We previewed Jumplight Odyssey, an indie movie that combines FTL with classic direction

The standalone environment has always been extremely competitive, but after the 2015/2016 “decline” of triple A there was a real boom in the indie market, leading to an exponential increase in development teams with many dreams and little money. Frankly, it was a pretty positive wave, able to bring some really catchy products to life and tremendously enrich the gameplay as a whole, but at the same time, this nearly runaway growth also had another inevitable effect: it made certain design options and art stale. direction that we would consider unique and brilliant not so long ago.

In today’s Indian ocean, it is no longer enough to have a good idea and discrete technical skills … now it is necessary to produce experiences or bring species that can often reach unimaginable heights for a small team and systems up to the already consolidated limits. THEM Geeks LeagueHe is currently known for the current Armello, so they chose to use all their experience to follow the second path, the emulation and healing path. Games that inspire them with their own games Jumplight AdventureHowever, these aren’t exactly easy to confuse, as we’re talking about one of the most interesting roguelike games, FTL, and management games like Fallout Shelter and the Two Point series (with a host of other inspirations in the mix). . Unfortunately we did not have the opportunity to play directly – from what was observed there still seems to be a lot to do – but the starting point is undoubtedly already exciting and the team may have the necessary experience to fit everything properly.

Escape from the empire

We were immediately intrigued by the trailer in which League of Geeks presented its creatures: Jumplight Odyssey does indeed seem to be embracing a strange mix. References to anime classics from the 70s/80s (Above all Battleship Yamato) and modern “round” cartoon style comparable to many western animated series born in the last decade. However, she doesn’t seem to want to get lost in the right details of the “battle mood” anime series from the land of the Rising Sun and immediately throws you into the middle of the action and you take on the role of the princess. A peaceful people are suddenly attacked by the evil Zutopan empire.

Led by Admiral Voltan, the onslaught of this race of warmongers is swift and unstoppable: your planet has been destroyed and the only ship that has survived destruction is the Jumplight; led by legendary Eternal StarTherefore, you will need to rescue the survivors stationed in this huge plane as you try to survive the many dangers of deep space and the attacks of the people who forced you to flee.

Now, the game described in this way seems to focus on the constant conflict between the two populations mentioned above, but in all sincerity the co-founder of the team, Trent KustersHe explained to us that the intention was not to build experience around this conflict. In fact, even though the Jumpship is not a warship, there will be wars, though your intention will always be to survive to reach the Eternal Star and have no real hope of defeating the empire militarily; therefore, conflicts between ships will not be shown, and in similar situations it will be necessary to consider almost exclusively the defense of the ship and the protection of the occupants.

In short, Jumplight Odyssey clearly wants to focus on the management aspect, winking at FTL as mentioned earlier and the various survival/management programs currently in circulation. But the way it does it is to place a large one at the center of each journey. random events networkconstantly influencing your galactic saga and your crew members with all its myriad needs.

Emotions in zero gravity

How important your crew’s mood and behavior are is immediately apparent from the main source that stands out in the middle of the screen during games: a large bar with a word in the middle. hope. Hope thrives on promises kept and approval from those who live in Jumplight, but as with any self-respecting roguelike, it can slow down to light speed if you make serious mistakes, make reckless choices, or simply overwhelm you. a series of terrible blows of bad luck.

underlying structure game cycles It sees you jump from galaxy to galaxy (similar to FTL, actually), but the focus here is on a mix of managing internal structures on the ship and rescuing resources while trying to avoid any direct encounters with Voltan and his men. The inspiration from Two Points is fully reflected in the element of management: In this title it is also possible to build rooms with well-defined functions and dress them in a way that is more efficient and appreciated by the crew (even if there does not seem to be a complex system of influences tied to the aesthetics of the rooms). For the record: you do not directly control the crew or even the princess, but through her you can activate various ship functions and objects, and you have the opportunity to influence the behavior of the crew by ordering the construction of certain rooms and tools. In a kind of very rosewater and space version of Rimworld. Obviously, therefore, each inhabitant of the ship has its own behavioral routines and characteristics; these routines can become “effects” if you decide to introduce them, such that if managed carefully they can lead to further behavioral changes for the entire crew. Of course, we couldn’t fully analyze the system during the short presentation, but on paper the complexity is not lacking, so it will be important to evaluate how all these factors interact and the robustness of the procedural elements of each run. .

Jumplight Odyssey is also a roguelite (for non-starters, it’s a roguelike where bonuses or upgrades are sustained in each game), but at the moment it seems that sustaining progress depends on a single item. In fact, on each journey, it will be possible to complete missions with “memories” as the final reward; these memories become unlockable in later games and allow you to start with extra perks. The developers have revealed to us only one: Mommy Pig, a cute little pet that can become your ship’s permanent mascot if rescued in a mission; It is not clear what it does, but it is possible to pamper it, so in the most difficult moments it will be a panacea for the nerves.

It is currently difficult to assess the complexity of other factors without direct evidence; as the choice difficulty With much more brutal and conflict-rich journeys, it will be crucial to manage even dangerous shuttle shipments in order to obtain all the resources necessary to evolve, and detailed interactions between crew and structures will certainly not be lacking. We were quite impressed with the size of the ship, which is divided into several floors and can accommodate numerous different rooms, so we were not surprised that the loops of each game are designed to last several hours (they can also be adjusted to finish faster in any case).

On the other hand, another goal of the developers seems to be to tell new stories at every start, and this requires time and multiple interactions to even minimally touch on the complexity of games like the aforementioned Rimworld or Dwarf Fortress. For God’s sake, finding a balance in such a detailed title isn’t exactly a health walk, but this Australian team seems to have clear ideas and the formula has what it takes to be a pleasant surprise in the genre.