===LoJam 2023 Entry and Judge's Choice Winner 🏆==

cherry pit 1.0.0

Made by rentonl with python + pygame.

Music by Kennedy Kimber Johnson

A tactical turn-based rogue-like where you must wield the power of nature to survive against waves of demons from the beyond.

Theme of LoJam 2023 - "Growth"

  • Movement: Numpad <1-9> or <WASD> (with diagonals <QEZC>)
  • Skills: <1-5>
  • Selection: Enter/Space/Left Click
  • Press <Esc> for in-game menu

LoJam 2023 notes:

  • IMPORTANT: some notes on the web browser version:
    • It can take a few minutes to load without giving a lot of visual feedback that it's actually loading!
    • There seems to be some issues  getting the keys to work once the mouse targets outside the game window and then back into it.
    • The music and sound meters in the options menu don't work on the browser version. 
    • pygbag targeting pygame to Web Assembly is basically black magic to me and I don't fully understand it. Anyways, I think it's still a fairly new project, so if you experience any issues with the web version on your OS or browser (performance or otherwise), let me know and I can try to get you a build to target your system.
  • Most of the sprites come from oryxdesignlab.com Roguelike 2.0 tileset, however I have also made quite a few of my own modifications to the set over the course of the jam.

Notable features:

  • Simple, yet challenging, tactical rogue-like mechanics.
  • Tutorial mode to teach the basics of game-play.
  • Choose perks in the form of mantras after each wave. Learn and combine various mantras to give you the edge over evil.
  • Encyclopedia pages for flora, enemies and mantras.
  • Particle effects.
  • Minimalist look and feel, with great attention paid to the UI design.
  • Influenced by the book "Pilgrim's Progress" by John Bunyan.

This game utilizes my existing custom WIP engine called RLEngine. Some of the features my engine provided before the jam:

  • Input management
  • Complex turn-based game state management
  • Complex entity state management
  • Map management
  • Animated entities
  • Pre-made widgets
  • Inventory and Skill management
  • Random map generation

Tools/Libraries Used:

  • pygame
  • pygbag
  • Aesprite
  • ChatGPT
  • DALL-E
StatusReleased
PlatformsHTML5
Rating
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
(17 total ratings)
Authorrentonl
GenreStrategy, Role Playing, Survival
Made withAseprite, pygame
TagsMinimalist, pygame, pygame-wasm, python, Roguelike, Turn-based
Average sessionAbout a half-hour
LanguagesEnglish
InputsKeyboard
AccessibilitySubtitles

Development log

Comments

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it says Error occurred: Failed to fetch dynamically imported module: https://pygame-web.github.io/archives/0.7/vtx.js

Hey, this happens on startup? What's your os and browser?

windows operating system, google chrome, tried it again on firefox, still gave the same message. Yes it happens on startup

(+1)

Really fun, I enjoy the atmosphere created by the visuals, the music, and the text.  

(+2)

Fun game! Carrying over seeds is a little silly, since then you just build up to 99 early and start every level with attack plants followed by seed regen.

(+2)

Eventually, though, seeds do again become a limiting factor, since you have to start each wave with 5 attack plants and then try to build back up seeds before walling yourself off in a corner when the enemy's spawn rate overwhelms you.  Around solstice 23 seeds cease to be a major issue again, though, since enemies spawn every turn on what few empty spaces are available so just not getting insta-killed by spawning becomes the priority, and the high-level enemies that spawn on solstice 24 need less damage to kill.  Is there an ending?  I misclicked on level 24 and broke my wall :(

(1 edit) (+1)

Hey, thanks for playing and providing great feedback! You've got the record afaik (I've certainly never gotten past lvl.10 lol). Some great points you've made! Now that I'm outside the constraints of a jam I can step back and try to address some of the balance issues. Currently no ending, although by lvl.26 I believe it caps out at fallen angels solely spawning every few turns. Getting sprouted and insta killed is a little too punishing perhaps, especially on a great run. Really appreciate your dedication!

(+1)

the walling is actually ingenious lol. can't believe i didn't even think of that. perhaps i should make the enemies attack the plants when they can't path-find to you.

(+1)

You could, but it's not really necessary since you really need 5 attack for most of the game and that's 28 seeds you need to get back somehow, which tends to take a good chunk of time each level.  Walling is only really helpful at the very end when you are okay with losing some seeds each round and eventually dying, because enemies can and will spawn inside your walls, and you have to be able to kill each of them almost immediately to have the space to avoid getting killed by their spawning circles. Walls mostly just save you from wasting moves on walking towards enemies and consequently from being surrounded.