Death In Time by Yorsh

[raw]
made by Yorsh for Ludum Dare 52 (COMPO)

Banner<em>800</em>200.jpg

Death is never late. As the reaper itself, you are charged to harvest the souls of some villagers. Be carefull, you shall not come too early, nor too late.

Controls

  • WASD to move or Left stick on Controller
  • Space to jump (hold to jump highter) / A
  • Get near a villager to kill it automatically.

Scoring

  • You get better score by killing a villager when its time has come, when its progress bar is full and the skull icon lighten up.
  • If you don't kill them in time, their progress bar depletes. When it reaches 0 the villager dies anyway granting 0 point. HarvestSoul2.gif

Ratings

Overall 69th 3.813⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Fun 138th 3.475⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Innovation 88th 3.625⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Theme 99th 3.938⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Graphics 11th 4.425⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Audio 83th 3.6⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Mood 100th 3.638⭐ 42🧑‍⚖️
Given 44🗳️ 68🗨️

Feedback

Chum Chum
08. Jan 2023 · 23:21 UTC
Super fun!
The only thing is that I would like an attack button instead of automatically attacking. :smile:
brandann
08. Jan 2023 · 23:43 UTC
first off, art was spot on!
I liked the chase, especially because your character seemed kinda slow.
more challenge to add to that thrill-of-the-chase to make it more fun.
it can be hard to see where you are going.
ben_burnes
09. Jan 2023 · 00:05 UTC
I really like this, but my death is super trigger happy and was taking people out when I was just trying to walk past them. Would be nice to be able to click to confirm the scythe swing. Honestly super polished though. Controls great and looks fantastic!
🎤 Yorsh
09. Jan 2023 · 00:47 UTC
@chum-chum @ben-burnes Thanks for the feedback ! I felt like killing people by misstake would be a fun part (and added challenge) of being Death itself. I think it's mostly lacking a bit of feedback and gizmos to better grasp when you are about to kill someone, so you feel a bit more in control.

@brandann Yup I also wanted a little more of chasing, but it was hard and very time consumming to try different values of speed, terrain size, number of villagers etc. to get the it just like I wanted. I ended fairly happy with the current settings so I went with it, but that sure would be something to work on. Glad you like the art, thanks for playing !
maymay
09. Jan 2023 · 02:35 UTC
Really amazing game! The graphics are so pretty, the controls work well, and the concept is really cool. After the third level my only option was to go back and improve, and I'm not sure if that's because I had reached the end or if I had not done the level well enough :p I guess I was hoping that I could play more, but it's already very impressive for the time frame.
🎤 Yorsh
09. Jan 2023 · 03:03 UTC
@maymay Glad you liked it ! Yeah it's the end sadly, I would have liked to make a 4th level but I needed 25h days for this ahah
LDJam user 0
09. Jan 2023 · 21:48 UTC
I like the autoattack mechanic as it's unique and adds this "whoopsie" factor. Graphics are honestly flawless. I wish the total score (sum) was displayed at the end, because right now there is little incentive to replay and "improve"
jcg
09. Jan 2023 · 22:37 UTC
Aesthetics are really, really great! I appreciate you took the time to add in the "squeeze" when jumping.

Chasing down someone who was on the verge of dying was something else. A couple times I was able to nab em, a few other times they keeled over before my very eyes. I'd like to think reaper's boss wouldn't be too pleased at that. Would love to see a scythe you can use to "pull in" victims for those cases!
Frib
09. Jan 2023 · 23:03 UTC
Interesting premise! My one wish for this game would be that the people actually died due to an external influence (e.g. tripping and falling off a cliff, or getting crushed by a box, idunno) so you can sort of predict when the deaths will be happening due to them getting near danger :D
Pincushion
09. Jan 2023 · 23:06 UTC
Great looking game. I like the variety of terrain. It makes for an interesting chase. The "improve" option is a nice choice. It allowed me to understand the game in the first round before moving on.
🎤 Yorsh
09. Jan 2023 · 23:36 UTC
@frib That's also what I had in mind at the beginning, but it would have taken too much time to do properly sadly. Thanks for the feedback !

@pincushion @jcg Thanks for playing, glad you liked it !
Mastoast
09. Jan 2023 · 23:43 UTC
Really impressive diversity of skills between the 3D assets, animations, good music production and programming of villagers pathfinding

It may miss a mean to see the lifetime of villagers from far away, as you can't know in which order you need to kill them when starting a level for the first time
muriel
10. Jan 2023 · 00:28 UTC
Wow it feels unreal how clean your game looks! Also the idea of having the whole game inside a turning circle it is very original, It is the first time that I have seen it. You are very talented, very good job :)
🎤 Yorsh
10. Jan 2023 · 01:28 UTC
@mastoast Thanks ! That's what I intended originally, first try is for scouting and getting to know the map, then you can try actually try to get a good score, a bit like Neon White. I couldn't find the time to really think this through tho.

@muriel Thanks, I'm glad you liked it !
LDJam user 314356
10. Jan 2023 · 02:51 UTC
You can jump on preys as an assassin!
RisingMoon
10. Jan 2023 · 05:38 UTC
Great picture style, interesting creativity, good interpretation of life
HypernoodleJon
10. Jan 2023 · 09:02 UTC
really fun controls, it felt great to jump down on people from a rooftop, or hide inside a building until they got close. Art style is nice and simple as well. Quite enjoyed it!
schnodelfactory
10. Jan 2023 · 14:25 UTC
Fun game and innovative idea! I loved the soundtrack and the gameplay was cool too, finding the old ones, not running into others by accident. I could see this idea being expanded on.<3
elFlashor
10. Jan 2023 · 16:13 UTC
I like the little diorama round worlds, that's a neat presentation :) Otherwise, I found the game a bit repetitive, I wished for more challenge, maybe some clever tactics to use or things that can change the outcome of a level...?
Congrats for the jam!
nikitavychuz
10. Jan 2023 · 17:32 UTC
Short and on point. The character is fun to control and it feels cool to jump around the environment while trying to find the best pattern for getting the little guys one by one. I wish the audio had a little variation; the automatic kill can get in the way of a perfect score. Regardless, I've enjoyed it!
Phillip Scott
10. Jan 2023 · 18:16 UTC
Fun idea and execution I was stalking Gus for a while before I harvested him :laughing:
Linus Lindberg
10. Jan 2023 · 18:21 UTC
This one was unique and well made! art was lovely. Controls felt a little clunky at times, it was easy to get stuck on things. But overall it's a great jam entry, and could easily be worked on more for a good game outside of the jam setting!
zubspace
10. Jan 2023 · 20:35 UTC
This is a great concept! And the stylized art is lovely! Everything fits together really well. Also the animations, music, sound effects and the UI are top-notch. The way the world turns when you move around is perfectly done. On a technical level you're game is really impressive.

The gameplay is the only thing which drags it a bit down. I think it would have been better to display the time-bar of the villagers always, not only when you're close to them. Currently you need to play the level a few times and remember the best route which is a bit of a drag. But this is just a minor nitpick. I would have loved to play more levels.

Good job! Keep it up!
🎤 Yorsh
10. Jan 2023 · 22:06 UTC
@zubspace Thanks ! I'm glad you liked it. For the gameplay, playing the level a few times to scout then perform well is the intent, but I had no time to really polish this gameplay loop (and maybe even then it's not your cup of tea).
Achilnos
11. Jan 2023 · 19:25 UTC
Great graphics. Nice sound effects. The concept of the game is fun and makes you try again and again to get the high score.
Joel Davis
11. Jan 2023 · 19:39 UTC
Good job making it cute and morbid at the same time, it somehow works. Looks fantastic and really amazing level of polish for a game jam. The camera was a little distracting, i think it might have worked better with a fixed camera or a more traditional follow camera but it did highlight the nice disc-shaped levels. Really great (and grim) work.
cogcomp
11. Jan 2023 · 19:44 UTC
Excellent graphics and music. The game itself is a really nice idea and with a bit of polish this could very well be a game you could release, sell and be proud of. Well done!
🎤 Yorsh
11. Jan 2023 · 20:00 UTC
@joel-davis Thanks for the feedback ! It was a struggle to decide between going cute to contrast with the death aspect, or full dark, with graphics more like Don't Starve. 100% agree with you about the camera. Tho I did try a manual-rotating camera first, which kind of worked better in some aspect, so maybe something to find mixing the two as well.

@cogcomp I actually just published on Steam a rework of a game I made in a jam a few years ago, so that might happen at some point ahah. I'm glad you liked it !
LDJam user 280036
13. Jan 2023 · 01:15 UTC
This feels great to play! Impressed by the models, animation, and overall game feel.

I was frustrated that I couldn't see the life bar of villagers who were further away, and it felt slow while I was waiting for the life bars to fill. Maybe add something to do in the meantime? Or maybe I should've been using that time to scout out the villagers and determine the best order for killing. Not sure the intent :slight_smile:
🎤 Yorsh
13. Jan 2023 · 01:43 UTC
@googlypoo Then intent is indeed first try - Scout, second perform. If you are going for the perfect score in level 2 and 3, you don't have much time to spare actually (only 10sec at the beginning of level3, misstake on my part). I had no time to guide a bit more the player, it's a bit lacking in this area indeed. Thanks for the feedback !
Blue Pin Studio
13. Jan 2023 · 04:19 UTC
Great entry, especially for the compo period! This felt like it was the complete package, there was scoring, ranks, sound effects and nice graphics. I would've liked if the little guys aged a bit slower so i have time to plot a course and pick an order of operations for killing them.
Orhu
14. Jan 2023 · 02:32 UTC
Awesome game! This is such a unique idea for a puzzle platformer. The levels are designed really well and I had a great time with it.
Lomby
14. Jan 2023 · 03:30 UTC
Thanks for submitting your game on the stream!
Here’s the start of your game if you wanted to re-watch initial thoughts youtu.be/qbBq_nBKk5k?t=22453

Really nice puzzle mechanic, looking forward to more levels if you continue with it!
chompdev
14. Jan 2023 · 19:25 UTC
Very fun idea! The sounds, music, and colors are crisp and vibrant. The top-down perspective and rotating camera is a fun way to explore the map and find targets hiding in certain areas behind buildings/trees. Cool mechanic to increase points as someone's life starts running out. It was cool to see that house on level 3 with a hatch in the roof you could drop down through - there's definitely some potential to do more of that in an expanded version and let the player find targets inside buildings and/or catch them unaware by dropping down through the ceiling. Great work on your game!
Echo GameWorks
15. Jan 2023 · 01:19 UTC
Really well put together! The animation and vibe of the game were great. The turntable camera was a nice touch. Great work!
tttt
16. Jan 2023 · 17:50 UTC
Really good and polished game. The round levels was a very nice idea.

I would better see the player moving a little bit faster. Also it could be nice to either make the NPC bars move quicker or maybe have some ability (e.g. scare them) to move them towards the optimal point. I guess that it would be difficult to balance those maybe (especially in the context of a game jam).

Great work!
Ismael Rodriguez
21. Jan 2023 · 04:27 UTC
I really like just mindlessly running and reaping souls lol I'm not crazy about the scoring system (cuz I just wanna reap dudes), but I guess it's better than no goals at all *** (looks at my game)*** lol
Very nice visuals, models are nice and soft and squishy, and clean. I liked the Captain Toad "style" levels.
Congrats!