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Spelunky |OT| With Fate Guiding My Every Move

I fell asleep at the keyboard last night playing the new Pyro update in TF2, and had a dream that, like last year when MS leaked some of the Summer of Arcade games early and I was able to buy and download From Dust a week early, I think, they leaked Spelunky out and I downloaded it and it was nice.

I'm such a nerd.

Sounds like a wet dream.
 
Looks great. So how does it work? Do you have a main goal/treasure you are searching for? Is there a required number of treasure you need to collect in each stage? Collect as much as you can in a time limit?
 

Sciz

Member
Looks great. So how does it work? Do you have a main goal/treasure you are searching for? Is there a required number of treasure you need to collect in each stage? Collect as much as you can in a time limit?

The main goal is ultimately to reach the end. You can blow straight through each level if you want, but that means you're going to miss out on tons of loot, which consists of useful gear, straight up treasure, and a few other goodies.* Collecting treasure increases your money, which doubles as your score. You can spend it at a shop, or hang onto it for a better final score. Hanging around on any one level for too long triggers an invincible ghost to chase you, though, so you have to strike a balance between greed and speed. The timer is reasonably long and you're warned before it's up, but it's often a good idea to track down the exit before doing too much looting.


*The other catch to being hasty is that there are very many ways to die and very few ways to gain health.
 

B00TE

Member
I can't wait to play this with my friends. Day one for sure. Making everyone who's gonna be over to play it at least try the original so they know what to expect. :p
 

Cranzor

Junior Member
Thanks for the compliments on the thread guys. It's my first official thread so I'm glad it turned out okay.

Just 6 more days!
 
To ya'll that are asking questions about the game:

Download the freeware version! It is for Windows but I think that someone ported it to Mac, search Google
 
Man, this game took awhile to come out. Outstanding original post, lots of great information in there. Going to dig into that Verge article as soon as I get off work.

I'm really excited about this, I absolutely love the original version. A little disappointed the multiplayer isn't online, though.
 

Soulstar

Member
It's nice to know it's coming out and so soon! I kind of lost track of this game basically because I simply I knew that when it did come out I would buy it and enjoy every moment of it.
 

Cranzor

Junior Member
So... is it like Binding of Isaac but as a platformer?

What kind of items are we talking about?
I'd say that's a good comparison. When you die, you have to restart with nothing but more knowledge. As far as items go, there are guns that can kill enemies from a range, a cape that doesn't allow you to take fall damage when used, a jetpack that makes navigating levels much easier, climbing gloves that let you climb walls, a mattock that can destroy walls and floors, and a lot more. Those (and more) are all just in the freeware version, which I recommend checking out if you're not sure if you'll like the XBLA version. The XBLA version will have even more items with different attributes.
 
So... anyone here beat the PC version? Not counting
the City of Gold
.

I've finished it two or three times. I got pretty good at killing the shopkeepers with bombs, which can get you a jetpack and shotgun pretty early on, which helps out a ton. The jetpack makes the final two areas and the boss so much easier.
 

SAB CA

Sketchbook Picasso
A New Interview with Derek Yu, "Don't be Fooled by Spelunky XBLA's Quiet Launch"

my goal was to create something that people could enjoy years after its release. I feel like we accomplished that, so I'm happy!

Gives some insight into the nature of this versions updates, why we haven't seen much marketing for the game, and the kind of influence Spelunky has had, for all those people wondering "Why are some so excited about this game?!?"
 

KTallguy

Banned
So... is it like Binding of Isaac but as a platformer?

What kind of items are we talking about?

It's kind of like Isaac's platformer cousin, but no skill modifiers, just various items and destructible environments.

I LOVE the PC VERSON!!!! I want this... :(
 

SAB CA

Sketchbook Picasso
I'll add that to the first post, thanks. I'm very excited to see how much more deep it is and how many more secrets there actually are.

NP:) It'll be great to see how much more has been added since PC.

I don't understand what they are saying about multiplayer. No online, really? Seems pointless to me but I'll give it a try when I can.

Years from now, the online multiplayer wouldn't serve any purpose. When an online community dies on an arcade game, those features might as well have never existed.

However, I can still grab my 2 closest nearby friends, pull out the SNES / Saturn, and play Multitap Bomberman, years after the games have come and gone. (Our local anime con has Saturn Bomberman as the main multiplaer game every year, displayed on a huge projector...) I'm glad to see someone admit that for once... I find it pretty sad when online multiplayer is added to arcade games, with no respect for offline, when you KNOW the online lifespan is potentially very small for such niche games. Great when you have map-creation and multiplater-focused bonus content with it (like Capcom's Age of Booty), not so great when you ignore the offline side, just to cram online into the game (Outland's online exclusive Co-Op.)

It's pretty similiar to what happened with Skullgirls; online play isn't an easy slap-in to a game, and when you have limited resources, it's even harder to justify. SG's started with online being a major priority, and even they only seem to have 1 network guy. And he couldn't get in every feature they wanted (spectator lobbies!), by the time the game released. (Even now, after release, getting in network features is much harder for them than, say, fleshing out the training mode, and patching the gameplay.)

Spelunky here didn't even have a network guy, and the programming guy they have seemed like it was hard enough to code the complex interactions of objects for the game itself, into their new engine. Online would have presented a whole new set of problems. It could have very well have changed the feel of the controls offline, even, in an attempt to give moves enough buffer time for smooth online play.

So far, I think they easily made the right choice. Solid offline multiplayer is much better than half-baked online multiplayer, or none at all. It'd be nice to see it patched in (once the game has made some money, like around the time of PC release), or even added as a paid DLC mode, but that's normally unlikely.
 
I've been addicted to the PC version of Spelunky for the past few weeks. And I couldn't have told you after 5 hours of play if it was actually a good game.

Yeah, it's a great game. Thank goodness for that tunnel guy, though.
 

PiLON

Neo Member
Years from now, the online multiplayer wouldn't serve any purpose. When an online community dies on an arcade game, those features might as well have never existed.

However, I can still grab my 2 closest nearby friends, pull out the SNES / Saturn, and play Multitap Bomberman, years after the games have come and gone. (Our local anime con has Saturn Bomberman as the main multiplaer game every year, displayed on a huge projector...) I'm glad to see someone admit that for once... I find it pretty sad when online multiplayer is added to arcade games, with no respect for offline, when you KNOW the online lifespan is potentially very small for such niche games. Great when you have map-creation and multiplater-focused bonus content with it (like Capcom's Age of Booty), not so great when you ignore the offline side, just to cram online into the game (Outland's online exclusive Co-Op.)

It's pretty similiar to what happened with Skullgirls; online play isn't an easy slap-in to a game, and when you have limited resources, it's even harder to justify. SG's started with online being a major priority, and even they only seem to have 1 network guy. And he couldn't get in every feature they wanted (spectator lobbies!), by the time the game released. (Even now, after release, getting in network features is much harder for them than, say, fleshing out the training mode, and patching the gameplay.)

Spelunky here didn't even have a network guy, and the programming guy they have seemed like it was hard enough to code the complex interactions of objects for the game itself, into their new engine. Online would have presented a whole new set of problems. It could have very well have changed the feel of the controls offline, even, in an attempt to give moves enough buffer time for smooth online play.

So far, I think they easily made the right choice. Solid offline multiplayer is much better than half-baked online multiplayer, or none at all. It'd be nice to see it patched in (once the game has made some money, like around the time of PC release), or even added as a paid DLC mode, but that's normally unlikely.


I agree with everything you said and with the restrictions they had I'm sure they made the right choice. As a consumer though, I would like to see online although I know that might be asking too much. It is still a day one purchase for me and I will use the local multiplayer when I can. I am happy just to get the game at all and I don't want to seem demanding. On the other hand, I would have taken the game sooner with no multiplayer if I had to choose.
 

Daigoro

Member
Yu needs to pull a Fish and insult a large swath of the gaming population to get some attention on this games release. this is way too quiet a launch.

SPELUNKY!
 

Shurs

Member
Years from now, the online multiplayer wouldn't serve any purpose. When an online community dies on an arcade game, those features might as well have never existed.

However, I can still grab my 2 closest nearby friends, pull out the SNES / Saturn, and play Multitap Bomberman, years after the games have come and gone. (Our local anime con has Saturn Bomberman as the main multiplaer game every year, displayed on a huge projector...) I'm glad to see someone admit that for once... I find it pretty sad when online multiplayer is added to arcade games, with no respect for offline, when you KNOW the online lifespan is potentially very small for such niche games. Great when you have map-creation and multiplater-focused bonus content with it (like Capcom's Age of Booty), not so great when you ignore the offline side, just to cram online into the game (Outland's online exclusive Co-Op.)

It's pretty similiar to what happened with Skullgirls; online play isn't an easy slap-in to a game, and when you have limited resources, it's even harder to justify. SG's started with online being a major priority, and even they only seem to have 1 network guy. And he couldn't get in every feature they wanted (spectator lobbies!), by the time the game released. (Even now, after release, getting in network features is much harder for them than, say, fleshing out the training mode, and patching the gameplay.)

Spelunky here didn't even have a network guy, and the programming guy they have seemed like it was hard enough to code the complex interactions of objects for the game itself, into their new engine. Online would have presented a whole new set of problems. It could have very well have changed the feel of the controls offline, even, in an attempt to give moves enough buffer time for smooth online play.

So far, I think they easily made the right choice. Solid offline multiplayer is much better than half-baked online multiplayer, or none at all. It'd be nice to see it patched in (once the game has made some money, like around the time of PC release), or even added as a paid DLC mode, but that's normally unlikely.

I wish it would have had both online and offline multiplayer.
 

SAB CA

Sketchbook Picasso

Hey, thanks for these! I've listened to the soundtrack sample for ages now, and it's nice to see how things fit into the actual game. The sound effects also are very well done, and I love the attention to detail to things (such as dust kicking up after landing from a far drop, or the "going deeper" sound used when going into doors.)

Yu made the comment that he wanted to go for that "Mario level of Polish" in the Polygon / Verge Article, and this game seems to be one that's really trying not to take any element for granted.

Really digging this version thus far. Controls work perfectly.

Looking very good in that reguard. So glad this game is avoiding all the pitfalls that could come from a "quick and dirty port", it's more like this version is the "real" retail version of Spelunky, rather than just a cash-in port of the freeware version.

It might have been hard to make online multiplayer work with all the random elements

Yeah, I could have imagine all the shortcuts that could have been taken, if they wanted to shoehorn in online multi:

- Character must stay on same screen.
- Maps are no longer random. There's a set stage path for online multi.
- No Co-Op, just a versus mode.
- Crappy netcode. It'd have online, but it wouldn't work well enough to actually PLAY anyway...
- Bad De-sync issues, crappy lobbies, horrible desynchs...

It could have been a mess.

I agree with everything you said and with the restrictions they had I'm sure they made the right choice. As a consumer though, I would like to see online although I know that might be asking too much. It is still a day one purchase for me and I will use the local multiplayer when I can. I am happy just to get the game at all and I don't want to seem demanding. On the other hand, I would have taken the game sooner with no multiplayer if I had to choose.
I wish it would have had both online and offline multiplayer.

It would have been nice, but I have to admit... I've gotten really tired of sloppy online multi this gen. Much more so than getting tired of games I wish had online, not having it (like the Scott Pilgrim game, for example).

My pro-consumer side prefers polish MUCH more than bulleted feature list. It's something Nintendo continues to focus on, when making their games. They get so many elements of their games so solid, so all-around, that they have an undeniable quality that exceeds many others.

I'm glad Yu & Co. seems to have headed in that direction. Seems perfect, given the inspirations.
 

Servbot #42

Unconfirmed Member
"He made it look more cutesy, and changed the music... *palms face*"

Are we pretending the original isn't cutesy or something? Looks pretty much the same style, just obviously significantly more detailed compared to the very low-res sprites of the original.
 

Archon473

Member
This version seems bright and welcoming. The freeware version was not foreboding by any means, but you had to heed its warnings. Honestly, it might be that the music set the right mood for me and changing it is taking me away from how I associate with the game. The colors do seem brighter. The trailer looked like birthday cake and candles were exploding everywhere.
 

Daigoro

Member
i really cant wait to get my hands on this game.

come on Wednesday morning!

anyone know how big the download is?
 
Played some of the PC version. Can't wait.

tumblr_lhcmbpxUs51qf7r5lo1_500.gif
 
The game is definitely faster, and it's coming to PC, but they have to keep giving those non-committal answers because of the XBLA exclusivity window
 

Cranzor

Junior Member
Didn't see that is was posted, sorry if I missed it!

I think the reason a lot of indie games do better on PC is because they are able to reach a wider audience. That's the most obvious, but support Mac and Linux drives some more sales which I am sure is always nice.
 
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