Tag Archives: Puzzle

Wheel of Misfortune – A Word Game with a Devilish Twist

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Wheel of Misfortune marks a new chapter. This was our first jam as Golden Grove Games–we added Alex to the team and set up goldengrovegames.com as a proper indie studio. New engine too: Godot (turns out much easier than Unity to use).

We built it for ShroomJam 2025, where the theme was “Retro TV.” The concept was Wheel of Fortune, but roguelike, and set in hell. You solve word puzzles like in the TV show, but add more wedges to your wheel and other artifacts to help make it easier to solve the puzzles. There had to be a Rubber Duck, so we made it an artifact.

The game actually works (which, after Airlocked!, I don’t take for granted). We got an honourable mention from Vinesauce for being addictive to play, which is about the best compliment a game jam entry can get.

We’ve already patched a couple of issues since the jam–a soft lock when all consonants were guessed, and a music swap after a copyright flag–and we’re planning a full release with more content.

Play Wheel of Misfortune on itch.io

Airlocked!

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After coming 5th in our first game jam, we were feeling pretty confident. Dangerous, that.

Airlocked! was our entry for Make A Game, The Game Jam, where the theme was “Connected.” We went with a dual interpretation–aliens that are physically connected to each other when they multiply, and a power grid that connects the ship’s systems. You’re the last crew member on the USS Arkenfeld, and the ship has an alien infestation. The aliens multiply every time you open a door, and you can only flush them out through the airlock if they’re all touching each other. So you’re running around, opening doors, repairing junction boxes to keep the power flowing, and trying to herd aliens into a corner.

Great concept. Really clever puzzle mechanics. The kind of thing that sounds brilliant when you’re explaining it at 1am on day two of the jam.

The execution, though? The game more or less didn’t work. We had to make a silent YouTube tutorial video because players couldn’t figure out what was happening–which, in hindsight, is a pretty clear sign that something has gone wrong with your game design. If you need a video to explain a puzzle game, you haven’t made a puzzle game. You’ve made a riddle with a download link.

Built in Unity, runs in the browser. It’s pixel art, it looks decent, and if you squint hard enough you can see the good game hiding underneath the bad UX. One of those “great on paper” situations.

Play Airlocked! on itch.io (good luck)