Black Cat Adventures
I am currently looking for feedback and playtesters! This game is still in its beta phase. :')
A lonely cat wanders through a dark forest...
Play as Jack in Black Cat Adventures: a word-based strategy game where fighting revolves around ordering letters.
Plan your letters sparingly and make your word choices count. Every letter matters to push through the enemies strewn across your path. You only have limited health but know the enemy's every move... and have access to a collection of treasures that aid you in battle.
Discover your inner wordsmithing potential, and help Jack reclaim the part of the forest that is his!
Controls
The game is completely playable with a mouse and left-clicking. However, if you choose to, some shortcuts include:
- Enter to submit a word,
- Backspace to remove the last letter,
- Tab to shuffle the board, and
- Any Letter Key to use that letter in your word if it exists in your grid
Credits
• Selenium 
(lead programmer / lead artist, skylarenium),
• Ari 
(2d background artist, arielwolf24),
And of course, we couldn't have done it without some help! Special thanks to:
• Carbon 
• Silver 
(quality assurance, inefficientvfoxen).
This game is inspired by Bookworm Adventures, a discontinued game by Popcap. All interactable game elements can be controlled using the mouse. All sound effects found in the game are free-to-use under Pixabay or Mixkit.
Download
Click download now to get access to the following files:
Development log
- Stronger Specials + Bug Fixes [1.0.8]98 days ago
- Save System [1.0.7]Sep 07, 2024
- Inventory Management [v1.0.6]Sep 06, 2024
- Bug Fixes + QoL [v1.0.5]Sep 03, 2024
- Minor Content Update [v1.0.4]Aug 15, 2024
- Special Tiles [v1.0.3]Aug 09, 2024
- Keyboard Support! [v1.0.2]Aug 09, 2024
- Cutscene + Map Revamp [v1.0.1]Aug 08, 2024
Comments
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Upgrades that modify the frequency of certain letters could be interesting. Almost anything can be pluralized with an S, for example.
waterlog is way too powerful
i think it would be better if it just applied a damage threshold that's like the amount of stacks but it caps at like 7 or something so if you deal less damage than the threshold no damage gets dealt but if it's above the threshold the full amount of damage gets dealt
also the dummy spirit thing is way too powerful and at the very least it shouldn't deal the 5 damage on top of all the effects
also:
I don't think your last message sent fully. But I hear your concerns! Seems like other people feel similarly about the Waterlogged event.
The dummy level isn't really supposed to be easily completeable, so it's more like an easter egg challenge! I've seen a few people beat it before, but it's definitely extremely difficult.
imo the amount of times the enemies can use waterlogging moves is way too op. since three or four letter words are usually the only option. and the effect can stack without bounds..of course you can try scrambling, but it would only make the effect stack even more, as you miss the turn. i'm yet to beat the third level after (20) tries, it seems very luck based to me.
Update! i was able to get it after 22 tries! very tricky.
now I just have to beat ultra stare Q~Q
Oh yeah, that fourth level... I've only seen very few people beat it qwq
Thanks for the detailed feedback - I think the Waterlogged effect is really annoying for some people and really easy for others. I'm curious about how I could balance that... perhaps just reducing the effect stack like you said.
But anyways, thanks for playing!!
ofc! I enjoy the game nonetheless. i'll edit my comment when I beat the ultra stare.
My fourth item only appeared once I moved an item out of my inventory, but otherwise the updates are great so far!
Thank you!!
Just fixed this earlier today after reading your comment. This bug only happened to appear on the web build and not the executable or Unity editor, so much appreciated! :)
Awesome game. Excited for more levels
Thank you!! Glad to hear :)
man I MISSED OUT on Bookworm Adventures, out of all the Popcap games... This is a load of fun! I made it a point to go back and get at least one profane word after level 2 lmao. Really looking forward to seeing where this goes! Maybe some board manipulation abilities?
Oh yes, that's on the backlog of things to do!! I'm surprised there's not too much else like Bookworm Adventures already!
Thank you very much, I appreciate it :D
looks good plays good is good
Good fun, thanks.
Very nice art style, very cool!
And the gameplay is pretty unique, too
Glad you think so!! I typically haven't done much of the art for my games so I'm trying to make do with what I can :')
Black Cat Adventures Gameplay
Whoa, thank you so much!!! :0
Love to see it, hope it was fun!
Fun idea! I think having relic choices would take this game the extra mile. A third level would also add a lot as well. One relic idea I've had is an item that gives one free reroll per level. Strong but limited and best if taken with relics that already do more damage [magic seven.]
The controls were clean and responsive. Good luck, I look forward to seeing more
More content is definitely planned for the near future - and with this comes new levels and new treasures! That's an interesting idea for a treasure mechanic - I may play around with it and see what I can do in terms of balance!
Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated. :)
Played through the new update, very fun! I like each of the new treasures added and the new enemies. I think you're headed in the right direction with this game, looking forward to more!