A Family Game Jam Project

"Depthcaller: The Seahorse's Revenge" is our entry for Ludum Dare 56, created by a family team over a weekend.

Team & Roles

• Helmi (9): Pixel art and sprites
• Joonas (17): Coralblade artist and Dark Souls expert consultant
• Heikki (50): Programming and music composition

Development Stack

• Engine: GameMaker

• Art: Pixage (iPad)

• Music: FL Studio with orchestral sound packs (BBC Symphony orchestra from Spitfire Audio)

• Tileset + Tinyfish Assets: "Tiny Blue Shark Assets" from itch.io for tilesets and small fish

Files

• Depthcaller-Seahorses-Revenge.zip (Windows version - play with keyboard)

• Depthcaller-for-portmaster.zip (For Portmaster, supports retro-handhelds like R36S, upzip the game microsd "ports" directory. (B) maps to (X) button in the game)

• Sea-Horses-Rvenge.zip (the same windows version, uploaded with old name, for some reason cannot delete it)

Game Overview

In the depths of the ocean, the line between predator and prey is blurred. But today, vengeance calls from the deep.

Vade, the Abyssal Fisher, casts his line into the dark, hunting and capturing your tiny friends—creatures too small to fight back but too important to lose. As the last of your kind, it is up to you, a lone seahorse, to face this nightmare from the depths. Armed with nothing but courage and the call of the sea, your journey begins to uncover the legendary Coralblade, a weapon of ancient power hidden deep within the coral forests.

Explore the deep, vibrant underwater world, uncover the Coralblade's resting place, and confront Vade in an epic showdown. Fail, and you and your friends will meet a tragic fate—served up as mere sushi.

In this quick but intense adventure, every second counts. Can you rise to the challenge, or will you be just another lost soul in the depths?

Theme Interpretation: "Tiny Creatures"

We approached the "Tiny Creatures" theme from a fun angle:

1. Protagonist: The player controls a seahorse, one of the ocean's tiniest predators.

2. Reversal of Roles: We flipped the typical "big fish eats small fish" narrative, empowering a tiny creature to fight back against a much larger threat.

3. Scale: We emphasize the size difference between the tiny seahorse protagonist and the looming presence of Vade, the human-sized antagonist.

4. Collective Power: While individually small, the captured sea creatures represent a significant ecological importance, driving the narrative.

5. Mechanics: The game's tight, pixelated visuals and constrained movement options reflect the limitations and agility of a tiny creature in a vast ocean.