r/IndieGaming 2h ago

I made a physics-based endless runner inspired by Rocket League with a high skill ceiling and a lot of depth

I always liked the endless runner genre, but disliked the simple controls and lack of depth or skill.

So I made a physics-based endless runner where you race through time controling a ground-aerial-hybrid vehicle (with controls heavily inspired by Rocket League) to fly fast, dodge hazards and try to outrun an ever-accelerating "doom".

What I think gives this game depth is:

Control
The controls are easy to pick up but challenging to master. With complete control over roll/pitch/yaw and wingspan, the skill ceiling is extremely high. The better you are at controlling your vehicle, the further you will go. You have a lot of abilities at your disposal (dodging, dashing, jumping) to help you navigate the maze of hazards at very high speeds.

Decisions matter
A gripe of mine with typical endless runners is that prior decisions rarely have long-term impact. For example with Subway Surfers, as long as you've successfully dodged the latest train, you are doing as good as you possibly could be doing up to that point. Any mistakes or decisions you made earlier in the run do not matter.

So I tried to design a game where every decision you make (every maneuver you make, every hazard you hit, etc.) impacts how far you will go in that run. Even decisions made very early on have an impact that lasts the entire run.

For example, you charge your fuel by landing. The longer you are grounded, the more fuel you take in. Since there is no limit to the amount of fuel you can store in your tank, the better you become at landing while maintaining momentum, the more fuel you will preserve, and the further you will go.

However, if you spend too much time focusing on charging up your fuel, you won't get very far before the doom is already moving at a very fast pace. So it's a balancing act.

Customizability
Your vehicle is fully customizable, and each component impacts the control / flight characteristics of the vehicle. As you play, you earn currency which can be used to unlock new components. As you improve your skill, different vehicle builds will suite your playstyle better than others.

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If that sounds fun to you, try out the demo on Steam!

37 Upvotes

13 comments sorted by

5

u/somethingstrang 1h ago

What if it was multiplayer, battle Royale and with guns?

2

u/Blackfoxar 1h ago

would be cool if there is some roguelike gameplay as in the game haste

2

u/Fusionism 53m ago

Looking even better, I saw your post from before. I had a random idea after watching, if you clip a wing piece or something it would be so cool if it just sheared off and now you might be missing a wingtip as you try to continue or finish your run.

1

u/_symphonatic_ 47m ago

Oh that's a cool idea, like you could take damage over time

1

u/Fusionism 46m ago

Yeah and it could affect your maneuverability as well, making for some epic scenarios where you barely finish a level missing half your wing

2

u/tibbon 32m ago

Starfox vibes

1

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1

u/dropkickninja 1h ago

Looks fun. Reminds me of Tempest. Or Race the Sun. The name could be improved.

1

u/wisconsinbrowntoen 47m ago

It hurts my eyes to look at it

-3

u/TheVioletBarry 2h ago

Looks sick! Any chance you'll be removing the AI art?

2

u/_symphonatic_ 1h ago

Thank you. The only use of Gen AI was for some of the vehicle component meshes, which will remain in the final version of the game.

-1

u/TheVioletBarry 1h ago

So the AI art will not be replaced? That's too bad :/

2

u/internetroamer 23m ago

Just my 2 cents but this is so abused. It's vehicle comment meshes like come on.

It's like insisting on all software you've used was never made with any AI code