TIGSource Forums

---

Description Explore the twilit lands as a spirit of light. The game plays somewhat like a shmup. However, you have no physical form, and can only travel by moving your spirit from one body to another. Rather than shooting enemies, you must enter their bodies to restore them to their normal forms.		Inspired by (http://famicase.com/09/softs/7.jpg) (http://famicase.com/09/softs/7.jpg)

---

(http://img69.imageshack.us/img69/843/twilituniverse.png)

Download (http://www.box.net/shared/22or75eoua)

How to play
Click on anything to move to it.
Avoid bullets.
Convert red fish for points.

An interesting concept! Can't wait to play it myself.

I have something playable to show now. There's not nearly enough variety for it to be enjoyable, yet, but it should give you a better idea of how the game's mechanics will work.

Download (http://www.box.net/shared/61os48964t)

 :handthumbsupL:Cool game, nice visuals

From what you have so far, this has a very interesting gameplay mechanic.  Of course, when you constrain the player to the positions of the other objects in the game, it makes it much harder to dodge things, so I found it a bit hard at times, and sometimes felt as though there were no options for me to move to.

I like the glowy graphics a lot, by the way.

Once there's more variety in the obstacles and a more coherent level design, the game should open up more.

I'm thinking of new names for the game so that googling it doesn't turn up a bunch of Twilight references. How do you think Twilit Universe sounds?

"Twilit Universe" sounds much better, and makes more sense with the premise than "Twilight TV."

First of all, I love the visuals you got going there right now. The atmosphere is awesome. Can't wait to see what you make of this.

Thanks. I'm going for a mystical atmosphere. I hope I have enough time to add a good amount of content, so it will really sink in.

I uploaded a new version. The first 30 seconds or so of the game are exactly the way I want them. And then it loops.

I've programmed a few more types of enemies that do not yet appear in the game. At this point, all that's really left is level design.

Download (http://www.box.net/shared/22or75eoua)

I like it.  If you fall off the screen, do you take damage, and then enter the nearest fish?

You keep taking damage until you get back on screen. Going off screen is a bad idea.

I uploaded a new version, with the first two minutes of gameplay completed. This release includes Urchins, Comb Jellies and health pickups.

Download (http://www.box.net/shared/22or75eoua)

Let me know if the FPS (displayed in the lower left corner) ever drops below 30.

A solid 30 all the time i played, what a sexy game man.  My only crit is the background could be improved a bit with some darker particles or something swirling around it or something like that, apart from that  :beer: wicked job man

FPS was fine for me too.  This game is hard lol.

Thanks. I'm glad the graphics didn't slow things down too much.

How long did you last, JR Hill? As long as you made it to the urchins without taking too much damage, then the difficulty is about where I was aiming.

Added a new version, with new waves of enemies, as well as the shield power-up. The shield allows you to move anywhere on the screen, and creates a temporary barrier around that spot that prevents all damage.

Download (http://www.box.net/shared/22or75eoua)

I found it somewhat hard, too.  Sometimes I felt as though I was losing health for no reason.  Maybe a bullet had been created the same instant that I clicked on the fish?

The fish flash briefly before firing. You should be able to avoid their attacks if you pay attention.

Has anyone else had a chance to try this yet? I could use feedback on the difficulty, as well as the section where you first acquired the shield. Did the shield mechanic seem intuitive?

Had a play at it just now. Got to the urchins, then clicked on one and was annihilated. (Was at about 75-80% health before that.)

The gameplay felt odd, loose. I didn't feel as though I really understood or was in control of what was going on... it was pretty, though.

Not sure how helpful that is, but... there you go.

So you rested on the urchin for about 3 seconds? As soon as you stop touching it, you stop taking damage.

To put it simply, you move to anything you click on. Was the game at least clear enough on that?

Perhaps I should make the character stand out more?

I enjoyed zooming around through the various life forms, but I think the feedback when you are damaged is what makes it feel slippery. Sound will help with this.

I think the difficulty is about right; I just want more solid-feeling hit detection.

I played it a few days ago, it was difficult and a bit confusing. Jumping to fish made sense, but I didn't realise it was a goal at first. And then jumping to sea urchins seems to kill you rather fast. In fact, jumping past them seems to hurt, or something, which seems rather odd. Maybe giving feedback on exactly what hurt you could help. It's an interesting and enjoyable game, though.

I think I might see part of the problem. Moving over obstacles (including bullets, urchins and items) involves interacting with them. Perhaps I just need to make that more clear.

On an unrelated note, do you understand how the shield power-up works? If it is too confusing, I will remove it.

 :tired:

I'll be cutting this competition pretty close...

I didn't last much longer than a few minutes lol, been too far into my own code to try it again though.

Phew! It's finally finished!

Though I had originally planned to make it substantially longer, I'm still happy with the result. The mechanics are innovative, and the game is as polished as I can make it. Now we'll see if people actually enjoy playing it, but either way, creating Twilit Universe was a lot of fun.

Download (http://drop.io/twilit_universe/asset/twilituniverse-zip)

Has anyone played this yet?

And if not, why not?

I ask that seriously. I could use feedback on my marketing skills.  :)

Too many games man, too many. :crazy:

I will eventually.

I like the game a lot, though so far I only got to the part after the walls.  It is, in my opinion, rather hard (even on normal mode).  I like the amount of concentration (and quick-thinking) that it requires, but sometimes it becomes a bit unfair when there are too few objects to enter that are safe.

Also, sometimes I would get hurt after entering a fish that had just flashed and fired (but the flashing was done, and the shot was away).  I think maybe the time at which the player can get hurt during the flashing should be decreased.

Perhaps you could make an "Easy" mode, or just make "Normal" mode easier - maybe by decreasing all of the damage done.

Perhaps I'm just bad at the game - I will keep trying, as I want to see the end.

yep. the game definitely has one of my votes for winner in this comp. very enjoyable, nice graphics and sounds, difficult and unique gameplay. Very good take on that cart.

I still haven't gotten to the end. Like Theta I too want to see it.

There's always a clear path. It's possible (but very difficult) to beat the game without taking damage.

Did you understand how to use the shield to get past the walls? Did it make sense?

The player doesn't get hurt by the flashing. It's just a warning for the player to get out of the way if he's in front of the fish. You were either hit by a bullet from a fish swimming behind that one, or you moved through a bullet or urchin on the way there. When you take damage, a red spark will appear to show what damaged you.

I hear you. I uploaded a new version and reduced the damage you take by 1/3.

Thanks.  :)

I'm surprised so many people have commented on the graphics. Graphics aren't usually my specialty.

I actually did not understand quite what to do.  How is the shield activated?

First you need to collect the shield item by moving through it. Then you need to right click at any point on the screen. A mouse icon with the RMB highlighted will appear after you get the first shield item to clarify what you need to do.

Which part of the process was unclear? If it was too confusing, I'll remove that section.

Okay, I think I did that (at the time, I did not know that it was the shield).  I must have died for other reasons during that part.  I don't think it was that confusing; it is a nice addition.

Tried this out. Man this is hard! But also quite pretty, though it would be even more so if the creatures were animated, and I don't like the blurryness on the moon at the end.

Gameplay works pretty well, and I didn't find it confusing.

I suggest either to add an Easy mode or to make Normal a bit easier than it is now.

Either way an enjoyable game. :beer::handthumbsupR:

When did you download it? I added a new version last night that makes the game a bit easier. If it is still too difficult, I can reduce the difficulty again.

I agree on both counts. I just didn't have the time to fix them.

That's good to hear! My main worry is that players won't understand what is going on or what they have to do.

I honestly think this is one of the best, if not the best, game of the compo. The gameplay is very original and has a really great feeling, like a blend of puzzle and shmup (of the defensive kind). I think, though, the execution is good, but not yet perfect. I really hope you can polish it up a little bit because I think this has a lot of potential. :gentleman:

Check points would be cool too! Some animations, maybe.

I congratulate you for having such an awesome idea! Great game! :handclap: :)

Thank you for the kind words. :)

I agree that the execution is only good, and not excellent. The first game of its type is rarely the best, and running out of time certainly didn't help.

I didn't really expect this game to be terribly popular, since in this sort of competition, voters are unlikely to play your game for more than a few minutes. As a result, unfamiliar concepts tend to do poorly. I'm glad at least someone else liked the concept, though.

Who knows the reason. I'm baffled, no, pissed! >:( as to why this didn't get more attention. I think being almost at the bottom of the list didn't help, as I bet many people started playing the compo games in a) alphabetical order or b) just based on looks, and this isn't the most eye catching game despite looking good.

I think a little video (under 1 min) could've helped. Probably people didn't get the point. For example, a lot of the people who played 8:Capsule could only get through the first level after watching the video. In the end I think the video helped 8:Capsule get more votes.

I hope you don't feel disappointed and keep working on it. And everyone else, I hope you give this a good chance and try to understand the concept.

Oh, I'm not disappointed. But I probably won't be working on this any more. The concept wasn't quite as successful as I had hoped, and I have some other projects I want to work on.

I felt sorting games through alphabetical order was the most fair way to go with it, but I myslf wasn't happy with that. For the next compo I'll probably try and set up (if Derek doesn't organize the next one himself, that is) a script that displays the games on the page in a completely random order. Or displays games that you haven't clicked in yet (maybe doable with session variables).