Hi folks! I'm very pleased to be able to share this latest update for Jettomero. I've added a bunch of cool new filters to the game (some of the craziest yet) and I've further expanded the photo mode with custom text and word bubbles, for those of you interested in telling more o
Hi folks!
I'm very pleased to be able to share this latest update for Jettomero. I've added a bunch of cool new filters to the game (some of the craziest yet) and I've further expanded the photo mode with custom text and word bubbles, for those of you interested in telling more of a story with your shots. Otherwise of note is the camera's zoom range, which can go much further in either direction now.
There's also a few minor fixes/optimizations and new translation support for Finnish and Czech.
Please be aware that this update is coming hot off a major recent upgrade to the Unity game engine so if something seems different or broken please let me know. I've done some testing around and I believe I caught the main issues but I haven't been able to test all possible cases yet so please keep an eye out and I'll try to patch any issues as quickly as possible.
Otherwise, enjoy! And if you start making some comics I'd love to see what you come up with!
Hi Folks! I've been busy working on porting Jettomero to a new platform but I've been fixing some things up and adding a few new things that are definitely worth checking out. A brief list of some of the changes you'll notice: - 5 new photo mode filters (some of my favourites so
Hi Folks!
I've been busy working on porting Jettomero to a new platform but I've been fixing some things up and adding a few new things that are definitely worth checking out. A brief list of some of the changes you'll notice:
- 5 new photo mode filters (some of my favourites so far including LED, low-fi and dashed).
- New photo mode features including a camera light toggle, poses, and quick access to the parts screen.
- Improved shaders - the game should be a little sharper after a recent improvement I made.
- Completely replaced the text system (this was to deal with an issue I was having with my port).
- One new planet type (island planet).
I've tried to test everything as much as possible but since I've changed a lot of things recently it is possible that something broke and I didn't catch it (especially something related to text). I've also tested across different languages but you may notice some words are still in English. I'll be doing another round of translations soon but I'm waiting until I get a couple other new things added since it's more cost/time effective to do larger batches of translations.
Please let me know if you run into any issues, but most importantly I hope you enjoy these latest changes! Be sure to try playing with the new filters - the game looks really cool in LED mode!
The last thing Jettomero wants to do is pose a danger to people. In fact, its sole objective is to valiantly protect an embattled human race—but there's a complication. Jettomero is a gigantic, lurching robot, a crimson tin-man cut loose in the cosmos who can circumnavigate entir
The last thing Jettomero wants to do is pose a danger to people. In fact, its sole objective is to valiantly protect an embattled human race—but there's a complication. Jettomero is a gigantic, lurching robot, a crimson tin-man cut loose in the cosmos who can circumnavigate entire planets with a few strides of its improbably spindly legs, razing human settlements to dust with a misplaced foot.
And Jettomero misplaces its feet a lot.
It's with more than a hint of irony that the hapless robot's in a game subtitled 'Hero of the Universe'. It's a title Jettomero aspires to, but is doomed to never achieve. Gabriel Koenig, the game's creator, began development with this concept: "a game that you can't ever win by doing what you intend to do."
Jettomero can't be a hero, because heroes don't unwittingly murder hundreds of innocent civilians. And Jettomero can't not murder hundreds of innocent civilians, because it's got all the coordination of a toddler taking its first steps. Koenig used procedural animation to create what he calls "naturally awkward" movement, providing the player with only limited control over each of Jettomero's planet-shuddering steps. Arms flailing, insisting that it means no harm, each plod of Jettomero is slow and painfully considered. But it's not enough to avoid catastrophe.
...some people will do everything they can to avoid the buildings, and other people will destroy everything that they can.
Gabriel Koenig
Seeing the trail of destruction left across the galaxy in Jettomero's wake, the inhabitants of the game's procedurally generated planets don't provide a hero's welcome. They swarm in their attack aircraft like gnats, peppering Jettomero with missiles and trying to pull the robot to ground using rope-like traps.
Being indestructible, Jettomero effortlessly shrugs off these attacks. There's little challenge to the game, which began as a Proteus-style exploratory experience. In the final game what it means is those who really suffer from the humans' antagonism towards Jettomero are the humans themselves.
Steering Jettomero through often densely populated planets is already a tough ask, but doing so while being besieged by the very people you're aiming to save is nigh-on impossible. Hostile ships clutter the screen, their missiles unbalancing Jettomero and making his movements even more erratic—his flustered stumbles even more damaging to the worlds underfoot.
It's rare for a videogame to grant the player such incredible destructive power and not have them revel in it, but the unerring positivity and sympathy shown towards humans by Jettomero, even while they attempt to destroy him, certainly suggested to me that wrecking stuff was to be avoided. Koenig's instinct is the same, and he found himself carefully treading around buildings even while testing, but he was also keen not to impose a correct way of playing.
"I liked leaving it open so that there weren't any punishments for that destruction," Koenig tells me. "In the videos I've seen of people playing it, it's kind of 50/50—some people will do everything they can to avoid the buildings, and other people will destroy everything that they can. It lets you tell your own story."
You can learn a lot about yourself based on how you play Jettomero. From my own approach (very careful to avoid destruction early on, becoming more ruthless after the story reveals humanity created Jettomero as a super-weapon, then mistreated and abandoned him) it turns out I balance generous instincts with a streak of Old Testament vengefulness.
Navigating these planets, the human inhabitants acting as both your chief irritants and your emotional impetus to continue, is when Jettomero is at its best. Facing off against kaiju-style monsters in defense of humankind lends Jettomero's quest a clearer focus, but the simple button-matching laser battles feel somewhat lacklustre.
Better is the game's way of relaying the various calamities that have led the humans to this position, a satisfying minigame which has you intercepting and decoding messages by rotating dials to switch letters, eventually revealing a forgotten slice of history.
But the weighty, ungainly feel of controlling Jettomero is a joy in itself, and this is what gives it life beyond its brief run-time. Merely being, to steal a wonderful turn of phrase from the game, a "vagrant of the cosmos" in this world is worth the asking price alone.
A large part of this is down the fact that it looks utterly fantastic. Koenig was heavily inspired by classic 1970s artwork when making Jettomero, and admits that it was a real struggle to convert that vibrancy to 3D. Whether or not he achieved that is up for debate but the result is utterly gorgeous in its own way.
It's a universe of bright colors and sharp contrasts, mint-green planets against deep purple skies, or whatever other combination procedural fate decides to throw up. It's hardly surprising that videogame photographers are already getting mileage out of the game's photo mode, but its very existence was merely a happy accident; Koenig initially introduced the in-game camera just to make the trailer, before realising that players might also enjoy playing with it.
It's the final piece of the puzzle, a serendipitous final addition that exemplifies the way in which Jettomero's many disparate elements and inspirations unite so harmoniously. Koenig's concept for this unwinnable game was initially 2D, but the keystone of its pathos was the move to 3D and the addition of procedural walking animation. Jettomero's relationship with humanity was already a complex and multifaceted one, then an injection of narrative made it so much more so. Sometimes, like a procedurally generated planet that could not have been designed better, these things just come together.
Hello folks, I've been working on a few improvements and content updates. First thing you'll notice is an improved title screen that includes basic options including quick language selection. There's also a load of new parts in this update. If you've already collected all the par
Hello folks,
I've been working on a few improvements and content updates. First thing you'll notice is an improved title screen that includes basic options including quick language selection. There's also a load of new parts in this update. If you've already collected all the parts then any new planets you visit will reward you with these new parts. If you're just starting out then all the new parts will be mixed in with the rest!
Some parts also have secondary colours, which you can adjust on the parts customization screen. Now Jettomero has more possible styles than ever!
You'll also notice there's a new 'Photosensitivity' option in the settings menu - at the moment all this does is smooth out the loading screen to avoid the flashing/eye-hurting effect that some people have raised concerns about.
There's a few other smaller changes you may notice but that's most of what's new this time around.
Hi folks, I've just published the latest update for Jettomero. This is the first update that isn't just bug fixes or minor improvements. I've added a number of new filters to photo mode along with the ability to tweak each photo mode filter in its own way (hue, contrast, brightn
Hi folks,
I've just published the latest update for Jettomero. This is the first update that isn't just bug fixes or minor improvements. I've added a number of new filters to photo mode along with the ability to tweak each photo mode filter in its own way (hue, contrast, brightness etc). Perhaps the craziest part of this new update is the ability to play the game using whichever filter you want. For a quick preview check out this video: https://youtu.be/C84wG40BWxY
I really like the way the game looks already but it made sense to me to leave it up to the player to decide how they want their game to look. Go ahead and enter photo mode, play with the filters until you find something you like, and when you back out again that filter will remain active for you to continue playing the game.
Another update included that some players may appreciate is that keyboard controls now also support mouse for camera control. This has been a requested feature and I'm happy to finally make it a possibility. It may still require some tuning but I'm hoping that given some player feedback we can get it all working nicely. Another keyboard control change worth pointing out is that ESC and ENTER keys now double function for Q and E keys, and the main menu access has switched to use Spacebar.
Thanks for checking out the latest update and I look forward to seeing more amazing screen captures using the new filters!
Let’s pause for a second to appreciate that screenshot of a giant robot toddling along on a little planet. That’s a fine-looking video game, isn’t it? It’s Jettomero: Hero of the Universe , a newly-released stomp ’em up about a robot who rockets from planet to planet, accidentall
Let’s pause for a second to appreciate that screenshot of a giant robot toddling along on a little planet. That’s a fine-looking video game, isn’t it? It’s Jettomero: Hero of the Universe [official site], a newly-released stomp ’em up about a robot who rockets from planet to planet, accidentally smashing through cities as it tries to save humanity. John took a little look at Jettomero in Unknown Pleasures last week but I’m pointing out it again because mate, did you see that screenshot? (more…)
Welcome back to Unknown Pleasures , our weekly digest of our favourite new games released on Steam over the past few days that we ve not already covered in detail. This week, John and Adam take the reigns and bring you destructive but lovable robots, golf gone wrong and a bloody
Welcome back to Unknown Pleasures, our weekly digest of our favourite new games released on Steam over the past few days that we ve not already covered in detail.
This week, John and Adam take the reigns and bring you destructive but lovable robots, golf gone wrong and a bloody good pub.
