SolituΔe by rodel77

[raw]
made by rodel77 for Ludum Dare 49 (COMPO)

What is SolituΔe

SolituΔe is a puzzle-like game about loneliness, relationships and change (hence the "Δ" delta in the name).

The idea was to create a open puzzle game, similar to minimetro and minimotorways, addressing a real world topic at the same time.

It is something very different from what I've done before, but it was also veeery fun, hope you enjoy!

Details about the system

  • You have to connect lonely souls, otherwise they may die from solitude
  • Each cycle a pair of connected persons will share their interests (marked on their head)
  • Randomly persons may change their interests, leading to awkwardness in their relations
  • The conversation of non-matching topics kills relations
  • A person can't have more than 2 relations, otherwise they will become unstable and may also die

solitude.gif

chrome_ZuIfTsSwdI.png

Ratings

Overall 45th 4⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Fun 110th 3.763⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 17th 4.237⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Theme 204th 3.763⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 149th 3.789⭐ 21🧑‍⚖️
Audio 82th 3.75⭐ 20🧑‍⚖️
Humor 283th 2.656⭐ 18🧑‍⚖️
Mood 57th 3.882⭐ 19🧑‍⚖️
Given 27🗳️ 8🗨️

Feedback

Moomka
04. Oct 2021 · 08:04 UTC
This is the first time I've seen something like this. Tried to just connect everyone to everyone - ended up with a sea of corpses) The second time I had to think a little bit. Got a real treat while playing! Thank you! Very cool!
AppoxGames
04. Oct 2021 · 08:28 UTC
Wow, this was lovely. They kept changing their interest as fast as I change projects though :) Great little puzzle game, well done!
Madgvox
05. Oct 2021 · 16:55 UTC
Fun concept, it creates a good hectic atmosphere trying to make connections. A couple things I noticed: it's a bit difficult to detect when moods change (and therefore connections become unstable), and new unconnected people die too quickly -- often they'd die before I ever addressed them because I was finishing up somewhere else. I don't think forcing the player to immediately switch focus whenever someone shows up feels good gameplay wise.
Notinatal
06. Oct 2021 · 15:15 UTC
I enjoyed playing the game, though I reached a point, where there was no way to salvage the balls and only watched them die as they had no shape in common.
Also, I would recommend removing the dead balls if you press them.
POBIX
06. Oct 2021 · 15:26 UTC
Cool game! Very polished and interesting concept. My only compliant is that you can't drag people around and remove the dead ones.
ubershmekel
06. Oct 2021 · 15:27 UTC
![me.png](///raw/d03/f2/z/477be.png)

Highly polished, unique concept, and emotionally charged take on unstable relationships. Awesome. The music was really good, I wanted to hear more of it. The sound effects were excellent too except for the good exchange ding, it felt a bit too sharp for something that happened so frequently, maybe it just needed a few variations to it. Strange how I could relate to these emoji faces. I'm close to 40 years old, and by now I've entered and left many relationships, so this was a bit therapeutic, kind of made it feel normal. Thank you for the game.
Betamorfosis
06. Oct 2021 · 16:05 UTC
Wow great entry! Loved the music, the mood, the cuteness of the entire thing. You talked about a deep thing in such a way that everything seems so light. Good job
🎤 rodel77
07. Oct 2021 · 02:35 UTC
@ubershmekel thanks for you comment, it made my day ;)

@betamorfosis thanks also <3 I really appreciate

I am currently at a time where I start to find out how difficult relationships are, spending lot of time trying to find the "logic" behind it, making it look simpler in my head like if it was something with a source code ready to be interpreted haha. I am grateful and impressed to see how a game as simple as this one has the ability to comunicate that amount of feelings I wouldn't be able to do with words. :smile:

Also thanks for noticing the music, I was planning to do more, but didn't have the time to extend it. It was very fun to create ^^
LDJam user 139668
09. Oct 2021 · 22:41 UTC
Oh, that was very interesting to play. Wanna see it on my phone while waiting in queue at the shop! Reminds me mini metro a bit, but still very unique
🎤 rodel77
10. Oct 2021 · 02:26 UTC
@yogurtthehorse thanks for playing! It's very inspired in mini metro and mini motorways, I've been playing both a lot lately and wanted to create something similar :smile:
LDJam user 250824
10. Oct 2021 · 16:56 UTC
Yesssss, this is the stuff!

> A person can’t have more than 2 relations, otherwise they will become unstable and may also die

This made me laugh out loud, this is so true of some people! Going in I thought this was probably an introvert simulator, but then when the game ended I laughed out loud once again: the last one was so happy. Apparently, all these little guys need to live forever with not a care in the world is for everyone to *just freaking die and leave them alone!*

Jokes aside though, this game does model a side of real-life relations in a very interesting way. And the gameplay is very stimulating and dynamic. I always loved mini-metro/mini-motorways type mechanics, and this just adds depth to building unstable structures while they change under your cursor.

I think this idea can be developed and explored further: relationships can grow stronger in communities, groups of people having similar interests can retain them for longer, creating several connections between separate groups can provoke new connections to form on their own, etc. Ocean of possibilities here!

I love this so much, thank you.
Jupiter_Hadley
12. Oct 2021 · 13:46 UTC
What a complex game! I included it in my Ludum Dare 49 compilation video series, if you’d like to take a look. :) https://youtu.be/gL5Jq5zIm84
MildlyDisturbing
12. Oct 2021 · 19:01 UTC
Really engaging and innovative idea. I love problem solving games and this one was neat, bridging the instability of oneself with connection is a unique premise and executed well, great job!
LDJam user 259103
12. Oct 2021 · 19:01 UTC
Fun game with a really cool concept! Got a bit frantic trying to join everyone together :)

Nice work! :)
GrimaceOverload
12. Oct 2021 · 19:06 UTC
really great and hectic. I'd love to see more built into this. Very intuitive
mar3k
12. Oct 2021 · 19:13 UTC
Great idea and well executed