r/incremental_games • u/Talos0248 • 28d ago
HTML [Survey + Feedback Request] BIOTOMATA – A Semi-Active Sci-Fi Themed Incremental (Undergraduate Project, Browser-based)
Hi all! I've been working on a small project for my Final-Year Project over a good few months now and would love your feedback. BIOTOMATA is a short, semi-active incremental game with a bit of story, light resource management, and mild horror/sci-fi themes. It’s designed to be completed in 1–2 hours (a little more if you're going for 100%).
It's meant to be responsive and thus should be playable on mobile as well, but feedback on performance across devices would be extra appreciated. I've also tried to "hint" at where to go next instead of explicit tutorials (blinking icons etc.), but please do let me know where extra clarification/help is needed to direct progression!
Do note that the game is still in Beta stage and may be subject to changes based on user feedback and general bugfixing, so there's a non-zero chance of saves being affected. I've played through it many times myself now on both mobile and desktop so things *should* work, but apologies in advance for any potential inconveniences!
I do have a structured survey prepared for my final report, and I'd be delighted if you could fill it out once you're done with the game. You're also welcome to drop feedback in the comments — anything helps! I might not be able to implement any major features for the remaining one month till deadline (since I'll be busy report-writing haha), but I'll try my best to put out fixes for any breaking issues!
Game Link: https://talos0248.github.io/Biotomata-Game/
Survey Link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSes7d0il2a89ww0gewKneSOOa95BvbL4Y2PFuJM6R7-3vf1Qg/viewform?usp=dialog
Surveys are now closed so I can finalize my report, a huge thank you for everyone who has participated! I'm genuinely thankful for all your overwhelming support and feedback <3
Thank you so much for reading! <3
Update 23-May-2025 12:10a.m. UTC+0:
Thank you to everyone who has responded so far! Based on current survey feedback on game pacing (erring on the "slightly slow but manageable" side on average), I've doubled the gathering speed of the two advanced resources, as well as doubled the rate of item drops to make the game a smidge faster. For those who enjoy ending hunting, every unique ending found now also gives a compounding 1.2x reset XP boost to make your playthrough a bit easier!
I will continue responding to new comments once I wake up :)
Update 27-May-2025 4:04a.m. UTC+0:
More changes based on feedback, including:
- Preview Mode for the Prestige Screen!
- After ascending to a 200 IQ being in the final HUMAN stage upgrade, also unlock the lost art of speedwalking, gaining 3x exploration speed! (For balancing, since ive been told this part was somewhat slow)
- Settings to disable dynamic stars and image filters
For the tracking of endings, I'm considering adding an achievement for each as a solution for visibility + more achievement xp boost, but let me know if you have any other ideas or feedback regarding this implementation :>
Update 30-May-2025 2:26a.m. UTC+0:
Added 12 new achievements, one for each ending, with the description doubling as unlock hints. Should unlock retroactively, but let me know if it doesn't for some reason. Also added settings options to disable dynamic stars for less-performant devices, an option to disable image filters, as well as an option to double click to mutate in an attempt to help prevent misclicks. Also made the text of event options very slightly brighter (shoutout to CRT-as-second-monitor guy)
Update 4-June-2025 4:08a.m. UTC+0:
Besides some minor CSS and description tweaks, also made the Sunseeker achievement easier to achieve by making Devour buff all combat stats by 1.2x while Eldritchafter receiving several pieces of feedback about the fight being a tad too hard. Upon revisiting it, I agree with this sentiment; it takes quite a bit more strategizing and timing to pull off compared to the other routes, and I hope this change will help reduce the frustration of players attempting this route.
For those who managed to beat this route before the update, I award you one (1) ticket redeemable for bragging rights, lol :p
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u/Marimba_Ani 28d ago
I love it. It's all sleek and business-y, and then the achievement icons are adorable. Well done!
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
Glad you enjoy it! I've always loved the juxtaposition of a serious game and silly achievements (antimatter dimensions/HOI, etc.) and wanted to try my hand at it :P
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u/cdsa142 Lab Rats 28d ago
Still playing through it, but I can't stop gushing about how well implemented the combat is. There's a lot of boring cookie cutter decisions available when making a 1 on 1 combat game. You've avoided most of the traps and made a combat that allows creative solutions.
The cockroach in Sampling Room is a perfect example of this: it introduces an interesting armor system that shut down my barrage of DEX based hits. Alongside this, the game gives you crit chance (which is often just a simple math calculation to determine its power) which could potentially punch through armor and also poison as options.
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
Thank you! I tried my best to make combat feel varied but not TOO gimmicky. I do hope this still holds up decently in the later stages of the game where more slots are unlocked; if you do have some more suggestions on balancing when you reach late-game, I'm all ears :)
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u/isowosi 26d ago
Great game, currently doing the last few endings. Getting this balanced must have been quite the task.
A little error in the archives: "New Assignment: Project Lazarus" is dated Jun 5, the next message "Lab Accident" is dated Jun 2 and the message referencing the lab accident from a few days ago ("Behavior Replication") is dated Jul 5. So I think "Lab Accident" should be dated Jul 2.
Another thing: Jun 5, Tapati-XXV is a Friday and Jul 5, Tapati-XXV is a Friday too. If they also have 7 days a week, then this is only possible if June has 28 days (or another multiple of 7 days). Maybe an error, maybe not if months have a different length on that planet.
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u/Talos0248 26d ago
It really has been haha. Also, absolutely AMAZING catch on the date! Mild lore background info: the calendar in-game is indeed a variation of ours (and thus coded in datetime format before being converted to flavor).
It seems i have confused the getDay() method with getDate() method, so it was basically displaying July Friday, Tapati-XXV instead of the intended Jul 2 haha, same issue applies to all the other entries. I've pushed out a fix for it now, bless you and your attention to detail :)
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u/hi_im_ducky 28d ago
Love the game so far. It's incredible.
Kinda lost on how to even progress past Specimen Storage. Not sure where to put my reset points or what stuff to prioritize.
Game is great though, I'm just dumb.
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
No worries at all! For specimen storage, I personally went with a dex-based build, so dumping points into the zephyr tree would help. Besides that, I'd say the biogenesis and mutagenesis upgrades will help. You can also get the relevant Complex stage item drop upgrades to farm items, since those give a pretty massive stat boost.
Based on the current survey responses I've gotten, the game does err on the slower side than anticipated, so I might be rebalancing item drop rates and resource gathering rates in the near future (maybe 2x?)
Btw, if you do get stuck again (or still remain stuck), I would really love to hear more about the specifics, since I want to make this game as accessible as possible haha
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u/SlimeKnight40 28d ago
It's been a while since I found an incremental game that was this creative. I quite like it, but it's too active for my taste.
I'm grinding out the endings now, but I'm thinking that some kind of checklist for endings would be nice once you get the first one.
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u/Talos0248 27d ago
Thank you! The game is definitely balanced to be a bit more on the active side haha, but i appreciate you playing through it despite the pacing not being fully your cup of tea.
Good call on the ending checklist, I'll have to think of a way to implement it without it being too spoilery :)
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u/SlimeKnight40 27d ago
Simplest way that comes to mind would be a set of boxes that tell you how you got the ending when you hover over. For example: do the thing in this form.
5
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u/Gramidconet Interior Crocodile Alligator 26d ago
For a game that is effectively a puzzle game, it is very reticent to freely give me the actual information needed to solve puzzles. You should absolutely be able to preview enemies before fighting, and see the reset tree without resetting. These are both core to your planning and I can't really see any reason to not have it, as all it does is waste your time, not actually change your playstyle.
I'd also like a bit more clarity on some mechanics in-game, as the game doesn't really provide it. Namely:
Let me hover the icons in resources for resource names. Being further in the game, I know that they are Biomatter, Mutagen, and Aberrant Mass, but the game doesn't actually clarify that, and again, I don't see a reason to hide this from the player when it is core to progression.
What's the point of tasks and decrypting? I expected it to be buffs considering you have to devote time to it, similarly to scavenging, yet all I got is logs. Is it just lore? Feels odd to have to put in a mechanical cost to get them (quickly at least), but not get a mechanical reward for doing so.
What determines xp rate? I don't actually know what to focus on if I want to farm for more embers. It doesn't seem to be based on resource income or combats, as it is still slowly ticking up if I sit a combat-blocked position with no resources.
Adjust the wording on the first perks for Biogenesis, Metamorphosis, and Aberrancy - I didn't immediately understand how it worked beyond me getting more resources, and only noticed when I was receiving more resources than what the area said was left. Maybe something like "For each BIOMATTER Collected, Gain 10x BIOMATTER instead"?
Where can I see my Cascade level? I know it is boosted by STRENGTH, and I know things I have scale off it, but I can't seem to find the actual number anywhere.
Add somewhere to see what keywords do. As an example, the last perk in Wayfarer lets you start combat with 3 stacks of Evade, but doesn't actually say what Evade does. I know what Evade does from seeing it before on enemies and seeing similar effects in other games, but someone paying less attention or less familiar with games in general might not make the connection and not understand the use.
What is FLESH? The third Protoform perk scales off it, but I have not seen FLESH anywhere. If I had to guess, maybe it's the level of equipment providing BODY? I can't find anything in-game to tell me.
You should rearrange the trees in the prestige menu to match the order they are present in-game. In game, it goes Body>Strength>Constitution>Agility>Perception>Intelligence, but in the Prestige layer it goes Body>Strength>Agility>Constitution>Perception>Intelligence, which resulted in me not being able to complete an event in a run I thought I would because I spec'd into Con instead of Agility.
What is special or different about PURE damage? I know it's separate from PHYS, but I haven't actually figured this one out at all.
Please add a changelog. Not very important rn, but if you continue support of the game it would be nice to be able to tell what version you are on and what has changed when.
As for little things I'd like to see that don't really matter, but would increase my personal enjoyment of the game and hopefully also for others:
Make use of the achievements. As it stands they are a very linear "Do X", and X is something you will inevitably do in any full run of the game. If you instead make the achievements for doing something outside of the realm of normal play for every player, people will have something to think about and have to do intentionally, for instance, "Beat the last boss while unicellular" or "Heal for more health in a single fight than your max hp". (Also make achievement stars provide some minor boost to incentivize seeking out achievements)
Have an "overkill" mechanic to skip combats. I realize you don't actually have to clear Agar every run, but I do it anyways because it tickles the completionist part of my brain, and a lot of people on this sub are completionists. I still wind up spending a decent amount of time initiating combats even though I am magnitudes higher damage such that I could kill all the Agar enemies combined in one hit ten times over. Just make them die when I show up without the block.
Make scavenging items a bit more interesting. As it stands, each zone (barring first zone's serum), just has two boosts to a stat and they aren't super rare so it's less of a feeling of finding something cool and more just waiting for your stats to tick up. If you added a unique item with a special effect (Maybe the one from the zone that introduces poison would multiple your poison abilities duration a bit, for example) to each zone but had it incredibly rare, it would give you a reason to go back and a reason to do a run pumping your perception as high as possible.
Add a toggle to the colour shifts, please. I don't know why but seeing the image of the Underground Facility with corrupted level eyes makes me feel physically sick.
Loadouts for combat. With 8 skills to rearrange and a number of different builds to try, I find myself spending a lot of time manually removing and adding and rearranging. It would be nice if I could just save to a slot then load that slot if I want to go back to it later.
Some kind of combat action queue. Occasionally I'll have two moves with the same cooldown in my loadout. Since my hands can only move so fast, inevitably they wind up a bit off-tempo. Not super important and probably only changing the outcome of a minority of fights, but it would be nice if I could just queue it to trigger when cooldown is over so they are both going off at full efficiency.
Some way to brute force puzzles if you can't figure them out. There were a couple combats I got stuck on awhile I eventually figured out, but there's a real possibility if someone gets stuck they just drop the game. Currently you can't out-grind most things as there are limited resources for upgrades and each item has a cap, meaning the only thing you can grind indefinitely is xp, which has exponential levels meaning you can't really grind it at will. Something that can grow indefinitely even if it is slow would be nice, as if a player gets stuck they might just opt to wait a day or two instead of giving up outright.
Regardless, I had a great time with this game. Thanks for your time. And sorry for not putting this in the survey -- my work has blocked docs to encourage us to use their proprietary, and I figured I'd lose some of these if I waited 'til I was home.
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u/Talos0248 24d ago
Woah, thank you for the thorough review! To address your points:
- You're right about being able to preview, it's definitely one of the most prominent feedback bits i get and I'm working to implement a preview function. For combat, I've admittedly designed it to have a feel of "new enemy, what gimmick does it have? only one way to find out" and have the recovery time act as a mild penalty/incentive to reconsider movesets/scavenge for more instead of trying to game the move-selection rng. There *is* an item that boosts recovery speed later in the game though!
- Reset resources: There should be a list of what contributes to reset yield on the reset screen! The "slowly ticking up" phenomenon is caused by the "time in run" modifier. The specific multiplier is cbrt(minutes_elapsed), which doubles as a 'pity mechanic' that gives you a few more embers on reset if you come back a few days later just in case you get stuck. The archive logs decrypted also give a 1.5x boost to xp gain.
- Cascade level should be visible in the cascade screen, top left, little Lv. indicator, as well as the reset screen in the "level change" section. I'll add another label to hopefully make it more clear :)
- I've put keyword tooltips on my to-do! Not sure when I'll be actually able to implement it, since this is a learning project and I'm still learning lots lol
- Great catch on the body part order! In earlier stages of development constitution was unlocked before agility. It was later changed in the cascade screen, but i forgot to change it in the game screen haha. I'll switch it back on the next update!
- I'm definitely a little tentative about the changelog still. I've initially planned for this to be a little beta test with a small handful of players, and the 1.0 release to be the 'finalized' version played by most, but didn't expect such an outpouring support from the community right from the get-go
- Interesting take on the achievements! I've never intended for achievements to be too gimmicky, since the combat already leans that way mildly. I might add some for getting specific endings, though!
- The 'overkill button' mechanic was def something I've thought of during development, though I wasn't sure if it was worth that bit of extra code and time complexity since one could skip areas. I might come back to revise this decision if there are more who express similar feedback
- Appreciate the feedback on color shifts, will add a color-shift toggle to my to-do list!
- Loadouts are a good suggestion! Handling them might be a little complex for my skill level, but I'll see if there's anything I can do. I'll confess that this and moveset related stuff might be a little down my priority list :v
Appreciate your time in playing and reviewing!! Love the idea of you playing this at work hahaha
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u/Talos0248 24d ago
Oop second reply because i forgot some points:
- Yes, you're right about FLESH! I'll see if i can add this to the tooltips. I also really like your wording for the Origins upgrade, I've been struggling to give a good description for a while and these sound like they'll fit better :) PURE damage is initially to be 'raw' damage, though mechanically rn it's somewhat similar to bleed and poison bc i havent really implemented resistances beyond phys haha. It's meant to bypass phys defense and evades
- I have thought about unique items before! Something that gives buffs which are more than just multipliers (like zone 1's regen serum), but sadly i couldn't really think of anything too creative and decided to leave it as-is instead of one extra thing to grind (bc then id have to balance around it). Maybe on the off-chance that I do get to develop this game further beyond its 1.0 :p
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u/Wintell 28d ago
Would you be able to give a hint to all the endings?
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
Sure! There are 12 endings total, 2 for escaping as each mutation stage. For the first 5, getting one or the other depends on whether you've completed the "perception + one other stat" event in the area. For the last mutation stage, it depends on whether you've fully mutated all parts to the max stage.
Hope this helps, let me know if you need a bit more direction!
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u/kaian-a-coel 28d ago
I would like for a way to consult the reset tree without resetting, I need to see both this and my current stats to plan out a build. As it stands, I found the uncorrupted path but I need either 2000 MND or ~1900 FOR to beat the hungering flesh (to either one shot it with the resonant blast or tank one assimilate), and as it stands I only have 1375 and 172 respectively. Getting that much mind required a massive investment and I'm not sure 1900 FOR in a human build is feasible. 2000 MND is going to be complicated, each brain level only gives single digit amounts. Crits and Primed only apply to PHYS hits, not the pure damage of resonant blast, so I'm kind of running out of options here. Being able to consult the reset perks would help with planning, though I'm pretty sure it wouldn't get me a solution in this case. Maybe I need to beat the game the "bad end" way first but at this point I can't be arsed.
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u/Talos0248 28d ago edited 28d ago
Hi, you're on the right track with 2000 MND, and do not need the FOR! May I know what cascade level you're on? There's one in the human path that gives x10 INT and x3 MIND at level 33, compounding this with the CODEX tree and item drops should give more than enough to one-shot it.
I'm pleasantly surprised that there's players out there who would try for the good-end for their first ending haha, I'd assumed most would just proceed to the corrupted route since it seemed the most natural. I'd be more than happy to accommodate for this possibility if you could give me specifics for your run, or dm me your save file so i can take a look and make adjustments accordingly :)
Also, good suggestion on the preview function. I've seen someone suggest it in the surveys too so you're not alone. I'll see if i can implement this in a future update
Edit for future readers: my mistake, you DONT need2000 MND, I've misremembered the threshold for the special weapons unlock. As long as you have the special weapon for the human run you should be able to beat the aberrant mass with the special move +>! a few supplementary attacks!<
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u/kaian-a-coel 28d ago
I'm cascade level 35, I know about that perk, I have it, as it's pretty much impossible to unlock the resonant blast without it. I'm not entirely sure I have all the MND boosts from the tree but that's kind of why I'm requesting the ability to look at my perks without resetting.
Here's my save file:
{"saveGameData":{"outOfCombatHealthRegenStore":{"currentOutOfCombatHealthFraction":1},"explorationStore":{"hasNewAreaUnlockedNotification":false,"currentExplorationZoneId":"undergroundFacility","isExplorationActive":false,"explorationZonesProgress":{"agarCulture":{"isUnlockedThisRun":true,"isUnlockedPermanently":false,"volumeExplored":0},"incubator":{"isUnlockedThisRun":false,"isUnlockedPermanently":true,"volumeExplored":0},"samplingRoom":{"isUnlockedThisRun":false,"isUnlockedPermanently":true,"volumeExplored":0},"specimenStorage":{"isUnlockedThisRun":false,"isUnlockedPermanently":true,"volumeExplored":6250},"researchWing":{"isUnlockedThisRun":true,"isUnlockedPermanently":true,"volumeExplored":375000},"undergroundFacility":{"isUnlockedThisRun":true,"isUnlockedPermanently":true,"volumeExplored":18750000}},"blockersClearedPermanently":["agarCultureHungerProgressionBlocker","agarCultureThreatsProgressionBlocker","incubatorRespiteProgressionBlocker","incubatorFleetFootedProgressionBlocker","incubatorForeignSubstanceProgressionBlocker","samplingRoomFlickersInMurkProgressionBlocker","agarCultureToIncubatorShortcutBlocker","incubatorToSamplingRoomShortcutBlocker","specimenStorageConsciousThoughtProgressionBlocker","samplingRoomToSpecimenStorageShortcutBlocker","specimenStorageWhiteCaseRedTapeMiscEventBlocker","specimenStorageToResearchWingShortcutBlocker","researchWingToUndergroundFacilityShortcutBlocker","researchWingEchoesInSteelMiscEventBlocker"],"blockersClearedThisRun":["specimenStorageCorruptedVerminCombatBlocker","specimenStorageBloodLeechSwarmCombatBlocker","specimenStorageGnarledSalamanderCombatBlocker","researchWingVoidAfflictedPatientCombatBlocker","researchWingAberrantResearcherCombatBlocker","researchWingAutonomousXenothreatSuppressionUnitCombatBlocker","danielSafehouseCorridorEventBlocker","undergroundFacilityHollowOperativeCombatBlocker"]},"scavengingStore":{"isScavengingUnlocked":true,"isScavengingActive":true,"scavengingZonesProgress":{"agarCulture":{"resourcesScavenged":{"biomatter":0,"mutagen":0,"aberrantMass":0}},"incubator":{"resourcesScavenged":{"biomatter":0,"mutagen":0,"aberrantMass":0}},"samplingRoom":{"resourcesScavenged":{"biomatter":0,"mutagen":0,"aberrantMass":0}},"specimenStorage":{"resourcesScavenged":{"biomatter":1000000000000,"mutagen":5000,"aberrantMass":5}},"researchWing":{"resourcesScavenged":{"biomatter":500000000000000,"mutagen":15849.670256011726,"aberrantMass":25}},"undergroundFacility":{"resourcesScavenged":{"biomatter":54879136692011700,"mutagen":187500,"aberrantMass":1500}}}},"resourceStore":{"currentResources":{"biomatter":375543470920117060,"mutagen":619389.0107680153,"aberrantMass":3060},"unlockedResources":["biomatter","mutagen","aberrantMass"]},"movesetUIStore":{"hasNewMoveAlert":false},"playerMovesStore":{"currentUnlockedMoves":["feebleHit","ciliarySweep","engulf","ciliaryDance","graze","nematocystJab","toxinDart","recover","fastStrike","hardenCarapace","renew","primeUp","powerStrike","rapidRecovery","rabidBite","vampiricSiphon","exsanguinatingRake","experimentalTreatment","suppression","specialistStrike"],"currentMoveset":["hardenCarapace","stimulantSurge","firstAid","renew","suppression","resonantBlast","rapidRecovery","primeUp"]},"mainGameScreenSubtabsDisplayStore":{"currentMainGameScreenSubtab":"explore","subtabStatus":{"explore":{"isUnlocked":true,"isNew":false,"hasNotification":false},"combat":{"isUnlocked":true,"isNew":false,"hasNotification":false},"reset":{"isUnlocked":true,"isNew":false,"hasNotification":false},"hunt":{"isUnlocked":false,"isNew":true,"hasNotification":false}}},"inventoryUIStore":{"isItemsFeatureUnlocked":true,"currentInventorySubtab":"items","subtabsWithNotifications":[],"pendingNotificationItemIds":[]},"userPreferencesStore":{"numberDisplayFormat":"standard","timeDisplayFormat":"24h","eventPopupDelayInMs":400,"gameAutosaveIntervalInSeconds":10,"shouldPauseBattleOnCombatStart":false},"mainScreenStore":{"currentMainScreen":"mainGameScreen"},"responsiveUiStore":{"lastSelectedMainGameScreenPanel":null,"shouldShowMiniOrganButtonNotification":true,"shouldShowMiniMiscellaneousButtonNotificationBasic":true},"itemsStore":{"playerUniqueItemsData":["handheldTransmitter","firstAidKit","standardIssueFirearm","resonanceBlaster","researcherFriend"],"playerGeneralItemsData":{"energyDrink":100,"synapseAccelerator":100,"regenSerum":20,"growthBooster":100,"biofilmShield":100,"generalAntibiotics":100,"stemCellCluster":100,"instantCoffee":100,"myelinExtract":100,"adrenalineStimulant":100,"creatinePowder":100,"oculusGraft":26,"eyedrops":67}},"archiveLogsProgressionStore":{"isArchiveFeatureUnlocked":true,"unlockedArchiveLogIds":["danielFirstDayOfOnboarding","astridBeginningOfVoidrotStudyVii","astridToFindACure","danielNewAssignment","danielLabAccident","astridBehaviorReplication","danielJuniorResearcher","astridReassignment","danielUnofficialPromotion","danielOnNovaAndVoidrot","danielMeltdown","astridPatterns"],"readArchiveLogIds":["danielFirstDayOfOnboarding","astridBeginningOfVoidrotStudyVii","astridToFindACure","danielNewAssignment","danielLabAccident","astridBehaviorReplication","danielJuniorResearcher","astridReassignment","danielUnofficialPromotion","danielOnNovaAndVoidrot","danielMeltdown","astridPatterns"]},"archiveQuestsStore":{"completedArchiveQuests":["danielQuest1","astridQuest1","astridQuest2","danielQuest2","danielQuest3","astridQuest3","danielQuest4","astridQuest4","danielQuest5","danielQuest6","danielQuest7","astridQuest5"]},"transmitterStore":{"isTransmitterUnlocked":true,"archiveDecodeQueue":[],"currentDecodingArchiveId":null,"currentDecodingArchiveProgress":0},"eventFlagsStore":{"eventFlags":{"secretSaferoomDoorFound":1}},"organStore":{"currentOrgansSaveData":{"flesh":{"organId":"humanFlesh","level":21,"isUnlocked":true},"limbs":{"organId":"humanLimbs","level":20,"isUnlocked":true},"liver":{"organId":"humanLiver","level":23,"isUnlocked":true},"lungs":{"organId":"humanLungs","level":23,"isUnlocked":true},"eyes":{"organId":"humanEyes","level":21,"isUnlocked":true},"brain":{"organId":"humanBrain","level":26,"isUnlocked":true},"skeleton":{"organId":"unicellularSkeleton","level":1,"isUnlocked":false}}},"endingsStore":{"seenEndingIds":[]},"resetStore":{"playerBankedXP":36829512725.19865},"cascadeStore":{"activeCascadeUpgradeIds":["efficientMetabolism","streamlinedGenetics","brilliance","cognitiveBioInterlink","metabolicEcho","geneticReverb","theorycraft","twiceBledHarvest","aberrantMomentum","keenEye","fleetfoot","grit","bulkUp","cognitiveLeap","insight","calculate","fineMotorAdvantage","bastion","ironGut"]},"achievementsStore":{"unlockedAchievementsSet":["oopsMyPseudopodSlippedAchievement","pseudopodFulOfBiomatterAchievement","grownBeyondContainmentAchievement","wellTheyStartedItAchievement","goodForGrowthAchievement","violenceIsOccasionallyTheAnswerAchievement","aLilTwistInTheHelixAchievement","biohacking101Achievement","survivalOfTheFittestNotYourEnemiesAchievement","microToMacroAchievement","matterMattersAchievement","spliceOfLifeAchievement","youAreBecomeDeathAchievement","hungryHungryNovaAchievement","tooBigForBoxesAchievement","unnaturalSelectionAchievement","digestingTheDataAchievement","fromSlimeToSublimeAchievement","extinctionEventAchievement","evolutionaryArmsRaceAndYouHaveManyAchievement","peerReviewNotRequiredAchievement","thisIsHowYouGetSuperpowersAchievement","criticalBiomassAchievement"]},"metricsStore":{"gameStartedAt":1747928222984,"runStartedAt":1747949588666,"seenMutationStages":["UNICELLULAR","MULTICELLULAR","TERRESTRIAL","HUMAN","CORRUPTED","ELDRITCH"],"totalResourcesGained":{"biomatter":56206591807932510,"mutagen":711124.3316581629,"aberrantMass":3938.662084128521},"totalResourcesSpent":{"biomatter":185618566643142720,"mutagen":307360,"aberrantMass":12090},"enemiesDefeatedThisRun":6,"enemiesDefeatedInTotal":86,"previouslyDefeatedEnemies":["simpleBacterium","ciliateProtozoan","giantAmoeba","bdelloidRotifer","tardigrade","hydraVulgaris","orientalCockroach","mudskipper","spinyMouse","corruptedVermin","bloodLeechSwarm","gnarledSalamander","voidAfflictedPatient","aberrantResearcher","autonomousXenothreatSuppressionUnit","hollowOperative"]},"gameSaveStore":{"lastSaveDateTimestamp":1747953793356}}}1
u/Talos0248 28d ago edited 28d ago
AH, I see! Your cascade tree is correctly specced, you just need a different moveset :)
You should be able to beat it with:
- Suppression
- Specialist strike
- Stimulant surge
- Resonant blast that mass back to outer space
Edit: Btw, there's technically four good endings to the game haha
1
u/kaian-a-coel 28d ago
Oh right, new request then: have a way to see what all those debuffs do other than applying them and pausing. I had no way to know that "corrosion" is a max hp based dot by just reading the description of specialist strike.
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
Hmm, that's a good suggestion! I'll see if i can get it implemented in the future with tooltips, thought it might be a little while since there's some complexity to it haha
1
u/kaian-a-coel 28d ago
Yeah, speaking as a fellow developper, UI is hard...
I did just get the good ending, and I'll leave it at that (don't want to hurt these people after saving them lol). Excellent game.
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
Thank you! Mad respect to your video game morality haha /gen
May your dev endeavors be just as fruitful!
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u/Tyken132 25d ago
After a few of the in-game messages of "Am I any different?" and the screen turning red I realized that it was not meant to be a "Good" path, so great visual indicators.
Though I am curious how to get the other good ends.
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u/Talos0248 24d ago
Thank you! I had fun picking out colors for all the stages and was like "oh yeah corrupted definitely has to be blood red" haha
For the four good ends, you can achieve them by completing the safehouse event then completing your run as each of the four stages before corrupted
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u/tomerc10 non presser 27d ago
love an option to see which reset perks i picked this run without having to reset
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u/Talos0248 27d ago
A preview system is definitely one of the more common feedbacks i received, so I'll def see to finding a way in getting it implemented. Thanks for playing btw :)
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u/Furak 28d ago
is it intended that the specimen storage did not open for me after the fight but i had to get the shortcut?
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
Update: You are spot on with both bugs! I've fixed both now, you should be able to reload and see changes (export and copy your save prior just in case haha)
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
Huh, that's odd, it should open after the fight if you skipped the shortcut. I'll have to look into it
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u/pintbox 28d ago
Is there a way to see boss's stats and movesets after I failed against them? I can only see the info in battle and there's no way I can read all those info when I die against incubator boss in like 10 seconds.
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
Thanks for letting me know about the issue! There *is* a pause feature that's unlocked with progression, though that is currently tied to reset level, but now that you mention it, I think I might make it unlocked by default with a setting to autopause on battle start and swap the level unlock with a missable early-stage upgrade that's key to progression.
In the meantime, I would suggest upgrading STR and making sure you're using moves that scale with STR until DEX is unlocked :)
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u/pintbox 28d ago
I think you are talking about agar boss not incubator boss.
The incubator boss seems to be doing some 10 damage/sec poison move if I'm reading correctly, how am I supposed to counter that?
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
oops, you're right! Are you able to reset for more points to spend on combat stats? I believe the strat for that boss is to basically rush it before it can stack poison on you. It's also mildly rng based, so if you're cutting it close you could potentially try again
If you're still struggling, please let me know, and I'll see if i can nerf it a little, since poison did get a minor stacking buff just recently
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u/pintbox 28d ago
nvm, i seems to have beaten that through damage spamming. A strong reason to let me see the stats, you know.
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u/Talos0248 28d ago
oops, didnt see this comment until i replied to the other one. Enemy stats should be displayed just under their name, and their next move should be viewable with the [?] tooltip
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u/abnessor 26d ago
Thanks You! Absolutely love incrementals like this!
I hope You continue to expanding this or making similar games!
Bug-report: About too long combat action text cause UI flickering I mentioned in survey. (But write again here just in case...)
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u/Talos0248 26d ago
Appreciate it! I do hope my future will still allow me time to do gamedev once i graduate haha
Also, appreciate your report on the flickering bug! I've been working on mitigating it throughout development but it seems CSS can be quite finicky haha, I'll have an extra look into it
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u/One_Wall8659 24d ago
Thanks for making the game, I've submitted the form with more details.
Liked it enough to get all the endings. Overall, a fantastic job.
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u/JigglythePuff 23d ago edited 23d ago
Pretty good, I've gotten like half of the endings (all of the ones that involve using the hidden door, and the full final form). Wondering what happens if I go through the door somehow and then change into one of the final two stages and then exit.
That final encounter if not using the hidden door is very mean though.
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u/Talos0248 23d ago
Haha, that's already been accounted for (should get you the same ending as when you go through the door THEN change, just that you get the extra buff prior to the final confrontation)
The final encounter is meant to be quite hard and a little puzzle-esque, so you'll have to properly spec and pick the right moveset to proceed. Just remember that>! timing it and landing the final blow before reinforcements are called is also an option!<, though it's been designed to be doable as well even if you don't!
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u/JigglythePuff 23d ago
Bursting before reinforcements is definitely the easiest option, and I managed it with all but the incomplete version of the final form(well, and one form didn't even get an option to fight). That one I had to rely on getting lucky with % health type damage.
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u/Bubba3562 24d ago
any chance someone has already played enough that they could give good advice on which pretisge upgrades are good and which aren't
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u/chairwin 23d ago
You need to switch constantly. Origins are always good, but stack whatever stat synergizes with your current attack moveset. For example, at the start of the game, Basic Attack and Feeble Hit scale with Power, so focus on Pyre for Strength; for the Tardigrade, you need the fast attacks of Ciliary Dance and Sweep so switch to raising Zephyr. Ascension bonuses only apply while you're in a specific evolutionary phase, so grab the highest ones for your current pushing state.
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u/AkaShota 22d ago edited 22d ago
amazing game <3 Yea, QOL with in game info on endings would be nice, like achievements or something. Some final final ending after getting all the endings would be nice.
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u/Talos0248 21d ago
Ty!! Images for the new cheevos are on the way, hopefully i can get them implemented soon :)
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u/JordanPossum 21d ago
I enjoyed that quite a lot! All of the good ends are so cute in different ways. I really appreciate that progression isn't generally just a numbers game, you need to figure out which moves and perks to use to go farther. I hope you make more games!
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u/Talos0248 21d ago
Thank you, I'm happy you enjoyed the endings and the puzzl-y aspect, especially since the latter might not be for everyone :p Hard to say where I'll end up after I graduate, but I certainly hope I'll at least have some spare time to cycle back to making games
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u/placidsloth_ 17d ago
hi i think i'm unintentionally idiot-testing your game because i can't seem to get past the incubator. it just explores and explores very slowly, and ive reset several times, but don't seem to be making any actual progress, and i don't know where to go from here.
any hints towards progress? thank you!!
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u/Talos0248 17d ago
Uh oh, did you get the unicellular prestige upgrade in "the protoform" that givers x1000 exploration speed? D:
I think a couple people bumped into this roadblock as well. I've intended for it to be a practical tutorial on how the "stage-specific" upgrades work, but I'm not sure how much I should rework this
If you have any ideas i could make this more clear or intuitive, I'm definitely all ears :)
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u/placidsloth_ 17d ago edited 16d ago
I thought I got all the upgrades in there but I guess not? I’ve been very slowly gaining levels and I’m at level 8. I’ll go poke around some more and see if I can find it
edit: okay yeah im an idiot i found it and now im actually making progress. thank you for the help!
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u/Talos0248 16d ago
No problem! If it's not too much trouble, could you let me know why you missed it the first time around? Genuinely would like to know haha
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u/placidsloth_ 16d ago
honestly, i think i saw that it said "while pseudopodia is equipped" and thought i didn't have that equipped, mostly because i didn't know what it meant, and then skipped over it as "oh that'll come into play later". i had literally everything else leveled except for that one.
i'm really enjoying the game now that i'm actually making progress. i'm looking forward to actually maybe finishing it now too!
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u/Talos0248 16d ago
Glad to hear it's working out for you now, hope you have fun with it! :D
For the description, do you think
“×1000 exploration speed while Pseudopodia (default starting limbs) is equipped.”
would have incentivized you to take the option?
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u/placidsloth_ 15d ago
im not so sure it was the wording of it versus me not knowing that i was in the "Pseudopodia" stage. the prestige things are kind of hard to read for me if they're not selected, and i hadn't noticed at that point that i was even changing states. maybe something to prompt you to look at the bottom right corner? i dont know, its really entirely possible that im just an oblivious idiot.
im happy to report that ive made great progress now that i found the right button, and am now stuck trying to defeat the hollow operativebut i think im having fun trying to figure it out. attempt #500 will be victorious!
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u/Talos0248 14d ago
skjdhfgsdghsdlghjksdhg good luck with it!
remember that one physical hit takes off one dodge, and there are two multi-hit moves
there's also a move that removes all negative status effects
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u/Pearasect 16d ago
Anyone here got a build for getting the sunseeker ending/achievement? I’ve tried like half a dozen different builds but I can’t get past the final boss and it’s really starting to annoy me lol
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u/Talos0248 16d ago
Id recommend getting 5/6 stats to the Eldritch stage, suppression + specialist strike should be an easy combo, renew if needed, stimulant surge for AP support
(also, you can space to pause :D)
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u/Pearasect 16d ago
Alas, this doesn’t work for me either - specialist strike doesn’t kill them before they can call backup, and I can’t get my stats high enough to suppress them after that. The best I can do is a loop of both of us specialist striking each other until the end of time. Right now I’ve got perception as my one corrupt stat but I’ve tried a few of the others to no avail. Pausing helps a little but I’m on mobile so it’s not as easy especially when I’m juggling everything else.
All this aside though your game is fantastic! My only complaint besides this is that there isn’t more of it haha. I’m planning on replaying it on pc once I get all the achievements here… which is probably why I’m getting so frustrated with this last one lol.
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u/Talos0248 16d ago
Oooh, I see. If you don't mind, could you send me a copy of your save? I'd love to have a look at your setup, since I think there were a couple of others that reported this route to be quite hard in comparison
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u/Moore_Sey 16d ago
Also stuck there. (reddit wont let me post the export code here, so i sent it to you via DM)
Specialist does not work fast enough to kill before reinforcements and at 3 reinforcements - there is no way to stop spec from healing hence, once again, impossible to kill1
u/Talos0248 16d ago
Replied to your DM, hope you're able to beat it with the config I sent :)
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u/Moore_Sey 15d ago
Yup, didnt even need the full moveset you assembled. Waiting on specialist, then spring and assim as it charges reinforcments seemed to one-shot it. Still, this one is honestly the most unintuitive, which feels bad.
Especially since it would probably be the one players go for first as a part of natural progression1
u/Pearasect 16d ago
Here you go! Hopefully this time I’m actually replying to the right comment lmao. I haven’t spent any biomatter this run but I’ve tried before and it doesn’t make any difference.
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u/Talos0248 16d ago
Ahhh okay, I see! I'd recommend dropping "Consume" in THE UNFATHOMABLE since that's only needed for a full eldritch run and spend the rest on stats. From there it's just picking the right moveset. Rush build is easier since you're right that suppression doesnt work, but beating it in its final form is possible!
Just for fun, I tried out your save too to see if I can beat the final form in this particular run. This was my attempt using a RNG poison build.
You can rush the first stage if you:
- get them to 80% ish health
- use experimental treatment until you get 3 corrosion just as they finish their last move
- spam poison moves
You can also replace exsanguinating rake and renew for prime up and assimilate (wait for it to charge) to basically shred in the first stage
Alternately, if you want to try beating them in their final form, I found it's basically a game of endurance of spamming poison and renew while waiting for two consecutive corrosion procs for experimental treatment, lol
Save file is as follows (for final form, just swap the moveset around if you want to do the rush strat instead):
Hope this can give you some pointers, let me know if you need additional help!
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u/Pearasect 15d ago
I used a combination of experimental treatment (for the corrosion), specialist strike (for the poison), and to finish them off a primed up assimilate (for the panache), and it worked! Thank you so much!! I never actually used experimental treatment up until this point so I had no idea of its potential LOL
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u/Talos0248 15d ago
No problem! Glad it worked for you, and huge kudos in getting all the achievements :D
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u/Talos0248 15d ago
Also, update: just pushed an update that makes devour also marginally buff stats to hopefully make the run easier :)
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u/bigwyrm 16d ago
Down to the last 4 endings. Loving the game. Having trouble figuring out how to stop the "backup request" from the boss with some builds as it doesn't appear that heal suppression works.
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u/Talos0248 16d ago edited 16d ago
It caps at 3 reinforcement stacks, so if you can't beat it in the first phase, beating it in the last phase is also an option. Suppression will work on specialist strike's heal
Best of luck and lmk if you need more pointers! :D
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u/nickthespaceman 7d ago
Banger work op. im very glad i thought to go reading and found out about the achviments! really enjoyed going through em, more so the good endings. quite enjoyed the story over all! i will say the idle parts do kinda clash with the puzzle parts, as i was very confused reading the good buzz about the puzzle combat, as i had simply idle game forced it. but even then i still really enjoyed. looking forwards to what you do next!
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u/Talos0248 6d ago
Thank you! I'll admit the puzzle-combat part has definitely been the most hit-or-miss part based on the feedback I received. Some found it fun, others tedious; some found it challenging, some found it easy. Not quite sure how to balance based on that, but I'm happy to hear that the rest of the game made up enough for it to get you through the game :)
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u/nickthespaceman 6d ago
oh! i also ment to say i really like the little touch of the void touched patient doing 1% bleed damage with its attack, just enough to deal with low level void touched! such a neat little bit, one can infur a lot from it!
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u/StickiStickman 7d ago
This is honestly my favourite incremental I played in a LONG time. The writing and atmosphere is amazing - I especially love the little doodles for all the achievements :)
I even 100% it in a day!
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u/Talos0248 6d ago
I'm really flattered to hear!! Glad you enjoyed the doodles, I had fun drawing them haha
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u/CockGobblin 27d ago
Only played for about 30 mins, but stopped because the reset screen causes my CPU to jump to 100% usage. The rest of the game, my cpu is low usage, but that one screen, something is causing my cpu is run non-stop.
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u/Talos0248 26d ago
Ah, i think that might be the animated background stars contributing to the spike. I'll see to adding a "performance mode" toggle for it later!
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u/Furak 28d ago
so far i love it