HertenHeld
A downloadable game for Windows
HertenHeld is a Metroidvania that combines elements from both Metroid and Momodora. (you may call it a Metroidora, if that's a thing)
You play as a young huntress, that has to search for her lost deer pet, and save it from the hostile wolves that threatens the forest.
As you progress, you'll find items and weapons that helps you to open paths to other areas. Untill you'll meet the wolf boss, which will mark the end if defeated.
If you find yourself lost, press Shift to open the minimap and look for open spots.
Other controls are mentioned in-game and in the Readme.txt.
The game takes around 30-60 minutes to complete.
I hope you'll enjoy it!
Download
Install instructions
The file comes in a .zip format, once unpacked, click on the .exe file, and the game will open.
Development log
- "D" key Moonwalking fix and v1.0.2Jan 05, 2024
- 2nd anniversary: Blooper CompilationFeb 05, 2023
- Happy 1st anniversary!Feb 05, 2022
- Update 1.0.2.1Aug 14, 2021
- Update 1.0.2: Taking ControlApr 25, 2021
- Update 1.0.1: Clean CutFeb 20, 2021
- Herten Held is released!Feb 05, 2021
- The 3 years of developmentJul 19, 2020
Comments
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Very good game but there is a bug of when you remap your left movement to A, when you use it your character stays facing left and won't face right
Whoops, good catch!
Seems that was some leftover code hardcoded bound to "D" that let me moonwalk, for collision testing.
I should probably patch that out. Though it has been a while since the last update.
Thanks for your feedback!
By any chance could you please tell me the programming language and what app(s) you used to create this game?
The game is made in GameMaker (previously called GameMaker Studio 2). It uses it's own programming language, but it is comparable with C#
I've used Medibang Paint to make the sprites. And I've used TileSetter to make it easier to create the Tile spritesheets.
The sound effects originated from Freesound.org (A direct link to all sounds used should be in the readme.txt). And the music is either commissioned or downloaded from royality free music.
Thank you
Looks a great game!! I like the design and the gameplay!! Good job doing it :D
Also I have some feedback to give you to improve the game, so if you’re interested in hear it, where I can send it?
Heyy, thanks a lot for playing my game! :D
Depending on the scale of the feedback, you could leave it here in the comments, or mail it to me at ppowersteef@gmail.com. I'd love to hear it!
You’re more than welcome :D
I will leave it here then: First of all, the game doesn’t have a tutorial than explains to you the controls, so it’s hard for a new player know how to play the game Secondly, the game doesn’t have an option menu to change the volume or other settings, it only have a control binding section than is great but another options will be very great And finally, I don’t know if it’s the game essence but a lot of times I get lost in the level and it’s hard to me to where I have to go to continue progressing, and I can spend 30 - 1 hour trying to find where I have to go
For the rest the game looks very great!! So good job!!
I actually never gave it a second thought by showing the controls by the default equipment, as it currently only shows for new items, figured it was probably natural by then, so nice catch!
It's pretty broad what can be seen as "more options". Music and sound volume is understandable. But more options also require more effort to implement them. Fullscreen does come in mind though.
It's quite the game essense of a Metroidvania (especially in the Metroid games) to figure out and discover where to go, I didn't wanted to give too many hints, as the map does feel pretty small.
But I had once a hint system in mind, so I might pick that up again.
Once again, thanks for playing my game, it's been a while since I've recieved feedback of it, so it's greatly appreciated!
I'll give the feedback a thought the next time I'll work on the update again.
You’re more than welcome!! Oh okay, I understand Thanks for answering my feedback!! Really appreciate it a lot :D Also good luck when you work on the update again!!
Hey dude, I tried your game and I think it's fun and interesting. I am also a GMS2 dev. It seems like your collision mask gets swapped when you go into the hurt state, and this made the player gets stuck in a wall when I got attacked by one of the wolves. I got pushed into the wall and then it was ggs at that point haha.
Some things I feel could be a bit better, unless there's a weapon upgrade of some sort later on:
I feel like the sword should have a bit more forward range.
After dying, it'd be better if the player is prompted the options to choose from rather than having to press shift. This will allow the player to jump right back into action with one less step.
Also, rather than having to go back to main menu, it'd be cool if you could just choose to continue from there(be able to just go back to your last saved point).
Just some thoughts. I like the music too. One thing that would benefit this game a lot, would be being able to slash more things like the roses and some other plants. I'll try to play it again later today :D.
Congrats in releasing your game btw!
Thanks a lot for trying my game out!
The collision problem is a tough one, I've seen that one before, but I always could get out of it by walking/jumping. So I didn't found it crucial. But thanks for the suggestion!
The sword/knife is intended to be a little risk/reward. Though the main reason why it's so short is to prevent to attack through obstacles that are behind a block. Perhaps I can find a way around it.
Been able to restart right after dying is a good idea! I'll look into that.
Most of the background objects are sprites, so they're not designed to be interactable, it would make more sense though considering the red flower is around the same size.
Noting down all of these to look into it, huge thanks for the feedback!
"Though the main reason why it's so short is to prevent to attack through obstacles that are behind a block"
you could make sure there's no collision with any obstacle objects before it can interact with other things. Just some ideas. I love metroidvanias so I have enjoyed most things so far. I'll give it another try later today. Thanks a lot for the prompt reply btw!
Oh, one more thing, and I personally know this can be a pretty annoying thing to tackle, though I have solved it already for my games:
Implement custom controls. This will allow everyone to play your game however they find fit. Trust me when i say this, I know this is easier said than done, but you'll be glad you implemented this once it's done(hopefully).
I'll look into this, thanks for the suggestion, and glad to hear you're enjoying it!
Customizing controls was already an idea, but it's for sure tricky to implement. Going to give it a second look, and see if I can apply it for the gamepad as well.
Hey, I've recently updated the game that includes a few changes from your feedback, namely the knife's range and been able to restart through the pause screen.
Feel free to try it out, but be aware that you'll have to start from the beginning if you do.
Hey, I'll give it a try for sure!
Thanks a lot for keeping me in mind :D. I just saw this message.
Maybe instead of having the collision mask change when taking damage, you could set a “hit cooldown” variable that resets to a certain value and increases over time, and will only allow health to decrease if it’s above a certain number? Just a thought, I hope this helps! :)
There actually is already a hit cooldown present, as long as the character flickers red after getting hit, you shouldn't be able to get hit again.
Have to say, I have difficult times reproducing the collision bug myself, even after getting hit constantly when right behind the wall.
Maybe I'll give it another look at it to see if it's possible again.
really good metroidvania, loved it.
just like my good brown mystery drink and my pet friend.
even though i had totally forgotten about the way to get to him :-)
Thank you! Glad to hear you liked it.
I don't know what you mean with the second sentence, but I can agree that it's easy to lose track without a map. I'll try to work on that.
I was talking about certain powerups late in the game :-)
one in the upper right, one on the middle right.
Aah, I see, thank you, and nice job finding them.
Next time I'll update it, I'll make sure things will be easier to locate.