Throw Rock
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux
A stepping puzzle game made in one week for Thinky Puzzle Game Jam 2. Sixteen levels included.
Controls:
- Arrow keys to move
- X to pick up, drop, and throw
- C to wait
- Z to undo
- R to reset
- Escape for game menu (level select, settings, and more)
Download
Install instructions
Mac OS X users: This is an unsigned executable. If Gatekeeper doesn't allow launching it, you can bypass it with this terminal command:
xattr -r -d com.apple.quarantine "Throw Rock.app"
Linux users: The executable might not be double-clickable. Until a better solution is found, launching throwrock from the command line should work.
Comments
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Hi, I had a really good time. I love puzzles with one simple mecanic, I had a lot of surprise... and wait, there are secrets levels ?
Glad you liked it! I do wish I'd found an additional way to clue the secret levels. Seems like figuring out how to get to them is a common sticking point. The one thing I'll say here is that once you find one, getting to the others shouldn't be an issue.
There's some strange bug I'm getting on Windows 10 where input from keyboard/mouse entirely freezes periodically; basically makes the game unplayable. Seems to also pop up the usb driver icon in the system tray when it gets unfrozen for some reason.
I think it has something to do with the repeat delay/interval. My keyboard sometimes double-inputs keys and I think it's messing with that.
Ooh, interesting. I've heard a similar issue reported by another person. Not sure what's causing it yet, but I'll have to keep looking into it!
Thanks Alex, really enjoyed this game. I could see the Sokoban Bunny Tales influence (e.g. level 8 was like the bunny tales ice mazes, and the solve for level 13 required a similar strategy as a few bunny tales puzzles).
The secret bonus levels were a nice touch. I felt completely clueless as to how to reach them and was about to give up, when I read another commenter on here saying they were glad they persisted, so I made some educated guesses and ... eureka!
Thanks for taking the time to make this.
Nice, glad you enjoyed it! I've been thinking about ways I could have clued the secrets better - this was a good learning experience to help me fine tune how much guidance would be the right amount. I have a few ideas for how I could give just a little tiny extra nudge here and there.
Yeah it's a tough balance. If the secrets were more obvious, it wouldn't have been as rewarding to find them, so for me it seemed about right as-is. Of course that exact balance varies from person to person. In this case, I might not have known that the "????" represented extra levels, except for the fact that I was expecting 16 levels and the list stopped after 13.
Nice set of mechanics, they're quite intuitive but also have some unexpected consequences. Which is a great combination! I quite like the sound and visual for walking down the stairs, haha. The game has a retro feel, not just in the graphics and sound but also in the sensibilities of the level design - sprawling, multi-part levels, and some puzzle constraints hidden away by architecture. That was a nice change of pace for me, having played a lot of games from this jam recently.
Nice puzzle game, well worth playing. I finished in 2 sessions, but it would have been 1 if I hadn't been interrupted. The puzzle elements were introduced well and with a reasonable difficulty curve. I never felt board or out of my depth. The second secret level, with it's introduction of two new mechanics was challenging, but with it's limited scope, served well enough for an introduction.
Minor bug report for linux: after setting up my gamepad the screensaver would trigger, as there was no input from the keyboard or mouse.
Yup, the screensaver thing is a known issue that I'm working on. Thanks for the report. Glad you enjoyed the game!
I've played and streamed it, it was nice.
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1531522186 (note: twitch only stores streams for 2 weeks).
PS. I also finished the secret levels but intentionally didn't stream them.
PPS. It took me a while to find out things like how to undo throwing, and how to find the menu.
Nice, thanks for the playthrough! It's always interesting to see different approaches to these levels. You found a way to do the end of level 5 (Fenced) that I didn't expect. Glad you had a good time with it!
What are the changes to the new version? Currently stumped on level 7!
Minor control setting stuff and a few very small level tweaks based on feedback. There's an option now to disable the behavior of starting a throw at the same time as picking up a rock, and a scroll in the intro level to let players know how to get to the settings menu. A lot of people didn't discover right away that there was a menu at all!
Thanks! Now done 13 levels, and mystified about how to access the next three...
EDIT: Just found S9! Tried so many things, but so pleased I finally found it myself. Yay!
Edit 2 : 100% completed. Love the puzzle designs and the sounds, difficulty level just right for me. Very enjoyable.