Day 104 - the race
Short and Free, Sports, No Music ·
Skeeter’s Take:
the race was an entry into the “Bitsy Jam: #82 - intentionally bad” game jam. In the race, the player takes on the role of the fastest racer in the world. The player must defend their championship in today’s race. The good news is, the player is the fastest racer in the world and cannot lose! Legitimately, I tried several ways to lose. I ran backwards but I could only take a few steps back. I tried waiting for the other racers, but they only move when the other players move. I think this is where the “intentionally bad” part of the game comes in since it technically isn’t a “game” if there’s no losing, but my dude - this game is better than a lot of games we play. Sure, it’s simple, but it serves its purpose and joke and gets the hell out of the way. The joke being since you are the fastest racer, you cannot lose - you are the fastest. Very cool.
However, while we were playing this review the dev updated their description:
Just like that, I ran back to the run, refreshed my page and tried to find a second ending.
And I could not. I think this is another joke the dev pulled on us as he probably saw his player number jump (probably just a happy accident), but hey, he got me to play and look for a second ending.
If you happen to find a second ending, you can email me and tell me how wrong I am at iamsamcain@gmail.com!
Recommend: Eh - I’m going to ride the fence on this one. It does what it’s supposed to do, but it doesn’t stand out enough for me to hit it with the recommend!
Replay Percentage Chance: 50% if the second ending exists, I will need to find it
Time Played: 10 minutes
Sam’s Take:
Yea for real, this game submitted for the intentionally bad game jam kind of rocks. I love this line after you win a race that you literally can not lose:
It’s honestly the best kind of submission for an intentionally bad game jam. It’s bad on purpose to make a cute little statement about the necessity of challenge to derive joy out of victory. I’m not saying this is the deepest game I’ve ever played, but I’m sitting here thinking about games that don’t require any challenge to beat (visual novels and the like) and thinking about what makes them enjoyable, and how that is separate from a more traditional game. I’m thinking about how Pathologic strips power away from the player to explore whatever the opposite of a power fantasy is. In a way, both these games go from opposite sides to clown on the gamer’s desperate need for a power fantasy.
It’s simple and effective. A free 15 second game jam game that makes me have any thoughts or emotions is praise-worthy in my book.
Recommend: Yea, the time investment to enjoyment ratio is generally positive
Replay Percentage Chance: 1%
Time Played: 15 Seconds
SAM EDIT: I ALSO CAN NOT FIND THE SECOND ENDING WTF DOES IT MEAN?!?!!?
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