Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 2.6
with one, two, three, or four colors. Note how the difference
between two and three colors adds more possibilities than the difference between three and four
colors..
Possibilities in
Tombe d
Did you ever do that exercise where you try to color in a map of a bunch of different regions
without having any regions of the same color touch, using as few colors as possible? Four, it
turns out, is the maximum amount that we would need. (This is known as “four-color theorem.”)
But if you look at any completed map—for example, a map of the United States, using four
colors—you'll notice the fourth color appears infrequently, only in very hairy combinatorial
situations. A fourth color in this game would be underused. It would mostly make the visual
pattern of
the game more complex and potentially confusing, forcing the player to spread her
understanding of the game rules that much thinner.
To mb ed
was made for a two-day game design competition—Ludum Dare 14—so I released
its source along with the finished game. (It was made in Game Maker 8.) Using that source, my
friend Leon Arnott created a spin-off/sequel called
Tombed II: Twombed Off
. In his sequel, he
adds only a single new diggable object to the four that are already there: a red “bomb” that,
when struck with Jane's shovel, destroys every piece touching it, regardless of its color, even if
it's an undiggable metal block.
This is a good addition because it adds a lot to the game. It gives the player the ability to
destroy metal blocks, but only when given the opportunity. And it has a relationship with the
other blocks: because it destroys everything connected to it, sometimes the player wants to dig
through other blocks to
sever
connections with a bomb block. This is strengthened by another
new rule Leon added: now the bottom of the screen is also lined with spikes, so the player
wants to pace her descent carefully. Bomb blocks potentially wipe out a lot of terrain at once,
which sometimes means Jane falls into the spikes before ground appears to catch her (see
F i g u r e 2 . 7 ) .
