To The Core We Go! by Rost

[raw]
made by Rost for Ludum Dare 48 (JAM)

Do you have what it takes to take the stairs down?

For centuries the local town folk is wondering where the mysterious stairs in the woods leads to. You, the adventurer, will find out for the towns people.

Fight monsters! Go Deeper! Can you reach 1000 meters deep?

Screenshot 2021-04-26 191025.png Screenshot 2021-04-26 191152.png Screenshot 2021-04-26 191235.png

Ratings

Overall 996th 3.474⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Fun 921th 3.342⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 1805th 2.368⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Theme 686th 3.816⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 878th 3.711⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Audio 840th 3.289⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Humor 1016th 2.528⭐ 20🧑‍⚖️
Mood 1189th 3.289⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Given 9🗳️ 19🗨️

Feedback

fire_soldier888
26. Apr 2021 · 17:54 UTC
i love this game, the text is relly fast and i can't read it in time.
overall the game is amazing and good job!!
AdamsMcCall
26. Apr 2021 · 19:35 UTC
Nice game. At first it felt like the controls were a little rough but I got used to it. A nice fast-paced dungeon-crawler-like, well done !
arya-s
27. Apr 2021 · 09:09 UTC
the game is neat. I like the setting, the combat feels good and the movement is interesting. I also like the forgiving nature of recovering hearts. good job on that.
the tutorial was a bit too fast, but no biggie.
ondy1985
27. Apr 2021 · 09:15 UTC
Nice entry. But what are the torches good for? :-D
Steve Dragon
27. Apr 2021 · 09:18 UTC
The game is quite charming. The art and the music add to a sort-of retro feel that the simple punchy gameplay continues with. It feels very...complete. The enemy variation is introduced slowly and the caverns themselves are short but exciting to navigate. Very fast-paced.

Where is loses out is the tweaking within the different aspects. The combat feels a little off, the enemies feel a little random, the difficulty goes from super easy to super tough on a whim. The combat conttrols are slightly clunky too. Just, overall, needs a lot of playtesting and polish to be well-balanced.

The torches seemed like such a cool mechanic, I only wish they'd had some use.

Overall, though, a really charming entry. Enjoyed playing it!
crowvax
27. Apr 2021 · 09:26 UTC
The movement is a little snappy for me, I get stuck and have some trouble going through the tight spaces sometimes. There's also minor issues where you can't get the hearts when they land off the map (outside the walls). The pixel art is great although the floor tile is way too contrasted and over detailed but I do like how there are variations on the tile though (the little patches of dirt). For the music and sound effects, you did fantastic work and it fits the game. Overall, nicely done dungeon-crwaler game.
Hidjy
27. Apr 2021 · 12:00 UTC
Nice one :)

I like the light effect, but maybe the torch could have a bigger radius to make it more useful ?

The bats are hard to kill... or I'm just bad ^^
gagapete
28. Apr 2021 · 19:33 UTC
The enemies are cleverly designed. I like the idea and the graphics and music were fitting for this kind of game. It took a few kills to realize that the attack hits all directions and I didn't need to _aim_. May that could be visualized somehow.

One aspect of the game killed the fun for me though. The controls felt clunky as I got stuck on edges very often and needed a moment to squeeze through. This always killed any flow that may set in.

So I'm happy with my 700 meters and leave the content of the remaining 300 meters to my imagination. :slight_smile:
Adil
29. Apr 2021 · 18:04 UTC
Things i like:
- Design of the game, it shows clearly creatures
- Idea of the game is cool, i think you should improve it
Things may be improved:
- Hard to control and it's not very clear
- Some troubles with understanding game, you should visualise more
Overall, Great job!
egercreator
29. Apr 2021 · 18:12 UTC
Very good dangeon game in retro style! Its hard, but its cool for this genre!
Hoichael
30. Apr 2021 · 12:27 UTC
Nice game, especially the presentation.
My only criticism would be the balancing. The first 6 layers / 600 meters felt way too easy while the 7th layer suddenly threw 15 enemies at once at me. Not sure how I was supposed to handle them with the mechanics at my disposal. But I get that procedural generation (I assume the levels are procedurally generated?) takes quite a bit of time to balance so it's really hard to get these things right within the scope of a jam.

On another note, do the torches provide purely "visual" value by making areas outside of your direct surroundings visible or do they serve another purpose? sorry if it was explained and I missed it.
VixenMink
12. May 2021 · 02:09 UTC
Verrry nice music and cuuute pixel art.

Music gives me nostalgia for some final fantasy/Dragon quest elements.
I like your beginning training area to get everyone on the same page in how to get further in the game. Maybe have a button to allow the player to reread what the tutorial is if they missed it first being explained.

Beautifully done!
Sephy
12. May 2021 · 19:48 UTC
Love the graphics and music! Great entry! Bats were a bit hard to deal with :)