Ahr Ech

[RELEASE] Rigid Body Rat King

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https://riv-hester.itch.io/rigid-body-rat-king


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Alright. I've had waaay less time than I thought I would around now, but I want to try knocking something simple together over the next couple days, at least. It will definitely be nowhere near as fleshed out as Happy Happy Krampusnacht, my previous Wizard Jam entry.
I started messing around a bit this morning with a list of potential titles and no real plan, and this is what stuck.
JYg1A7F.gif
Hopefully I can come up with a decent gameplay loop in time.
It's not really a rigid body, just a physics ball with some flappy limbs that don't have collision, but close enough for jazz.
But yeah, I'm just feeling this one out. Who knows where it'll go?
 
I'm using Construct 2 again, and if anyone else is using that engine and could use some pointers let me know. I'm fairly fluent with it and happy to help, time permitting.
Also, where are all the other Rigid Body Rat Kings? Did everyone think everyone else would do that one and pick something else as a result?

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Yay, a Rigid Body Rat King! You're right, I thought there would be a lot of these! It's looking good but I think you're game is lacking a " : Ratamari Damacy"

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 Ratamari Damacy"

 

Alright, shut it down everybody. Wizard Jam is cancelled now that we've found the Best Title.

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Wow... making game dev look totally effortless here.

 

"Woke up and decided to start jamming. Bit late to the party, but it's cool, as soon as my hand got close to a computer an amazing and evocative gameplay .gif just kinda fell out."

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Yay, a Rigid Body Rat King! You're right, I thought there would be a lot of these! It's looking good but I think you're game is lacking a " : Ratamari Damacy"

Alright, you know what? That's what I'm gonna try to do now. Those smaller rats heard what you said and want to be part of something bigger than themselves. They want to be rolled up into a giant Ratball.

Now I'm going to do some research on how that would work. There's a part in the Holy Diver video where Dio sort of lazily whacks a guy with a sword and the guy turns into a pile of rats. I just need to do that backwards.

 

Wow... making game dev look totally effortless here.

 

"Woke up and decided to start jamming. Bit late to the party, but it's cool, as soon as my hand got close to a computer an amazing and evocative gameplay .gif just kinda fell out."

I'm starting to feel like a shill when I say this, but Construct 2 really does make getting things off the ground pretty easy. I don't know much about game physics at all, but C2's plugin for that does most of the work.

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Ah, that is a great rat king! I like the way he flops his arms and legs about to gain momentum. Until they all fly off.

 

I'm also wondering where all of the other Rigid Body Rat Kings went!

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h9z0r72.gif

I'm messing with having rats stack instead of adding to mass like a Katamari. It's easier to do without breaking things and might lead to interesting mechanics or something. Who knows!?

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Oh GOD yes...

 

So much design space to work with there compared to "make the big ball get bigger because bigger is better" (fun fact, most players never really think about the context of Katamari Damacy as commentary on consumer culture as it relates to gaming, and I'm pretty sure Takahashi gets a little sad that no one ever really talks about that aspect)

 

Design space brain dump just from looking at the gif:

  • Getting stacks of rats past/under low overhangs (watch your head!)
  • Compressing the stack with a command/control/powerup to make it easier to squeeze?
  • "Spending" the bottom rat of the stack in order to bounce/jump the king with the rest in tow?
  • Rats enjoying being part of the stack...
    • Making happy emotes/animations/sounds because the stack is fun for them
    • Being knocked off the stack being bad/scary
    • Scampering about in panic and needing to be collected again/restacked
  • The king ascending the teetering stack in order to reach a high up exit or something

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Happy Happy Krampusnacht was great. I really enjoyed finding the place where all the naughty children were hanging out.

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Thanks guys!
It is now past 1am here and I have work in the morning, but I've got a hazard in-game and a start on environment art.

Tomorrow evening I'll try to get a system in place for rats being knocked off the stack when colliding with hazards.
DN8pk64.gif
 

Design space brain dump just from looking at the gif:

  • Getting stacks of rats past/under low overhangs (watch your head!)
  • Compressing the stack with a command/control/powerup to make it easier to squeeze?
  • "Spending" the bottom rat of the stack in order to bounce/jump the king with the rest in tow?
  • Rats enjoying being part of the stack...
    • Making happy emotes/animations/sounds because the stack is fun for them
    • Being knocked off the stack being bad/scary
    • Scampering about in panic and needing to be collected again/restacked
  • The king ascending the teetering stack in order to reach a high up exit or something

Great ideas! Getting stacks past or under obstacles was already part of the plan, but I might never have thought of spending rats to jump, that's fantastic. And I've got a few little emotive animations already, but I love your ideas for that as well. I'll try to get all of that in if I can!
 

Happy Happy Krampusnacht was great. I really enjoyed finding the place where all the naughty children were hanging out.

Thanks man, really glad you liked it!

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gIgS0Ow.gif

Still need an animation for when rats chew through the string, but here's another thing that works now.

I also got dropping / losing rats to work. They still just sit there on the ground though, so I think I'll get them running around next.

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Didn't this 'cast have an alternative title? Some Kind Of Drifter or something? I hope you incorporate that into the lore (perhaps that human hazard is the drifter?)!

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gIgS0Ow.gif

Still need an animation for when rats chew through the string, but here's another thing that works now.

I also got dropping / losing rats to work. They still just sit there on the ground though, so I think I'll get them running around next.

 

This is the most adorable incredible thing. 

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Hey I'm a sound designer and would love to help out with audio assets for the game if you are planning on getting to that point by the end of the jam! Let me know and I can send you ideas that I have! 

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Didn't this 'cast have an alternative title? Some Kind Of Drifter or something? I hope you incorporate that into the lore (perhaps that human hazard is the drifter?)!

Oh man thanks for the reminder, I forgot! Yeah, I'll try to work that in.

 

This is the most adorable incredible thing. 

No, you are. (buttering you up for the secret cash prize that definitely exists)

 

Hey I'm a sound designer and would love to help out with audio assets for the game if you are planning on getting to that point by the end of the jam! Let me know and I can send you ideas that I have! 

 I've got it covered, but thanks for the offer! Much appreciated.

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The Rat Stack is hilariously close to the concept I had in mind for Standing On The Shoulder Of Babies. Really interested in seeing where you take this. :D

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Holy crap this is amazing! So much great art, already.

 

Love that the bottom stack-rat runs to keep up with the Rat King's rolling body. Keep up the awesome work! :tup: :tup:

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Stackrats! They are like packrats but more active and cute apparently!

 

Are the rats so adorably stackable because they are from Sweden?

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Thanks guys!

It is now past 1am here and I have work in the morning, but I've got a hazard in-game and a start on environment art.

Tomorrow evening I'll try to get a system in place for rats being knocked off the stack when colliding with hazards.

DN8pk64.gif

 

Great ideas! Getting stacks past or under obstacles was already part of the plan, but I might never have thought of spending rats to jump, that's fantastic. And I've got a few little emotive animations already, but I love your ideas for that as well. I'll try to get all of that in if I can!

 

Thanks man, really glad you liked it!

 

You are so good at this. I could watch those legs kick the rat king all day. 

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