Pico's Big Adventure
A little demake or port of Terry's Big Adventure, a game I first saw on C64 (it had no sound, the longest loading time, barely anything resembling a menu screen).
Three levels with some "intro"s, minimal sounds, a nice, if limited, rooster of enemies!
Instructions:
Play with basic pico8 commands: arrow keys and x/c, or use a controller.
- X: jump
- C: launch yoyo
- x + down arrow: throw stones (if you have any)
- down arrow: collect small shrubs
- stomp on thin platforms for goodies (and keep jump pressed for a boost!)
- avoid water and poisonous fungi!
- some enemies hide key drops that unlocks platforms and areas
This project:
It all started for the Retro Platform Jam #2, but the deadline caught me at this "sort of working" stage :(
UPDATE won first place in the jam, even if by a little bit only! I'm really happy :D
This project is under development, I'm currently working out the feasability of adding levels without using more than one cart (a Pico8 limit easily surmontable but it's a bit of a "honor" point not to).
Graphics are where I want them to be (it's not a per pixel recreation, obvs), sounds are a little more than placeholders, enemies are there, with a system that lets me design some simple but not too plain behaviours, a level storage system is under way, with some function to save levels (for pico users this means easy editability).
Development log
- Pico/Terry's Big AdventureJul 05, 2021
Comments
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I really like the art and I think it looks better than the original [I haven't played/heard of it till now but I looked at some videos.] I like to imagine that the rebound for hitting an enemy is the character jumping for joy that they hit some one, but it also adds some really nice feedback for the player. It does make ledges with a deadly drop (like into water) and an enemy a little frustrating though since you can't just jump across and fire at an approaching enemy {Not really a problem, just something to keep in mind.} Despite it being unfinished I can see where it's going, and it looks good!
I'm happy you liked it so far, your "explanation" for the yoyo recoil is really funny! It's not impossibile to compensate for it when jumping over a platform, and indeed I'll use this in level design, trying to keep it as less frustrating as possible.
Really like the feel of your game. It plays well, collision detection is perfect. Art style looks good, even though the sounds are placeholders, they do work. Appreciate it's unfinished, but still, kinda annoying that you have to reset the whole cartridge when you die. But, all in all, nice effort! Want more :)
The rebound when hitting an enemy is a bit weird btw, what's the idea behind that?
Thanks for the kind comments (and yes, I hate it when a game need a reset to play again... I'm fixing that soon, when adding some menu screens).
The rebound is really silly, as the yoyo could not possibly justify it, but it's from the original game. It adds something in the way of platforming, as killing enemy requires you to mind ledges, so I'm keeping it. I think the original spent some thoughts about the thing, like with the mechanic where running plus shooting is risky: the yoyo stays too little and too near ahead of you and colliding with enemies becames more likely. But then again, it's the natural consequence of the back and forth coded in the simplest way possible, so maybe they just went with it.
I'plannig to expand on yoyo mechanics, like giving higher scores or guaranteed drops for kills with a trick shot (like hitting when the yoyo is coming back to you), or using some vertical momentum.
The reset could be as simple as pressing 'R' to reset (without any menu), not sure if that's simple to make in Pico. I do understand the mechanic, I fell of a ledge when killing an enemy indeed ;-)
I don't know the original game, but it just feels weird that my player bounces backward as soon as the yoyo hits an enemy. It would make more sense that the rebound happens when the yoyo is back at my position.
Expanding on the yoyo mechanics is a good idea, since it's one of the key concepts of the game :)
So your comments were nostalgia-free, that's even better :)
Thought about the "simple" reset, but I'm already at work on menus so I didn't bother. The rebound when getting the yoyo back would make a lot of sense, really... it would disrupt the running-and-throwing movement, but maybe it can "charge up" only after hitting an enemy... there's definitely something to work on here, thanks for the idea!