Driving on a Budget

Note: if you're experiencing performance issues on the web build, please download a PC version for your computer

How to play

Upon starting the game there's a slide containing basic gameplay and controls information, here's an extended explanation.

In this game you're tasked with surviving through waves of enemies for as long as possible. In order to do this, you need not only to dodge incoming attacks and fight back, you also have to make sure you don't lose too much of your Budget. Budget is used for attacks and is detracted when you get hit. You gain Budget by killing enemies. To survive you need to kill as many enemies with the least amount of Budget spent.

In the upper right corner there's a board with prices. Prices get higher the more you play.
L(aser) — piercing attack dealing one damage
B(omb) — explosion that kills foes in a certain radius and clears enemy projectiles
D(eath) — cost of getting hit

When your Budget goes negative, you lose.

You can also ram enemies. When your velocity is above a certain point, the player character turns green and enters ram mode. While in this mode upon touching enemies you kill them (unlike other weapons, this costs you no Budget). Ramming is however risky, as upon ramming an enemy you lose speed and exit ram mode. Meaning that if you ram into a group of enemies, you may kill one or two of them and then get hit repeatedly.

The more you play the harder the game gets. Enemies get faster, more resilient, some gain the ability to shoot. Prices are also increased.

Good luck and share your scores!

Credits

Game made by @Cuber1 from itch.io with music by @Gruber from lexaloffle.com (unassociated). Using PICO-8 font.

Made for Mini Jam 161