Alien King ~~~ Contest Entry for Nov. 2017 to Jan 2018

Started by Conjured Entertainment, January 18, 2018, 21:16:22

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Conjured Entertainment

ALIEN KING

This is my entry for the 320x200 Retro Code Contest !

WASD for movement and Up Arrow for action.

Key 5 to insert Coin, and Key 1 to start the game.

This is a short and simple game because I got started late in the contest. (didn't know about it until Dec.)

I created all my assets in code, so while you need the media folder to run the EXE, the only thing in there is the bytecode.

Do you have what it takes to save Earth, claim the Crown, and rule the Universe?  8) (if so, then insert coin)

I hope you like it well enough to give me your vote, and thanks for playing!!!

P.S.
I am entering this a little early, so if there happens to be an error on my part that violates any rule, then please let me know ASAP so I can fix it before the deadline.
Thanks

round157

Hello,

My comments on the game:

When I play Van Tourisimo, it is a full-screen game. Will a full-screen mode be added to Alien King in the future?
8)


STEVIE G

40950 is my best score so far.  Enjoyed it - good fun.

Some constructive feedback:

* I want to see the in-code graphics in all their glory though so at least make it a resizable window - where you can just hit Win+up arrow?
* It took me a while to get started - put some text on the screen to say press key 5 to add credits and 1 to start would have helped :)
* I found the first level quite easy - didn't lose a life and wasn't sure if there was any way to die?  Presumably you can't kill the saucers either?
* The second bonus level was a nice relaxing touch after the mayhem of the first.
* I found the 3rd too difficult - I think it may have been the keyboard setup which isn't what I'm used to.  I lose all my lives pretty quickly.  Something to indicate how much damage * I'm taking, like a power bar, would help.
* Found the 'YaYa' sound a bit irritating after a while - no biggy as I know you wrote the sounds in code too which is impressive.

Cheers
Stevie

Conjured Entertainment

#3
Quote from: round157 on January 19, 2018, 17:58:01
Hello,

My comments on the game:

When I play Van Tourisimo, it is a full-screen game. Will a full-screen mode be added to Alien King in the future?
8)
Yeah, well, I was running short on time, and adding the code to make it full screen but scale right would have taken away from adding more to the game play, which as you can see is pretty limited.

I can make it full screen no problem, just wanted to spend that time on other things, but I will make it bigger after the contest, now that there is no deadline and I can take a short break from it.


Quote from: STEVIE G on January 19, 2018, 18:27:53
40950 is my best score so far.  Enjoyed it - good fun.

Some constructive feedback:

* I want to see the in-code graphics in all their glory though so at least make it a resizable window - where you can just hit Win+up arrow?
* It took me a while to get started - put some text on the screen to say press key 5 to add credits and 1 to start would have helped :)
* I found the first level quite easy - didn't lose a life and wasn't sure if there was any way to die?  Presumably you can't kill the saucers either?
* The second bonus level was a nice relaxing touch after the mayhem of the first.
* I found the 3rd too difficult - I think it may have been the keyboard setup which isn't what I'm used to.  I lose all my lives pretty quickly.  Something to indicate how much damage * I'm taking, like a power bar, would help.
* Found the 'YaYa' sound a bit irritating after a while - no biggy as I know you wrote the sounds in code too which is impressive.

Cheers
Stevie

1) I'll make the windows and tablet versions on a larger scale but I will keep this for small phones.

2) I already told you in the thread here where the download is what the controls are, and my HTML5 version will have those instructions on the side on the bezel like an arcade machine has. Not going to waste the any of the screen for that text. ;)

3) It does start out easy and 'they come in peace', it is a shame most humanoids resort to violence so quickly.
You can die in level 1 though, if you stall too long there is a timer for forward progress that will kill you.
This avoids allowing players to point-scab.
Green Beret had a timer like that too, only it sent out a plane to bomb you, where I do an instant kill on the tank.

4) Yeah, level 2 takes it to them in a good old side-shooter style.

5) The last level seems hard but is actually easy once you discover the technique, just like a lot of retro games were.
Just keep on throwing in your quarters until you figure it out.  ;D
And health bars are no good, just don't get hit and you don't need to worry about that. :P

6) This is my first go at creating all my sounds in code in AGK, rather than just loading OGGs or WAVs. So thanks, and if I started earlier on this then I would have definitely spent more time on the sounds. The best sound, which is not much, is at the end when you defeat the Alien King to claim the Crown and all the aliens bow down to your glory.  (I hope you did get to the end of L3)

Thanks for the feedback guys, and I will definitely get an earlier start in any future contests.


On a side note:

There is one small detail in this game that players may think is a continuity error, but it's not.

It is intentional and part of our hero's story, but I will wait until someone notices it and says something before explaining why it is like that.

iWasAdam


therevills

Really like the art style on this one!

Would be nice to be able to control the turret of the tank to aim :)

round157

#6
Quote from: Conjured Entertainment on January 18, 2018, 21:16:22
ALIEN KING

Yeah, well, I was running short on time, and adding the code to make it full screen but scale right would have taken away from adding more to the game play, which as you can see is pretty limited.

I can make it full screen no problem, just wanted to spend that time on other things, but I will make it bigger after the contest, now that there is no deadline and I can take a short break from it.


Hi,

Ok, I see. I change the resolution of my monitor to 800x600 and then play your game. Therefore, the game window is bigger. Actually, your game is very colourful. Graphics in the game are really, really nice. The gameplay is simple but the potential of the game is quite great. If you can do some improvements on the game after this competition, you game should be successful in the market!!
:) :)

iWasAdam

I liked the style. Would have liked to have option to have a bigger window.

RemiD

i have tested your game.

When i run it, i get an error message "failed to create XAudio2, make sure you have the "directx end-user runtime" installed. (Windows 7 64bits)
But the game works well (without sounds)

I found a little confusing how to start the game, but then i read your instructions, it was ok.

Graphics : consistant style, nice colors
Sounds : i don't know
Controls : easy enough to understand how to move/shoot, but i have an azerty keyboard so this was a little annoying to not be able to have the equivalent to the wasd (with an azerty keyboard it is zqsd)
Gameplay : shoot and hit, simple and effective, but after having hit many saucers, nothing else is happening, and i don't understand what the lives are for ? Is it related to the humans which are taken by the saucers ? The saucers don't seem to hurt me...

Conjured Entertainment

#9
QuoteGameplay : shoot and hit, simple and effective, but after having hit many saucers, nothing else is happening, and i don't understand what the lives are for ? Is it related to the humans which are taken by the saucers ? The saucers don't seem to hurt me...

Yeah the first level is a bit long, but your tank can take damage which will cost you a life if you do not keep moving forward.

That level was intentionally made to have the Aliens as passive instead of hostile or aggressive.

If you have the patience to battle your way to the end, then you may gain a lot of points, or you may lose a lot, but you can't go below 0, so it is pretty much a free ride for youngsters that have difficulty with hitting their targets.

If you get to level 2 then you will realize that the Aliens are more aggressive in outer space, and that you can lose a life quickly by having your ship destroyed by their lasers, or a collision.

Level 3 is a mad dash to get past the Alien horde, and find the Alien King (boss), and then you have to figure out how to defeat him old school style..

Getting started late with limited time prevented me from giving a lot off thought to game design, so I opted to just try to make something simple and fun that younger players might enjoy. (that high score is bogus by the way)  :P