoot: http://screencast.com/t/Ry9t6FmObq

But that didn't stop it from being a super great entry all in all. I completed it all the way through. Some really clever stuff! Hard to believe the length rivals some commercial indie games. Great ending! Great work!
Xatulu
29. Aug 2013 · 05:53 UTC
Great puzzles, very enjoyable!
comrad_gremlin
29. Aug 2013 · 18:40 UTC
Very cool game. Multi-character puzzles have a special place in my heart :) + extra points for the trailer.

How to pass "Not fast enough level"?
🎤 almightyzentaco
29. Aug 2013 · 21:00 UTC
I don't want to ruin the levels for anyone by posting here, but if you still want to know you can email me at joshuakoester@gmail.com and I'll help you out. Thanks for playing!
SaintHeiser
31. Aug 2013 · 06:45 UTC
Nice work, dude!
Really enjoying with puzzles and concept. Also it's a bit similar to my entry, yeah!
BrothersT
31. Aug 2013 · 16:11 UTC
Wow, this looks really cool. Unfortunately I can't seem to move :( The enter key seems to work, for skipping text, but nothing else..
Toadpud
31. Aug 2013 · 16:22 UTC
Awesome!
sorceress
31. Aug 2013 · 16:25 UTC
This game has a lot of potential I think. There are lots of possibilities with these mechanics. I like the graphics and the gameplay, and overall I found it enjoyable.

I played the game upto the Elevation level. But the timings on that level felt too tight imo. After failing it by half a second several times over, I'm afraid I lost interest in trying again.

This kind of game would benefit from the player being able to select the level they want to play, so they aren't forced to try and fail the same level over and over. eg, if there were 64 levels organised into 8 tiers, and you have to complete half of the levels in tier N before tier N+1 is unlocked.
🎤 almightyzentaco
31. Aug 2013 · 17:21 UTC
Thanks for playing! If done right things should be fairly easy to complete. You are most likely missing a few key ways to save time. The game is less about execution and more about what you do with each Robo. For example you can push Robos with Robo 3 to give them more time in the level.

Again, thanks for playing! Glad you enjoyed it.
Xaychru04
31. Aug 2013 · 18:20 UTC
I love the concept of this game, it's pretty innovative. The levels use the game mechanics in a cleer way. Good job! :)
Dream Of Sleeping
31. Aug 2013 · 19:05 UTC
I like the graphics, sound and general atmosphere. I think it is a good game and I might come back when I have more patience but the controls are driving me mad. I'm guessing I have to raise the shield above robo 3's head so robo 1 can jump on him, but I keep messing up because of the control system. There are so many different buttons spread alround the keyboard. You make it way more complicted then it has to be. Anyway I think it's a problem that easely fixed, then it would be fun to play.
🎤 almightyzentaco
31. Aug 2013 · 20:05 UTC
My roommate would agree with you Dream of Sleeping. If I work on it after the compo I'll tweak it, but for now it is what it is. Sorry you found it so frustrating, but thanks for trying it out.
HeyChinaski
04. Sep 2013 · 21:55 UTC
Really clever mechanic and great puzzles. Looks fantastic too, love the gears in the background and the intro.
drkrunk
07. Sep 2013 · 00:24 UTC
One of the best I have played. If you work on this after the compo you should change up the controls, I didn't find them frustrating just a bit unintuitive. Space or up to jump and number keys toggle power on/off maybe would of worked better.(I found myself pressing these key while playing XD). I absolutely loved this game. The puzzles were awesome, and all the characters have good personality to them (Even though that maybe unintentional). A very solid entry overall.
GFM
11. Sep 2013 · 01:17 UTC
Amazing entry!
It feels really complete with even an intro and ending.

The mechanic was really nice and, at fist, reminded me of Lost Vikings (also because of number 2 and 3).

The last level was great! It somewhat felt like a farewell for leaving each robot in it's own button.

Also, a tip about controls. Something I find useful to do (but was never able during a compo xD) is to create customizable controls. (though I didn't have trouble with the controls)

Great job! :D
Almax27
13. Sep 2013 · 20:33 UTC
That's actually really cool. I love the old skool puzzle element. My brain had trouble getting used space not being jump but then I'm horribly conditioned to it.

This is certainly a game I'd play in my own time. The art and the great intro suits the game but also shows how important these elements are.

P.S Chromatic aberration FTW. :D

- Zubrowka