Rhythm Quest by achebit

[raw]
made by achebit for LD 41 (JAM)

screenshot_1.png


ABOUT

The rhythm based roguelike you never knew you wanted! Make your way down the deadly dungeon, slashing and dodging in time with the ever present demonic beat.


GAMEPLAY

The game is played with keyboard controls D, F, J, and K. Simply tap the corresponding key as each icon falls into place. Sword icons will inflict damage to you opponent while defence icons are your chance to block incoming damage.


FUTURE

In the future I would like to rework the game to include a leveling system for the heroes and also an item loot system to help make each run feel unique.

Thanks for playing!

Christopher Yabsley @achebit

Ratings

Overall 5th 4.409⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Fun 5th 4.352⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 138th 3.92⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Theme 52th 4.352⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 61th 4.455⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Audio 11th 4.42⭐ 46🧑‍⚖️
Humor 648th 2.769⭐ 41🧑‍⚖️
Mood 46th 4.174⭐ 45🧑‍⚖️
Given 35🗳️ 24🗨️

Feedback

selfsame
23. Apr 2018 · 18:59 UTC
I LOVE this, so much fun! Played it a bunch, could really see this being a great title with some more songs.

Only critique is the block sound didn't feel as good as the attack, maybe because it was shorter?
🎤 achebit
24. Apr 2018 · 02:59 UTC
@selfsame thank you for playing! Attacking and blocking could definitely feel more satisfying. I will certainly rework these in a full version.
Vinterskog
24. Apr 2018 · 06:25 UTC
Gorgeous graphics and great idea! However, please remember us poor german guys for whom Z and Y are swapped on the keyboard. Doesn't make your game any easier. :D
🎤 achebit
24. Apr 2018 · 06:30 UTC
@Vinterskog Didn't even know that was a thing! It would definitely make it harder. Sorry about that.
Kultisti
24. Apr 2018 · 07:58 UTC
Really enjoyable! At first it felt pretty easy little game but when the second level came, oh man :D I think my keyboard got hurt in one place or another. Love the GFXs and the game on general, good work!
GiovanniBarrottu
24. Apr 2018 · 08:02 UTC
REALLY FUN! Died to azazel, but I'll be playing this again. Everything is so well done, the art, music, gameplay, everything fits and works well.

My only small gripe is that I feel the shield sound should be more metallic and not the sound of a basketball bouncing. It also occasionally feels like I hit a note but it doesn't register, not super common though.

Really love it though! my favorite so far!
PhoenixofForce
24. Apr 2018 · 09:02 UTC
You have done a good job here. But please dont use the y and z key on european keyboards the keys are swapped :/
TechnoNugget
24. Apr 2018 · 09:22 UTC
This is awesome. Although I am notoriously bad a rhythm games. I got to level 2 once, and beat a succubus and then died from a second succubus.

10/10 would be seduced to death again
evandowning
24. Apr 2018 · 13:10 UTC
Great game!
Crsrc
24. Apr 2018 · 15:31 UTC
Being killed by Azazel three times. I Love this game!!

I love the pixel art and the music/sound! This is a really great rhythm game!!

It could be great if the character can have some values between 6~8 and some values between 1~2. Because every character only can deal 1 damage (after Level 2) makes them no difference.

or make glass cannon / Tank characters? or maybe they can tank some kinds of damage (-0 HP) when the enemy's value is much lower than the character's value.
Siactro
24. Apr 2018 · 16:47 UTC
This is super cool! I really enjoyed this game. :) The idea is as simple as it is fun and the overall presentation is just exactly my kind of thing. I admit that yes, attacking and defending could feel a bit more satisfying but I enjoyed the game nontheless. Maybe the beats could work more with some sort of own rythm? Not so sure, this is the first rythm game I actually enjoyed so yea. Great work! <3 Only real complain I have: My Z and Y key are reversed (qwertz keyboard) so the beginning part was really hard to get into. Changing my keyboard setting didn't work and I totally blame Unity for that! :D Anyway, a fantastic little game, I really enjoyed it.
Hare Software
24. Apr 2018 · 17:23 UTC
I want to start by saying that I love the graphics and the amount of polish you guys put into this game. The gameplay itself is great and everything just feels right to me. Would love to see more great work. Best of luck and congrats on this gem!
lightsoda
24. Apr 2018 · 18:03 UTC
Can't really find much if anything to critique, it feels really solid already, easy to get into, good graphics, sounds and music. Nice job.
John Timora
24. Apr 2018 · 18:20 UTC
Great game it just would have been nice if it started a little slower other that great game.
gogo199432
24. Apr 2018 · 18:40 UTC
Great game, nice take on the traditional dungeon crawlers. The only thing I would say though is that setting 'Z' as one of the inputs is a bit unlucky, since on the EU keyboards, the Y and Z are often switched. So my brain got confused a lot ;)
Tiberon
24. Apr 2018 · 18:54 UTC
I fell in love to this game! The sounds, mood, music and mechanics are super awesome! I actually started to nod in the same beat with the skull on top of the screen :D Very good game, nicely done!
Annie Owl
24. Apr 2018 · 19:15 UTC
Great game! Visuals are pretty, soundtrack is awesome and the gameplay is fun and addictive.
TheVash
24. Apr 2018 · 19:16 UTC
awesome art!
🎤 achebit
25. Apr 2018 · 00:58 UTC
@Crsrc Im incredibly flattered you have played it that much! Also impressed you figured out how stats work with no explanation xD. I was a bit ambitious to have a class system in this scope of time as you have spotted the differences between them are subtle.

I have plans to implement a class ability which will function by building up a meter as you chain attacks. Once it is charged up you can use it by hitting space. Barbarian - Blocks deal damage for 6 secs, Paladin - Heal 3 health, Rogue - Attacks deal double damage for 6 seconds, Wizard - 5 damage.
Yirggzmb
25. Apr 2018 · 03:21 UTC
Oh my goodness, this is so much fun. And very intense. Love the music, love the art. Definitely one of my favorites I've played.
Goat Toaster Games
25. Apr 2018 · 13:40 UTC
I LOVED this!!! So well done! Great work!! :grin:
🎤 achebit
26. Apr 2018 · 00:52 UTC
@Vinterskog @PhoenixofForce @Siactro @gogo199432

Thank you for your input on the keyboard controls my European friends! I have just uploaded a new build and shifted the controls across to C, V, B, N. This should play a lot nicer across all keyboard formats.
folex70
26. Apr 2018 · 01:13 UTC
good job! i loved!
BenPeterson
26. Apr 2018 · 01:15 UTC
That was great! Once I understood the context of attacking and defending the different sections of play got way more engaging and intense. during a boss battle when you only have one life left it gets really intense and exciting

all very well executed, good music, art and game feel
kleinzach
26. Apr 2018 · 01:16 UTC
That was wonderful! So much fun, and the music had me entranced the whole time. I have only a few minor nitpicks.

First, some parts of the music didn't work as well for me as other, as in it would be harder to hit notes when the beat/offbeats become a little more muddled. Also, the stat system didn't really do much for me. It is cool that you have 4 characters, but their stats don't make me play any differently, though I'm seeing up above that you have plans to change that which I am greatly looking forward to.

Your game makes me want to make a rhythm game next because I forgot how good they can feel. I got so into the music both times I played. Great job!
Rocktavious
26. Apr 2018 · 01:21 UTC
Really well polished game!!! I really like the simplicity of controls and the mood it was really good. My only complaint is that the runway for the match is very small and i often times got messed up because things came in to fast and you barely had any time to react.

I think the upgrades/improvements you suggest would really polish this game and make it more replayable. Good work!!
nicksmaddog
26. Apr 2018 · 01:23 UTC
Really liked this game! By far my favorite so far. However, I really didn't like the control placement at C, V, B, N. It felt really cramped. I would have preferred something like D, F, J, K on a QWERTY keyboard. It's probably the type of game that would do really well if it allowed you to choose your own control scheme.

It did seem like sometimes when the notes were hit in rapid succession, the sound from hitting the notes could lag a little bit, which threw me off a couple times.

Awesome job!
isaaclopinho
26. Apr 2018 · 01:40 UTC
ohh very cooll! Awesome job!
BlazeXenon
26. Apr 2018 · 01:41 UTC
Wow, This game was surprisingly fun and addictive! I really enjoying playing it and it seems like you did it by yourself which is really impressive! I love the concept and the execution is spot on.

I only have 1 critique, Please make the sound of you hitting an enemy and the enemy hitting you different! In a game like this, you have a very small period of time to react and not being able to distinguish the sounds through audio makes your eyes pry away from the game to look if its you taking damage or the enemy. Other than that, I really enjoyed playing this game! Great Job, and hope to play future games from you!
DrEvilBrain
26. Apr 2018 · 04:39 UTC
The only thing I would want to be able to do is change the key positions away from CVBN. Otherwise, this is a really solid rhythm game.
🎤 achebit
26. Apr 2018 · 06:41 UTC
@DrEvilBrain

This has been a point everyone brings up and I already changed them for the euro folks! I think short of customisable controls its hard to please everyone.

I have changed them to D, F, J, K as suggested by @nicksmaddog as default typing position seems nice. That should hopefully be a happy medium for everyone.
Ashtrail
27. Apr 2018 · 04:28 UTC
This game is great. The graphic, the music and the gameplay all blend together perfectly.

I'm not a fan of the controls but I don't like keyboard controls for rythm games so I guess that was bound to happen (when is the touch based android version coming out ? :P).

I don't really know what to say since the game was really good. I guess all I'll say is damn you Pestus, I shall defeat you one day.

Good job, this is a really good game !
Ben Hopkins
28. Apr 2018 · 21:22 UTC
Love the style of this game! Agree that you'd probably need customizable keys to please everyone. DFJK was kind rough for me, would prefer to just use one hand.
saintheiser
29. Apr 2018 · 16:02 UTC
Yeah, cool concept! Really love the mixing of rogue and soundbeat! Music is very cool and fit the game!
One cons for me is smooth detecting of "right" action. Can't feel the moment when I should press button. Sometimes I pressed button and visually OK but game counts as worng.
Like how setting crosses the leveldesign. Spike has only defence patterns, enemies has defence and attack. These things really make mood and right feeling.

Also be glad to see full rogue like with non-linear dungeons! Good job, man!
WERT
30. Apr 2018 · 17:52 UTC
pretty neat concept but I am just too stupid to press the right keys but with a touch interface it would be a hit
Synedraacus
01. May 2018 · 08:47 UTC
That's a damn good game, definitely in top two I've seen in this jam so far. Everything just works as it should.
Yirggzmb
02. May 2018 · 06:03 UTC
Fooooor the record. I've apparently played nearly an hour of this total. And I've only seen the third level ONCE. lol This is not a statement of the game's difficulty, so much as my lack of skill. And a complement in that I keep coming back to try again. lol
🎤 achebit
02. May 2018 · 08:46 UTC
@Yirggzmb Haha don't worry I can't beat the game either, Level 3 gets so hard! xD
bunnybreaker
03. May 2018 · 11:13 UTC
This was pretty damn fun. I didn't like the controls, but that's mainly due to having played so much StepMania that I had conflicting muscle memory. If you expand on this, please have controller support and rebindable controls. Anyway, the music was great and was largely why I kept playing :smiley:
nanolotl
07. May 2018 · 12:18 UTC
This is very good
Jupiter_Hadley
07. May 2018 · 13:06 UTC
Very fun game! I included it in my Ludum Dare 41 compilation video series, if you’d like to take a look. :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrYzQfgK9hU
cristiano.m.garcia
07. May 2018 · 16:08 UTC
The art is beautiful and the mechanics of this mix is fantastic. If somehow you succeed in synchronizing the music with the actions would be even more epic.

I left my rating of your game, if you can leave your feedback in our game, Witch's Escape.

I hope you continue with the project.

https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/41/witchs-escape
Arden
16. May 2018 · 23:26 UTC
Great entry!
Congrats on 5th place!
Swagbro562
16. Jun 2018 · 14:32 UTC
I'm definitely going to share this with my friends!