They Hunger by Cell

[raw]
made by Cell for LD22 (COMPO)
They Hunger is an Shooter/Survival.

Controls:
Mouse = aim and shoot
WASD or Arrow keys = move

Point of the game:
Get all 25 relics, while NOT get eaten by the Zen.
Each relic you get = Faster and Stronger Zen.

-Cell
(ps: The game is Hard!, and only true champions will win.)
(psps: The last page(when you win( is all true :( and the game was made in 5 hours :( .......)

Ratings

Coolness 100% 1
Overall 3.30 96
Audio 2.30 320
Community 3.80 18
Fun 3.52 25
Graphics 2.54 363
Humor 1.68 397
Innovation 2.26 413
Mood 3.02 137
Theme 2.36 453

Feedback

vubuntu
18. Dec 2011 · 14:47 UTC
nice action. and hard. max relics i've got is 9 =)
Deza
18. Dec 2011 · 18:10 UTC
I reaaaly likes this :D
bzizizi
19. Dec 2011 · 15:40 UTC
loved it! ++!
wbobeirne
19. Dec 2011 · 16:15 UTC
Cool game, simple concept, but the execution could use some touching up. Finding 25 things across a fairly large map with one hit sending you back to square one is a bit frustrating. The lighting effect was cool, but it would have been nice if it was smooth instead of the blocky effect in place now. Having relics glow through the darkness was a good idea though, expedited collection.
Andrew
19. Dec 2011 · 17:32 UTC
They're everywhere, and I can't see very far. I managed to get some relics but I wish I could also get a flashlight/torch as well.
SamuraiofHoly
19. Dec 2011 · 18:29 UTC
I like it, funny litte game :)
Goldendice
20. Dec 2011 · 06:51 UTC
I had a lot of trouble getting even four relics until I remembered the instructions: Mouse = aim and shoot. After I realized I could shoot, it only took me one attempt to beat the game. The trick is holding down the mouse button for autofire - the bullets don't just kill zen, they also light your path (nice touch, by the way, Cell). By using it to scout and eliminate all zed in the vicinity, by staying mostly in the open and going around the edges of the map, it's actually not that hard to get all the relics (the most difficult is in tight corners with lots of zen, but even that's doable). Their speed doesn't matter if they don't even see you coming.
iforce2d
20. Dec 2011 · 11:25 UTC
Awesome, you get my first 5 for 'fun'. Was it supposed to start off slow and then get fast, or is that something funny with my PC? It's really cool when fast, and once I realized I could hold down the mouse to continuously fire :)
PimpDaddyScoot
20. Dec 2011 · 14:09 UTC
awesome! and i didnt even realise i could shoot... i feel it may get less fun now :(
binary_girl
20. Dec 2011 · 16:04 UTC
really like it man :) the sound is great and love the colors and the smooth shooting squares :)
bostelk
21. Dec 2011 · 11:28 UTC
bonus points for a nicely packed game. i want zeeee relics!
Ashkin
21. Dec 2011 · 11:47 UTC
Pretty good game. The graphics felt nice- I especially liked the bullet particles. I beat the game with all 25 relics, finding it pretty easy to blast through the hordes of zombies. Though you didn't really work with the theme, the mood was great, with the darkness around the player. However, the audio was really annoying- I can only guess that the player is some form of clown, judging by the squeaky sound of him walking around. Apart from that issue, the game is good.
PimpDaddyScoot
21. Dec 2011 · 11:58 UTC
lol. clown.
ratking
21. Dec 2011 · 13:48 UTC
Nice thing (especially for 5 hours)! But I'm not particular patient for such gameplay. :)
Aaron
22. Dec 2011 · 04:08 UTC
Cell, I'm fairly sure you've spent more time commenting on every game I've came across than working on this game ;)

But the really fun gameplay despite that constraint highlighted how awesome your simple design was. I'm mentally battling against the thought that a game made in five hours could be this fun, but I'm physically writing you down for probably the best entry I've played yet. Good on you, mate. :)

One design sore spot: while randomly generating relics might add to the replayability, the one-health difficulty is a better fit in the "repeat until you've mastered" arcade gameplay of yore. Randomizing the relics seems almost like a kick after you're down, but maybe that's just me being a wussy.
Aaron
22. Dec 2011 · 04:10 UTC
Oh wait. You can shoot? XD
Shigor
22. Dec 2011 · 20:51 UTC
Simple, yet fun to play (but gets too hard too quickly), too bad you hadn't used more then five hours :)
angrygeometry
23. Dec 2011 · 23:31 UTC
5 hours? amazing. would have loved to see a full weekend game from this, definitely potential here! it was cool once i figured it out!
lanoiadimuu
24. Dec 2011 · 15:06 UTC
A pretty cool game, hard but not frustrating.
Rudy
24. Dec 2011 · 17:12 UTC
It's pretty hard but sort of fun. Certainly not a new concept. It does get repetitive quick as getting to the goal is a lot grinding without any immediate gratification. Instant death is a bit punishing. I like that the projectiles light up the immediate area though. I think lighting effects could have been taken further for nicer visuals/polish. Especially if there was some simple raycasting lighting. But it still has it's mood. Cartoony sound and abstract graphics take me out of the "alone" mood. But they are there, distinct, and accomplish what they are there for in terms of gameplay. I like the projectile trailing particles. I think this (rather fast-paced) game would be suitable with an actiony soundtrack. But since the theme was "alone", perhaps a less abstract and "slower" gameplay may have worked better. The AI isn't terribly smart, but it's fine. I think with such high relic goal, there should be a minimap with explored areas shown or at least distinct environment features. Hunting for every one might be a big chore and I have to admit I didn't see the end. Good entry, but I'd like to see a more innovative idea behind it. I realize this was just a 5-hour game, but this is a 48h competition and others don't get leeway. 5 stars in community for rating games though!
Cosr
25. Dec 2011 · 00:37 UTC
Well done for the time spent on it. The lighting was effective, if a little rough, and I liked the particle effects from protectiles. The game might be more interesting if the zombies weren't quite so static, like if they wandered slightly or something.
🎤 Cell
25. Dec 2011 · 12:25 UTC
Thank you everyone :)
bach
27. Dec 2011 · 20:52 UTC
Impressive for 5 hours :) Would love to see a more polished version of this..
Hazard
28. Dec 2011 · 08:28 UTC
I usually like minimalistic art style, but this is a bit too minimalistic for my taste. Same for the gameplay. Still fun to play for a few rounds.
Pierrec
29. Dec 2011 · 16:28 UTC
I'm sick of Ludum Dare survival shooters but I must say this one is the best I've played, on every aspect!
caranha
03. Jan 2012 · 19:30 UTC
Cool!





J/k :-) Nice game, I really liked the progressive difficulty, and the shadows. The "step" sound was a bit annoying. I managed have only 8 relics left before they got me... careless mistake.

There should be a way, even if limited, to detect relics. I'm afraid missing a relic in the beginning might mean a lot of tedious backtracking near the ending...

Thanks for the game!
Canyon
04. Jan 2012 · 10:52 UTC
I like how fast paced this is. I think it'd be great if the levels were procedurally generated as you explore. Because I was skirting the edges and working my way in, but if the world was infinite then I couldn't skirt the edges and I'd be forced to play the game less cautiously.

I found that overtime the game slowed down, so I think the projectiles aren't being removed from memory, it gradually slowed to a crawl for me.

The walking sound was annoying. But the other sounds were ok. I think this game is great and I think if the levels were procedural and there were more weapons or some kind of progression then this game would have more replayability.

Great game. Great name.
🎤 Cell
04. Jan 2012 · 15:01 UTC
@Canyon

Thanks :)
my orginal idea was proc-gen'ed levels, but i didn't have any more time that 5 hrs :(

-Cell
Tifu
04. Jan 2012 · 17:55 UTC
Aghhhhh! I got to one left and then died looking for the last one ;__;

Awesome game for your super limited time D:
StarLight
04. Jan 2012 · 19:17 UTC
I like it!
Wompus
04. Jan 2012 · 19:59 UTC
Had fun playing your game :)
AyCe
05. Jan 2012 · 00:08 UTC
Nice game! Accomplished it in 15 min, got all relics, was very careful. Nice lighting I think :D
Tritax
05. Jan 2012 · 02:35 UTC
Brilliant game. Brutal difficulty (not a bad thing). I'll agree with other comments regarding the walk sound - it can get a little grating. Thanks for making this. :D
Zuieni
05. Jan 2012 · 16:21 UTC
Nice game! It works with wine on linux too but I did not get any sound and a little bit laggy, my own fault ;) If I got the time I will test it on windows.. And great job for 5 hours!
Benjamin
05. Jan 2012 · 22:56 UTC
Nice game, but it really need the rewarding coin sound whan you grab relics. One my notebook the framerate was ok on gamestart but became laggy so I had to stop after 2-3 minutes of play. Nice particules & shadow effect !
NeiloGD
06. Jan 2012 · 12:43 UTC
Didn't work for me in my VM :(
🎤 Cell
06. Jan 2012 · 14:53 UTC
@Bejanmin hmm, i thought i did fix the shadowAdding bug :S

@NeiloGD It works best on Windows :)
Sheep
06. Jan 2012 · 16:51 UTC
+ Sound
+ The bullets/fire/ammo/shooting things' sprites look cool.
+ Challenging, terrifying
+ Light effect
- No menu or start up screen or something like that.
- No story
Beerman
07. Jan 2012 · 17:02 UTC
5 hours? Impressive. Being able to use the fireballs for lighting was a nice touch.
NeiloGD
08. Jan 2012 · 06:10 UTC
Damn that is hard! Love the limited vision, and simplistic style - excellent work for 5 hours :)
SonnyBone
08. Jan 2012 · 11:10 UTC
FIVE HOURS? This is better than a large majority of full-on 48 hour attempts. Good work!
Jorjon
09. Jan 2012 · 00:13 UTC
Although the concept is good, the implementation needs to be tuned. The game gets really boring, 25 relics are way too much to find, since nothing happens or changes if I have 25 left or 10 left. Maybe less relics or more variety on enemies will fix that. The controls are good, but I think the shoots gets slower over time (maybe is just my imagination). I tried it 3 times, and after having to find only 5 more and died (one-hit), I ragequit.
The effects were really cool.
🎤 Cell
09. Jan 2012 · 16:35 UTC
@Jorjon If you have read the info at the top of this page, it will say that the enemies get harder at every relic you pick up.