It is 200X, and you get to explore the futuristic world of the World Wide Web! You play as a cool cyber-fox. Go "surfing" and "browsing," fight off spamloids with your cyber gun, and earn some magic Internet money by retrieving a lost file.

Along the way, you might just get yourself entangled in a power struggle between the World Government and the Industrial Council, both of whom are after control of the Web. This ends up revolving around a certain bizarre piece of software that finds its way into your home computer. It may well fall to you to decide the future of the open Web.


Informash is a hybrid between a "mini-Metroidvania" and an RPG. That is to say, it behaves mostly like a simple and casual action platformer, with perhaps a greater amount of story than usual. However, the gameplay has elements of both a Metroidvania and an RPG. There is also a rudimentary savegame system, so that you don't have to do it all in one go.

Please download a native build if you can - especially on an older machine. The browser version works, mostly, but you may encounter performance issues.

Originally designed for the Death and the Internet Game Jam, and still carries a lot of the themes.


Disclaimer Informash is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, incidents, symbols and logos either are products of the author's imagination, or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Nothing here is intended to be a factual representation of anything or anyone. Permission was neither sought nor given. This game is free of "AI"-generated content. There's some content in here that was inspired by heritage 200X internet stuff. I made recreations of it instead of using it directly, though. Trans rights.
Controls Note that there is an in-game tutorial, and that most of the controls can be rebound.


Help if you're stuck It's probably a really good idea to get at least one damage upgrade. The "fast learner" upgrade is also really good.


There are some puzzles in the game that require a little lateral thinking. In case you get stuck on them, here is some help. To avoid accidental spoilers, the hints are written in ROT13.


Accessing the admin section: You need to disable the blocking platform. Gur oybpxvat cyngsbez vf pbagebyyrq ol gur fcnqr-fjvgpurf bhgfvqr, onpx jurer lbh ynfg fnj gur dhrfg-tvire. Vs gurfr fjvgpurf ner va gur BSS cbfvgvba, fb vf gur oybpxvat cyngsbez, juvpu yrgf lbh evqr gur ryringbe hc. Ohg ubj qb lbh trg vafvqr jura gurfr fjvgpurf ner BSS? Lbh arrq rvgure gur npgvba-ng-n-qvfgnapr hctenqr, be gur jnyywhzc. Vs lbh unir rvgure bar bs gubfr hctenqrf, be obgu, gura lbh pna frg guvatf hc fhpu gung gur fjvgpurf ner BSS ohg gur vafvqr bs gur freire vf npprffvoyr. Obgu bs gurfr hctenqrf pna or sbhaq va gur haqretebhaq frpgvba. Gb bcra gung bar, gbff n teranqr ng gur penpxrq sybbe. (Gur teranqr pna or sbhaq rnfg naq hc sebz gur ragenapr.) Lbh pna nyfb hfr gur qnfu, va pnfr lbh'ir npdhverq vg rneyl. Gur qnfu pna or sbhaq ba gur jnl gb Plore Pvgl, ol tbvat hc sebz gur Pnsé raivebaf. Jvgu gur Fuvryq naq Qnfu naq fbzr hctenqrf, lbh zvtug nyfb or noyr gb whfg gnax gur vafgnag qrngu ynfre, olcnffvat gur arrq sbe nyy guvf.


Crossing the city: You need to find a "VPN tunnel." Gur jnyy bs gur oybpx jvgu gur "JBBS" cbfgre ba vg vf snxr. Lbh pna qebc qbja ba gur yvggyr cyngsbez ba gur yrsg naq jnyx guebhtu gur jnyy.

Entering the hidden chat room: You need to enter a password. Lbh qb fb ol uvggvat gur Orngavx urnqf va gur evtug beqre. (Gurfr ner rarzvrf - lbh pna fubbg gurz!) Jung'f gur cnffjbeq? Vs lbh rkcyber gur yriryf gb gur evtug bs Plore Pvgl, lbh pna riraghnyyl svaq na ACP jub jvyy gryy lbh jurer gb svaq gur cnffjbeq. Vg'f va gur byq svyr freire. Gur cnffjbeq vf Yvgntnab Zbgfpbhq, juvpu vf n Pnir Fgbel ersrerapr. Lbh arrq gb uvg gur Orngavxf jubfr zrffntrf unir gur cnegf bs gur cnffjbeqf uvtuyvg va gurz.


Defeating the Omega Spamloid: This is the first of the final bossfights, and it's all about endurance. Gur svtug vf frg hc va n jnl jurer gur rarzvrf gel gb ureq lbh gbjneqf gur oynfgre gheergf. Qba'g yrg gurz. Hfr lbhe vaivapvovyvgl senzrf. Gur oynfgre gheergf qrny na rkgerzr nzbhag bs qnzntr - vs lbh pna'g nibvq trggvat uvg, ehaavat vagb n yrffre ohyyrg jvyy uryc n ybg. Erzrzore gung lbh pna hfr teranqrf gb pyrne bhg tebhcf bs jrnx rarzvrf.


Defeating the Seal of Disapproval: This is the second of the final bossfights, and it's a straightforward damage race. Jvgu rabhtu Fuvryq hctenqrf, lbh pna whfg gnax gur ynfref. Bgurejvfr, qb gel abg gb trg uvg ol gurz. Gur fcrrq bs gur Frny'f nggnpxf vapernfrf gur ybjre vgf urnygu trgf. Vs lbh'er unysjnl guebhtu gur svtug naq ybj ba urnygu, lbh znl jnag gb snez n yvggyr ovg svefg. Fznyy, pbagebyyrq zbirzragf.
Known issues I'm a little worried about the difficulty. Let me know if the final boss fights are too much.
Under certain conditions, a bullet may "linger" on the screen. This is a purely visual bug, the bullets don't cause damage. Sometimes they go away with level transitions. You can get rid of it by saving, quitting to the main menu, and reloading.
Some of the more exotic keyboard keys can't be used for control rebinding. This is an engine problem, sorry. Performance in the web build is a bit lacking. It runs fine on my TUXEDO Aura 15 (an "Affordable Business Allrounder" from 2022), but I strongly recommend downloading a native build, especially on older machines.
Updated 3 days ago
StatusReleased
PlatformsHTML5, Windows, Linux
Rating
Rated 5.0 out of 5 stars
(1 total ratings)
Authorfutur_null
GenreAction
Made withGodot
Tags2D, Action RPG, Funny, Furry, gamepad, Metroidvania, Pixel Art, Story Rich, tron, weird
Average sessionAbout an hour
LanguagesEnglish
InputsKeyboard, Mouse, Gamepad (any)
AccessibilityColor-blind friendly, Subtitles, High-contrast, Interactive tutorial
LinksHomepage

Download

Download
[Current version] informash_v103_lnx.zip 58 MB
Download
[Current version] informash_v103_win.zip 59 MB
Download
[Old version] informash_v102_lnx.zip 58 MB
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[Old version] informash_v102_win.zip 59 MB
Download
[Prototype] informash_v025_lnx.zip 54 MB
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[Prototype] informash_v025_win.zip 55 MB

Development log

Comments

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I've finished the full release, and it was a fun little time!
You mention in the credits that you feel some of the dialogue was rushed, or "cringe." In my experience in this and every other game you've created, you've got a knack for fun and endearing dialogue from characters <3
(Or know just how to make *certain* characters absolutely infuriatingly awful)
I think Xee, while not being a fully fleshed out character like Cloud Strife or Shulk, is still likeable and enjoyable in how they interact with the other denizens of the internet.

As for gameplay, largely a fun time, with some inoffensive quirks, and only a couple bits that I didn't quite get used to. I think the metroidvania elements were done fairly well, especially for a first attempt!
Considering I had the ability to aim up or down when shooting, I frequently tried to throw grenades up or down to affect the trajectory and was reminded that grenades only have the one throwing arc, unless you're in movement. That might just be a me problem. :V

SPOILERS FOR THE FINAL BOSSES:

I think the final bosses might be the weakest part of the game, unfortunately... The Seal of Disapproval is fairly trivial, especially if you've got an upgraded gun. Lead your shots, take care of the spawning ads, and the fight is over fairly quick without losing even half of my health. I beat it first try, both times I fought it.
The Omega Spamloid is on the opposite side of this spectrum, I died many many times both times I fought it. I noticed whenever taking damage, the shield is activated, and that seems to make enemies lose aggro, and start to float away. This behavior would frequently mean a grenade toss missed one of the spamloids and would roll away, which was frustrating on top of trying to dodge the bullet hell from killing the other spamloids and turrets. I think it's ultimately a good idea to *not* have enemies endlessly try to mob a player even if they have an invincibility period after getting hit, but it was definitely one source of frustration in this boss fight.
The main frustrations was mainly the gauntlet of trying to survive the allotted time, with all the spamloids and the way they shoot out projectiles upon death making it very difficult to navigate without taking a lot of damage.
Bear in mind with all this criticism I'm throwing out: I am not a game designer. I respect you so much for putting yourself into these projects, even if they don't go to plan! (They rarely do!)


Thank you very much for making this, and sharing it with us! Looking forwards to more from you! ^w^

Thank you so much for the kind words - and for the extensive review, this is very useful! I love getting in-depth feedback like this. The grenade is an actual physics object and as such kinda just does its own thing, haha. You can get it to move up by jumping into it from below, which is actually an alternate solution to one or two obstacles (combined with the "Remote Touch" upgrade.)

I have relatively little experience with this sort of game design, so yeah, the boss fights needing some balance adjustments makes sense. The Seal of Disapproval is meant to be an easier fight than the Omega Spamloid, though the difference between the two isn't meant to be quite this big.

As an immediate measure, I've nerfed the Omega Spamloid, reducing the damage output of all the add-ons and shortening the fight timer. It does require some unusual strategies (like taking advantage of the mercy invincibility and accepting damage that you then recover) but I think it was a little too harsh. I'll probably circle back around to this in the future and maybe take another look at the mechanics. Again, thank you kindly!

(+1)

I like the new boss fight, it's probably the best new feature, but I think the room transition that opens up after the fight is broken. I just went right past the "next" sign and started walking on the ceiling.

Hi there! Sorry, I read your comment and then forgot to actually respond. You're right, in the version you played, those don't go anywhere and were meant to be blocked off. This is fixed in the new release.

(+1)

... i get the feeling the control scheme was ment more for gamepad users the keyboard one feels really uncomfortable almost cramped will rebinding the control mapping be an option in the future? also is it bad i recognize most of the stuff during my short playthru 10 bux eh lowtax musta really branched out, also echoing others here way too many insta kill hazards other then those two gripes seems fine not fell thru the floor yet... why do i get the feeling that guys files are cheese pizza?

Hey, thanks for the feedback, and thanks for checking it out! There's definitely a lot of 2000s internet culture in here, haha.

Control mapping is definitely something I want to have in the future. For now I've added a few alternate keys, so you don't have to use the JKL keys. I'm sorry you found it cramped, keyboard control schemes are hard to get right.

As for that guy, he's definitely super shady.

(+1)

Pros:
Funny and clever humor.
Good dialogue.
Great execution of its theme.
Cool world!

Cons:
The shield and grenade switch-trigger abilities are underutilized.
There are too many things that instant-kill the character, like pits and lasers.
The grenade explosion effect sticks around for too long and can kill you even when the opacity is low.

The cons are manageable, and the pros make the game great. I'm a fan!

Favorite Area: Social Zone
Favorite Character: Boot

Hey, thanks for the kind words! I had fun writing the dialogue for this one, I'm glad the humor landed.

Thanks for the feedback too. I'm going to re-balance the pits, lasers and grenades in the next patch. The under-used abilities will have to wait for the next batch of content, but I have some ideas for them.