Ascend
A downloadable game for Windows and macOS
A hero exits a dungeon, losing his spells, his memories, and (optionally) his ability to control his bladder, as he does so.
You take over from this hero, just after his presumable victory, where he presumably conquered his enemies and saved the world. That's how these stories go.
But this dungeon won't let him leave without its prize, and that seems to be everything he has.
As you play, the hero will grow more feeble, which is what sets this game apart, and might also be a insurmountable flaw in its design.
Any feedback about your experience with this prototype is very welcome. It was a lot of fun to design, and while there are improvements in the design I'd like to still make, I'm finding it difficult imagining how this prototype could be made into a compelling experience (at the moment it seems more traumatizing than compelling).
This game was created during Pirate Jam 2017. A week long jam in Thailand, largely on boats, hosted by American McGee.
Download
Install instructions
Download the zip. Unzip and Run the Unity application within.
Comments
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A reverse roguelike, unique idea. Gonna have to try this one sooner or later.
I entered and just a few second later I won. Did it suppose to go that way? When I start I got a bunch of super power and some kind of laser.
I think it was meant to be that way, you have to go up through the dungeon and loose powers due to that
Is there an updated version of the game for later versions of macOS? My computer unfortunately can't run 32-bit games :/
This is a nice pixelated game
I like the game, i died a couple times before i got the first end but it was worth it.
Quite interesting concept
How do I make enemies die?
IDK
You use the arrow keys to use your abilities
Can someone tell me what the attack button is?
WASD for movement, arrows for attacks
Thanks my dude
when i finally beat the game i had lost the ability to read, so i have no idea what happened.
10/10. this was fantastic!
I love the gameplay so far and the concept
This was a fantastic time. I liked the comedy twist towards the second half of the game. Just an incredibly witty, clever game. I wish you accepted donations!
The concept intrigued me, and the prototype didn't disappoint in any way. Your concept is simple yet ingenious at the same time and I can't wait to see where you take it from here. I was a bit confused on the gamepad controls at first, and wasn't sure what was happening the first couple of times my character seized up, but I also feel as though those moments may very well have added to my overall experience.
I felt a ramping tension and compounding stress as the hero climbed further out of the dungeon, and those little narrative segments between each level helped to reinforce that feeling incredibly well.
Also, props for capturing some Lovecraft vibes in a way true to Lovecraft. Some of the more cryptic dialogue made me feel like I was screwing with something that humans were really never meant to know. Not something many designers can do well
The concept seemed so intriguing to me and I was right. I absolutely love the concept of this game and I had so much fun playing it. Losing control of your bladder or even the ability to read adds a difficulty on top of the declining health and your abilities becoming less powerful. Overall great game and I enjoyed the shit out of it.
Hello. My name is Jamon Tolbert, and I am a film and video game composer. I am a big fan of your game, and I wanted to know if you would be open to me composing some more music for your game, free of charge. I think that my style would fit very well with the visuals. Let me know if you are interested, and I can send you some examples of my work. Thanks.