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This is a less-than-one-day entry, made for ZX Spectrum 48k, an over 30 year old home computer. The web link opens in an online emulator, which is fairly good, the audio is a bit off though.
The .tap file can be used to play on actual hardware or on one of the various emulators out there.
In main menu, use keys 1, 2 or 3 to pick controls (QAOP being spectrum classic, WASD more modern, and interface-2 joystick is there too).
The goal of the game is to kill all the robots without being killed yourself. The robots come in R, G and B varieties, and red can kill blue, blue can kill green, and green can kill red. There's a cheat sheet for this on screen all the time. You can switch your own color by pressing fire (space).
It starts out rather easy but as more robots are introduced, it may get a bit hairier soon enough..
For development I used my speccy toolchain based on sdcc which can be found in my github, with my graphics conversion tool (also on github). For audio I used BeepFX player by Shiru which is free for everyone to use for whatever.
--
Due to request, I added a link to a package of a spectrum emulator for windows with the .tap file included. The emulator is not (well duh) made by me, but this may be convenient for some people. There are *A LOT* of zx spectrum emulators out there for just about every platform imaginable, so feel free to use whatever emulator you want. The package is there just for convenience.
Downloads and Links
Ratings
![]() | Coolness | 65% |
#250 | Overall | 3.46 |
#333 | Innovation | 3.33 |
#345 | Graphics | 3.31 |
#363 | Mood | 3.06 |
#366 | Audio | 2.92 |
#385 | Fun | 3.26 |
#515 | Humor | 2.07 |
#641 | Theme | 3.08 |
Comments
I agree--addictive. Really cool aesthetic, and it works on a ZX Spectrum! Really fun! In my opinion, this is the kind of thing that could get very, very hardcore in terms of tactics/logic. Nice.
Very cool game!!! and done in just the first day-- incredible! It took me a minute to figure out what was going on but once I noticed the color Tri-Force in the bottom right, I was able to strategize! :)
Very fun! I really enjoy the sound effects and pixel look. Nice use of color as the main mechanic.
Man, you nailed the retro aesthetic! The visuals, sound, and theme match perfectly. Simple and easy to understand with great execution.
Really interesting enty. Forces you to think a bit more. And Retro graphics for a reason :D
I think I would've played the heck out of this game back in the olden days (though I had a C64). Nice sounds too!
Nice tactical game. It would be nice if changing colour would cost you a move. The art and style of the grid is really nice.
Creative mechanic, really fun to play! The art has a nice charm to it.
Super impressive doing this on a ZX spectrum. It feels very authentic. Gameplay is simple but takes some thought, and it gets scary when lots of enemies are nearby.
Help, how do I say this name. ARR-GEE-BOBOTS. Really though, solid game, I enjoyed it.
I never had ZX Spectrum but I love this kind of aesthetic. Graphics and sounds fit perfectly. It just clicks with me so well. The game play seems fun at first. You have to balance going away and attacking, while switching colors... but I think the gameplay rules are a bit off. Is there any challenge? It felt to me like you can't die, if you are just a bit careful. The only challenge is to be attentive.
I'm super impressed by this entry. I can't believe it's the real thing (a real ZX Spectrum file I mean)!
The game itself is pretty good. It starts off very easy, but becomes challenging rather quickly. I always like turn-based strategy games, so a big +1 from me. And on top the graphics and audio are also very cool, so all in all I couldn't really ask for more from a LD entry.
Awesome job!
I'm actually very impressed by this. It was very strategic for such a simple mechanic and the colors made it even more so. I liked it a lot. Also the platform you did this on is insane... Great job!
Really simple concept yet incredibly interesting. Reminded me of those really old but simple and addictive games
Great to see a ZX Spectrum entry :) ... and especially impressive that it has been made in less than one day! The graphics and audio both work really well given the limitations of the system. Good job!!
The art (basic pixel art) and audio (lack of music and sounds that get repetitive soon) wouldn't be something to brag about. If it wasn't made for a machine that's older than me that is...
It's simply amazing how you achieved that, I guess it's only natural that it had such a retro look & feel to it. The neat little opening animation was a great addition.
The gameplay itself has a very interesting premise but I wish it was a bit more complicated. It's good to keep games as simple as needed, but this one was perhaps overdone, and I wished I could've controlled more figures like in chess/checkers kind of games.
Great game, everything fits the aesthetic perfectly. Ramps up nicely, good strategy elements.
Great to see a Spectrum game in Ludum Dare. :-) Fun & tricky game too. Nice work.
It feels so authentic, really cool. It's like I've played that in 1982 (when I was born).
At first I was like "meh that's easy", but with level 4 or so it got an interesting tactical component. Admirable game design!
Really cool game! I included it in my video compilation series of Ludum Dare games, if you’d like to check them out :) https://youtu.be/ly5GDw3HErI
This was fun, and strategic.
Very brave of you for entering LD with a working 8 bit game. That alone already means I should give a somewhat higher score than usual.
Also "8-bit retro aesthetic atmosphere".
Very little colour clash there. Oh, there's even a loading screen!
And after playing it I think I really should make a 8 bit game soon. Well done!
PS. If I would change one thing it would be the long beeping bits when a robot got killed. On higher level with many robots, waiting for all the sounds go away is a bit annoying.
A little twist to the old robot game I used to play. It is very well made and fun. At some point it gets a bit repetitive though. It would be more challenging if changing the color costs a whole turn.
My score: 199 (at level 11)
Nice retro style! I like the use of RGB for the shape shifting!
Love the fact you did a spectrum game, and whats more its fun to play. Great work
Nice game for less than a day, and for an ancient computer.
You came to the wrong neighborhood, motherfuckers
http://puu.sh/oBpQJ/106a90f0ad.png
You've got a very clever gameplay mechanic, cool pixel art, and I love that it's for the ZX Spectrum.
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This is really interesting. I really like the progression, as when I first stared off I wasn't quite sure how the game worked, but just as I started to understand that this was a tactical game, the difficult ramped up to the point that I needed to strategize my every move to eliminate the combatants. Very well done, and although it is simple, it is very addicting. I would love for there to be a windows download at some point, as I want to keep it on hand whenever rather than going on the internet to play it.