Kenneth Rice: Vampire Detective by GrooveMan

[raw]
made by GrooveMan for LD35 (JAM)
UPDATE 5/3: A really kind friend of mine, Lyn-Dae Stewart, has provided me with new character art for a post-jam version of the game! Now all the characters can look as sultry as I've written them! You can find the link to the post-jam version below. If you like her speedy work here, please support her on Patreon! You can find her at Patreon.com/pixipui

Ever wanted to relive the trashy YA fiction from your youth, but, like, in interactive story form?

No? Well too bad - here's a Comedy Noir Romance for your consideration.

You play as Kenneth Rice; a 130-year-old hard-boiled detective with sensibilities firmly in the 1920s era from when he was bitten by a vampire. Yes.

When he gets a call from a mysterious stranger with a missing necklace, Kenneth steps up to the challenge; using his detective skills and vampiric transformation powers to solve the case. And maybe fall in love?

In short, it's Castlevania: Symphony of the Night with more 20's lingo and homoerotic overtones. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: It's no excuse, but this turned out to be a solo project by someone who don't draw too good. Concessions needed to be made. Please understand.

- Original character artwork by Gordon Shier and Aryn Clark (Consider it a callback to my earlier work).
- Script, coding and photoshopping by Nathan Blades."
- Game music by Thomas Collins (vicegripsismyhero@outlook.com) and Kevin MacLeod (http://incompetech.com).
- Sound effects from freesound.org."
- Kenneth Rice: Vampire Detective was made in Ren'Py! Ren'Py was created by PyTom. Learn more at www.renpy.org

Ratings

Coolness 62% 3
Overall(Jam) 3.79 115
Audio(Jam) 3.50 215
Fun(Jam) 3.53 208
Graphics(Jam) 3.42 488
Humor(Jam) 3.55 113
Innovation(Jam) 2.97 606
Mood(Jam) 3.97 67
Theme(Jam) 3.72 243

Feedback

kivlor
18. Apr 2016 · 22:29 UTC
loved it!
Retallicka
19. Apr 2016 · 00:43 UTC
Good storytelling, nice one :D
celia14
19. Apr 2016 · 00:53 UTC
I love this! It's so chock full of personality - the set-up, the style (I love the purple!), Kenneth's voice. The shapeshifting aspect was fun and made me wish there was a longer game to play so I could solve more hard-boiled puzzles with my vampiric talents. :D
sndr
19. Apr 2016 · 16:56 UTC
Excellent storytelling, nice music and I loved the character drawings. I wished there were more. Maybe in the post-LD version? :P
fullmontis
19. Apr 2016 · 17:36 UTC
Love the writing and the polish that went into this. It is like a mashup between a Vampire The Maswuarade feel with the noir detective sotrytelling. I think you did a great job!
josemwarrior
19. Apr 2016 · 19:54 UTC
Cool! :)
allstar602
19. Apr 2016 · 20:18 UTC
Nice story!
Just Tom
19. Apr 2016 · 20:37 UTC
Had me from the start, the feel of it was great!
Malvern
19. Apr 2016 · 20:51 UTC
Very good visual novel! I felt the background outside the speakeasy wasn't necessarily appropriate for the era but that's just a nitpick. Very well written dialogue, I hope to see more!
AnaGF
19. Apr 2016 · 20:57 UTC
Really good storytelling, nice graphics and nice audio. Interesting theme, mixing noir and vampires.
zenmumbler
20. Apr 2016 · 21:51 UTC
Nice, finished story and good tone and mood. Well done.
DarkFieldGames
20. Apr 2016 · 22:31 UTC
Glad to see this game in the submissions after seeing it at Mad Lab.

You get to be a vampire detective, that deserves 10/10 in its own right!

Very good story. Good music. Nice visual novel.
DarkFieldGames
20. Apr 2016 · 22:33 UTC
Loved it.
Rose
21. Apr 2016 · 02:13 UTC
I loved the scenario and style. I predict that this will be the best-written of all the LD games!
fizzhog
21. Apr 2016 · 11:55 UTC
Nice work. It all comes together to create a good atmosphere.
omarhuseynov011
21. Apr 2016 · 16:12 UTC
Great game! Too bad there no option for story-telling 'cause it was awesome!
leo_p_mahon
22. Apr 2016 · 00:28 UTC
*Potential Spoilers*


"Like a candy store on fire" Great story telling and I love the theme (my game is also Noir themed) but I think you nailed the theme down a bit better than I did. I also love those hard boiled types, love the humor of that protagonist.
josefnpat
22. Apr 2016 · 00:51 UTC
I like how you used real photos and then styled them to the game. Nice job!
fprawn
22. Apr 2016 · 01:03 UTC
Great game, wish there were more to play.
glaze_96
23. Apr 2016 · 08:14 UTC
Hey GrooveMan! Just wrote you a little backstory about Pasowix as you didn't get how he was getting paid =)
Just scroll down and read it in the comments: http://ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-35/?action=preview&uid=46004

As for your game:

I really sorry, but I couldn't finish it. Interactive stories really tedious. Didn't get past the first phone call.
Otherwise I really like the art and the mood. But as I actually didn't play I'd say it's not fare to score you on anything.
I'm sure the game is great as by looking at the comments! But I just wanted to let you know!

Hope you guys had a fun time making it =)
Franklin's Ghost
01. May 2016 · 10:39 UTC
Loved the amount of detail in this and the different use of the theme. Definitely got the noir atmosphere across well.
CaptainPilot
03. May 2016 · 22:08 UTC
Solid entry - got the whole way through. Pretty simple, and I didn't get much excitement or climax from the story. The mood was definitely strong though.
davalcordub
04. May 2016 · 04:31 UTC
Really nice work, I like it. The music is really good and the art too