Windows NABOKOS | A Sokoban reversed puzzle game.

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pixelgrapher

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Here's a short background:
NABOKOS started out as a simple university project. A project that involved recreating the mechanics behind Sokoban, a game about being a warehouse man, pushing a series of wooden crates onto goals. The mechanics in Sokoban are incredibly elegant, forming what I like to describe as a 'perfect game'.

Electricity, Magnetism & Logic
I liked that idea so much that I wanted to base my personal game project on the mechanics of Sokoban. But there was one catch. Rather than pushing boxes, players could only pull - using a magnet, a brilliant idea. Following that, it was only natural to theme the game around electricity and magnetism. On top of that, I added logic gates, which really symbolises the fact that game design, in itself, is a puzzle game.





So NABOKOS is a puzzle game, with Sokoban's core mechanics reversed. Rather than simply placing all the boxes onto all of the goals, players must activate buttons to open the exit door and escape the level. But it isn't that simple, these buttons are wired to logic gates (I currently have AND and XOR gates) and some levels have multiple doors to get through before the level can be exited.

On top of that, I felt that it was pertinent to also create and integrated level editor. Players can create their own levels using the same blocks as the official levels. Right now, you can create five custom levels but haven't yet worked out a way to transfer level files between computers effectively.

The project has now continued far enough that I'm ready to accept some feedback as to where and how the game can be improved. Fire away folks, I'd be happy to hear your thoughts.

Download game at itch.io or Game Jolt

https://gamejolt.com/games/nabokos/345956
https://pixelgrapher.itch.io/nabokos

While playing, you may run into some difficulties regarding the magnet's rotation mechanics. There are a set of ironclad, non-random algorithms as to how it rotates. It's part of the puzzle in understanding and using the mechanic to full effect. You can even play with invisible boxes if you want.
 
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pixelgrapher

Guest
Very cool game. Nice style and very creative. I couldn't get past level 8 :).
Thank you for the feedback. Level 8 stumped some people. Experimentation is key in solving some of the levels. You'll get there eventually :).

Great art!
Thanks. I aimed to give the visuals a clean feel so they do not distract players from solving the level effectively.

I like the idea and mechanics but the art could be a bit more interesting!
My aim of making the levels visually clean has the downside of making it look rather boring. Do you have any suggestions in how to make it more interesting? Perhaps a dark mode? Painted textures? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
 
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