“ant game” by E.E-Wick.
“The queen ant has ordered her subordinates to collect [five] pieces of food for the day, some lives will surely be lost in the effort. Traverse a labyrinthian grassland, fight off and harvest treacherous creatures. [It is] a tough life being an ant.”
In a very successful way, “ant game” reproduces the look and feel of the original games created by the Sokpop Collective. Not only the ant characters bouncing around with their long limbs and antennae are responsible for this impression, but also the very intuitive control scheme. We control a commander directly using the “W”, “A”, “S” and “D” keys and can direct two different commands to our troops by mouse clicks. With the left mouse button we send a single unit to an object or an enemy, while with the right mouse button we yell out a loud “HEY!” to bring all the ants in the screaming direction back to us.
With this simple basic concept, we move through a vegetated area that is bursting with predators. Frogs, spiders and beetles want to eat our group as a small afternoon snack. However, this proves to be a stupid idea, as it underestimates the strength and tactical understanding of the omnivores. With their combined effort and armaments such as small branches, pebbles or pincers torn off by beetles, they bravely face any enemy on command. Should they actually win in the end, the hunted prey can be carried back to the ant hill, where it serves as a food source for the offspring.
Nevertheless, the queen has clearly issued the order that she needs five fruits, and it is precisely these that must be found in order to emerge victorious from the “ant game” – almost, anyway. With a dash of humor, the little plot twist at the end completes this splendid jam submission. Good luck with your foraging! [PLAY]
