Professor McSteen, and his shrinking machine by PerilousPete
Escape from the lair of Professor McSteen, using his shrinking machines!
If you get stuck, there are tips on the Help page in game, but I suggest you attempt the game first before reading the tips, as they contain spoilers.
Controls: Arrow keys to move/jump. WASD if you prefer. Use the mouse to click on blocks next to you to pick them up, then click on a space next to you to place them.
Since everyone is struggling so much, I've added a video showing how to complete the first section of the game, along with tips and an explanation of the objective.
If you get stuck, there are tips on the Help page in game, but I suggest you attempt the game first before reading the tips, as they contain spoilers.
Controls: Arrow keys to move/jump. WASD if you prefer. Use the mouse to click on blocks next to you to pick them up, then click on a space next to you to place them.
Since everyone is struggling so much, I've added a video showing how to complete the first section of the game, along with tips and an explanation of the objective.
| Web (HTML5) | http://www.html5haven.com/professormcsteen |
| Windows/Source | http://www.html5haven.com/professormcsteen/ProfessorMcSteen.zip |
| Video Help | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGzgJDFV89M |
| Original URL | https://ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-23/?action=preview&uid=8756 |
Ratings
| Coolness | 100% | 1 |
| Overall | 2.69 | 613 |
| Audio | 1.85 | 650 |
| Fun | 2.27 | 716 |
| Graphics | 2.27 | 736 |
| Humor | 1.96 | 568 |
| Innovation | 2.49 | 649 |
| Mood | 2.13 | 747 |
| Theme | 2.27 | 770 |
The instruction text gets in your way when you solve the first obstacle. Couldn't get past the small hole in the second puzzle. Maybe some easier puzzles first.
Bonus points for using html5!
A few responses (each to the comments in order, may contain spoilers):
1. easy games are boring games :P
2. I very nearly made a mute button (the system is all implemented, I just never tied it to a key...)
3. The little gaps you can only get through once you reach a shrinker
4.Please don't judge the theme until you actually reach a shrinking machine! Instructions were thrown in as an afterthought when people were finding it too hard...
5. I'll give you a hint, you can grab the block under you as you jump, then use it for the next puzzle
6. Made in GameMaker:HTML5, hence the ease of creating a Windows version (which is in the source download)
7. I had that bug while making but thought I'd squished it! It should be pretty infrequent...
Originally I had the controls as the cursor keys and space, but I found it was too difficult and inaccurate to place the blocks, so I switched it to the mouse.
I admit the game gets to the tricky bit too quick, and the game mechanic of shrinking is not close enough to the beginning. When I test it, it takes me less than a minute to reach the first shrinker, I forgot other's wouldn't know how to do the puzzles as well as I did :(. Obviously I can't change it now, that's cheating :P
You can view the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGzgJDFV89M
I didn't find this game to be very intuative at all but once I got into the swing of things I felt a lot of satisfaction from solving how to proceed. The thing that made me put this game down at the end was the fact that restarting always put me back at the same place. After not getting a box to where I needed to be (When you get shrunk) I had to reset and could not stomach going back through all that again. I think that the basic idea behind this game is pretty good but the learning curve needs to be a lot softer and the punishment for getting stuck needs to be reduced.
I think this is a really good game that deserves a slight rethink of the first section, just to bring the difficulty up slightly more gradually. Concept puzzles first, then a dexterity puzzle, then combine, and then go.
I got a block caught on the top of the pillar shown in the screenshot, and then got stuck. That was a little frustrating.
The comments about restarting at the beginning are worth considering. My game had the same problem. People were much happier when they can keep the progress they've earned.