Concept
A downloadable game for Windows
2/15/2023 Update
I've been working on what was once "Concept" for almost three years now, and am very close to having a more or less complete first version what is now The Last Question ready to share.
The art and writing in this game varies from level to level in terms of completeness, but the "main line" of the game in terms of story is largely done. A few levels need to be overhauled visually (one still needs to be finished), but most of these are pretty close to finished products (hopefully!)
Would love to hear any and all thoughts, and will hopefully have some more interesting things to share once I have the final game together!
Below is the game description from 11/1/2021
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You awaken in a derelict laboratory, unsure of how you got here. Unsure of who you even are.
The civilization responsible for your arrival has all but vanished, with only the ruins of their society remaining, orbiting the black hole at the center of the galaxy.
As entropy closes in around the last bastion of life in the Milky Way, you must discover the secrets of this world to save yourself, and all of existence.
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Concept is a sci-fi themed, grapple hook based, action platformer. It explores a world filled with advanced technology, mysterious characters, and secrets hidden behind every corner. The more you explore in this game, the more you will understand what occured that led to the disappearance of the most advanced civilization in the known universe.
This game has been a labor of love and a mental safe haven for me over the past few years. This 3.0 version is about as stuffed with content as I can make it in its current state, and I hope to convert the ideas and levels seen here into a fully fledged production release sometime over the next months and years. I desparately need your feedback to know what to improve, what to fix, and what to emphasize going forward.
If you have around an hour of free time and are willing to take a leap of faith on a fresh experience, give this game a chance and I promise you will not be disappointed. The first few levels are simple, tutorial-like challenges. By the end of the game, I guarantee you will be faced with new platforming ideas you haven't experienced before.
Thank you to all of you for the feedback and support over the past year . You can find a video walkthrough of an older build with timestamps and puzzle solutions here.
Godspeed
Download
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Development log
- The Last Question - v0.987Feb 02, 2024
- Jam Submission - The Last Question 0.982Mar 26, 2023
- Concept 3.1 - Patch NotesNov 23, 2021
- Concept 3.0 Is Here - Major UpdateMay 27, 2021
- Changelog: Concept 2.5 to 2.6Apr 02, 2021
- Concept 2.6 - Now Available (HD Update)Apr 02, 2021
- Changelog: Concept 2.0 to 2.5Mar 25, 2021
- Changelog: APOC to Concept 2.0Mar 24, 2021
Comments
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OK, just wanted to say this, even though I didn't get all the way thru version 2.6 due to other engagements: this game has come a really long way, and it's great to see the different aspects of it evolve. The atmosphere is palpable with the graphical update, and what you have on your hands here is - speaking in terms of everything but the pre-fab soundtrack - a polished project.
Thank you so much for the feedback and the continued support. I really can't tell you how much I appreciate it.
I'm working on a "big" release hopefully done in the next month that I think will stand as the last "proof of concept" version of this game before possibly transitioning to an actual Steam release. There would be a mountain of work and logistics between now and then, but hearing from you and others that it is coming along and resembling a polished experience is the motivation I need.
Thanks again!
Alright, I have a confession to make. I can't finish the game. It is just way too hard, and I can't get past the entrance to the core (the place where you swing up to)
Anyways, even though I couldn't go the whole way, I did record most of the gameplay (I didn't start recording from the beginning, because I didn't think of recording it). Why did I record it? One, I'm a lazy fuck and I don't want to write anything. Two, it's just more helpful, because you can see what the player is doing.
Be aware, wall of text incoming:
1. Oh hell yea. I like the idea of the gameplay, swingin around like a badass. With some tweaks to the movement (and not making the floor SO FUCKING SLIPPERY) this could totally do for a full game. The grapple hook is the thing making this unique, so you should really keep it, but you should add more physics. What I mean by that is make shure you can swing out of a grapple, keep the velocity, land on the ground (proposed mechanic now) do a slide and get a speedboost from that, then be able to jump up from the slide and do some sort of tripplewipplefripplebackflipple. And I'm back to rambeling, feels great! Anyways, the mechanics are already (with some tweaking) really good, but more depth to the mechanics, and a higher skill ceiling would make the game much more engaging to play, because you can improve at it for longer, and that means you can have a longer game that remains focused.
2. I think my earlier comment can explain this one. The game is really hard to get into. I would have quit the game way earlier if I didn't do this to give feedback. I would have quit on the level after the cave. Just because it feels so punishing to play the game. For me the curve was no curve at all. It was a wall, going straight up, with no warning, and then it continues upwards, with no sign of stopping.
3. The music fits, but it isn't coherent. There is no bigger musical picture, it's just a bunch of songs, and that's what I want when listening to a soundtrack. I want something that is well put together. Something were each song plays a stem in the bigger picture.
4. I did not notice any hints, because I'm dumb. I have grown up in this time where games always tells you were to go, so for me it's kind of confusing to not get waypoints everywhere. I'M NOT SAYING THAT YOU SHOULD ADD WAYPOINTS AND SHIT. If you do that I will actually send a spear through your harddrive, so don't you dare. But what I am saying is that making hints a tad more obvious, or have more places where you can get info on where you should go. Because I was just running around most of the time thinking "ohh what's this thing that looks like a portal?", and strolling right into the last level and dying a billion times, before going back and finding the "right" level.
5. The game was pretty fun to play from the blue scifi thingy level to the midnight museum level (great naming, thank you, I'm a professional namer). Before that I couldn't control the character, after that it was too frustrating.
About the firewall:
Where did the checkpoints go? One second there was just enough checkpoints, so you would get punished for making a mistake, but not spend 40 seconds getting back to where you died every single time. I think I died at least 50 times in the firewall area, and after I completed the firewall I didn't really feel rewarded. I just felt relieved, that I was done with the thing. And being hit with the core after completeing the firewall just killed me. I couldn't pick up the game again after that.
Other stuffs(this was written when I was playing, so I was a bit frustrated when writing. Hope you don't mind):
The second "laserpart" in level 2 doesn't turn red and then fires, it just fires while turning red simoultaniously.
My brain is about as useful as a pea, so it took some time to figure out you could press both left and right mb.
The lasers don't seem to have any predictible pattern. It makes me want to fuckin die. And I did, quite a lot from them.
Turn down music volume when sfxs are playing.
I will dispise lasers from now on.
There is no sound except from the death sound. Makes the game feel a bit lifeless.
It is difficult to click on the blue orbs when moving, it breaks the flow.
The story is pretty darn good, and I would love to see it in a fuller game.
(Also, you have a save system. Thank you, I needed to be able to take those breaks)
Here is the recording of me playing the game. It's like 2 hours and 40 minutes, so it took way too long to upload. When you hear the sound going nuts that's when I look at the walkthrough.
one more thing
"The platforming accuracy of Celeste, without simply being a platforming gauntlet".
[proceeds to make platforming gauntlet]
I know, I kind of betrayed my own intentions with that one. But for this POC, the feedback I needed was much more centered around the gameplay and platforming elements. The ultimate vision I have would be much more focused on exploring a lot of different library-esque hubs within a larger hub world, connecting some shorter platforming sections.
That though is much more time consuming and does not need to be as refined at this point as the movement and platforming principles. But I promise it is something that would be really important to me in a full release.
WALL OF TEXT FOR COOL GAME DEMO
Played through this the other day. (SPOILERS) I like the secret area, even if it wasn't the most well-hidden (I saw the platform go up without me the first time I played Mainframe, and I instantly remembered it when I read the hint). I love the idea of "knowledge is power" (Outer Wilds is one of my favorite games, possibly top 5). The story is vague, but intriguing, being a museum curator in a dying universe controlled by an intelligent god-like being is pretty unique.
GRAPPLINGS HOOKS IMPROVE EVERY GAME THEY'RE ADDED TO.
There are some fun mechanics, I've seen the grappling hook/magnet mechanic before but you used it really well and made it fun so good job. Overall the controls feel pretty good. I like how momentum can be used off the grappling hook, and how you can use left or right click for different styles of grapple. I was starting to pull of neat stunts with it towards the end there. Kinda wish there was a big, open, easy level where I can just play with it. Maybe a bigger hub area will help fill that job?
THE ANNOYING LITTLE THINGS
I definitely agree with some of the gripes I've seen about the difficulty. There are some tiny platforms and really bizarre laser timings. I didn't find the demo incredibly hard having played a lot of twitch platformers before and I liked it, but not everyone will find it accessible. I imagine a longer game would have a better difficulty curve where you could introduce some of this stuff farther into the game. There were a few things that were difficult in an annoying way though, instead of a fun challenging way, and that's what I want to discuss.
I think the most annoying was having to precisely aim at the grappling hook targets. They're not bad until the camera moves. For instance, I'll be at the side of the level and aiming at a target, I'll jump causing the camera to move a bit and then I miss my target and die, which sometimes feels unfair. I'd make the hitboxes on those much larger, so it feels like you can more consistently use the one you're trying to use (if their hitboxes overlap, and someone clicks 2 of them, pick the closest one to the mouse). It would reduce difficulty a bit but it gives the player more control and takes away some unfairness.
Oh yeah and dropping down from one moving platformer to the other was weird because you have to move forward, but juuust the right amount, or you miss. Very awkward until you memorize the timing on it.
THE HINT AREA:
OH MY GOSH This was difficult, but do-able and I only had to come back after a break twice since I got frustrated. I think you crossed the threshold into "this is a bit too long without a checkpoint" territory. There's a point where I start to think "I've proven I can beat the first half, give me a checkpoint. The first half is becoming something I need to beat just to attempt the second half, which means I don't get as many attempts on the second half and it's going to take longer to beat. But that doesn't necessarily mean it's harder, just gonna take longer. GIMME CHECKPOINT BRO". On the other hand, it stopped just before it became a serious problem, and I felt good after beating it, so perhaps it was about the right length. This is a controversial topic with some developers, I'm sure
IN SUMMARY
This is my philosophy when I make platformers:
It's usually okay to make a change that makes the controls easier to use, or makes the main character more powerful. You can always make the game harder to balance something that made it easier (and improved controls will make increased difficulty more fun). Muahahaha-*ahem*
Overall though, this is a lot of nitpicking and I really did enjoy your demo immensely. I know it's a huge project going from a prototype to a complete game, but I would love to see more games from you (even if they're more prototypes like this) because this was super fun.
p.s. For the movement feel, personally I find the Super Meat Boy style movement to be the most fun and precise-feeling, maybe look into how steering worked in those games. To summarize, you speed up gradually but slow down way faster than you sped up (more force is applied if you move opposite the direction you're already moving in).
The advantages of this are:
- If tap the button you move slower for precise moves.
- You can reach a high max speed after by holding a direction down longer.
- The high max speed doesn't hinder your ability to suddenly change direction.
Thank you so much for the feedback and for playing. I am starting to see a lot of common trends in what people felt were problem areas which I think is a good thing, it gives me some clear directions to focus on as I go forward with this.
The hitboxes on the orbs is something I tried to design around as much as I could, and I think you are right in just generally making the base block larger will improve the game. The grapple already auto locks the direct center regardless of where you click, so I may try and make the orb something like 1.5 - 2.5x bigger in a next release and see what people think.
On the difficulty curve, you are absolutely right in that I would try and smooth out the ups and downs in a longer release. I posted this in the reddit thread where I have linked this game but with each level I was targeting:
And you're advice on bringing the physics more in line with SMB is something I had not thought of but definitely will be adapting in some capacity. The start/slow down friction is currently uniform, but I think making the movement more adaptive to player intention can only help this experience. I am definitely going to tweak it when I rebuild this foundation.
Thank you again for your feedback, I'm glad you enjoyed the game!
Hoo boy. That was a rollercoaster ride. Where to start.
This is going to be a long comment.
1. Yes they can. In fact, I think they do already, as is! What you have here is a kitschy masterpiece. I am honestly in disbelief that you made something this offbeat, thought-through, and sizable in a month with no prior GameMaker experience.
2. This game is not only well-paced, it uses pace in really interesting ways. When you first play through the levels, they're a tad basic - restrictive in structure and discouraging momentum, never getting that complex. But when the game finally shows that it's doing the NieR thing of revealing further depth of gameplay and plot later on, you're on the edge of your seat and really get into the zone. It actually helps that the standard levels aren't that challenging, because it makes the second playthrough when searching for the secret area a quicker and more contemplative experience. Then, right as your expectations are completely set up for more rote combinations of lasers or red tiles, the game throws a creative curveball at you, every single time.
3. The music choices definitely work well. I actually think this game's use of pre-existing assets helps it subvert expectations and create its own bizarre aesthetic, and the music really helps with that, in addition to fitting the tone in the moment.
4. The hints are generally good, but I'd change the "look for a light in the darkness" to "look for a light in the darkness above" to make things a bit easier to infer. I actually had to use the walkthrough to get past that riddle.
5. Words fail me. I started out thinking this was yet another GameMaker game, yet another itch game, something I'd play for five minutes and get bored of, but the strange wonder of the game's world and gameplay made me see it through to the end in one sitting. There are some typos, a few glitches, and the writing can get unnecessarily sesquipedalian at times, but this game is a far sight better than I expected (especially for something made in such a short time). Even the name, "A Proof of Concept", adds a lot to the experience.
It's amazing that something this cool could come out of quarantine. This is one of the best itch games I've ever played, and it runs well even on my crappy computer. Thank you so much.
Edit: I also like how you can play the endgame levels on the first run if you know what you're doing.
I can't thank you enough for your support, this is tremendous feedback and it feels really vindicating that you identified so much of what I was going for with this experience.
I was nervous that this pacing would turn people off before "the real game" kicks off, and its a huge relief that the contrast was a bonus for you. To be honest, the Museum and the early parts of The Main Frame were as much a tutorial for me in putting the game together as they were for the player. It was really fun to take those concepts to their full-ish potential with the end game levels.
I knew the library hint was going to be "the hardest", and purposely made sure I had the timestamped Youtube vid available in case it ended up being too unfair. This is one of the main feedback points I am looking for, and I want to gauge what the sweetspot is for providing information if and when I expand on this.
Again, I can't thank you enough. The writing is all over the place, and I had about 100 bugs identifed before anyone else had even played it, but to know someone enjoyed this experience makes it all worth it. I knew it would be hard to ask people to take a leap of faith on a visually unremarkable 2d platformer, and I'm really happy it ended up being worthwhile for you.
Sorry for the long response, I never expected such positive feedback and am just very grateful
I just saw the updated trailer and it looks even better now than it was the first time I played through it. Also, holy shit, six new areas.
You are a goddamn wizard and I have no clue why you didn't have more confidence before. Many thanks for preserving the original walkthrough and description for posterity's sake, you brilliant madman.
Really appreciate the love, I hope you like this new version. I'm hoping people give it a chance I think the new stuff is really cool.
Can't wait to hear your thoughts!
OK, starting off with bug reports:
-If the player accesses and then leaves the secret area of the Power Plant (swinging past the fake wall/ or respawning above it and then dropping back down to the normal level), the background will remain black and the music will stop playing until their next death and respawn outside the secret area.
-As you acknowledge in the first area, it is possible to get stuck in walls, although this only really becomes a problem in the Centrifuge.
-During one of the gravity-flipping sections in the Event Horizon's secret level, I somehow got the Pesach to appear consistently squashed after holding down while gravity flipped, which also lowered their jump distance. This was fixed on respawn, however.
Other things I've noticed:
-Was this game influenced by Solgryn's I Wanna Kill the Guy at all? It has some similar choices in terms of challenges and music.
Overall, I really enjoyed the new areas/secrets and they easily justified a second playthrough. This game is extremely competent and complete for a beginning project, and I'm still amazed by it.