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[ThemsAllTook]

Hi!

For the last few months, I've been working on updating a game I released long ago, called Water Tower. It was written for the uDevGame 2003 contest run by idevgames.com. The game didn't win any prizes in the competition, but it earned 7th place ranking out of 43 entries in the gameplay category, and I was proud of what I had created.

The original game was written for Macintosh PowerPC computers, using the QuickDraw API. QuickDraw is now obsolete, and Water Tower is unable to run on modern operating systems. I wanted to play the game again, so I ported it to a modern cross-platform framework, replacing the QuickDraw graphics layer with OpenGL. The game was reborn as Water Tower Classic.

I've learned a lot in the 11 years since I wrote Water Tower. Although there are many things I'd like to have changed about how the game works, I decided to leave it mostly intact, making only the updates necessary to modernize it enough to be playable. This is a warts-and-all rerelease, so keep your expectations low... I'd recommend turning off the music since it's pretty terrible. Some of the later intermediate/advanced levels are unreasonably hard, but all are possible to complete.

Test builds obsolete; see bottom of post for full release
I'd like to get some final bug/compatibility testing before I officially release the remake. System requirements are very low; as long as your computer isn't prehistoric, it should be able to run OK. Here are test builds for desktop operating systems:

Mac OS X: http://ludobloom.com/temp/watertowerclassic_rc2_macosx.zip
Windows (32-bit): http://ludobloom.com/temp/watertowerclassic_rc2_win32.zip
Windows (64-bit): http://ludobloom.com/temp/watertowerclassic_rc2_win64.zip
Linux (32-bit): http://ludobloom.com/temp/watertowerclassic_rc2_linux32.zip
Linux (64-bit): http://ludobloom.com/temp/watertowerclassic_rc2_linux64.zip

If you can try the game, please let me know if it runs OK. Much appreciated!

Edit: Added screenshots
Edit: Game has been released! Download it here: http://ludobloom.com

[Quicksand-S]

I normally don't download things without a screenshot or any idea of what the gameplay is like...but I was curious about this one.

I like it. It reminds me of some games I played as a kid in its style, while the actual gameplay is more fun and varied than the games I'm thinking of (Like "Micro Man" which was really not much like this, but it's what comes to mind).

I played the tutorial, a few easy levels, and then the hard levels. The ladders felt a bit weird because I couldn't seem to grab on while falling, and I wasn't sure gems were worth getting in some levels since having a low water level is worth so much. The water is really interesting in this. At first, I thought I'd just be running from it. I like that I actually need it for some things.

On the first Advanced level, I landed on the last edge of a grey block and was killed by the deadly block beside it. I would normally expect to be safe unless I fall about a pixel lower. Standing on the stone, I thought I'd be fine. I also "hit" my head on one of those deadly blocks while appearing to be three pixels or so away from it. That first Advanced level seems to really show off the issues with the game that I never noticed playing the easier levels. I stopped after getting halfway through Advanced level 2 when it seemed like I would be unable to progress because an ice block had melted too early. Maybe I just missed something.

That said, the controls felt pretty good for the most part. My only issue with how the character handled was that the code to save him from falling into pits was a bit too generous. 90% of the time I wanted to drop down but I popped back up to my original height on the other side of the pit. That was a bit frustrating, but I found the rest of the controls quite easy to work with even when dodging deadly blocks in the advanced levels.

The game ran great on my computer. No slowdown, graphical glitches, errors or anything like that to report.

[ThemsAllTook]

Ah, screenshots! I knew I'd forgotten something. Added to first post.

Thanks for the great feedback! Totally agree on the game mechanic problems you ran into. I'd love to fix it all, but I'm trying to exercise restraint and leave it as it is for historical accuracy. My next project after this is probably going to be a sequel, where I apply all of what I've learned in the 11 years since I wrote this and make a much better game.

[James_Hart]

It was a great idea in my opinion the first level was great to introduce the game, i would say maybe the level designs could have more thought put into them maybe the layout of the levels and water stopped follow me up the screen i dont know if that is meant to happen or a bug but either way great game!

[ThemsAllTook]

Testing seemed to go well enough, so I've pulled the lever and released the game. Find it on the front page of ludobloom.com. Thanks to everyone who tried it!

[Tunabeez]

Very fun and interesting but needs checkpoints during the more challenging levels as they can be quite annoying to redo multiple times.

[1kW]

@ThemsAllTook, this site is yours or not?

[bdsowers]

I enjoyed this! Played the tutorial levels and several of the easy levels. May or may not come back to it, I'm not sure.

For the sequel, I'd like to see a little more pressure on the player earlier on. The water works pretty well, especially on the levels where you have to use it to progress - more of that, I think.

[ThemsAllTook]

Thanks for the feedback. I've made some minor updates to the game, including fixing a lot of rough edges in later levels and improving editor usability.

1.0.2 Windows
1.0.2 Mac
1.0.2 Linux

@ThemsAllTook, this site is yours or not?

Hm? ludobloom.com is mine if that's what you're asking.