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Aronax's Shortventure Contest 2017

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Aronax:

 
Welcome to the first annual Shortventure Contest! Please read everything below to understand the rules and what needs to be done to enter. I hope you all have fun.

Each year, there is going to be a theme, and for this year the theme will be:
 
GROWTH
 
The judges:
Aronax (me)
Denferok
Naloa
Patrick
Pieceofcheese87
Wolfiexe
 
ALL games produced through this contest will have a written review and will be critiqued in detail by each judge in the contest. This can be good if you are new to making fangames or if you want some feedback from some respected creators of the community.
 
Guidelines for participating:
 
1. The theme "Growth" can be interpreted in any way you want, it's meant to inspire you. You don't have to take "obvious" routes or do the first thing that comes to mind. Be creative!
2. We recommend your game have 10min - 1 hour of gameplay. You wont be able to make an I Wanna Find My Destiny type game in a month. Remember: Quality over quantity!
3. Your game's difficulty should be between 10 - 40 on the Delfruit scale.
4. The term "Adventure game" means different things to different people, but this contest is generally adventure-themed. Just don't submit a pure needle game or a Miku avoidance.
6. Submit your game by November 1st!
7. Please enable debug mode on your entry in case there are bugs.
8. Include a README explaining how to play your game and or if you think players may get stuck.
 
Minimum and maximum difficulty reference:
(click to show/hide) (click to show/hide)
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Judging categories:
Overall - The overall fun value of your game and how closely it represents an adventure game.
Theme - How well the theme was integrated, aswell as creativity.
Level Design - Creativity of your overall design, including any potential boss fights.
Atmosphere - Production value, environment and setting.
Audio - Fitting music for the environment, aswell as good use of sound effects.
 
Each category will have rankings, with "Overall" determining the overall rankings. 1st place overall will win the cash prize of $50 (or anything equivalent to that). There will be a Top 3 of each category released. And #1, #2, and #3 Overall, and #1 of the other categories will receive a shoutout on Delfruit with your own custom message.
 
Judging will finish one week after the deadline, so November 8th. After that date, you are free to release your game to the wiki / work on it some more / do whatever you like.
 
Here are some other tips from the judges regarding the actual creation of your games. Remember these are not mandatory, but they will help:
1. Saves on the ground.
2. Skippable cut-scenes.
3. Sound effect, this just helps to give the game more life.
4. Get someone to play test before submitting it.
5. Theme can be interpreted in any way you want. Doesn't have to mean one specific thing.
6. Consider having a volume check.
7. Think outside the needle genre.
8. Make sound stereo not mono.
9. Make the music fit the screens.
10. Avoid generic random flying spikes.
 
If you are struggling to find any resources to use, consider checking the websites below as they are full of useful sprites and sounds to help throughout development:
Useful wesbites:
https://www.sounds-resource.com/
https://www.spriters-resource.com/
 
If you are relatively new to fangames and would like to join in on this contest, Klazen has a fangame creation tutorial, that can be found here: https://klazen.com/IWBTG/tutorial/dev_tutorial.html

patrickgh3:
Excited to be a judge for this! I may also participate myself, we'll see. Good luck to everyone participating!

Denferok:
Hype! Good luck everyone

Bootstrap1988:
just translated to Chinese community, expect for some new participants here ^w^/

Denferok:
The contest has come to a close! 9 people submitted a total of 8 games: Piranha, Erik, SymmetricalGardevoir, Zanto & Sephalos (team), Neos, Koslyn, KingSlendy, and MattinJ! There were also a few people like Dribix and Mr Wonderful who worked on a game but didn't quite make the deadline. Some great games came out of this contest, and both the makers and the judges had fun (I hope!), so we're considering this a success!

The game makers were disallowed from releasing their games until the judging was finished. So it's now up to them to decide when to release their games.

The 6 judges were: Aronax, Denferok, Naloa, Patrick, Wolfiexe, and Pieceofcheese. We each wrote reviews to give the creators constructive feedback, and we gave ratings in each category to honor the best games.



Top 3 overall
#1 - I Wanna Be The Knight In Shining Armor (MattinJ)
#2 - I Wanna Grow Up (Zanto & Sephalos)
#3 - I Wanna End My Growth (Erik)

Top 3 theme
#1 - I Wanna End My Growth (Erik)
#2 - I Wanna Be The Knight In Shining Armor (MattinJ)
#3 - I Wanna Grow Up (Zanto & Sephalos)

Top 3 level design
#1 - I Wanna Be The Knight In Shining Armor (MattinJ)
#2 - I Wanna Grow Up (Zanto & Sephalos)
#3 - I Wanna End My Growth (Erik)

Top 3 atmosphere
#1 - I Wanna Be The Knight In Shining Armor (MattinJ)
#2 - I Wanna Grow Up (Zanto & Sephalos)
#3 - I Wanna End My Growth (Erik)

Top 3 audio
#1 - I Wanna Be The Knight In Shining Armor (MattinJ)
#2 - I Wanna Grow Up (Zanto & Sephalos)
#3 - Kid World (KingSlendy)

Winner of overall DM Aronax on Discord to claim your reward

Thanks to everyone who worked on a game for this event, and to the judges/organizers. Some great games came out of this event. Some of us are talking about hosting another similar event in the future, targeted at people with little programming experience. See ya'll!

(click to show/hide) (click to show/hide)I found this game to be like a foundation for a fangame concept that has good potential. I enjoyed the idea of wandering around in this strange lifeless world as a lost soul trying to figure out what is going on, kind of like a purgatory. The music I thought was spot on for a game in this nature. Wandering around in a “zero difficulty” environment, not really understanding anything but hoping to figure something out, very cool. I like the idea of the game and I’d like to see a large project in a similar style.

However it does not come without its flaws, I sadly did not understand the theme at all, my guess would be that it has something to do with the story which didn’t make it into the game. This kind of game is obviously extremely heavily reliant on its story as well as the atmosphere. I can clearly see what you were going for but I don’t think it works without a better environment. Something like a wind effect, better tiles including background tiles would’ve gone a very long way to create what you were trying to achieve. When creating a mystical environment, the atmosphere is extremely important.

In terms of the platforming I thought what you made worked quite well for the concept, no unnecessary traps, kinda weird routes etc. It does feel like you’re wandering in some strange environment. Where I have to cut down on the level design is the boss, it didn’t fit into the rest of the game at all. It was just a very insta-gibby fight with apples at the speed of light, it doesn’t really flow into the rest of the game very well. The lack of sound effects especially when damaging the boss made me confused if I was actually doing damage or not, also the death explosion sound was way too loud and actually scared me.

I need to mention the fact that there doesn’t seem to be any way to reach the third ending. In the beginning of the game it splits up into three paths but one of them soft-locks the player and I did not get to experience everything. This gives me the impression that you didn’t have anyone test your game. Testing is just as important as the creating, don’t forget about testers!

Overall I thought the game had a cool idea, and even though it was executed poorly, I can clearly see where you were going with this. I would love to see a high production fangame in this style.

Scores
Theme - 0/5
Level design - 2/5
Atmosphere - 1/5
Audio - 2/5
Overall - 3/10
(click to show/hide)This kind of game is right up my alley! I got a strong see the moon vibe from this, and that’s great because that’s the kind of game I want more of.

I liked how the level design is simple in the general “hub” area, with gimmicks and complexity added on the further the player got. Having the player find an area in the hub world, going through it and then coming back is a great way to create the adventure feel as well as giving the player a sense of progression in a non-linear environment like this.

The theme integration was good and funny, I liked that you created multiple different gimmicks using the theme. First the vine which I thought was funny, then the growing and shrinking clouds as well as the growing and shrinking screen in the final area. Very cool.

The level design, as I mentioned, worked well for the kind of game you were making. Having some simple “filler” needle works well for a hub world. In the factory you introduced some simple gimmicks over time, rather than everything at once. This makes each screen more memorable and gives the player a sense of progression. The escape sequence was a bit weird because at some points you had to rush, and at other points you had to wait, but that’s not a big deal I think. I got a bit confused in the forest but that’s honestly my own fault. I liked the level design in the final areas a lot, it didn’t feel generic or needle-y at all and once again new gimmicks were introduced at a good rate.

The areas had a good length, none felt overly long. I never got bored or lost interest in the game and even though the game was short, it still felt complete. I’m not sure if you planned to have a boss at the end but I felt like the game didn’t need a boss, it didn’t abruptly end or feel anticlimactic.

I quite liked the atmosphere of the game, but I almost always felt like something was missing from it. What I should mention is the camera, while a lot of people might just find it as a “production gimmick” I think it adds to the feel of adventure. The screens feel connected and less arbitrary thanks to it. Music was also fitting for each environment.

I really enjoyed this game, it was a fun little adventure game that leaves you feeling “Hey, that was pretty cool!” when you finish it. More games like this please!


Scores
Theme - 4/5
Level design - 4/5
Atmosphere - 3/5
Audio - 3/5
Overall - 8/10
(click to show/hide)This is absolutely incredible. The fact you managed to create this entire game in just a month is mind-blowing, there’s so much content! First of all the feeling of adventure, this game does that perfectly. Flow between levels, characters with interesting and funny dialogue, fantastic graphics, audio, atmosphere, character progression, everything. The world you have created feels truly real and this is the perfect example of what an adventure game is.

The theme is done very very well, not only the whole growing and shrinking mechanic, but the character progression system also fits under the theme “growth”. I really like how this is done. It flows well into the level design and you can tell that it wasn’t just plastered on as a gimmick, instead it’s a core mechanic. The final boss was easily my favorite part of the theme. I love how you turn small to go inside the boss and finish her off. Finally, doing less damage while you are small is a very neat touch.

The level design in the game is fantastic, it was always fresh and I never lost interest in playing the game. The backtracking is done in such a way that isn’t overly annoying but instead complements the rest of the game and the player. Going through an area not being able to kill anything and then returning later when you are much stronger gives the player a great sense of progression. There were times where I found the enemies had too much hp since I was just a little bit short on cash to afford the sword upgrade from the shop. I must have missed a couple of secrets which is my own bad but I think not getting the upgrade is overly punishing.

The first boss I enjoyed, second boss was fun too but it was a lot easier than the first, then the final boss felt like a huge step up in difficulty. The last part of the first phase felt overly long. The eyeballs have a lot of hp and I found it hard to hit them consistently. It was almost easier to just spam axes in her face instead of killing eyeballs, which is probably not the intended strategy. Other than that, the bosses were enjoyable. It’s very impressive that you created three bosses in this short time period.

Overall this game is just fantastic, will become a must play for anyone who likes fangames. The attention to detail with the graphics, atmosphere, audio and everything is incredible for a fangame, let alone a fangame that was made in a month.


Scores
Theme - 4/5
Level design - 5/5
Atmosphere - 5/5
Audio - 5/5
Overall - 10/10
(click to show/hide)This is an interesting little game. I quite enjoyed what you created and I always love me a good overworld, though sadly as far as I could tell, there was nothing in the game that revolves around the theme.

In terms of the traps you made, they were quite good and most were funny. I like the mario theming and the levels felt like something you would see in a mario game. However I find the levels to be a bit too long since there are no savepoints. I would’ve rather seen the levels be about 25% shorter, and two levels per tileset instead. Switching tilesets every level makes the game feel like it’s going forward too quickly and it feels disconnected as a result. In the first two levels the level design was mostly good, my problem was the ghost house level. I felt like it was unnecessarily convoluted and it got annoying very quickly. The idea of it is fine but I don’t think it was executed too well.

Audio and graphics were spot on, you have a good attention to the details when it comes to these. Sounds are extra important when it comes to trap games, a funny sound to a silly troll adds a lot to the humor, good job on that. I especially liked the water distortion effect in the second level.

I think this kind of game has a lot of potential and a ton of people would greatly enjoy a larger project in this style.


Scores
Theme - 0/5
Level design - 3/5
Atmosphere - 5/5
Audio - 5/5
Overall - 7/10
(click to show/hide)I really liked this one, the amount of content in this is impressive. Everything the game had to offer is done on a high level and it’s easy to tell that a lot of care was put into this.

The theme integration is great, it poses risk / reward factors that adds a nice element of depth which is complemented in the level design. The game is built around the mechanic and it gives the player options for how to tackle obstacles. Do you turn into the big form for reduced mobility, range but also higher damage? I’m a huge fan of these kind of decisions that you have to make on the fly. Though I found the controls to be a little clunky. The fact that you can’t change size while moving was frustrating at times, but I assume this was to prevent some sort of bug. Finally, I found the controls to be a little confusing, having 1 for shrink, 2 for normal size and 3 for grow would’ve made more sense but that’s just nitpicking.

I really liked the boss design, honestly I think every boss needs at least 2 phases to feel “complete”. This game takes that idea and goes even further, each phase is very creative and you never really know what to expect, I got a strong Cuphead vibe from the boss design. The theme also works really well for bosses, however I found big kid form to not be rewarding enough. The damage difference is very small, and the boss has longer invulnerability frames so that feels like they cancel each other out, on top of that your range is severely limited.

The game has a character filled and charming aesthetic, this gives the game a silly and casual feel to it that I like a lot. Although the audio fits well for the environment and setting, there was a disconnection between the music and the silly aesthetic.

Overall this was an enjoyable adventure game with a fun mechanic that added extra depth to the experience. Level design was quite good but the high point of the game was easily the boss fights.


Scores
Theme - 5/5
Level design - 4/5
Atmosphere - 5/5
Audio - 4/5
Overall - 9/10
(click to show/hide)This is really cool, and even though it’s obviously incomplete, this has massive potential that I think a lot of people would find tons of enjoyment in. The atmosphere along with the audio
is done on an extremely high level. I love it when fangames have some kind of story, this game does that really well, and the atmosphere pushes the player further into the game. It’s easy to care and find enjoyment in a story driven game with a strong atmosphere. The second I entered the game I immediately found myself thinking “woah, what is going on here”, and I was hooked instantly.

I can clearly tell that you put a lot of effort into this and I would love to see you continue and finish a project like this even after this contest is over.


Scores
Theme - 3/5
Level design - 3/5
Atmosphere - 5/5
Audio - 5/5
Overall - 6/10
(click to show/hide)This game has a bunch of unique ideas, which I will always appreciate in fangames. The mario theming along with the audio is done fairly well. I didn’t see anything resembling the theme.

Sadly I didn’t find the level design to be very inspiring. While I do appreciate the non-generic style you were going for, it still fell short. It’s also hard to tell exactly what you were going for, the aesthetics nor the level design feels like mario. The boss has some interesting attacks, but is also disconnected from the rest of the game, also a sprite like that shoot apples doesn’t really make sense either. Theming is important for adventure, don’t forget this! The second stage is unique and the visuals work well for the gimmick. Though once again I didn’t find the gimmick to be very compelling.

You have a lot of talent and I see potential in you as a gamemaker, what you created for the contest is interesting but could be a lot better if you put more effort into the level design.


Scores
Theme - 0/5
Level design - 2/5
Atmosphere - 4/5
Audio - 3/5
Overall - 5/10
(click to show/hide)Absolutely fantastic game, the sheer amount of great content here is crazy. You were going for the Megaman feel and you nailed it perfectly. The level design is something you would easily expect to see in a Megaman game, not only in terms of hazard placements but also the actual shape of the levels. This is done to such a high level that you almost forget you are playing a fangame. Let’s not forget the boss fights, once again, these definitely feel like something you would see in a Megaman game.

At first I thought the theme was a bit weak, while I did enjoy the humor, it didn’t impact the gameplay. However, I realized the whole Megaman mechanic can also be classified as growing your characters power. This works out really well and is a great example of how you can interpret the theme in different ways.

I’ve gotta say, the atmosphere and audio are extremely impressive. While I did say that the level design makes the game feel like Megaman, that would’ve fell short if not for the incredible amount of work you put into the detail. Assets, tiles and background tiles are used to the point of perfection. Everything is placed where it makes sense and you make great use of them to further on improve that Megaman feel. I always appreciate when people take the time and go that extra mile to create a high detailed environment.

Overall this is just incredible. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this and it’s something I’ll most likely be replaying in the future, an absolute must play for anyone who likes fangames.


Scores
Theme - 4/5
Level design - 5/5
Atmosphere - 5/5
Audio - 5/5
Overall - 10/10

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