Though, of course, the ideal for games submitted to game jams such as Ludum Dare is that they be complete, satisfying works in themselves, some ideas just beg to be expanded upon. Leaf Me Alone, a charming, minimalist, metroidvania platformer by Mark Foster and David Fenn, was one such concept, and now the two have released Leaf Me Alone (Expanded) a work built on the structure of the retro original, that greatly broadens the scope of both gameplay and the quirky world in which it takes place. As before you'll be moving your-and-my-favorite brown-blobby seed guy with the [arrow] keys, jumping with [Z], picking up and throwing items with [X], and using [C] to summon... well, you'll see. The emphasis here is, of course, on exploration, but throughout you'll come into contact with another traveler who seems quite similar to you, and puzzling out his deal will have you traipsing the entire world and every season in it.
Half a remake, half a sequel, the expanded edition of Leaf Me Alone is the Metal Gear Solid to the original's Metal Gear. The mechanics, setting, and some of the puzzles will be instantly familiar, but the developers have definitely managed the balance of adding nuance and intricacy (not to mention a host of secrets references and Easter eggs!) without sacrificing the natural minimalism at its core. Comparisons to Fez and The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker are obvious, but this muted organic world, filled with fascinating creatures that may not ever notice you, calls to mind the world of Samorost if created by a deity who enjoyed low-rez platformers to pointer-and-clickers. Like most Metroidvanias, it could use a few more gentle nudges in the early stage (especially since it's sometimes difficult to tell if a jump you keep barely missing is supposed to be one you're not supposed to be making yet), but overall this is the refined experience any fan of the original could have hoped for. With its gorgeous pixel art and subtly enchanting soundtrack, and Leaf Me Alone is poetry for the senses, and definitely shows how games made on a dare, in a jam, can flourish into something tall and astounding.
Walkthrough Guide
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Leaf Me Alone Walkthrough
Part 1 - The First Go-Round
Start by shaking yourself left and right and bouncing with [z] in order to shake yourself from your vine. Once you are free, go right from where you started, jumping up bushes and trees until you get to the top of the tall tree on the other side of a wooden bridge. Climb up to the top of that tree, and you'll find the first leaf power-up. This will allow you to glide by holding the jump button. With the gliding ability, you'll now be able to access the upper door of the tree on the left side of the starting area (next to the broken bridge). Start from a high vantage point, and glide yourself to the entrance.
Once inside the left tree, start making your way upwards. Using the leaf above a spinning flower will propel you upwards. You can use this to reach and activate the button on the left, which will open up a locked passageway. Go up to the second spinning flower. Next to it is an acorn. Pick it up with [x] and chuck it against the wall to the left. When acorns collide with walls, they stop and fall directly down, allowing you to easily predict where they will land. Make your way upward, bringing the acorn with you by throwing it forward, than catching up to its position. Once on the next plateau, you must throw the acorn against the left wall, so it will fall and activate the button. Climb up and glide over there and bring the acorn with you through the passage and up. At the next plateau, there are two buttons. Chuck the acorn against the wall and it will land on the left button. Position yourself on the right button, and the blocks will unlock, giving you another acorn to play with!
Move up the tree, bringing both acorns along with you. The next section has three buttons to press. You can land acorns on the buttons on the right and upper left, with yourself activating the button on the lower left. Climb up again, bringing both acorns with you. Next you will encounter a four button puzzle, along with another acorn above a spinning flower. Two of the buttons can be activated by throwing two acorns against right walls, another by chucking the third acorn against the over hanging left wall and letting it drop, with the last one (third from the left) activated by you. Once the passage is open, bring the three acorns to the squirrel king, who will break his throne after eating them all, allowing you access to a new area.
This windy section here is all about careful platforming. First, head to the left until you reach a button that will change the direction of the wind, letting you head up and to the right, till you find another button. Hit that button and head up and to the left, using the spinning flower just to the left of the button to propel you upwards to a platform to its left. Go up as high as you can, then glide over to the left, landing on the wind-changing button suspended on a small platform in the air. Glide over to the right, and there will be yet another button, that will switch the wind to the left. Head up the floating platforms just to the right, before using the wind to glide to the central "cloud cage".
The "cloud cage" has two buttons at its base, one on the left, and one on the right. Activating each button will change the wind, allowing you to glide the cloud out of its cage. You'll end with the wind blowing to the left. Use the spinning flower on the right of the cloud cage to propell yourself to the top of the cage, drop down through the unlocked blocks, and use the spinning flower to collect the cloud power-up. Now you can summon clouds to make it rain with [C]! Try it on the seed root just to the left and a stalk will grow, allowing you to climb out of the cage. Make you way down the ruins, into the Squirrel King's tree, and back to the starting area.
Once in the starting area, head to the far right, and up the rocks on the far right. Use the cloud on the seed root you find there, and climb up the stalk. At the top of the stalk is a closed door, that can be opened by using the rain cloud again. Head inside the stone cavern making your way across the pits to the door on the right. Exit using the door, and go right until you find the seed root. Use a cloud to water it, then climb the stalk over to the two spinning flowers that can propel you upward. Head up and to the left, until you reach a seed root that it just up and to the right of where we entered this area. Water it with the cloud. Backtrack to the right, up, then to the left, to let you cross the "bridge" made by the stalk. It will lead you to a spinning flower. Use it to glide up and to the right, making your way past several waterfalls to spire with several hovering platforms above it.
These platforms will hover up and down, so you may need to wait for a bit before you can jump on them. Head upwards, then glide over to the left, then up, to the right past some gears sticking out of the ground, then up what appears to be a tall tree on the right. At the top of that tree is a leaf power-up, the "dash" which shoots you forward, with a gust of wind behind you. Head back to the gears. Use the wind from your dash on the wooden spinner to rotate it, activating the giant's head. The center of the giant's head can be opened with a rain cloud, so do so, and enter the head.
Once inside the head, use your dash on the spinner just inside the door, allowing you access to the caverns beneath. Once down the hole, go to the right, where a spinning flower sits below a wooden spinner. Use the flower to propel you into the air, then dash by the spinner to rotate it. This may take several times for it to full activate. Now the way to the left is opened. God left and glide over to the tree root sticking out of the ground. Water it to make navigation a little easier then glide over to the right, dashing if necessary to avoid falling into the pit. There will be a wooden spinner suspended in the center of the cavern, attached to some gears, and you'll have to jump out to the left, then dash back in mid-air to the right, several times to rotate it all the way. Once you've done so, head down till you see a seed root, then water it.
Go left from the seed root, and dash against the wooden spinner to allow you to go down and to the left. Glide over to the spinning flower on the left next to a wooden spinner on one side, and a waterfall on the other. Dash against the spinner to raise the platform with the spinning flower on it, then head under it, and over and up to the right, then glide and dash over to the now-raised flower platform. Use the flower to glide up, then dash over to the left, where another spinning flower waits and, to its left, a seed root. Water the seed root, then climb the stalk, making a tricky dash jump at the top to the left, to a ledge with a wooden spinner and spinning flower on it.
Dash the spinner to move the ledge out, then jump over to the similar ledge on the right. Rotate the spinner to move the ledge and use the flower to go over to the third ledge on the left. Rotate the spinner, so that all three ledges are sticking out. You'll need to use all three flower spinners to propel you up as high as you can go, then over to the left. This will be a tricky bit of platforming. Once you've made it over to the left there will be a shaft full of flower that will blow up up to an exit at the top.
You are now back outside of the stone giant. Drop down and water the plant root right below you, creating a stalk that will make navigation easier. Now head up to the mausoleum at the top of the mountain. You are now in a graveyard. Jump and dash over to the right then up and to the left until you see a spinning flower. Glide up using the flower, then jump and dash over to the far right, where another spinning flower awaits. Head up and to the left, until you reach the mask in the center of the middle platform. Pick up the mask, then head down and back through the door to outside the stone giant, then back through the door on the lower left to the cave, then through the door on the left to the starting area. Whew.
Go through the ground level door at the base of the tree on the far right of the starting area. Head to the left and through the door. There you will head downward, past several spinning flower. The final one will be destroyed by another seed in a mask, but you can use the cloud to water the seed root next to it, allowing you to climb up to the door on the overhanging ledge. Enter the door, then follow the masked figure around the twisting path, making judicious use of your Dash ability. Follow him through the door. Approach him for the confrontation that ends the first playthrough.
After the credits sequence. The game will spit you out at the starting area. Though this time you'll have access to the seed power-up which will lay a spinning flower wherever you wish with [down]. There's a lot more to discover in this world, but for now, you can enjoy A ending, if not THE ending!
Posted by: Tricky
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November 17, 2013 7:03 PM
Leaf Me Alone Walkthrough
Part 2 - NewGame+
You've been resurrected! With all your abilities intact! And if you grab that seed, you'll be able to drop those spinning flowers, allowing you to explore even more! One of the first places to explore will be down into the developer's cave underground on the right side of the starting area. (Check out those posters!) Head to the right and drop a seed to fly up to the hall leading off to the right. Enter the door, travel right through the stone corridor, dropping seeds and dashing to get to the door at the end. Using seeds, make your way up through the shaft, up to the wooden spinner. Use the seeds and your dash ability to rotate the spinner, causing the waterfall to stop. As you plant seeds and dash, making your way up to the upper right, the layout will start getting familiar. You are in fact inside the stone giant from earlier in the game. Spin the wooden spinner with you dash to open up that block you couldn't before, then head to the left, passing a root seed. Head down and to the left, dash the spinner to open the gate. Head down and left to the moveable pillar with the spinning flower on top. Dash-spin the wooden spinner in the corner, drop a seed, and make your way up to the ledge on the left. Once there, don't head left: instead drop seeds and float up the narrow shaft right above the ledge. At the top is a Red Droplet (1/7)
Make your way upward to the mouth of the giant at the top of the shaft, dropping seeds and dashing spinners when necessary. Head outside the giant's mouth, then go more-or-less directly down, till, at the bottom of the area, a door is revealed at the receded waterfall pool. Enter the door, drop some seeds and head upwards to grab the Cyan Droplet (2/7).
Exit the waterfall room. Head left to the door by the sign. Enter the door. In this cave, there is a shaft in the center. Drop a seed on its left side, propelling you up on the ledge so you can drop another seed. Move over as far right on the ledge you can go without falling, then drop the seed. Propel yourself upward, then dash across to the right (this is a tricky one!). Drop another seed and go up to find the Purple Droplet (3/7)
Drop down to the left, then out the door back to the starting area. Go left to the door on the ground in the center of the starting area (it has a clear set of symbols written around it). Head inside, then drop down to the door at the bottom of the shaft. Enter it, and you'll be at the ruins. Once there, drop seeds to propel yourself up the tower. At one point, you'll be heading up the tower's right side, then gliding over to a root seed that you'll need to water to head higher. Head up as high as you can go, skipping past the bell for the moment. At the very tippy top of the tower, you will find the Blue Droplet. (4/7)
Head back down to the bell. Dashing against it will cause the bell to ring to ring, changing the time to night. Fall down the tower, head down through the door, then up the shaft back to the starting area. Head to the right. Using your seeds and clouds, climb up the rock tower against the right wall of the starting area. Hanging above the topmost stone, there is a branch jutting out from the right wall. On there, drop a spinning flower seed, propel yourself upwards, then float and dash to the floating platform to the left. (Very difficult!) Once on the platform, float up with the seeds and you'll see an Owl. Shoot him with the jet of air from your dash to "collect" him (1/3).
Jump down, and make your way to the upper door on the far left tree, where the squirrel king resides. Climb up the tree until you see an inlet on the right side with a door. Enter the door, and you'll go outside to a branch where a creature is taking a nap on a picnic blanket. Use the dash to blow some pepper onto the creature then, when he sneezes, use the exhalation to glide up. On a branch to the left, you will find the Orange Droplet (5/7).
Head back into the tree, and make your way to the top of the tree, into the door at the squirrel king's broken throne. This place is much less windy at night! From this point, this is essentially a platforming challenge. Use your seeds, dashing, and gliding to get to the upper-right corner of the area. There, you will find the Yellow Droplet (6/7).
Remaining in the same area, now platform your way to the upper-left corner. There you will find an owl. Dash against him to "collect" him. (2/3)
Make your way back through the door to the tree, then back out to the starting area. Head into the door on the top of the stone mountain against the right wall, pass through the hallway, then out to the area with the waterfall. Now for a really frustrating bit of platforming. Make your way to the top right corner of the level, right above the temple entrance to the graveyard drop a seed for extra height, and prepare to dash/glide all the way to the opposite top left side of the level. It's technically possible, but man, it really feels like it was included to tweak 100% completionists like myself. Anyways, up there is the third Owl. Shoot him with a jet of air to collect him (3/3). Now, the names of each area will appear when you enter them!
Go back to the temple entrance on the top left corner of the waterfall area. Enter the graveyard. In this area at night, there are six ghosts. Find them, and they will follow you. Lead one into each of the six coffins in the graveyard. They are marked with a square glyph that will turn green once a ghost is inside. There are three coffins against the right wall, and three against the left wall. Once all the ghosts have been entombed, a door will open at the mausoleum at the top center of the level. Enter it, and you will find the Green Droplet (7/7).
Exit the mausoleum. Go down and exit the graveyard. Head down and to the left in the waterfall area, through the door next to the sign. Head through the passage, across the chasm, to the door that leads to the starting area. Enter the center door with all the symbols around it, head down the shaft and enter the door at the bottom to the ruins. Head up and land on the platform in the center of those seven glowing glyphs. Enjoy the alternate ending!
Posted by: Tricky
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November 18, 2013 11:48 AM