Hello readers! Today I'm going to talk about my next game and what game jam it will be in.
So, a few days ago while scrolling through itch.io I got recommended to join a game jam called 'LowRezJam'. Out of curiosity I clicked on it. The challenge is simple, you need to create a game with 64x64 resolution or less. I am interested so I joined it.
The goal of the jam is to create a game with a resolution of 64x64 pixels or less. You can use whatever programming language or tools that you wish. With no other restrictions on graphics, sound, 2D or 3D, nor a theme.
The world is your oyster, as long as you stay in your 64x64 cage, of course! The game can be scaled up to fit in a bigger window, but the view in game must remain 64x64.
Joining a game jams is way better than creating a solo game for beginner since it gives you an idea and a whole community who will probably try your game out.
The Plan:
So, the plan is to make an HTML5 game which occupy a very low space and can be played on any platform with a browser. Of course there is no restriction on your game's size but more people will play it since it is playable on the browser, with internet of course!
I will use Construct 2 as my game engine for this game since it is very easy to use and does not require any programming skills at all.
Even though Construct 2 is replaced by Construct 3 and the support is ended, it is still usable.
I've also used this game engine for my previous game called 'Chiperia' which is made for a game jam called '4MB Game Jam'. If you want to see more of the devlogs of that game you can read it here.
Or if you want to play the game it is available on any browser and any operating system. It also supports touch controls for Android phone.
You can play it for free here:
So the plan is (or was) that I wanted to make a classic platformer game. I gathered the resources and created a Construct 2 project with a 64x36 layout size. It is tiny, very tiny. For representation, here is an image with 64x36 resolution:
How can I fit a full game in this small space?!?
A platformer game is still possible in that size but it need a very small assets, preferably 8x8. But it looks bad.
One thing that I forgot, I need to re-make my logo to fit in that size. And I made this:
It is small but it has the accurate color and shape representation of my original logo. Also I turned off pixel interpolation so that it won't blur if upscaled.
You might be thinking "How can you play the game if it is that small". Don't worry, it will be upscaled.
I scraped up the platformer idea since there will be no space to put clouds and trees and etc. Instead of that I have a new idea.
The New Idea:
So, after surfing around the internet I found a free assets called 'Pixel Mart' by ghostpixxells. It is free as long you give credit to the creator.
The assets are relatively small, it is 32x32 in size and it has a lot of variation in it. The new idea is to make a one button game where player only need to tap. Then I remembered a legendary game called 'Cookie Clicker'. In this game the main objective is to make as much cookies as possible. You can make cookie by just tapping the cookie.
There is also a lot of upgrade to improve your cookie making machine that you can buy later in the game.
Back to the project, I downloaded the assets and created a blank new Construct 2 project. Set the window size and the layout size to 64x36. I was surprised at how small it actually is. But that wouldn't stop me from continuing the project. This is a challenge after all.
I want my game to have an ending. Not an unlimited un-ending 'Tycoon' game. So I put a goal on how much food you clicked. I set it to a thousand which is not that much.
I ended up making a horror game. I thought this is unique since nobody hasn't made any clicker style horror game yet. In my opinion this game is not that scary. I also add a platformer style level after you beat the clicker one. This game is very short and easy since all you need to do is tap/click.
Here is the preview of the game:
Overall the challenge is fun and the games turns out to be alright. Participating in a game jam is very fun and it gives you useful experience which you will need if you want to make a professional game later.
I recommend you to join a game jam first to practice and expand your knowledge of game development.
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