Guru by BrothersT

[raw]
made by BrothersT for LD26 (JAM)
The Guru is a mysterious desert-dweller who guides animals from captivity with his spiritual powers!

** POST-COMPO VERSION **
The post-compo version included in the download features a different title card and loading and credits graphics, for those who don't like staring at blank screens. That's the only difference!

** AND A MESSAGE FOR OUR PLAYERS **
We went for something quite minimalist in terms of art style and puzzle solving. Art was still a bitch though.

We a had a great time on this. Hope you enjoy it! And congrats to everyone who finished! Let's us know what you think and we'll be sure to check out your game too!

Have fun!

Joe and Rob

** NEW TWITTER AND FACEBOOK ACCOUNTS FOR BROTHERST **

https://twitter.com/BrothersThomson
https://www.facebook.com/BrothersThomson

[UPDATE - 30/04/13 04:44]
Fixed missing audio library.

[UPDATE - 03/05/13 00:57]
Fixed errors experienced on some PCs where game would freeze and crash on loading. Also added post-compo version with title screen and credits.

[NOTICE]
To anyone experiencing errors, could you please upload the contents of the simi_log.txt file to pastebin, then post the link in the comments. Thank you!

Ratings

Coolness 76% 2
Overall(Jam) 4.16 8
Audio(Jam) 3.81 51
Fun(Jam) 3.64 43
Graphics(Jam) 4.67 3
Humor(Jam) 3.76 22
Innovation(Jam) 3.98 23
Mood(Jam) 3.93 25
Theme(Jam) 4.14 32

Feedback

IHateATMFees
30. Apr 2013 路 02:58 UTC
The download link does not work
馃帳 BrothersT
30. Apr 2013 路 03:33 UTC
Fixed!
billknye
30. Apr 2013 路 05:21 UTC
Fun puzzles, first puzzle with the fish I don't quite understand, succeeded at it once though. The dog in the car is the best one, fantastic!
EdoMiyamoto
30. Apr 2013 路 13:24 UTC
Good job making this, it's very unique
tonbery
30. Apr 2013 路 14:35 UTC
all 5 stars! =D

like, the most incredible game I see around here!
the art is amazing and the concet as well

really nice job and congratulations!

(just dont know what to do with the fish D= )
8BitPimp
30. Apr 2013 路 19:16 UTC
Very nice, and very relaxing. Really unique, minimal and great. The fish one was hard though, I couldn't solve that. I would love to see more of this kind of game.
Tokken18
01. May 2013 路 14:54 UTC
Can't play, have a mac.
hissssssssss
01. May 2013 路 15:05 UTC
The game crashes as soon as I try to launch it. I'm running Windows 7 and not quite sure what's wrong.
馃帳 BrothersT
01. May 2013 路 15:10 UTC
Hi hissssssssss,

Do you get an error message?
Dietrich Epp
01. May 2013 路 15:21 UTC
Cool! Wish it didn't grab fullscreen right away. And... tell uss how to solve the fissshhh...
馃帳 BrothersT
01. May 2013 路 15:22 UTC
Haha, for the fish you've got to think ultra minimalist! We're not telling! (not until lots more people have tried at least)
Rex Peppers
01. May 2013 路 15:24 UTC
Can't play windows games :-(
yellowlemming
01. May 2013 路 15:32 UTC
really amazing game, but I cannot do that fish puzzle at all
Mase
01. May 2013 路 15:37 UTC
I'm running Windows 7 on an iMac in Parallels 8... the .exe crashes when I run it.
The screenshots are pretty though.
bowlercaptain
01. May 2013 路 15:39 UTC
Good game! Couldn't figure out the fish one, and the others took me a while, but a good game!
馃帳 BrothersT
01. May 2013 路 15:43 UTC
Sorry guys, we will get onto the crashes asap!
captainkraft
01. May 2013 路 15:44 UTC
Very nice game. Loved the minimalist art style. The puzzles were very hard to solve. The dog one took me the longest to solve, but I got them all.

For anyone wondering how to solve the fish puzzle, think about the theme and control scheme.
soerensen3
01. May 2013 路 19:56 UTC
crashes at my girlfriends laptop (windows 7 home premium) but works on my computer (win7 professional). No errormessage but the screen stays white. Then a message that by windows that the application crashed. amazing game though but really high level of difficulty.
GranaDa
02. May 2013 路 15:31 UTC
The fish puzzle is really hard to solve. The other two puzzles are really easy but I got sad about the dog...
The game takes some time to load (looks like it hangs on the white screen) but after ~5 seconds it starts. Great graphics and sound.

@BrothersT: Sometimes our game on FireFox takes 2-3 seconds to load but it runs fine. Please, try again.
[-BipolarDesign+]
03. May 2013 路 00:30 UTC
I don't get any audio, also I cannot figure out what to do... stuck at the meditating guy with the cactus right at start, none of my input seems to do anything :/
馃帳 BrothersT
03. May 2013 路 00:43 UTC
Really? No there is no audio on the meditating guy, but there is in the levels. Stupid question but have you tried clicking on one of the symbols? Which exe did you run?
magnpeas
03. May 2013 路 01:06 UTC
Crashes for me :(
Andromatta
03. May 2013 路 01:21 UTC
Really nailed it! The animation is incredible and charming, even if a bit morbid. Definitely left wanting more!
馃帳 BrothersT
03. May 2013 路 07:25 UTC
@magnpeas - Could you please upload the log file as detailed in the description. It would be very helpful for us! Thanks.
lorancou
03. May 2013 路 15:52 UTC
Impressive! I had to read through the comments to find out about the fish. Very nice!
someone
03. May 2013 路 17:55 UTC
That was brilliant.
馃帳 BrothersT
03. May 2013 路 19:35 UTC
@magnpeas - Could you please upload the log file as detailed in the description. It would be very helpful for us! Thanks.
netmute
03. May 2013 路 20:00 UTC
I'm on a Mac, sorry :(
KilledByAPixel
03. May 2013 路 20:07 UTC
Awesome artwork! The fly one was the best, I beat the fish one, but I couldn't figure out what to with the dog.
celiacjoe
03. May 2013 路 20:09 UTC
Very good game.
Mesene
03. May 2013 路 20:45 UTC
Loved the art! also entertainig. Nice entry
intripoon
03. May 2013 路 22:13 UTC
Very nice art. Also simple but clever riddles.
Attention: Spoiler: I don't get how the guru guides the fly from captivity. The first fly dies and the 2nd just flies away. The one that gets away wasn't hold captive?
bitbof
04. May 2013 路 02:06 UTC
Great art and sound! I'll have to sleep over that fish level...maybe then I get the deep insight to solve it.
Jeremias
04. May 2013 路 09:28 UTC
Oh my god, the fly. I never laughed that much while playing a ludum dare game. Totally my humor. Nice animations anyway.
Dohan
04. May 2013 路 17:29 UTC
Excelent puzzles and beautiful art. I really loved it!
kurrik
04. May 2013 路 17:36 UTC
Wow, wow, wow. What a fantastic entry! I'm so impressed by the quality of the animation and artwork. I don't know if you were inspired by old HyperCard games but I totally got brought back to days of playing Cosmic Osmo.
Are
04. May 2013 路 18:19 UTC
It reminds me somehow Machinarium. Anyway, beautiful game.
barkergames
04. May 2013 路 18:33 UTC
I kept getting a white screen then the game would crash!
馃帳 BrothersT
04. May 2013 路 20:43 UTC
@barker games - If you could upload the log file as described in the description, it would really help us. Thanks!
fishbrain
05. May 2013 路 13:21 UTC
Beautifully illustrated, elegant gameplay. Superb.
[-BipolarDesign+]
05. May 2013 路 19:01 UTC
@BrothersT I don't remember seeing any symbols... tried both exe's :/ I'll try again later today, and report back.
goerp
05. May 2013 路 19:28 UTC
Five star column!
Although the fish was weird, I tried and tried and then I succeded.
Looking at your previous entries I saw that I played all those too. But this one for me is your best!
[-BipolarDesign+]
05. May 2013 路 23:49 UTC
Got it working! Still didn't see any symbols (I assume there are supposed to be some on the screen with the meditating guy?), I finally got through by randomly clicking around the screen. Loved it once I got into the puzzles!!
Jorjon
07. May 2013 路 12:50 UTC
Amazing game. Make a longer one! For the fish, I was stuck and then ALT+TABbed here to know if someone got the answer, then I heard it was solved.
Sylvain.p
14. May 2013 路 02:35 UTC
Awesome animation. Great graphics work. I particulary love the dog "level".
TurboDindon
14. May 2013 路 08:04 UTC
I can't launch the game. :'(

- SEPHY (@sephyka)
Catman
14. May 2013 路 09:41 UTC
Loved the graphics and atmosphere! The puzzles were a little too hard. I'd like to see something bigger! :)
MinionStudios
14. May 2013 路 13:44 UTC
Awesome awesome game. Well crafted and amazingly animated! Bravo!
馃帳 BrothersT
14. May 2013 路 17:40 UTC
Thank you everyone for your kind comments, and taking the time to play our entry. It's very much appreciated :)

@Jorjon - Haha! That's hilarious XD I didn't consider that solution.

@TurboDindon - Could you please upload the simi_log.txt file to pastebin and post the link here? Several people have had problems with launching the game, but no one has given us any clue as to why.
Puzzlem00n
14. May 2013 路 20:31 UTC
Hahaha! Solved all the puzzles. Probably the best artwork I've seen so far in these games. I mean, really, how do you do it? Great puzzles, great humor, altogether feels very polished.
Puzzlem00n
14. May 2013 路 20:32 UTC
I mean, really, I love all the interactions and red herrings, especially in the dog puzzle.
馃帳 BrothersT
16. May 2013 路 11:44 UTC
Thanks puzzle! If anyone is interested, our game was reviewed on indiegames.com recently!

http://indiegames.com/2013/05/freeware_pick_guru_a_cryptic_t.html
Madball
16. May 2013 路 15:08 UTC
I liked everything in graphics, the game is very detailed. But it can be disorientating at first. At the fish level I was clicking randomly for a really long time. The dog was easier, it`s the only level I solved with actually thinking. Couldn`t understand what happened to flies... was the second one dead?
馃帳 BrothersT
16. May 2013 路 16:43 UTC
The game is all about paying close attention to the details and drawing the logical conclusion. If you were clicking randomly for a really long time and nothing was happening maybe that should tell you something.

With the flies, there is the one inside the jar which you control and the other one is outside the jar, alive (you may have gathered, nothing you do will effect that one - so it's safe to assume that it's not involved in the puzzle). Try to think about the way the game is designed and what those design choices might say about the puzzle.

Sorry I can't be more specific but they are lateral thinking puzzles - it's not meant to be obvious :) Trust me though, there are logical solutions to each, just like the dog one, where if you observe the dog's behavior, the controls, the environment and sound, you can determine what the answer might be - we tried to do everything we could to help the player without just spelling it out for them. Some people solve them all in 10 minutes, others have taken an hour or more.

Good luck! :)
馃帳 BrothersT
16. May 2013 路 16:49 UTC
Oh and with the fly one - if it was the ending you didn't understand then I'm not sure what you found unclear. I don't really know how to explain it any better without giving the answer away to other people.

If you (or anyone) would like to have the solution for a puzzle they're confused you can email us at brothersthomson@gmail.com :)
abhishek.4doom44
26. Jun 2013 路 19:42 UTC
game crashes when i open it...tried running on compatibility mode as well..
the log text shows empty......however several errors on the cmd screen .....
running on win 7 ultimate.. onboard intel gfx /2gb ram/intel dual core cpu..
abhishek.4doom44
26. Jun 2013 路 19:50 UTC
after troubleshooting compatibility...
error ... the file "sprite.scene.simi" does not exist