Feathered Escape
Soar to freedom in Feathered Escape, a platformer where you, as a trapped bird, navigate challenging environments, overcoming obstacles and adversaries to reclaim the open skies.
Controls
- ⬅️ and ➡️ to move left or right.
- ⬆️ to execute a wall or ceiling run.
- ⬇️ to descend without sliding on a platform.
- [X] or [Z] to jump.
Scores
- A+: Complete in 4 or fewer minutes, collecting all the fruits, and with 0 deaths.
- A: Complete in 5 or fewer minutes, collecting all the fruits.
- B: Complete in 15 or fewer minutes.
- C: Complete in 20 or fewer minutes.
- D: Complete in 30 or fewer minutes.
- F: Complete in more than 30 minutes.
Share your score here or on speedrun.com
- A+ Score: https://www.speedrun.com/Feathered_Escape?h=100&x=xk9z95g2
- Any%: https://www.speedrun.com/Feathered_Escape?h=any&x=rkloz58k
- 100%: https://www.speedrun.com/Feathered_Escape?h=100&x=z27z95ok
Best score so far by @skarrmann (spoiler alert)
Moves
If you'd rather tackle the moves on your own, feel free to skip this section.
Versions
This is super polished and unique, I love how you took the wall-jumping of the chicken from BAS and turned it into a fully fledged platformer.
I also like how even though you only have one jump you can perform it in mid air if you walk off a platform first.
I did pretty badly and skipped most of the fruits so I ended up with 218 deaths, 7 fruits, and a time of 22:16.
This is unreasonably cool. ❤️
Glad it features the BAS bird and tileset, because that game was too difficult, but I loved the art. Seriously man, you have to stop.🤯
@Munchkin Thanks for the positive feedback! Glad you enjoyed the game. Collecting the oranges on the first play isn't expected, but it's all part of the challenge. Happy gaming! 🍊🎮
The tutorial was very helpful. Smooth action and difficult but forgiving stages are a lot of fun.
Excellent job!
The responsive controls and level design are reminiscent of both Dustforce and Super Meat Boy.
I appreciate how you added these square blocks in the level layout. They work great as visual indicators for lining up jumps:
The movement mechanics are well explained in the tutorial. With a good understanding of movement and its execution, players can dash through levels, and it's fun to discover risky shortcuts.
My score, first playthrough:
This is a great platform game. I really enjoy pulling off a risky move to get that bonus fruit.
I wish it had a way to select a level to play again.
@dredds Glad you're liking the game! I thought about adding a level selector for training, but hit token limits. Thanks for playing! 🍊🎮
Finally got to the end!
I had to go for all of the berries.
I have to say, although I found some sections rather nondescript, the gameplay is something of a work of genius. You are one talented dev. Even though I found BAS hard, both BAS's are very much full-fledged games ( @Munchkin ;). these games have sustenance. The platformer sections are puzzled, with treasure and secret mechanics. And despite being very hard, it somehow still felt manageable. There was enough room to free-style, and play how you want. altogether, it made for a very fun game.
I'm going to play it again! I'm amazed it was programmed in so short a fashion after BAS.
Steven()#6 Glad you enjoyed the game and tackled all those oranges. Your kind words mean a ton. Have a blast on your next playthrough! 🎮😊
Ingenious level design that makes use of every move. I don't think I'm getting the remaining oranges, but respect to those who do. And if this is the protagonist of Birds and Saws, thank you for giving it the chance to finally escape for good. Even if it sustained a few more injuries on the way out...
very well done (and impossible for me to finish in one go unless you add save/restart) - nice to see the chicken universe unfolds.
Congrats on the release! Such a well-polished platformer.
Can't wait to see where your next project leads you!
@SmartAlloc Thanks a bunch! I'm even more excited about your release! 😄
Have a few ideas for my next project! 🚀
Good game, many different movements, but not too many, the game is very polished and I love the saws. I could not finish all, but i am looking forward to do so. To me some rooms are too tight, I would love to see bigger rooms where you can fully see the chickens movements, because there are so many game mechanics which would be best assisted by alot of screenspace. But as I said I havent finished the game yet. Can I maybe try making a mod/more rooms/spinoff of the game? As freds72 said, i love seeing the chicken universe expand. Well done :)
Some of the oranges were very tricky to get, and others I accidentally went into the door before I could get them!
Very fun! That last orange was in a pretty dastardly place to collect and probably accounted for, like, an extra 20 or so deaths. I initially played through this game for a bit before moving on to do something else, so this is technically my second time playing, but my first full playthrough. I liked the difficulty curve-- the final stage was a bit of a spike in difficulty, but other than that, it felt pretty smooth, if a little slow to ramp up. Very reminiscent of Super Meat Boy.
Hey @Rascal, fantastic speedrun! It's awesome to see you diving into my game for your first speedrun. I'm thrilled that you're enjoying the experience. Keep pushing those boundaries and setting new records! If you have any feedback or thoughts, I'd love to hear them. Happy gaming! 🎮😊
This is a really well designed platformer! The movement mechanics were great and explained nicely in the tutorial and the levels were challenging but never too difficult! Definitely one of my new favorites on PICO-8 B)
Hey, do you think you could put this on speedrun.com? It could expose more people to this game, and people could share tips and tricks on how to go faster.
And I think that would be Cool.
@BobbyMan, I'm not familiar with speedrun.com, but I appreciate the recommendation. I'll look into it and make an effort to submit the game there. Thanks for the suggestion!
assuming by upward scroll level design, seems you decided to toture player, i see hatred inside of your state of mind i mean just what the hell is this stage?
@OWD5238 The level design is intentionally challenging, but I appreciate your feedback. Thank you for trying the game!
Great game on PICO-8! Loved the challenging yet rewarding levels. Here's my first clear photo. Excited for more!
I created an account just to come here to comment. bas was already one of my favorite games, but this one... this is a masterpiece. I like it more than Celeste. Somehow I missed one item along the way and ended with 28/29. Anyway, it would be nice to have a save slot after quit/reset the cart, or to unlock a "go to level X" after you've beaten it. Amazing, trully incredible game. Thank you <3
@bsm Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm thrilled that you enjoyed the game. Happy gaming! 😊🎮
@hnsol Hey! Thanks a bunch! Glad you like the game and congrats on the first successful run. Playing it on RGB30 is a whole other level of fun! 👾✨
@yokozuna Thank you for creating the speedrun.com leaderboard! It might be worth creating two categories: 100% for all oranges, and Any% for any completion.
Here is my 100% speedrun attempt:
I borrowed some of the strategies from your video. No deaths felt nice, but there is room for improvement!
@skarrmann Will create the 100% board. WOW, this is the most amazing score I've seen (A+). Feels good playing it like this, isn't it?
It will be nice if you can upload it to speedrun.com.
Thanks for sharing!
Your game does feel good play quickly! The first playthrough was quite challenging, so it felt like getting revenge for my past clumsy self.
It took me several hours of practice to get that deathless run, so it's not easy. I found the most important key to improvement is learning the level order. Being ready for the upcoming level always saves time, and some level strategies require immediate input.
You designed a great speedgame! It's a welcoming length, obstacle timing is always consistent, and there are plenty of visual cues available for setting up jumps. I recommend more people try running Feathered Escape if they are looking for more enjoyment after completing it.
Hi @yokozuna,
First things first, the game is a blast and you sir most definitely should continue making fun projects like this.
I have a small issue with the 'Introduced the "play level" option.' update.. once i open it, i can't do anything - move or select or even go back.. this is on Miyoo Mini+ native Pico-8 (no emulation or anything). I can provide more info if needed.
@evala Hey, I've got the Miyoo Mini and I'm going to test it out. I'll work on fixing it promptly and upload an update.
What Pico-8 version do you use on your Miyoo Mini?
Thanks for bringing it to my attention!
@skarrmann FYI, I've added completion time to display milliseconds on the select level screen. I think it will be useful in finding faster ways to complete certain levels.
@yokozuna Nice! Here was my time with milliseconds: 2:51.899
I just noticed you can hold jump before the stage loads, and you will immediately jump when it loads! This is useful for improving some level times. And the new level select menu makes it much nicer to practice strategies.
You are very close to having the best time! I might try improving this once you or anyone else takes the record.
Amazing! Reminds me a LOT of the original Meat Boy with all of the saws, lava, and floaty jump. Also reminds me of full Celeste, because of all of the special moves and mobility. Amazing work!!!
@Man-o-valor Thank you so much! Your comparison to Meat Boy and Celeste is incredibly flattering. I'm happy you enjoyed the game!
You're right @yokozuna - being able to see the single stage times is really helpful for finding faster strategies. You made a great choice with adding this feature!
My favorite time save so far is on Level 24. I can get as low as 3.766 seconds:
Level 24 speed strategy:
- Hold jump as the stage starts. While lined up with the square block, press left to cling onto the wall.
- Release all directions and hold jump. While in the air, tap left 2-3 times to slow your momentum so you don't hit the lava, and so you cling onto the small ledge wall.
- Release all directions and hold jump. Don't press any directions until collect the orange and are pressing up against the floating square block!
- Press up+right to do a wall run up the square block. Hold right until you are standing on the next block.
- Wait for the lava to fall, and then hold jump + up + right to do a ceiling run to the exit.
Step 2 is the scary part, but otherwise the execution is straightforward. It would be so cool to execute these fast strategies in a full game run.
@skarrmann Thanks! It's awesome to hear that you're finding the single stage times helpful. And wow, 3.766 seconds on Level 24 is impressive! Keep up the great work! 🚀
I improved my best time, now 2:25.516:
There are quite a few new level optimizations in this run. I'm also using a new technique, extended wall run:
While in the middle of a wall run, press up+away from the wall, and then up+towards the wall to reset the wall run. This gives you some extra speed in a handful of tight climbing spots.
@yokozuna Are you okay with this movement technique? It might not be intended, so I would understand if it's something you would want to patch out. But I think it adds a fun element to the speedrun, and it doesn't trivialize any of the levels!
This game is truly turning into a little obsession, great work!
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