Exvolvere by AnnoMundi

made by AnnoMundi for LD24 (COMPO)

This is my game. There are many more like it, but this one is mine. And I'm proud of it. I've spent maybe a few days learning java before starting this project, so it's messy, probably sloppy, and rather limited. All the same, I'm pleased with how it turned out.

I'd like to keep developing this over the long term - the ultimate goal being that you actually script your cell, having four human-programmed AIs controlling the cells and fighting.

The game's been tested on Windows and Linux (developed on Linux). I feel sure it'll work fine on OS X since there's no OS-specific code on it, but I can't know for sure since I don't own a Mac. Please feel free to try it out and report any bugs!

REPORTING BUGS:
Screenshots and a description of what you were doing at the time are the two most useful things I can get.

KNOWN BUGS:
Null pointer exception if you pick an invalid cell type.

Windows/Linux	https://www.dropbox.com/sh/vwb6afdf05z1tp6/nBiijBR4sE/Exvolvere
Original URL	https://ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-24/?action=preview&uid=16623

Ratings

Coolness	32%	858
Overall	1.93	745

Fun	1.36	755
Innovation	2.71	430
Theme	2.86	394

Feedback

NedortGames

27. Aug 2012 · 02:37 UTC

I found it rather boring and the fact that it opens in command promt is rather un professional.

tompudding

27. Aug 2012 · 13:42 UTC

Interesting idea, it seems like it would be suited to a graphical representation! I got pretty confused pretty quickly.

dalbinblue

27. Aug 2012 · 13:44 UTC

Very hard to play. At the very least, I would suggest using shortened commands, such as the first letter of each possible choice and also just show the list of available options when prompting a player to play their turn, I kept having to type in help to remember what I needed to do.

🎤 AnnoMundi

27. Aug 2012 · 14:10 UTC

Yeah, I wish I had the knowledge to properly translate it to a 2D display. I'll be learning to do that soon, and I'll hopefully get that translated over. Thanks to everyone that plays the game and I really appreciate every feedback :]

Dietrich Epp

28. Aug 2012 · 10:34 UTC

I don't really have four people to play with, and it's a lot of work playing by myself. I think it would benefit a lot from graphics and a computer-controlled opponent.

goerp

29. Aug 2012 · 11:55 UTC

I was drawn by the bare-minimum screenshot, but there were a few of bugs (the programming kind). You were asked to select a cell type, but a non valid one would still be accepted? And a null pointer after selecting (probably because I had a non valid). Although I like a text based game this sort of game would benefit from a GUI and for a ludum dare it probably isn't that good of an idea to make it four player without AI.
But would like to see what you can do, and for me there is nothing wrong with an text based game!

🎤 AnnoMundi

29. Aug 2012 · 17:26 UTC

goerp: Ah! Thank you for informing me of that, I missed that one. I'll implement a fix later today, I've had some computer issues preventing me from doing any further development (obviously not pushed to the LD host). Yeah I wanted to do AI, time just didn't permit. That'll be one of the next things I add. My plan is to keep on developing it and adding the GUI and things like that. If I put it on Github or something, I'll be sure to link it here.

Cipher

31. Aug 2012 · 02:31 UTC

Error:Could not create the java virtual machine
Fatal Error: A fatal error occurred. Program will now exit
Im running java 7 if that helps. This happened when i launched it with cmd. If I double-click it, nothing appears.

🎤 AnnoMundi

31. Aug 2012 · 22:01 UTC

Cipher: Yeah I wrote it in java 1.6. I haven't tried it in 1.7 yet, but I'll check it out. Nothing happens when you double-click. Did you execute it using "java -jar exvolvere.jar"?

dredlockz

01. Sep 2012 · 07:02 UTC

Shoul've put all the files in a zip for easier download

N0W33t0rs

01. Sep 2012 · 19:11 UTC

I like the idea of turn based evolution, even the multiplayer thing is good a class based concept on top sounds great. But there are a lot of down sites. The intro text was hard to read, i have a rather wide terminal so the lines become really long and hard to follow. A simple clear screen should happen, when the next player makes his move. The point of seeing isn't there if i can just look up the position in the lines above. You could use the space to draw a ascii map and the options the player has. I also missed some feedback, when i atacked.

Josh @ Dreamland

09. Sep 2012 · 04:46 UTC

Representing four players at once without a graphical interface was a bit much. Neat idea, but it kind of fell through for me.