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[WIP][EaselJS] Luminarium: physics-based space puzzler


pixelpathos
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I'm currently working on my second HTML5 game, Luminarium. It's a space-themed puzzle game with a lightweight physics engine, and should perform well on mobile:

 

Play here.

 

The aim of the game is to command the Lumin race to bring light back to dark planets. You have various directional commands at your disposal, as well as an orbit command introduced scene 3. You can move and size the various commands. Only Lumins the same colour as a planet will light it. Lumins change colour when they pass through a coloured gas cloud. Wormholes are introduced in scene 4.

 

I'd appreciate any feedback you have, particularly with regards to gameplay and performance, in the game's current state. As this is a demo, I've made the locked levels playable also :).

 

There are currently 48 levels across 4 scenes, and I have another scene of 12 levels planned. There will eventually be different background graphics for each scene. Sound effects and music are on the TODO list, and the level selection menu needs a little work (as does my rather pedestrian description of the game :) ). I'm also aware of some current drawing and layout issues, particularly if the device is rotated (or window is resized).

 

Thank you in advance, and hope you enjoy the game!

 

Vince.

 

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Very nice game.

What engine (or framework) do you use?

 

Thanks nikolayku!

 

I'm using all parts of the CreateJS framework (EaselJS, TweenJS, PreloadJS, and shortly, SoundJS) although I've had to implement a few optimisations to EaselJS (especially redraw regions) to get Luminarium working better on mobile. I've hand-crafted the physics engine, having had performance issues with Box2D in my previous game.

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Beautiful concept. Love it. Added to my site (aaand removed by request :D ).

Also noticed that the in-game instruction for resizing the circles is not for PC users. Managed to resize them by pressing and holding the left mouse button, then pressing the space bar followed by mouse movement ... ot just press and hold the left mouse button.

Anyway, great game.

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Thanks Sumizome and Pete for taking time to look at my game, and for your kind comments.

 

Pete: you're right about the instructions for resizing ("tap and hold...") don't really apply to PC users - guess it's tricky to come up with brief instructions that apply to all manner of devices! You understood though, which is reassuring: click-and-hold, followed by up-and-down movement works for resizing using the mouse. I'm very grateful for the coverage of the game on your site. I'll continue to update the game over the next few days, and will be sure to post back here once I can call it "completed" :). Your site looks interesting and well put together, so I will be checking it out in more detail soon.

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Hi Pete,

 

On second thoughts, as Luminarium is still a work in progress, and I'd like to get the game in front of publishers once it is done, could I politely request that it be taken down from IQpied? I should have made this clearer from the outset - we live and learn :).

 

Thanks,

 

Vince.

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Awesome game, I really like the concept a lot. Does it work with a mouse? I couldn't seem to resize the command on level 2 using a mouse.

 

Many thanks!

 

Luminarium is intended to work fine with a mouse. The controls should be the same: to resize a command with a mouse, click-and-hold the command until it enters size mode, then drag up/down. Please let me know if you're still having issues.

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Luminarium is intended to work fine with a mouse. The controls should be the same: to resize a command with a mouse, click-and-hold the command until it enters size mode, then drag up/down. Please let me know if you're still having issues.

 

Ah yeah it does work with a mouse. I didn't realize it was going into sizing mode initially.

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Original game, I love the music. Had problems too on the second level resizing the circle.

 

Thanks! I composed the music myself, so it's great to hear that it actually works with the game  :).

 

Did you manage to get the resizing to work? If you click and hold the command, the outer circle will turn white. At this point, simply drag up and down to resize. I'm trying to establish whether the issue is a technical one, or one of communication (i.e. I need to be clearer!).

 

By the way, I found the RAVALMATIC website's games and articles very interesting and everything has real polish. I shall be taking more of a poke around there later!

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Thanks for all the feedback so far - it has been very constructive. I've now made a couple of changes:

 

- The player needs to tap the spaceship to start the level, so you have some time to think before the Lumin count starts

- The resizing tutorial has now been improved with a hand animation that loops continuously - hopefully this should make the resizing mechanism clearer for first-time players

 

As always, I'd appreciate thoughts on the game with these changes in - thanks so much.

 

Vince.

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I'm a big fan of Auditorium so enjoyed the gameplay and congrats on creating music that fits the look and pace of the game!

 

There were just a couple of minor issues that I came across

 

- the tap-and-wait size control felt a little clunky in practice, I'm guessing a pinch zoom control like Auditorium is out of the question for mobile browsers that don't support multi-touch but it would be interesting to know if you experimented with any other methods to resize the circles?

 

- tapping the ship to start the level is nice as it gives you a chance to appraise the level layout, but an indication of which direction the aliens are going to leave from would help me position my circles in anticipation

 

All in all, it's a really well made game and just the kind of thing I would happily pay for on the app store!

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@mentuat,

 

Thanks very much for taking time to play Luminarium, and for writing up the very useful feedback.

 

The easy one first: indication of the direction of launch is a great idea - I will try and implement this shortly.

 

The resizing is becoming a headache! I considered a pinch zoom, but originally decided against it for a couple of reasons. Firstly, when the circles are very small (particularly on small screens) or when they overlay, it may get a little fiddly. Secondly, I needed a way for the game to be evaluated on desktop. I could support both resize methods, but I'd need to decide which technique to show in the level 2 tutorial. I've just had a quick Google, and it's surprisingly difficult to detect whether actually on a touchscreen device (as opposed to a browser that supports touch), made more complicated by devices that support multiple input methods. Definitely willing to revisit this though - I may initially implement it to see how well it actually works. If you have any other suggestions, I'd appreciate any help I can get!

 

Well done on spotting the Auditorium link! I love that game too, particularly being a musician. I initially wanted to use the same musical techniques (play an extra track as each planet lights up), and I even had the motion trails working, but neither significantly added to the gameplay (and the latter obviously affected performance), so I decided against. Interestingly, at least on desktop, I find the resizing in Auditorium tricky also, particularly where circles overlap. If I remember correctly, you have to hover over the resize line, wait for the confirmatory resize arrows, and then drag with the mouse. Is resizing just destined to be tricky?  :)

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