The protagonist is gifted with ability, which became his curse. There is nothing in afterlife, no state of being after death.

Controls:

  • Movement: WASD / Arrows
  • Interact: X / E / Shift
  • Jump: Z / Space / Control
  • Crouch: S / Down key
  • Start: Enter
  • Toggle fullscreen: F4
  • Toggle shader on/off: F12 (just to see what goes underneath)
  • Easter egg: Hidden key

Video of game intro: https://youtu.be/b7Dk3GO90xg

Game has ending, you can finish it. But you can keep dying to see descending thoughts of player.

The interpretation of theme wasn't in game mechanics specifically, but in the philosophical point - there is no state of being after death; no afterlife. The player has gift, which enables him try again, but the events make him realize terrifying and existential thoughts, that he will - sooner or later - die even though he escapes for now. And there won't be afterlife, just emptiness. You can escape for so long before time takes ahold all of us. ...

If you leave comment, I know to play your game too :)

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  • kbjwes77
    Lv. 19

    The art style was ambiguous and dynamic, definitely helped set the mood and complimented the story really well. Would have liked to see more gameplay or a longer story but it was a great proof of concept. Good work!

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      4yrs ago

      Hello, thank you for playing older game of mine :) Yeah, later I would like to explore this idea bit more, looping again in endless chain of deaths, existential crisis etc. This game could have also worked in GM48 31th as its theme was Loop ^^

  • chompdev
    Lv. 7

    Hey Tero! Just got to play through Reload and I have to say that I'm super impressed. I gave you a well-deserved 10/10 for Art and Immersion. The silhouetted art style with the flowing ink looks fantastic and I immediately got absorbed in the storyline.

    Very, very well done!

    MobShift
    Submitted

    MobShift

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thank you for feedback :) Style became what it is because of time was getting short. Just silhouette wasn't good enough, so eventually I came up with that metaball -effect. The story I would have liked to be bit longer, but the jams are like this ^^"

  • Hyper Freeze Games
    Lv. 17

    I'm really impressed (again), I really like what you are doing with game maker! Your game is very interesting and a fun concept! I think this would be a great "full length game" if you know what I mean? Art style is nice and persistent, and overall it's very mysterious.

    Keep up the awesome work!

  • Chubb1337
    Lv. 2

    Music was on point with the (artistic) feel of the game. I really appreciated that interactive shader button (F12). I was wondering how you pulled it off, and seeing the 'true images' was like an Eureka moment to me, very nice touch.

    I am sad it was over so soon, but loved every bit of it. It makes me wonder if I left any story behind or not..

    Good job!

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thank you :) I might extend this later, with couple more puzzles, but more I would like to adventure the ideas and implications of a man, who knows what's after death. The existential crisis and inevitabliness of it, and how these creeps in after escaping the prevailing situation.

  • PenguinCzar
    Lv. 5

    :( It's over. Man I want more. This is sooo good like dang. I can't believe that you did this in the time allotted. The time to make those shaders itself. How did you do it. I love the mechanics. I did not find the key for the longest time cause I thought the couch was the black thing, but also I really loved the difference in colors inside the house and the outside. But also, This game is insane. Other than the sadness of being so small, I am very impressed. The idea is so intriguing, I love this idea and it kind of gives me flashbacks to SUPERHOT which is like one of my favorite games. So very very well done. I'm shaking in me boots. Good Luck!

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thank you for the feedback :) I really wanted to make game longer, but also I wanted players to be able to finish it. I have couple of ideas how to extend the puzzles here (like you can't survive jump from the balcony without rope etc.), if I ever make it bit longer.

      For the shaders, you should look here: https://youtu.be/Yhb77SXu9n0 , there are tons of videos about different shaders here, really good stuff :)

      Metaball -effect was done with crunching down the dynamic range of duotone shader, and then I used blurry sprites.

  • Fachewachewa
    Patron

    Another impressive game! I love timeloops so I'll obviously say this was too short. Having more time to expand it would have also helped for the theme I'm sure, but I think it's still a good interpretation.

    I also enjoyed letting myself get killed to see more "story" :)

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thanks :) I know I know, it's short ^^" If I wouldn't have slept those pesty 9 hour sleeps, I could have pressed that one level deeper, and expanded the 'story'. Now you might die only two-three times, though I wanted player die more, like ten times :D Also I wanted implement mechanic, where you should touch specific enemy while dying, and that event would keep his memories too after return. Someone else remembering would change behaviour overall, also he would also have existential crisis if he died and later you returned

  • David
    Lv. 2

    The art style is great! Music/Sound-Effects are very satisfying and work perfect together. Everything seems to have a "liquid"quality in it. I really liked the existential approach about being condemned to run away forever, hopelessly, even if there's no death.

    The only downside, in my opinion, is the lack of an information panel with the game controls while playing. But it could be just me. Other than that, I enjoyed it a lot!

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thank you for you kind words ^^

      I used Duotone shader to make silhouette look, could have used between shades, but ramped those down. This created Metaball -effect when I used blurry sprites, you can turn off shader by pressing F12 in game.

      I didn't get the information panel etc. work the way I wanted, or in a way it supported the game idea. I also left player without much of help, because I wanted player to die several times ^^"

  • baku
    Patron

    Super short, but I enjoyed it quite a lot! Great use of that "metaball" shader effect, or whatever you want to call it (alpha threshold?), the game looks super rad because of it!

    and I hope this doesn't sound too weird, but I got that "ASMR" feeling in the back of my head when the title screen popped up

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thank you :) Maybe if I wouldn't have used up so much time on text system and storybuilding I could have made that ground floor too ^^"

      I wasn't sure about what graphical approach should I take, when time was running out, 'Okay, silhouttes it is'. I used Duotone shader and ramped down 'between shades' of two colors to make it nicer. Metaball -effect was byproduct, which I noticed that I could make use of. To achieve it, I basically used blurry sprites. You can press F12 to see what game looks like without shader :)

      I don't mind :D Tried to create experience, so that's only good thing ^^

  • Ivanbje
    Patron

    I liked it, was a fun experience, short but sweet. I realized where the couch was but I did struggle a bit in picking up the key, felt like it was a very specific spot. I think some kind of indicator that an action could be performed somewhere, could've helped

    Oproto
    Submitted

    Oproto

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thanks :) I did want to make indicator for key, but firstly I didn't want player to find it immediatly. This is also why I made it specific spot, so players won't accidently get it (which happened in playtesting). But you can get it by very beginning if you know and want to do that, though you lose the idea of the game. Secondly, I had problems with shader and GPU layer ^^" That made me also make that room transition by zooming out, because I didn't get fading out transition work right.

  • mrbbnbrn
    Lv. 6

    I genuinely enjoyed the gameplay and the story. I got sad when it ended. Solid art style, solid gameplay, solid story. Good job buddy!

    Barov
    Submitted

    Barov

  • Kwis
    Lv. 67
    • Took me a bit to find the key because I first didn't notice what the couch was, and didn't know what to exactly do to get it. It's in a specific spot, gotta crouch and press the action key; got me confused at first
    • Game got a bit laggy at times
    • I dig the art style! Charming, simple, nice to watch.
    • You know about this, but the game was surprisingly short.
    • I liked the kind of tension of intruige where you gotta escape people without exactly knowing why!
    • Not quite keen on the "get back to the checkpoint" interpretation of the theme, even if it's acknowledge by the plot
    • Text was smooth and looked very polished. Great!
    Trapped
    Submitted

    Trapped

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thank you for your feedback, I'll check your game later :) I didn't have time to make couch better, but made first thing to say about starting from the couch ^^" but you shouldn't need to use action key to pick key up, just crouching? It is short, mostly I tried to make an experience.

      The interpretation of theme wasn't in game mechanics specifically, but in the philosophical point - there is no state of being after death; no afterlife. The player has gift, which enables him try again, but the event make him realize terrifying and existential thoughts, that he will, sooner or later, die even though he escapes for now. And there won't be afterlife, just emptiness. You can escape for so long before time takes ahold all of us. Game mechanic was created to support this idea, and also the joke about saving in bad spot, happened for me in some games ^^"

  • Linkyu
    Lv. 3

    Really neat art style, though I was a bit confused at first as to what to do; I didn't realize I could jump until much later, but that was just user error :p

    Still, really good concept; just a bit short, unfortunately.

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thanks for the feedback :) Yeah, it got short and I didn't make proper clear goals, but it was to make you die several times ^^" Just played you game, left comment :)

  • Kyon
    Lv. 25

    Amazing art-style, really fresh. I really like the idea of the story. Too bad it was shorter than I expected. But very well done!! :)

    Desolation
    Submitted

    Desolation

    • Tero Hannula
      Patron
      Tero Hannula Developer of Reload

      5yrs ago

      Thanks :) I used Duotone shader, if you press F12 you can see game without shader, looks ugly ^^". Bit different look is in F11. Yeah, it's short I know, especially if you play it right first time. I wanted add something to before ending, but you know these jams.

      In game you are meant to die several times, I think I put 7 different lines for dying.

  • Problematicar
    Lv. 37

    Beautiful story and interesting artstyle, also one of the more interesting takes on the theme

It's always a blast to participate in these jams :)

First day went almost solely on making the text system and story, thinking what I am trying to tell to the player. At end of first day I came up with artstyle and the intro was pretty much ready. Second day went making the gameplay itself, I hoped to make some rope you would need climb down and ground floor, but jams are like these ^^

As for the theme, I tried to implement existential crisis. The thoughts what is after death, and the character in the game will get to know - there is nothing. Still, the protagonist can think in that emptiness. Maybe everyone will stay alone in there, but maybe it's just the player as his gift let him return. Maybe for others they just cease from existence, the man will never know. But he knows what's for him after death.

Unlike in the game, storywise 'the gift' doesn't automatically make player return upon his death, but he just chooses to return. He wants to live. He can always return whenever he wants, after bad choice or anything. The player has used this as his bidding and got aggressively 'right' choices, just saved before. For others, he seems to know future. The game takes in time, when he dies for very first time, and he acknowledges his mortal immortality. He can always run from the death by returning, die as many times he can. He can always just reload. But as there is only one 'savestate', the saving is precious. For living up many livetimes, you could save in your childhood and live normal live until natural death comes for you, and then just rewind back to your young self.

But the world will stand still, never truly progress until he decides just not return. Be living or dead, took him year or millenia, when he decides to reload, the world will recall back to his return point. For universe to continue, he must be in that void for rest of the eternity. For him, true death is to save when he is dead, so he can never return.

The man, who knew the death.

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