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[RoyalJello]

Is it easier to use VN games programs, or do you design a game specifically with the time constraint?

[ProgramGamer]

I avoid sleeping, mostly.

[michaelplzno]

The best trick is to choose a concept that is really small scope. Think something like tetris level of complexity. But its all about designing something that is very easy to make in the first hour or so.

[fluffrabbit]

It's interesting the OP mentions VN software. I have actually worked with a VN engine with time pressure in the past, and it's actually one of the slower mediums. While the technical hurdles are out of the way, keeping track of branching dialogue is a strain and I didn't end up with much of it in that amount of time.

[litHermit]

I've only done 72 hour jams (and as a team of two, working with Unity). The approach was always to get a barebones working prototype working fast, then focus on a single aspect/mechanic and just work on it and expand on it until the time's up.
Also sleep reduction...

[FoustemeZ]

you mean in 24hr game jam or u just want to make it so quickly? if the latter then thats bad approach, that would be worst game ever..

[michaelplzno]

@FoustemeZ a lot of games come from fast prototypes, jam or no. Even SUPERHOT was first a prototype that was in 24 hours iirc. Also Minit was too. There is a very long list. It helps a lot of people's process to impose a constraint when starting out, and that is a tried and true technique to getting quality end results after investing more time and money. Hell even Picaso did paintings all in blue when he was beginning and they were not "the worst paintings ever."

Also I recommend twine if you want to make a narrative game, you can knock something out pretty fast with that.

[fluffrabbit]

I prefer a VN where every piece of dialogue is a plot-altering multiple-choice. Those can't be knocked out in 24 hours.

[Mark Mayers]

hyperbolic time chamber

[Superb Joe]

sorry, have to disagree, picasso definitely did the worst paintings ever. for sure i will kick his ass if i ever see him

[Richard Kain]

It helps considerably for short-term jams to have an existing library of coding tools under your belt. The kind of software tools that can be quickly and easily re-purposed for various applications. It also helps to have hammered out a lot of the "basics" for a functional engine ahead of time, so you can skip over a lot of the basic set-up process right out of the gate. Problems like game resolution, windowing, and basic input can be decided and coded ahead of time.

With rapid prototyping you need to get from design to interaction and testing as quickly as possible. Anything that contributes to shortening that distance should be prepped ahead of time. Coding practice and preliminary prototyping is the way to go for this, as it will teach better coding structures and supply you with that library of pre-existing tools.

[michaelplzno]

No need to apologize Joe, I think you could make a good argument to that effect. Particularly if you use Pizza Semantics. He's left himself open to a lot of critique. Though beating up an artist is always a hollow victory. It reminds me of a vignette I once wrote: "The Soldier and the Flower" Its the story of a trooper off to war who carelessly steps on a flower without thought or remorse.

[fluffrabbit]

Fuck flowers.

So this is what 80 hours looks like: https://github.com/fluffrabbit/WeWorkForM

Please try it out, building from source if you can.

[michaelplzno]

@fluff -  The makefile did not work correctly on windows, but I made a Visual Studio project to compile it. Then in line 136 of sdl_tile.h you allocate an array using a variable instead of a constant, so idk how you got it to compile if it ever did. But after fixing the error and got this:



IDK if I installed SDL wrong or what.

[fluffrabbit]

Your screenshot is too small for me to read and I have no experience with VS. It compiles fine for me under GCC and Clang with no warnings, so IDK what's up.

Make sure you're compiling in C99 mode and using SDL 2.0.x, with both SDL2.dll and libSDLMain.a on hand.

[Daid]

@fluff -  The makefile did not work correctly on windows, but I made a Visual Studio project to compile it. Then in line 136 of sdl_tile.h you allocate an array using a variable instead of a constant, so idk how you got it to compile if it ever did.

GCC and Clang have no issue in allocating a stack array with that. Part of the C99 standard:
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/variable-length-arrays-in-c-and-c/

And MSVC does not support the C99 standard.

[fluffrabbit]

wind blows
my hate flows
werd up hoes
fuck windows

if you wanna fix shit
i tell you how compile it
C++ so cops cant bust
C as C-plus cuz

[michaelplzno]

Its a whole new world we live in where c has variable length arrays.

I see that I was using the wrong .dll, it runs.

Is the map supposed to be 3 guys and then a big open space?

[fluffrabbit]

Its a whole new world we live in where c has variable length arrays.

I see that I was using the wrong .dll, it runs.

Is the map supposed to be 3 guys and then a big open space?

that's one of the maps yeah, unfinished

[michaelplzno]

Well I think you may have spent some of your 80 hours on stuff that is sort of aside from the game part. Low level libraries, makefiles etc. It took me about an hour just to figure out how to compile it.

As far as the game goes: I think the combat was interesting, there was a strategy to dealing with the super fast bullets and their long range that gave an intensity to dealing with each guy. Also the one hit kills and the fact that the enemy guns were the same as the player's made it interesting too.

The sprites need work, and the gun sound is irritating.