There are a ton of game jams happening online at any point during the year. Many of these jams follow a theme and a timeframe, giving developers the challenge of creating a game within a specific jam’s restrictions. I am able to record loads of these games for each and almost every game jam. As I record them all, I pick out games that stand out to me and games I love from each individual jam. This article contains the games I love from the Bitsy Jam: Rat.
The Bitsy Jam is a monthly game jam that challenges developers to create a game using the Bitsy engine. This version of the jam had the theme of ‘rat’. I’ve played through each of the submitted creations in my compilation video series and below are a few of my favorites, in random order.
Rasmus the Rat and the Pink Bowler Hat by Jess Molloy
Rasmus the Rat and the Pink Bowler Hat is a cute little story, that takes only a few minutes to complete. Rasmus has had his bowler hat stolen, and he sets off in pursuit of the theif — having spotted them escaping from the house. Rasmus the Rat and the Pink Bowler Hat is written like a children’s story, riddled with rhymes and cute phrasing that keep you both engaged and interested. It’s up to you to be brave enough to get back your stolen hat!
Girl who eats rats by Errorwave
Girl who eats rats is a strange, captivating, almost eerie story about a girl who is hungry. Everything around her seems to be frozen, but some of the animals and insects are hanging in there. Either way, she has no choice but to eat them. Some of the animals cannot be eaten, as they are too old or have been rotting too long. Others are animals which you do not want to eat, but instead, interact with to learn more of your story.
You’ll end up finding items that are meaningful to you, past memories showcased through frozen creatures, and through these, you will learn more about yourself — though you might find that there aren’t very many answers in Girl who eats rats, instead leaving you wondering what happened to everyone and why exactly this girl is the way she is.
A Rat’s Fate by Azula
According to A Rat’s Fate, rats either end up on the streets or in laboratories used for experiments. You’ve found yourself going from the street to a laboratory, and now need to find the good cheese to please the strange human there. It’s hard to tell the difference between good cheese and bad cheese, but after reading some signs and paying close attention, you can probably figure it out.
The next challenge is finding a way to move through this maze and see new areas of the maze without getting completely stuck. The robots that this scientist has made, to collect your bad and good cheeses, are quite funny and make a good connection with you as a rat — it’s just an interesting little game with a slight bit of challenge.
Dragon Princes – Fiumenze: Street Rat by Sky Bear Games
Dragon Princes – Fiumenze: Street Rat has you playing Ratto, a character who can talk to rats despite being quite humanistic. You have been given a job to do and landed yourself in the Dragon’s prison, where you need to use your ability to speak to rats to find your way out. There are lots of little side quests in this game, from prisoners that want some help to rats that will only tell you secrets if you find cheese for them.
Other rats contain riddles or just help you because they like you. Either way, you need to complete your job and find the princess, without being caught by any of the many guards within this prison. The story in Dragon Princess – Fiumenze is well written and it’s an interesting world to play around in.
Level 1 Fighter by David Mowatt
It’s your first day as a Level 1 Fighter, and you seek out a simple quest to start off your life as a hero, however, you end up with more than you thought you’d have. After fulfilling the prophecy of the rats and finding your way into the rat’s kingdom, you are given a mission much bigger than you thought you’d have.
Though short, the writing in Level 1 Fighter is very good, with many rats confused and curious as to what you are doing, and with yourself being an inexperienced but very down to Earth hero who has no idea how they have lucked into this strange world. It’s up to you to see if you want to take on this much bigger quest — you are a Level 1 Fighter, after all.
Interested in reading about more game jam highlights? Why not check out our archive?
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