Ludum Dare 24 – Unnatural Selection

Ludum Dare 24′s theme has been announced, and it’s Evolution. I’ve spent the last hour simply thinking, eating, and playing Tetris, and I’ve finally come up with the idea I’m going to run with.

I kept muttering the phrase “Survival of the Fittest” over and over, trying to come up with something (as it directly pertains to Darwin’s theory of evolution), and finally Googled the phrase to read up on it. After a bit of reading, I then transferred my thoughts to the phrase “Natural Selection”. After just a few minutes of thinking of this new phrase, an idea sparked.

Three random things joined forces in my head, and will be the foundation of this project.

• I’ve had the Hunger Games stuck in the back of my mind as of late, as it’s new on DVD.
• I’ve been thinking I wanted to do a platformer, and the NES game Shatterhand has been on my mind all day.
• Due to reading far too many political articles, and with some help from the Hunger Games, I’ve been thinking of government purposefully taking out powerful figures.

With all of the above combines, I turned the phrase “Natural Selection”, into “Unnatural Selection”, which will be the name of my game. The idea is simple, you’re a man of high skill and power, and for whatever reason, someone wants you dead. Rather than put a bullet in you, they’ve made a game out of your life, and you’ll have to fight for every last minute of it. You’ll be tossed into an ever-changing (dare I say evolving?!) arena, which will increase in difficulty as time progresses. As you survive, you’ll be met with new challenges, and the threat of death will rise by the minute. It’s not a matter of if you will die, but when.

Why It Works

I like this idea for a number of reasons. First, I’ve been working on a platformer framework for awhile now (which I’ll be using, and listing). Second, the game is arcade-style, which means it’s not overly ambitious, and I can just jump right in and get things done. Lastly, art assets will be minimal, and I’m no artists, so that means my chances of a completed project rise yet again.

 What I’ll Be Using

Platform – Flash
Programming - Flash Develop
Graphics – Photoshop
Audio – Bfxr / Audacity / Sonar 6 LE / My Korg X-50 Synth
Frameworks - FlashPunk / My Personal Platformer Boiler-Plate Code
Level Editor - Ogmo Editor 2