Rocket Plume (by Strout & Sons)

JoeStrout · Posted by JoeStrout, 02-09-2017

Rocket Plume
Strout & Sons
Genres: Games Action Entertainment Racing
Free

Quote:

Pilot your rocket to greatness and glory!

In this unique cave flyer, you control a rocket flying ever deeper into a dense asteroid field. But your proton fusion exhaust stream will chew through any rock it touches, enabling you to make your own shortcuts!

Along the way, gather fuel to keep flying, as well as coins to buy upgrades, such as a second chance after a crash, or a spin on the prize wheel.

Rocket Plume is simple to play, but difficult to master. It features three control scheme options to suit any player, and a unique cave every day, giving you a chance to hone your skills with fresh challenges. Rocket Plume is a quick game, perfect for those few minutes of downtime throughout your day.

About Us: Strout & Sons is a father-and-sons team based in the American southwest. Rocket Plume was written mostly over the summer break, with both young'uns making substantial contributions to the code and artwork. Thank you for supporting us!

Supported Devices:

iPhone-3GS
iPhone4
iPodTouchFourthGen
iPad2Wifi
iPad23G
iPhone4S
iPadThirdGen
iPadThirdGen4G
iPhone5
iPodTouchFifthGen
iPadFourthGen
iPadFourthGen4G
iPadMini
iPadMini4G
iPhone5c
iPhone5s
iPhone6
iPhone6Plus
iPodTouchSixthGen

Minimum iOS Version: iOS 6.0

Download Size: 39MB

Home Page: http://StroutAndSons.com/RocketPlume

JoeStrout · 02-10-2017, 08:58 AM

And hey, guys, I'm not some corporate marketing drone... Rocket Plume really was the summer project for my boys and me. The younger one, Zach, was the sound engineer, selecting all the sound effects and music (and also did a lot of QA). Kevin, my older one, did a fair amount of the programming, including the rocket physics, and making the procedurally generated caves get more difficult the higher you go. He's rather proud of that bit (and rightly so, I think).

So! We really want to hear your feedback. What do you like about it, and what changes would make the game more fun? What features would you like to see in a future version?

Thanks!
Joe Strout

Stronsay · 02-10-2017, 11:24 AM

Greetings JoeStrout. I tried Rocket Plume for a while yesterday and thought it extremely challenging. I like old school landers and cave flyers and this catches the vibe really well. And like those I can see it will take some patient practice to master the controls. Helpful that there are different control schemes and after some experiment found the paddles worked best for me. Rotating the ship to use the destructive plume is an interesting idea, though it seemed difficult to regain control after use, so I am prefering to maneuver around obstacles. I kept wishing for a reverse gear but maybe that would make it too easy. I shall probably go back and practice more later. Good work with the PC High Frontier by the way.

JoeStrout · 02-10-2017, 12:41 PM

Hey Stronsay, thanks for the feedback! Yes, it's intended to be one of those quick skill games that give you that "just one more try, I know I can do better!" feeling. That's also why we keep the cave the same all day, so on your next try you're facing the same obstacles you faced a moment ago -- but mix it up the next day, to keep it interesting.

Maneuvering around obstacles is a great strategy when you can do it. But you'll find there are places where you need to blast away some rock to get fuel or a coin, and in some places, the cave is impassable without making a hole (this is more common as you get higher). So you'll have to use that plume!

A reverse gear is an interesting idea, but I think you're right, that would make it too easy. Having to turn and fly away from the thing you want to blast -- and then turn back and fly through the hole you made -- all without crashing into anything, is kind of the central challenge.

Thanks for the kind words about High Frontier! It's nice to be recognized.

I'm working on that right now, in fact; a completely new physics engine that should allow us to accurately simulate more complex space colonies. Hooray for math!

digitalphil · 02-14-2017, 10:07 AM

I highly reccomend everyone give this game a try...
you spend a while learning the control... then the sheer difficulty of getting your rocket through
the gauntlet keeps you coming back for more!
my Highest run was for about 3500, i'm so close to 4000

Stronsay · 02-14-2017, 11:05 AM

After some practice the controls are almost second nature and it's great scooting around the caves. Worked out how to use the plume effectively with a few 360 degree rotations. Managed around 5400 on today's level and also discovered the Spin-to-Win feature available with 100 coins.

JoeStrout · 02-15-2017, 09:09 AM

Thanks, guys! I'm so glad you're enjoying the game.

Please take a moment to rate it in the App Store, and maybe even write a review if you can spare the time. We haven't received enough ratings yet for Apple to even display an average, so I think a lot of gamers are passing it by. That's a shame, because we think we've made a pretty unique & fun game here!

JoeStrout · 02-17-2017, 09:46 AM

Man, today's cave has a lot of fuel, especially in the first few km! It enabled me to do possibly my best run ever. Can anybody beat this?

Stronsay · 02-17-2017, 10:23 AM

Good to see so much fuel; and not all of it at the screen edges! Best score during tea break was 3197

Will try again this evening before the level disappears.

JoeStrout · 02-20-2017, 01:50 PM

@Stronsay, did you have any luck the other day?

Today's cave is kinda the exact opposite... lots of coins, but hardly any fuel. There is even a coin right next to where you begin -- which I guess would be handy if you wanted to farm coins!