Pyramid by PaulSB

[raw]
made by PaulSB for LD26 (COMPO)
Pyramid is an abstract, minimalist roguelike(-like).

Features include!
-An endless pyramid to descend through, full of spirit horrors!
-16 unique weapons called different things!
-Streamlined, minimalist gameplay - even a decent run will take no time at all!
-Unsettling atmosphere pulling you ever deeper into the tomb of malevolent spirits!

How many levels can you survive in... the Pyramid?

Controls:
-Arrow keys/WASD/ZQSD to move (move into spirits to attack)
-Click on objects and creatures to identify them

Ratings

Coolness 40% 1535
Overall 3.41 323
Audio 3.31 196
Fun 3.26 310
Graphics 2.89 669
Innovation 3.08 595
Mood 3.32 230
Theme 3.74 358

Feedback

matthias_zarzecki
29. Apr 2013 · 05:13 UTC
Lovely idea! It's great how you immediately go "Oh, Pyramid. I get it"

Minimalist artstyle works surprisngly well. I like the brighter upper right "border" on the squares, gives the world not to be underestimated amount of depth.
Jonathan Whiting
29. Apr 2013 · 11:05 UTC
Got to level 18 or so, really enjoyed the opening out level mechanic. Found it a little hard to figure out tactics (beyond dodging is good + the blue things can heal you when you kill them).
Hypnohustla
29. Apr 2013 · 13:09 UTC
Really good execution on the theme department. I always enjoy a sweet roguelike. Escalated nicely. :) And also enjoyed the audio.
Test User
30. Apr 2013 · 02:50 UTC
Fun puzzles, it looks procedurally generated which == replayability! One qualm was the impossible situations, where you spawn next to an enemy and get hurt right away without even doing anything, or when that one purple guy chases you so there's no right move. Overall, fun game though.
jukimv1986
30. Apr 2013 · 23:51 UTC
Great concept and neat gameplay!! I really enjoyed playing it though I could only get to level 27. I see what you did there with procedurally generated levels, though as it happened to me once it is not easy to generate true randomness without side effects (like enemies trapped in inaccessible places). Very good work!!
🎤 PaulSB
01. May 2013 · 09:51 UTC
Level 27 is a great effort! It gets incredibly treacherous into the 20s. Orange squares will ruin your day.

To clarify on item drops: a weapon is generated and auto-equipped IF it is superior to your current one, otherwise you get the equivalent attack power as health. So they're always good to get.

Thanks for playing!
CaseyHardman
02. May 2013 · 23:04 UTC
I'm going to be a critic here, hopefully it doesn't sound like I'm being rude (I rather enjoyed the game):

I don't understand the point of 'identifying' a spirit if all it gives you is the name, and you can't really judge whether or not you'll be able to kill it from that.

The weapons also seemed a bit confusing: could I get a weapon that's worse than the weapon I have on already? Should I be cautious which one I pick up because of this?

I couldn't move diagonally, but the generated levels seemed to think I could. I'm not sure if this is some kind of glitch, or if I'm just not good enough at hitting the keys at once.
🎤 PaulSB
03. May 2013 · 10:02 UTC
1 - True, it just gives a bit of flavour; perhaps someone might remember the strength of a given named enemy.
2 - Weapons only equip if they're superior. I know this is unclear, I didn't get to messaging that to the player really. Items are always beneficial.
3 - Yeah that's a bug I never killed, and why the reset function was added.

Cheers!
Mekuri
03. May 2013 · 14:58 UTC
Very good game, and true to the theme. I enjoyed it, though I must admit, I didn't realize you could kill the other squares until I read it in the comments.
lotusgame
03. May 2013 · 15:14 UTC
good little game. The sound give a perfect atmosphere.
MinionStudios
05. May 2013 · 15:47 UTC
Wicked game, love the shrinking/upres!
Ryusui
06. May 2013 · 19:59 UTC
That was amazing. I got to level 26 or so before dying.
Erunaamo
08. May 2013 · 03:42 UTC
I wanted to play a minimalist roguelike first, and this one was very satisfying. Strong use of the theme, entertaining flavor text, fun to play. One frustrating thing: when you die, the screen fades out too fast to read how far you got.
Erunaamo
08. May 2013 · 17:28 UTC
Oh, and "Serrated Chopsticks of Patience" is my new favorite named weapon anywhere.
donan
09. May 2013 · 12:59 UTC
Trully addictive game. Great work :D
GingerMess
11. May 2013 · 16:24 UTC
I love the atmosphere in this game, however...minimal it may be. A really good game.
Martin_Monosys
11. May 2013 · 16:24 UTC
Cool game, nice sound! Liked it... :)
arrogant.gamer
11. May 2013 · 17:09 UTC
This was a spectacular game. Man, my Barbaric Axe of Horror slew so many foes. I'm not a person who tends to play rogue-likes, so I actually had a learning curve to get over. My first play I thought I just had to avoid enemies. I got to about level 13. Once I realized I could sometimes kill them, I got further. When finally I started to get weapon upgrades, then I took off. I think I got to like, level 40? I imagine there are 99 levels (or maybe some power of 2?).

Anyway: great mood, the little "plop" sound really made it for me. I played this again and again. I am curious about the AI, also. The orange guys seemed really shy, despite their power.

Finally I died in an ambush...
Sebastian
11. May 2013 · 19:10 UTC
Very compelling, I really like the light background music.
It would be nice if it would say how far you got when you die.
Sestren
21. May 2013 · 00:00 UTC
Reminds me of a minimal-ized version of an old favorite of mine, Scarab of Ra. The vision fog was a nice touch, and the ambient music was cool.