Punicorn Escape by Mind Juice Media

[MindJuice]

Hi everyone...soooo...I'm making a game with the working title of "Punicorn Escape".

You are a tiny unicorn that has escaped from a top-secret government facility. On an unrelated note, this is the same facility that safeguards the world from leprechauns, gremlins, and dragons, and also has a massive repository for all your missing socks.

To make your escape you must keep moving or the government retrieval bot will catch you and return you to captivity.

Use your magical horn to jump/fly your way through the various obstacles like spider webs and escape to freedom!

Save the unicorn!

http://www.mindjuice.net/punicorn/punicorn1.png

Gameplay is basically a side-scroller a bit like Canabalt, and your score is based on how far you get before you are captured.

[OTrain13]

I love it! :D

[Vester]

Lol. Sounds like a very fun idea! A unicorn trying to escape a top secret government facility? That's hilarious!

[cjsbug]

I LOL'ed at "Punicorn." It just sounds funny. ;)

[MasterChief3624]

Awwwwww. That is soooo cute. :)

[MindJuice]

So, I have a dynamically generated world running now.

The ground height sections are randomly generated, and the plants in the background are also randomly generated. The grass is alternating between two textures.

These are arranged into 3 levels of parallax scrolling for the ground, grass and plants. I'll probably add a far background as well of mountains and/or clouds or something like that.

Frame rate is pretty low right now for some reason, so I'll have to look into that sometime in the next few hours.

Switching to work on the unicorn now, including jumping and collision detection.

I think he needs a name. Any suggestions?

[jak56]

try this (http://games.adultswim.com/robot-unicorn-attack-twitchy-online-game.html) for inspiration ;)

[MindJuice]

Here are a couple of incredibly exciting screenshots!

http://www.mindjuice.net/punicorn/punicorn2.png

http://www.mindjuice.net/punicorn/punicorn3.png

[MasterChief3624]

Switching to work on the unicorn now, including jumping and collision detection.

I think he needs a name. Any suggestions?
I thought that was his name: Punicorn.

How about Pecan. Pecan the Punicorn. :D

[sam the lion]

try this (http://games.adultswim.com/robot-unicorn-attack-twitchy-online-game.html) for inspiration ;)

amazing!
hey, I want that one on the iPhone!!!

[MindJuice]

amazing!
hey, I want that one on the iPhone!!!
Yeah, me too!

So funny...I was thinking of adding a rainbow trail when you jump, and having a dash button to smash through enemies, but I've never seen that game before!

360 iDev parties for the past 3 nights + Conferences Tuesday All Day+ Game Jam All Night + Conferences All Day Wednesday + Flying Back Home Wednesday = One VERY Tired Developer!

[jak56]

amazing!
hey, I want that one on the iPhone!!!
isn't the music just hilarious?

[MindJuice]

My brain is getting scrambled now. Basic 2D vector math is becoming hard!

No time for sleep though!

[LordGek]

That has to suck when you think your doing something COMPLETELY original only to find at least a part of it was already done. I'm sure you can make your take on an endlessly running unicorn unique enough there, Ken, but, grrr! :(

[MindJuice]

That has to suck when you think your doing something COMPLETELY original only to find at least a part of it was already done. I'm sure you can make your take on an endlessly running unicorn unique enough there, Ken, but, grrr! :(
I wasn't looking to make something totally original. This was more about getting familiar with Cocos2D for me since I am using it for the game I just started.

Although I didn't expect to see something quite that close to my idea!

[sammysin]

Anything with the word punicorn in it has to be an epic win.

[MindJuice]

What a night, and not in a good way!

I started off doing my own parallax scrolling code and had it about 75% done, when learned about CCParallaxNode to handle parallax scrolling basically for free.

Then about an hour or so later I started working on the collision detection for Puny the unicorn and I realized that with the way the Cocos CCParallaxNode works, there doesn't seem to be a way to get access to the current positions of the nodes as they scroll.

Because of this, I threw all that work away and switched back to my original plan of doing it all myself. Sadly I had deleted my previous code and had to rewrite it!

After that was working it was pretty late and my brain was getting to be mush, and I had some trouble getting the collision detection working properly.

The basic run-and-jump game play basically working now. The longer you tap and hold, the higher he jumps (to a maximum). He properly lands on the different levels of ground platforms, and falls down when running off the end, etc.

I also detect the game over/lose a life condition and print out a message to the debug console, but I don't do anything else about it yet in the game.

I think that's about it for it now. I'll reevaluate once I get some sleep and get back home from the 360|iDev conference.

Here is the screenshot of the version from this morning:

http://www.mindjuice.net/punicorn/punicorn4.png

(Yeah, I know the unicorn color is not good!)

[egarayblas]

With no sleep and just a few hours of dev time, its actually looking great Ken! Punicorn = FTW! :)

[MasterChief3624]

This is probably a really stupid question, but will you be submitting this to the App Store?

[MindJuice]

Heh...um...certainly not in this current form. I'm in the middle of another project right now, so don't look for anything soon.

This game is really only a very rough prototype.

[RagManX]

Hoping you'll clean it up and submit it some day, then. I want a goofy unicorn game, and it seems unlikely I'll get that Adult Swim version. Already have Charmed and Flight Deck. Will be getting Duels when it's out. Already willing to buy Punicorn if you decide to ever release it.

[MindJuice]

Hoping you'll clean it up and submit it some day, then. I want a goofy unicorn game, and it seems unlikely I'll get that Adult Swim version. Already have Charmed and Flight Deck. Will be getting Duels when it's out. Already willing to buy Punicorn if you decide to ever release it.

Now you are what I would call a true fan! Thanks for your support!

I am considering finishing it if I can find an artist to work on it! Right now my main artist has no spare time.

The look and feel would totally change though. Only the running unicorn concept would likely remain.

[MindJuice]

Hoping you'll clean it up and submit it some day, then. I want a goofy unicorn game, and it seems unlikely I'll get that Adult Swim version. Already have Charmed and Flight Deck. Will be getting Duels when it's out. Already willing to buy Punicorn if you decide to ever release it.

Looks like you will be getting Robot Unicorn Attack on the iPhone very soon.

I had considered finishing off Punicorn in some way, but the concept is so similar to Robot Unicorn Attack that I am not sure whether to bother now.

My planned art style is totally different, but the game play would be very similar.

Interested in getting some feedback from the community on this.

On the one hand, there are lots of games in a given genre like line drawing games. That doesn't mean a new game doesn't have something new to add.

On the other hand, I don't want to appear like a copycat. I thought of the concept for Punicorn before I ever saw Robot Unicorn Attack, but the general public won't necessarily see it that way.

[sam the lion]

Looks like you will be getting Robot Unicorn Attack on the iPhone very soon.

I had considered finishing off Punicorn in some way, but the concept is so similar to Robot Unicorn Attack that I am not sure whether to bother now.

My planned art style is totally different, but the game play would be very similar.

Interested in getting some feedback from the community on this.

On the one hand, there are lots of games in a given genre like line drawing games. That doesn't mean a new game doesn't have something new to add.

On the other hand, I don't want to appear like a copycat. I thought of the concept for Punicorn before I ever saw Robot Unicorn Attack, but the general public won't necessarily see it that way.

maybe you can work a bit on it.
things like change the unicorn with some other character (though the different art style should be enough) and add some unique features that are not in other games.
There's already a number of games with similar mechanics (canabalt, pig rush, the dragon one by muteki, chop chop runner and so on) so I don't see why you shouldn't add yours to the list.

[MindJuice]

maybe you can work a bit on it.
things like change the unicorn with some other character (though the different art style should be enough) and add some unique features that are not in other games.
There's already a number of games with similar mechanics (canabalt, pig rush, the dragon one by muteki, chop chop runner and so on) so I don't see why you shouldn't add yours to the list.
Hi Sam,

Thanks, we've decided to go ahead with it. We have some additional enhancements & differences planned, and I am in the middle of negotiating a deal with an amazing fantasy style artist. Fingers crossed!

Stay tuned for more details over the coming weeks!

[zbob]

the trick is to release this before robot unicorn attack.

[MindJuice]

the trick is to release this before robot unicorn attack.
Unfortunately, RUA is just about ready to be released, so that is not going to happen.

I have to plan for a "Doodle Jump" type of scenario. They weren't the first game with that game play, but they are definitely the most successful!

Also, it looks like the deal with the artist is a go, so I'm getting excited to see what the art will look like!

This is not our main project right now though, and I would definitely prefer to deliver a totally awesome game than a quick one just to beat RUA, so don't expect to see it for a few months.

I'll start a thread in the upcoming games section once we have something to show.

[jak56]

I have to plan for a "Doodle Jump" type of scenario. They weren't the first game with that game play, but they are definitely the most successful
once can wish, but the forbodeing shadow of reality will always remain...
robot unicorn attack has over twenty million plays.

[Rblacula]

This looks AWESOME!!!

[MindJuice]

Just a quick update on the direction we're taking this.

The game is now set at night with a starry night sky and a glowing moon. Mountains & clouds scroll past in the background, and a lightly rippled ocean lies below, reflecting the moonlight.

I've got an awesome artist working on the in-game assets right now and I will post an image soon to give you an idea of what is coming.

I already have the game play pretty much laid out including several major differentiating factors from a certain other unicorn game, but please let me know if you have any ideas that you would like to see included.

I'll start a thread in the upcoming games section for this soon too.

Thanks!

[pluto6]

Just a quick update on the direction we're taking this.

The game is now set at night with a starry night sky and a glowing moon. Mountains & clouds scroll past in the background, and a lightly rippled ocean lies below, reflecting the moonlight.

I've got an awesome artist working on the in-game assets right now and I will post an image soon to give you an idea of what is coming.

I already have the game play pretty much laid out including several major differentiating factors from a certain other unicorn game, but please let me know if you have any ideas that you would like to see included.

I'll start a thread in the upcoming games section for this soon too.

Thanks!

Ken -

Sounds great. You are whetting my appetite....

Namewise - seeing this thread on a pretty frequently basis when I am looking in here - Punicorn Escape has actually grown on me a lot.. I have no idea if it has the mass appeal, but I think it is a fun name, and nice and descriptive..

[MindJuice]

Ken -

Sounds great. You are whetting my appetite....

Namewise - seeing this thread on a pretty frequently basis when I am looking in here - Punicorn Escape has actually grown on me a lot.. I have no idea if it has the mass appeal, but I think it is a fun name, and nice and descriptive..

I suspect that the name probably will change to something, as you suggest, with more mass appeal.

I will probably run a TA contest to help pick a name for it sometime.

I will try to get the first "appetite whetting" image out this week.

[MindJuice]

Hi Game Jam fans!

As promised, here is an iPhone mockup using actual art from the artist:

http://www.mindjuice.net/images/UnicornMockupiPhone.png

And here is an iPad mockup:

http://www.mindjuice.net/images/UnicornMockupiPad.png

Even though I have not revealed much detail on the differentiating factors yet, feel free to offer some feedback on what you see.

Of course things can and will change between now and the eventual release.

On that note, the release of this will be a ways off unless I can find another developer to help out, since this is not my main project right now.

Thanks!


Ken

[Rblacula]

How bout Dashicorn or Unifun or something like that? Punicorn sounds like Puny Unicorn which sounds kinda weird...

[Rblacula]

Also, how about powerups to make you go faster and 1 to make the board go slower but you still go the same speed so it's easier?

[MindJuice]

Also, how about powerups to make you go faster and 1 to make the board go slower but you still go the same speed so it's easier?

There are currently two powerups planned. Details to come later.

If I understand you correctly, you can't really make just the board move slower or the unicorn would run off the right side of the screen, plus it would actually get harder because you couldn't see very far in front of you. :)

I am interested in any other possible powerups and differentiation ideas anyone might have.

Thanks,


Ken

[MindJuice]

How bout Dashicorn or Unifun or something like that? Punicorn sounds like Puny Unicorn which sounds kinda weird...
Puny Unicorn was exactly where Punicorn came from. The Game Jam's theme was "Tiny".

I think that Punicorn may not have mass appeal though. The game is less silly now and more mystic & epic, so Punicorn doesn't work as well for this style I think.

[Rblacula]

Tinycorn would sound better! Maybe even Teeniecorn! By the board slower, I mean it appears to slow down but u still end up in same speed (time wise for end of game speed) so it basically gives u more time to react!

[MindJuice]

Tinycorn would sound better! Maybe even Teeniecorn! By the board slower, I mean it appears to slow down but u still end up in same speed (time wise for end of game speed) so it basically gives u more time to react!

Got it now. So basically it's a "slow time" powerup.

[pluto6]

Ken,

Those screen shots are amazing. I don't know if you are plaaning day levels, mostly asking regarding possible power ups or names. I am loving the fluorescent touches.

How about Unicorn Marathon for a name?

[MindJuice]

Ken,

Those screen shots are amazing. I don't know if you are plaaning day levels, mostly asking regarding possible power ups or names. I am loving the fluorescent touches.

How about Unicorn Marathon for a name?

The game's overall vibe, art and music are all oriented around a night theme, so a daytime level is not in the current plans.

There will be "levels" though in that there will be some preset courses for you to compete on for the best times and scores.

Unicorn Marathon is in my current list of possibilities. Later this week I will create an upcoming games thread including a name poll.

Thanks for the feedback! Keep it coming!

[MidianGTX]

I'm assuming this is what you want the water ripple effects for? I hope you work something out 'cause those mock ups combined with that effect would look incredible.

[MindJuice]

I'm assuming this is what you want the water ripple effects for? I hope you work something out 'cause those mock ups combined with that effect would look incredible.

You are correct! I found that Cocos2D has some effects like CCWaves that could approximate this, but I am hoping to find something smoother. I can prerender the night sky reflection with Sqirlz, but the clouds scroll by randomly, so it would be harder to prerender those.

I would have to prerender them and then blend them in or something.

It would be much better to just render the sky and then flip it, darken it and apply a wave effect dynamically.

[Alex Graal]

I hope this comes out. It is extremly cool.

[Ares]

Wow, very interesting to see a complete metamorphosis of the game's art style. The new style is very attractive, but is there any way to keep some of the humor of the original "Punicorn"?

[MindJuice]

Wow, very interesting to see a complete metamorphosis of the game's art style. The new style is very attractive, but is there any way to keep some of the humor of the original "Punicorn"?

I take your point.

I would love to add different unicorns and different worlds to run & jump in, maybe different music, but honestly, getting high quality art created costs quite a bit.

If we can all work together to help make this successful, then I will definitely be adding to it with updates! :)

I plan to post regular development updates to a new thread in the upcoming games section on TA, probably starting in about 2 weeks.

[Alex Graal]

I take your point.

I would love to add different unicorns and different worlds to run & jump in, maybe different music, but honestly, getting high quality art created costs quite a bit.

If we can all work together to help make this successful, then I will definitely be adding to it with updates! :)

I plan to post regular development updates to a new thread in the upcoming games section on TA, probably starting in about 2 weeks.
Awesome. Can't wait :)

[gwFCCtennis]

Can you have a feature to draw your own unicorn, id be awesome to draw crappy looking unicorns against a really good background, and then we could also have good drawn ones to.

[MindJuice]

Can you have a feature to draw your own unicorn, id be awesome to draw crappy looking unicorns against a really good background, and then we could also have good drawn ones to.

Interesting idea. The only thing is that there are about 50 frames of animation required for the unicorn's various actions. I am not sure if anyone has the patience to draw that many new frames!

I do plan to make it easy to add new unicorn styles from my side as the developer. I will investigate how much extra work it would be to have community-based animations.

Thanks for the idea!

[Alex Graal]

Interesting idea. The only thing is that there are about 50 frames of animation required for the unicorn's various actions. I am not sure if anyone has the patience to draw that many new frames!

I do plan to make it easy to add new unicorn styles from my side as the developer. I will investigate how much extra work it would be to have community-based animations.

Thanks for the idea!
I'm piggy backing off of Tennis's idea here. What if you can COLOR the unicorn? Something like that. Just the body itself or maybe legs too..

[MindJuice]

I'm piggy backing off of Tennis's idea here. What if you can COLOR the unicorn? Something like that. Just the body itself or maybe legs too..

Do you mean just changing the overall color of the body and legs, or actually drawing on the unicorn?

[gwFCCtennis]

Do you mean just changing the overall color of the body and legs, or actually drawing on the unicorn?

I think he means is having a bunch of different "characters" to pick from, each a different color, like one is blue, one is red, and so on.

[Alex Graal]

Do you mean just changing the overall color of the body and legs, or actually drawing on the unicorn?
Actually, what tennis said could be part of it, but I meant something like...well in Graal Online you have a little scroll thing...

Ugh, hard to explain. Think of it this way. You are a person and you have a shirt and long pants on. In the options you can change the color of:

The belt
The collar
The shirt
The sleeves
The shoes


How about something like that? Except for a unicorn...

The body
The neck
The legs
The feet
The head


I don't know if it'll work with this new serious style of the game (you can play around with it :)) but... I think it would be perfect for the old style of the game. It MIGHT work with this new style, I'm not sure.

[MidianGTX]

Sounds like you just wanna turn every game into an RPG. I say leave it as it is.

[MindJuice]

So after discussing this a bit and considering the amount of work, we think for the integrity of the game we will just release our own unicorn animations.

I already have the first one planned, but that will come as an update once the main game is released.

Thanks everyone for the ideas.

[Alex Graal]

So after discussing this a bit and considering the amount of work, we think for the integrity of the game we will just release our own unicorn animations.

I already have the first one planned, but that will come as an update once the main game is released.

Thanks everyone for the ideas.
Now that I think of it, I guess it wouldn't work much, but maybe different characters...? Possibly with different attributes? Like jumping higher for example?

[BrianBSHS]

How about you start off as the Unicorn and your objective is to draw the path the unicorn runs on, and there are things in the way like obsticals that if the unicorn touches it, you lose. It changes the gameplay while still letting you keep your artwork; think of it as a vertical doodle jump.

[MindJuice]

How about you start off as the Unicorn and your objective is to draw the path the unicorn runs on, and there are things in the way like obsticals that if the unicorn touches it, you lose. It changes the gameplay while still letting you keep your artwork; think of it as a vertical doodle jump.

Thanks for the idea Brian. The basic gameplay for this game is already set, but I'll add your notes to my game idea database for future reference.

[RttaM]

Any chance we could get a preview of Gameplay? :D

[MindJuice]

Any chance we could get a preview of Gameplay? :D
As soon as there is something to show I'll be happy to get you a video, but there isn't anything to see yet. :)

[MidianGTX]

Is the mockup artwork the one you'll actually be using then?

[MindJuice]

Is the mockup artwork the one you'll actually be using then?

The art has been been somewhat updated since the original mockups, but more or less what you see is what you'll get. There will be special effects added programatically that are not shown in the mockups though.

The GUI art is mostly done now too. Just finalizing things like the game name and icon now.

Coding on this is further behind as I've been working on Duels of the Runemasters.

[MindJuice]

Is the mockup artwork the one you'll actually be using then?
Just to be clear, I meant the art in these mockups (http://forums.toucharcade.com/showpost.php?p=1178067&postcount=33), not the original Game Jam art. :)

[RttaM]

I like the art so much it's my new wallpaper! :p

http://grab.by/63s1

[MindJuice]

I like the art so much it's my new wallpaper!
That's awesome! I will try to get some official wallpapers out in the next few weeks!

[RttaM]

That's awesome! I will try to get some official wallpapers out in the next few weeks!

Awesome! Can't wait. :3

[MidianGTX]

Just to be clear, I meant the art in these mockups (http://forums.toucharcade.com/showpost.php?p=1178067&postcount=33), not the original Game Jam art. :)

Yeah, that's the one I was hoping for :)

[lord-sam]

Hey, I love the new artwork! It's so interesting to see it go from the day time with flowers to a fantasy night time scene. That's by far the nicest 2D artwork I've seen on the iPhone. It really will pay off employing an artist!

A cool feature for updates would be a collaboration with Doodle Jump, so if you press and hold, the unicorn will jump so high he lands on the clouds and has to go high as possible!

Can't wait for a release

[Epox]

Meee to.

[Amalah]

I want this game so much... love unicorns! o.o

[MindJuice]

I want this game so much... love unicorns! o.o

http://www.mindjuice.net/images/unicorn_rush_ad_265x150.png (http://www.unicornrush.com)

Be sure to take a look at the teaser page and website for Unicorn Rush: http://www.UnicornRush.com (http://www.unicornrush.com/)

Make sure to listen to the main game theme music on the site too. There will be other tracks as well that you can choose from in the game.

Also, be sure to follow @UnicornRush (http://www.twitter.com/UnicornRush) on Twitter to get updates on development progress and release date!

We will have contests for our Twitter followers closer to the release date, so make sure to follow us now!

[drfaygo]

Make sure to listen to the main game theme music on the site too. There will be other tracks as well that you can choose from in the game.



got any erasure?

[Amalah]

I've had a look at the site, it's awesome! :D

Shame the unicorn lost it's pink hair, but it still looks beautiful. :p

[TapMeJared]

customizable hair color! or have it become an icomplishment power up choice :p

[saintsalive]

As a big fan of RUA I look forward to this!

It'd be nice if there could still be some slightly silly elements, like the unicorn running from a government facility.

[MindJuice]

As a big fan of RUA I look forward to this!

It'd be nice if there could still be some slightly silly elements, like the unicorn running from a government facility.

I'm still working on the back story, so we will see, but the government facility thing doesn't really fit in with the art I have. :)

Made some good progress this weekend. I'll try to get a Coming Soon post up in the next week or two.

[Amalah]

Can't wait. :)

[LordGek]

I'm still working on the back story, so we will see, but the government facility thing doesn't really fit in with the art I have. :)

Made some good progress this weekend. I'll try to get a Coming Soon post up in the next week or two.

There is almost something to be said for that, while maybe almost too meta, to have it so the back story and the art don't even match.

How the BLANK does this Secret Government Experiment back story fit in with the fantasy art?

Sorry, the explanation that can tie all of these seemingly incongruous bits is CLASSIFIED. :cool:

[MindJuice]

There is almost something to be said for that, while maybe almost too meta, to have it so the back story and the art don't even match.

How the BLANK does this Secret Government Experiment back story fit in with the fantasy art?

Sorry, the explanation that can tie all of these seemingly incongruous bits is CLASSIFIED. :cool:
Maybe it is set in medieval times, and the government is experimenting on unsuspecting unicorns by feeding them performance enhancing mushrooms. :-)

[JoeyLP]

You HAVE to have a double rainbow.

[Alex Graal]

And if you pass a checkmark make it start to become a triple rainbow! HAHAHA

[keniadep]

I love it! :p

[MindJuice]

Sorry for the slow progress folks, but believe me, Unicorn Rush is coming along very well.

We are working on an in-game level editor (iPad only right now). This will initially be for internal use only, but we hope to eventually make it generally available for players to create and share levels online.

Here is a quick preview of the editor. Note that this is a mockup, and the background image is a bit blurry since I just grabbed an old screenshot and scaled it up.

http://a.yfrog.com/img610/2196/enxy.png

Same image is also available here: http://yfrog.com/z/gyenxyp

Next step after the editor is to finish off the particle effects and then begin beta testing.

[RagManX]

Was just looking at the web site, hoping to see news of how close this is to release. Love everything from Mind Juice I've tried to date, and assume this will be similarly enjoyed by me.

[MindJuice]

Was just looking at the web site, hoping to see news of how close this is to release. Love everything from Mind Juice I've tried to date, and assume this will be similarly enjoyed by me.

Hi RagManX!

Unicorn Rush is closing in on completion. We made a few major changes to how the game worked, and a few technology changes under the hood.

I think about 6 more weeks until beta testing.

Thanks!

[fugufish]

some random names that flashed...

Paddie the Unicorn
Puddle the Punicorn
Puddle the Pantsy Unicorn

[MindJuice]

With Christmas coming, the next 6 weeks should fly past!

Thanks for the name ideas, but we finished that contest a looooong time ago! :)

[Darth Elevator]

It's been fun to skim through this thread and see the evolution of the game's design. I'm looking forward to the look on my daughter's face when she plays this game for the first time. Yes, she LOVES unicorns. :)

[MindJuice]

Hey everyone!

Unicorn Rush is finally released in the App Store!

Check out the TouchArcade thread (http://forums.toucharcade.com/showthread.php?t=140966) now!

Thanks!