A precision puzzle-platformer aimed at speedrunners that turns one of the oldest videogame tropes on its head.
In other games, dying is bad, and your remaining lives are just chances to try again... right? No, not on Harold's Bad Day.
Finish as quickly as possible, while trying to save as many Harolds as you can for a perfect run.
My first PICO-8 release - hope you enjoy!
Amazing! What a great game and so clever.
Without the clues at the bottom of the screen I would be hopelessly stuck but I had such fun playing this and trying to work out what to do. Haven't finished it yet but I will keep trying and then go for some speed-runs.
Thanks Phil, really appreciate the kind words!
I hope some of the levels aren't too brutal - there are some really tough ones but I didn't want to nerf things too much until I got it in the hands of other players.
Please let me know if any level is rage-quit inducing. Thanks again and cheers!
This is a great game. I love the game mechanics and the clean graphical style. Really impressive.
Cheers Dredds - appreciate it! Checking out your carts right now.
How many levels are there? I didn't find any particular level rage inducing but I still haven't finished it... Real life got in the way.
Actually I found screen 2 a bit confusing at first and I almost gave up. I am so glad I didn't though.
Also the music in great and the way it changes in the water is a really nice touch.
The game uses the entire map memory, so there are 32 levels total.
I found level 2 really tight. It takes almost perfect control to get through. That's really hard when you play on a phone. As a result it took me a lot of tries to get through. Maybe it's too difficult for so early in the game, and should be tweaked to be a little easier to let the difficulty level ramp up more gently.
Phew! Finally completed: 46:28 - although I did pause for extended periods and come back to it.
The levels that I found tough were:
-
23 "jump" - that almost made me quit - a couple of the jumps seem to need to be pixel perfect
- 31 "running the gauntlet". That was ever so hard - only 1 jump seemed difficult, but there was a great deal of frustration in setting it up, only to get impatient, die and have to start again.
@dredds - On desktop, level 2 is a breeze when you know what you're doing. I'm assuming that the bottom left drop is the issue on mobile. On desktop as I fall I just push right and Harold falls then moves onto the block without dying. If Level #2 is that hard on mobile you are going to really struggle later on.
@phil, I think you're talking about "Don't Fall", and @dredds, you're talking about "Come Up for Air", which is quite tight even on desktop or controller/handheld. I might extend the time it takes for Harold to drown slightly.
@phil I believe you're the first person other than myself to complete the game - nice one! "Jump" is tough, yeah, but I'm not sure I can make it easier without breaking other levels. "Running the Gauntlet" is intentionally difficult, being the final level.
Thanks for the great feedback guys, I'll see where I can make improvements.
hmm the water level is WAY WAY to brutal for me, I keep dying before I get to the end... (I get the first air pocket)
@SandwichBlam @dredds I've uploaded a new version with fixes to "Come Up for Air" that should make it a touch easier.
Let me know how you go, cheers!
Like @phil, I wouldn't have got through several levels without the level title providing a hhint.
I had a lot of trouble with "Jump", eventually getting through it. But I got stuck on "Leap of Faith", and in part I don't think I understood the vertical air column mechanics.
Levels after "Leap of Faith" were challenging but manageable. In general play, I found the platforming very fluid and polished. Please do keep adjusting the levels so it can be completed with some difficulty, but the real challenge is completing it optimally.
@Cowirrie Wow! Thanks for such detailed feedback!
I'm trying to strike a precise balance between fun and frustrating, so your comments are very much appreciated so that I can work out where that balance lies.
With "Leap of Faith", you eventually came to the correct solution though trial-and-error, which is what I intended - this is as much a puzzle game as it is a platformer. But I'll look into ways of improving communicating game mechanics and reducing confusion. Really appreciate your feedback, thanks!
I found that a good clue to solving any particular level is how many lives you are given. If you only have a single life you obviously can't die. But on a level like "Leap of Faith" you have 2 lives, so you will likely need to use 1 dead body to complete the level.
This isn't always true, especially on the bridging levels, but I found it helpful.
Fun game! That last level is brutal, especially with the slightly slippery controls, so I'm happy just completing this one. I have a feeling this game could get to sub-5 minutes if the right speedrunner comes along, though.
Playing to maximise Harolds saved, I got:
Replaying the "Sky Pilot" level, and thinking about my difficulties with air columns I'm wondering - if you're moving into air in any direction, could the force of the air be increased above the effect of just standing in the airflow? So falling into a vertical air column slows you to a halt over the span of a few blocks, but once at rest you go up as slowly as before? You might prefer not to do this, since it would be a physics change that would affect several levels.
If there are any spare tokens, could Harold turn red when he's on fire and nearly toast? The same palette used when he's under water would be fine.
And sorry Harold, but your frantic waving when nearly out of air is one of the cleverest animations I've seen on Pico-8.
@phil Yep, great observation!
@shy Nice run - that's a decent time. Glad you enjoyed it, and sorry about that last level! Not sure about a sub-5 minute run - my PB is 13:48 but I haven't put much time/effort into a speedrun yet.
@Cowirrie I am gobsmacked. I thought the maximum amount of Harolds you could save was around 31. You've blown away my record.
It's really hard changing any of the physics at this stage without breaking other levels as you surmise, but I'll look into fixes to the level design of "Leap of Faith" as I've received a fair bit of feedback on that level.
I'll definitely look at changing Harold's palette when he's nearly toast - this would come in handy on "Right on Time"/"Ride on Time". I'm out of sprite space but I could do it with palette changes - plenty of tokens left.
Thanks again for all of your feedback. After working on this game for so long it's awesome to see people play it, enjoy it, and discover things that I didn't think were possible. Cheers!
Thank you. I found another improvement, so my latest score is below, and a breakdown of Harolds saved per level. And thank you for making burning Harold turn red.
@jellyd0ts
Those are some slick moves, especially the corpse placement in levels like "Firestarter" and "Wind Beneath my Wings".
I've always been over 10 minutes by the time I get to "Running the Gauntlet," and then I have to reset several times on that level before I get through it.
It never occurred to me that I could make the timing in "Blowin' in the Wind" more forgiving by leaving the corpse on the second layer. I've always dropped it on the bottom layer, and then rushed to catch it.
If I may offer one suggestion, there are a few levels where finding a more optimal-Harold solution will shave some time as well. But not many of those.
I've been busy finishing up work before the Xmas break, so sorry for not replying sooner!
@jellyd0ts
Wow, great speedrun!! My best is 12:13 so you're way ahead of me! As far as I'm aware that's the fastest speedrun so far - I haven't seen any evidence otherwise.
I don't think sub-5 is possible, but maybe sub-7?
This is so charming on top of being really fun, with amazing attention to detail :) I even love how the game starts with him peeking out of the window, maybe dreading the day.
Oh yeah, and the audio muffle underwater is ace.
Thanks @Logarhythm, I spent a lot of time & effort on the details, so I really appreciate you noticing them!
Managed to speed run it in 6:07. Times below 6 minutes are definitely possible - I lost time and Harolds in several places.
Sorry, no sound. I'm not used to making screen recordings. I'm using Quicktime on macOS 11.6.1. I installed the application BackgroundMusic, which I'm sure worked when I tested it, but apparently not now.
The headbonk in level 15 "Shield Wall" (around 2:35 in the video) is intentional. This reliably results in a high jump to the exit. It makes this water high jump the easiest one to pull off. I still can't reliably do them in level 7 ("Let me Drown") or level 13 ("Bridge Over Trouble").
@biovoid
I had a lot of trouble with level 23 "Jump" for a while, but can now get through it pretty consistently. But it does feel like you must use "Coyote Time" to get over the wider gaps.
Amazing Cowirrie! Arrow Through Me, Shield Wall, Don't Stop Believing and Ride on Time were especially clever :)
@Logarhythm: Thank you. The route through "Don't Stop Believing" is copied from the run by @jellyd0ts.
While I was learning, it was often the long jumps that would usually make me restart. Now it's mostly those blocks that fade out when you stand on them, and need to jump off at the last minute.
@Logarhythm Congrats on completing it! RIP to those 316 Harolds though! :D
@Cowirrie WOW! You really have set the bar high here.
Fastest time and 35 Harolds saved! Amazing! I bow down to you my friend! Sub-6 is on the cards!
"Jump" was definitely possible without coyote time, but I think it required absolute pixel precision jumps. v1.0 of Harold didn't have coyote time - it was introduced after release when I noticed a lot of people having trouble with that level. Funnily enough, it's one of the harder levels that I have the least difficulty with!
When I have more time I'll rewatch your run and comment in further detail... but for now, well done! AMAZING!
Great game, very polished indeed!
I understand the "hold to reset" feature to prevent accidental resets when still alive. But once I'm dead, I kind of resent having to hold down Z for so long to reset. Maybe that could be instant if you're already dead.
I also found a bug on this level, when I died, it kept auto-respawning me and stacking up dead Harolds.
@biovoid: Congratulations on getting featured as you deserve!
It finally motivated me to record a speedrun for 39 Harolds Saved. As far as anyone here has worked out, that's 100% of all possible Harolds, yes? Anyway, I did it in 6:09. I had to reset in several places, so faster runs remain possible.
For newcomers, please don't watch this video until you've played this marvellous game several times. A lot of the fun is in puzzling out how to save more Harolds.
Compared to my first speedrun, there are some changes to save more Harolds but that are fiddlier and often forced me to reset. I also realised there's a faster route through "Right on Time" at 4:14 that's hilariously simple once you see it.
It seems common to get stuck while figuring out this game, me included for a few hours. If you've got stuck to the point where it's no longer fun, here is a walkthrough video.
This has the worst possible solutions, so that it can help you out of a jam without spoiling any interesting puzzle solutions.
The more I play this, the more I appreciate that it manages to be a difficult platformer without just having instant-death spikes on every possible surface. The floor, the water and fires can all be deadly, but all of their risks can be managed, and that results in some interesting level designs that also look nice. Celeste itself is a good game, but there is a problem when so few platformers experiment with what else they could use as building blocks.
Wow, featured! Thanks to everyone playing and enjoying my game. It makes me genuinely happy.
@beepyeah I considered this, but I preferred to keep the function of the reset button consistent regardless of player state. Appreciate the feedback. Thanks for finding that bug - it happens when a Harold dies outside of water but then falls into water after dying. I'll put out a fix for this soon. Thanks man!
@Cowirrie Once again I am blown away. Yes, 39 is the current maximum saveable Harolds. I honestly don't think 40 is possible. 6:09 is incredible regardless of Harolds saved, but to do this with max saved is amazing. To put this in perspective, I've been working on this game on and off for around 4 years (yes, slow going, but I don't have a lot of free time), and to see you destroying my best playthrough within months is inspirational. Will you make the first sub-6 run? ;)
@Matcha155 I've definitely thought doing this in a more advanced engine, inspired by what the Celeste devs did. Maybe the sequel will come out on Picotron...
This is such a good puzzle platformer, @biovoid. 🤓👍
Easily lost 1/2 hr on this, and loved the challenge!
Caption this one as:
"Yes, I survived ...but at what cost?" 🤣
has caused me an hour of sweat and determination well done!!
did a sub 20
@Liquidream Thanks man! Everyone who hasn't seen it yet, go check out his Dune 2 demake. Amazing work.
@Dark0ne%^ For a first run, that is a very impressive amount of Harolds killed & saved. After release, my best run was around 14 minutes, so very well done!
@biovoid
Thank you for your ongoing work in a game that still surprises. I'm still chasing the sub-6 minute run, and still finding places here and there to shave some time. I see you changed level 4 "I'm on Fire" in the version 1.5. All the ways I've been getting through the levels still work in this version...
@Cowirrie Yeah I've noticed lots of people having trouble with that jump. I knew it probably will affect speed runs slightly (in a positive sense), but it's a really early level and I didn't want new players getting frustrated early on. (That's for later in the game heh heh heh).
The only other change in this version is fixing a bug where you could drown in water after dying from a fall, which could happen quite easily on level 6 - "Fall on Me".
Charming, fun, and downright enjoyable little game, full of delight and personality. Which is something surprising to say to say about a game about killing yourself and exploiting your own bodies.
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