August 19th-22nd 2011 :: Theme: Escape
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EDIT: If you tried a Windows build and it failed, please try again. Jiggawatt has generously built (another) version that seems to work for people. (Clearly, I need to get better at using cxfreeze/py2exe.)
Red Rover is an introspective game about a robot on a scientific mission. It is a puzzle game with more than one ending.
You can choose to explore, carry out your mission, or simply contemplate the vast loneliness of being stranded on an alien planet.
*** There may be more to the planet than meets the eye! :) Please explore a little bit before deciding to analyze every rock! ***
Currently requires Python2.6+ and Pygame. I hope to have an app and an exe built if I can figure out the respective tools.
If you are having trouble grabbing rocks, it helps to imagine the grabber claw in the exact center of the rover. So try to position yourself directly over the middle of the rocks (or where you want to drop the rocks). In retrospect I should have put the claw on the front (or back) to make it visible, but there just wasn't time.
I have put some spoilers online here http://plastic-idolatry.com/ludum/redrover-spoiler.txt in case you find the puzzles hard or want to cut to the chase.
Downloads and Links
Ratings
| #31 | Audio | 3.74 |
| #59 | Community | 3.36 |
| #60 | Coolness | 8% |
| #101 | Humor | 2.63 |
| #115 | Graphics | 3.35 |
| #158 | Overall | 3.15 |
| #188 | Innovation | 3.05 |
| #225 | Fun | 2.75 |
| #280 | Theme | 2.85 |
Comments
I have put an updated version which contains icons as well as README fixes.
A windows version should be made/submitted - http://cx-freeze.sourceforge.net/ should do the trick.
I packaged it for windows: http://www.parker-portfolio.com/stuff/d_m-redrover.zip
Jplur, thanks so much for packaging it for me! I don't have Windows so I can't test it but I mirrored the zip on my server and added a download link to it!
Kevin, I did have more ideas for the game for sure, but it is complete in the sense that you can play it and finish it, and I think the emotional tone is about what I had hoped.
I got 3620, but I didn't think there would be anything more to it than picking up rocks, crushing them and listening to the catchy music :) Maybe I should've thought about the theme hehe
Had a fun time while picking up the rocks... For science...
I couldn't run the game even after installing pygame specifically (other pygame games didn't require me to do this), but I still left a rating based on your screen shots and the audio files inside the source. I was as fair as I could be without playing the game.
After having you (the author) help me run it on Windows, I came back and really really enjoyed the game. It's very charming with the characterisation and the audio is awesome.
Yay, I sacrificed myself for science! The screen scrolls a little too late and the bot turns a little too slow for the screen:bot size ratio. And I'm not sure how it fits with the theme? I like how it leaves tracks. A minimap would have been awesome. Gets a little repetitive, some terrain/item variety would have helped.
I had a bit of bile about the theme I wanted to get rid of first, but in retrospect I saw a really nice interpretation of escaping. Being stuck in a thankless job that will ultimately be your end, and the attempts at fleeing it. Excellent :D
That aside, I dig the technical features. Although simple in its own way, the dirt tracks wheels really come to their own in the graphical aspect - I dig 'em :) Particul
Finally, the music deserves praise. Beautiful harmonics and some nice chilly riffs kept me going through the game without really feeling bored. It kept me going. Imo a real strong point :)
Lovely entry! Sad thing it was too short. I was enjoying it and was kinda excited to see what was underground, lol.
Cool music by the way.
Great concept! I found both good endings but didn't manage to get the bad one. (The non-linear score also makes it hard to keep track).
There are lots of nice details in this game (sand tracks, monologue,etc).
@Rudy: yeah, in retrospect the turning radius is a bit wide for the screen size. I did want to create plateaus, butes and other terrain but didn't really have time.
@Shadow: Yeah, I did have plans for an underground cavern area, but again, time ran out... thanks for your kind words!
@foobaz: I added crushing rocks to try to help people keep track of which ones they'd catalogued. Maybe giving rocks a variable score was a bad idea but I wanted to kind of simulate how a rover won't know exactly what minerals a rock has until it's analyzed. Maybe the score should say 100/3500 or something?
Great puzzles! I wouldn't have completed the puzzles without hints tho
I have completed the orange endings (the obvious) and the black ending. However, I didn't feel it to be very entertaining. The idea is solid though.
Music is awesome, and I love the visuals, especially the rendering of the persistent tracks. Just fun to drive around.
nice job. i really like the concept of being the lonely rover on an alien planet uncovering mysteries. if you haven't already played it, i recommend checking out looming by gregory weir. as with my game, i wish there was more stuff to do/explore. great music too!
too short!! hope you continue to work on this after the competition! the music was great and it was an interesting concept.
Cute. :) The tracks that my rover left were a great touch, and made it much more pleasant to explore the world since I knew where I had been. Nice music too. I found the blue gem ending!
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I put some spoilers at http://plastic-idolatry.com/ludum/redrover-spoiler.txt in case you find the puzzles hard or want to cut to the chase.