Blipp in: Power Panic!

Blipp in: Power Panic!

Release type: Freeware
Release date: July 20, 2014
Levels: 1
Author: Dattorz
Website: Glorious Trainwrecks
Related games: Teatime Game, PersiaTron, Terror Tower

Not to be mistaken for Adam Tyner's Blip!.

Blipp in: Power Panic! is one of four games designed for a game jam held by the Glorious Trainwrecks community, in celebration of Andy Stone's release of Game-Maker's source code. All four games were assembled over a short span on the evening of July 19th, 2014, while the authors chatted and exchanged design tips over IRC.

Dattorz, one of the Glorious Trainwrecks maintainers, took a methodical approach to design -- one which led to an extra day or two of overtime, to finish up the work here. The goal with Blipp was to use a rough existing template -- the classic Epyx game Chip's Challenge -- to explore and demonstrate Game-Maker's basic functions. Thus, every level plays with a slightly different mix of block and monster properties. One level will involve carving a path out of solid blocks -- yet the solid blocks also wall in monsters, which are drawn to the player's character. Another level will contain an invisible maze. Another will focus on gravity settings, with conveyor belts and glide floors dragging the character in all directions.

Searching for power in Dattorz's Blipp

Much of the extra time devoted to Blip seems to have gone into the little details that make it work -- the character design and animation; the original, clearly drawn monsters and background tiles; and in particular the meticulously designed levels, each of which positions a different kind of a puzzle for the player to solve, each puzzle serving to illustrate another basic principle of RSD's engine.

The end effect is a highly polished showcase for Game-Maker as an engine and design framework -- sort of a more refined version of Viki, or a more authored take on Tutor. If you don't see it in Blipp, chances are it's not an out-of-the-box feature. Combined with Alan Caudel's Advanced Techniques Demo, Blipp makes a comprehensive introduction to Game-Maker design. If you're looking for a way into RSD's tools, start here.

Story

Same as Instructions.

Instructions

Collect all ten batteries

Then return them and exit

Use keys to open locks

Dirt is solid until you step on it

Mirage walls are real or fake

Watch out for hazards

The rest is for you to figure out!

Controls

Arrow keys/numerical keypad: Move in the four cardinal directions

Credits

Game by Dattorz!

Special thanks to:

• Recreational Software Designs
• Chuck Somerville

Background

Dattorz:

This was a game I made to see how well RSD Game-Maker was suited toward something like Chip's Challenge. Right now it includes six levels. I might add more if I can think of any new ideas.

I was hoping to get some other mechanics in. Block pushing seems nigh-impossible in Game-Maker. I also wanted to include a mop or some similar item to allow the player to cross hazardous tiles. What is there is implemented pretty elegantly, I think, except for the purple starting tunnel that removes your batteries and keys at the start, since Game-Maker doesn't reset the counters for you.

If there's one thing that really bothers me, it's Game-Maker's camera. It doesn't start scrolling until you're close to the edge. Combined with the fact that monsters stop rendering when they're even close to the window edge, this means it can be hard to keep track of where those crocodile bots are. You kinda have to fight with the camera to see what's going on. I'd prefer something that always kept the character in the center of the screen, perhaps with faster camera movement too.

Levels 3 and 6 are somewhat based off of LESSON 8 and DIGGER from the original Chip's Challenge.

Availability

Produced for and available from Jeremy Penner's "tribute to postcardware" community, Glorious Trainwrecks.

Archive History

Produced on July 19, 2014 for Glorious Trainwrecks' Game-Maker Source Release Jam, in celebration of Andy Stone's July 11, 2014 release of the Game-Maker source code.

The game was entered into the archive upon completion.

Links

• Game-Maker Source Release Jam / KotM #85 (Glorious Trainwrecks)

Downloads

• Blipp in: Power Panic! (116.5 KB)
• Levels 1-4 map (39.9 kB)
• Levels 5-6 map (39.7 kB)