LudumData

Under a Watchful Eye by Acheron

[raw]
made by Acheron for LD21 (-)
A giant floating eye creature circles a remote landscape, keeping close tabs on the player and making sure they do not run away. In this game, you'll have to find some way of escaping the oppressive eye and reaching a control point at the center of the map.

In the submitted version of the game, there is only one real escape route. See the spoiler at the bottom of the game's page for a mini walkthrough.

Made with Unity 3D 3.4 Pro, Gimp 2.6, Blender 2.58, and a Kodak camera. All textures and models are original, and I've avoided using Unity assets or scripts, save those that are built into the engine.

Web http://www.michaelpconsoli.com/under-a-watchful-eye/
Source http://dl.dropbox.com/u/27882946/Under-a-Watchful-Eye/Webplayer/01/underawatchfuleyescripts.7z
Original URL https://ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-21/?action=preview&uid=2493

Ratings

Coolness 10% 47
Overall 3.31 114
Audio 1.46 330
Community 2.92 150
Fun 2.58 267
Graphics 4.04 34
Humor 1.80 263
Innovation 3.62 63
Theme 3.92 23

Feedback

hamster_mk_4
22. Aug 2011 · 05:04 UTC
The game feels very oppressive. I tried a few times but could not get to the platform before I got cut down by the death beam.
Hangedman
22. Aug 2011 · 16:03 UTC
A cool little concept and a nice take on the theme, although the loop around was a bit of a kick in the head :D
I quite liked meandering around the terrain, but I never did manage to win, because that thing has some angry lasers.
Good all-round.
vandriver
22. Aug 2011 · 18:51 UTC
i couldn't quite grasp the strategy here. in first-person view, it's quite difficult to run somewhere while dodging/hiding from instant death behind you. it's unfortunate, too, because i did just run backwards to watch the thing's reaction and it's really quite ominous, peeking over your hiding spots staring at you with a laser eye. i loved that.
AndyBrown
23. Aug 2011 · 00:18 UTC
Quite a rush, great job on the graphics too, the moving clouds were really worth the time. Sadly, I didn't actually manage to escape. Very nice concept though, It has a lot of potential =)
makc
23. Aug 2011 · 21:07 UTC
did not escape either. once I was next to platform, but could not jump on it for few seconds, and then it shot me down again.
mpc174
24. Aug 2011 · 01:22 UTC
I agree, my game is far too challenging. There is one relatively easy way to escape, however. There is a gap on the left before the second arch. Make a mad dash for it around the corner, putting as much rock between you and the eye as possible.
KevinWorkman
24. Aug 2011 · 02:33 UTC
Nice job!
PsySal
24. Aug 2011 · 03:58 UTC
First, this ran pretty good even on my netbook, which I wasn't expecting-- cool!

I really like the core idea here, and the atmosphere as well. The text taht the Eye of Sauron (well I'm calling it that) gives when you step outside is creepy. However I feel like it doesn't quite coalesce into a solid gameplay mechanic, even after reading the spoiler I don't feel that motivated to try for it because ultimately I'm on rails until the point at which I can attempt my escape.

I did make a few attempts elsewhere and perversely enjoyed being shot down by laser.
matthias_zarzecki
24. Aug 2011 · 06:46 UTC
Good lord, what an evil eye.

I like the idea of the mad-dash (perhaps Mirrors Edge style) run for your life, but this needs a lot of polishing and balancing.

0.5 Seconds after you leave the circle the eye goes hostile. Once it start firing, the framerate goes single-diit, and movement becomes impossible.
gugugu
25. Aug 2011 · 09:05 UTC
i found a good place to escape it, it took me a few tries though. it feels like there's quite a bit of social criticism in there. is there a reason why the enemy looks like the eye of osiris?
gugugu
25. Aug 2011 · 09:06 UTC
meant eye of horus, of course!
zdanielz
25. Aug 2011 · 16:50 UTC
Nice! couldn't win, even with the spoiler... :-)
Dark Acre Jack
26. Aug 2011 · 02:44 UTC
Very nice visual work. Never a fan of railroading, I was hoping I could run and hide.
mpc174
26. Aug 2011 · 21:56 UTC
@Gugugu - The Eye of Horus is a symbol of protection, and the creature is motivated by a need to militantly protect anyone within its circle. You can interpret the rest yourself.
I wish that I could have submitted a more refined version!
Probably should have taken the extra day and called it a Jam entry.
Shigor
27. Aug 2011 · 13:05 UTC
I gave it about 20 tries, including one complete walk around. Idea of running from your defender is not bad, actually could be used as a base concept for something more, but gameplay is mostly on vacations somewhere. you try to move away from the circle, you're dead before you can seriously move away. You try it in place you hope you might hide or something, won't help you, you die. (I've tried the "relatively easy way" two times before reading the spoiler, because it seemed as one place you could run away, didn't help me much).
Cirrial
27. Aug 2011 · 17:10 UTC
Awesome game. The things that the eye says nicely characterise it (considering it is the only character in the game other than the player). Needed to use the spoiler to beat it, but other than that was pretty enjoyable. Sounds would have really added to this. Excellent work.
Winterblood
28. Aug 2011 · 00:11 UTC
Great visuals and very original idea, nice twist on the theme. Gameplay a bit tricky though, as in first-person you can't easily tell where your pursuer is or which way might be a good route to run. Might work better if you could lose him and he would have to search for you, while you tried to distract him or sneak away. Then you'd be able to spend more time looking at him, which would be good as he is SCARY.
angrygeometry
28. Aug 2011 · 23:49 UTC
the whole atmosphere of this game is wonderful. the eye is creepy as hell, and the game is extremely challenging. i didn't manage to escape but that whole tour of the plateau was interesting and yeah, this is a great game, especially for 48 hours work!
Codexus
11. Sep 2011 · 11:17 UTC
Original idea and good use of the theme, unfortunately not much fun to get killed many times while trying to find a good place to escape. Some sound would have really boosted the atmosphere of the game.