07/04/2014

I'm usually not too fond of Metroidvanias, more or less because I hate searching for solid walls that you can actually go through (which is plentiful in pretty much all the 2D Metroid games) and that these games usually limit you in how you attack enemies, but none of that is a problem in The Valley Rule.

When it comes to Ludum Dare games, everything surprises me. These people make games in 48 hours in a strict environment or 72 hours with more "loose" rules, whereas the 48-hour games have to be made from scratch and by yourself, but these developers still manage to pump out amazing games. If I had to recommend a LD game that exceeded my expectations from what you can make in 48 hours, it would be Ripple Runner (http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-29/?action=preview&uid=7285), I highly recommend you play this game if you want to see a spectacular example of what developers of a LD compo are capable of.

Back to The Valley Rule. The controls are very straightforward as there are only 5 of them, and I think that's probably the best way to go for a Metroidvania game with no enemies as not to complicate things too much. As for the graphics, they're actually quite amazing for a game made in 72 hours, most of the game was aesthetically pleasing to the eyes (sans the Death Milk which could have probably had more depth to it graphics-wise). The mechanics of the game are probably the best thing about it, mainly due to how well they handle. Wall-jumping and double-jumping isn't anything new, we've seen that in plenty of games (especially Super Meat Boy), but because the controls are VERY responsive, it makes handling a cinch, especially for those harder wall-climbs in the latter portion of the game. The audio is very basic, the SFX aren't anything too special but the music is rather soothing to calm you down from those irritating moments you might stumble upon in the game.

The main disappointments of the game come from how sluggishly slow you push blocks and the lack of auto-saving for important events, such as after very slowly pushing the last block onto a button to open a wall or upon entering/exiting an area. No amount of rewarding wall-climbing can save for how slow you push the blocks, I even considered turning on Cheat Engine's Speedhack for these parts of the game, it was just very aggravating. And then it adds fuel to the fire by having you do it all over again if you mistakenly die and you forgot to save. I haven't felt this much pressure of getting to the next save point without dying since I Want To Be The Boshy. I can't take away points for how short the game is and for the lack of a rewarding ending because I understand that it was a game made in such a short time, but I can't give it too high of a score because it doesn't do anything innovative.

One thing that confuses me is that the Theme for Ludum Dare 29 (which is what the game was submitted for) was "Beneath The Surface", but I didn't see anything remotely resembling that anywhere in the game. I guess that's why it took #337 in Theme on LD29.

Also, Death Milk.