Davey Jones Trading Co.
A downloadable game for Windows
You're a merchant in the 1800s, and you've heard about an eastern continent with a very valuable spice! You've decided to set up a company to send ships to retrieve the profitable goods, but the ocean is a dangerous place...
Created for the Extra Credits Game Jam #5: Passage
Press WASD to create arrows to guide the ships, click a west dock to place a ship if you have one available, ships will turn 90 degrees left or right but not 180 backward.
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Thank you for the game!
I had a hard time figuring out how to make profit at the beginning, since game failed to teach me, that I save the ship from the previous run. But when I understood this basic principle, game have opened up to me and I've enjoyed it quite a bit!
I really liked the indirect control mechanic and how you can't change arrows that you've already placed. In combination with new obstacles occuring this created a really interesting dynamic and free-form spatial puzzle, where instead of one correct answer you look for different possible solutions.
With that said, though, random obstacles placement can create very unbalanced situations at times. In one run I got two docks on the straight line with no obstacles between them. In the second run I established a route that I was able to use completely safely for 10+ times, while on the third run a whirlpool appeared right on the crucial turn on my route, and all my ships turned in the wrong direction and smashed into iceberg. This randomness creates easy fun, but it also somewhat undermines the strategic challenge. Maybe, a 'rewind for X days' option would have balanced the chance factor and allowed more leeway for strategic thinking.
I really enjoyed it! it's fun to play. This is the kind of game are the ones I love the most and this one has great potential. That being said, I would like to erase arrows (I found myself in a mess I couldnt fix and that was game over for me) and I would add some things:
-Load the ships with different kinds of goods
-Maybe add 4 seasons and change the value of the goods
-A bigger map and more ports
-Some ports will pay you more (or less) depending on the cargo.
-I feel that the ships are too cheap, I would make them more expensive. It would add more difficulty to the game and would add a sense of "I cant loose that ship! it would wreck my operation!".
-And I think it would be awesome if you could name the ships, I can imagine myself saying: "Little Bandit" is doing good... but i'm worried about "Unsinkable II"
(the more I write, more I feel that I should add more things and if I keep writing this could go on forever :P)
PD: love the artwork, thanks for making it!
Nice little game, cute art, nice mechanics. I wish it had some sounds and the interface was a little bit too small... But great concept, pretty challenging and fun! I could definitely play this game for a while! Meow!