Zen Games (negative_development)

ZEN GAMES: 1.0

There is no score, no enemies, no tension - just an experience meant to make you feel ZEN!

Zen Games is a six-microgame collection meant to be induce relaxation, relieve stress and build focus and concentration. The games involve various low-stress goals, from being motionless to guiding cherry blossoms onto lilypads. Achieve ZEN and you shall be gifted wisdom.

The wonderful music was composed by the amazing CHRIS FASSL MUSIC, whom you can find on most popular music platforms.

Zen Games is FREE for Windows and Itch.io formats. Donations are highly appreciated.

THE GAMES and ACHIEVING ZEN within them:

• EMPTY MIND: Clear your head of negative thoughts with but a click on each. Thoughts are different every time and move further as each vanishes.
• PLEASANT POOL:  Embrace true stillness to achieve Zen. Can you be THAT calm? Maybe you should. Mouse and keyboard inputs are detected.
• BLOSSOM DROP:  Guide a falling cherry blossom petal through the wind to land on a lonely floating lilypad with the left and right buttons. Watch for the direction of the wind.
• DEEP BREATH: Practice mindful breathing (and feel free to breathe along.) Hold left to breath in, down to hold and right to breathe out, in that order. Watch the spinning mandalas for hints.
• SOUND BODY: Achieve balance by focusing against the wind. Use the left and right buttons to center yourself, using the meter and the leaves in the wind as guides. Don't be sad if you make a splash though.
• QUIET REPOSE: (Requires Microphone) Can you embrace true silence? This game monitors your environment for sound input. Be as silent as you can until the mandalas vanish. Or simply try again. (Note: this game is not required to be played to unlock other in-game features).

CONTROLS:

Desktop: Zen Games supports WASD controls for directional inputs as well as arrow keys.  The mouse may be used to click buttons on Stage Select and the Esc/X button. ESC may be pressed any time to exit a game and allows an exit to Desktop from the Stage Select screen (Windows Executable only.)  (Note: Data is saved before when the Exit window opens. You can close it at any time after it has loaded to keep your stats intact.)

Mobile: Zen Games also supports mobile controls with touch response for all buttons and on-screen controls where needed. On-screen buttons, such as the Stage Select and Esc/X buttons, can be pressed with a touch. Press the X BUTTON in top right to escape any game at any time. You may press this button from the Stage Select screen to end the game.

OTHER FEATURES (STAGE SELECT SCREEN):

MUSIC ON/OFF: Stops or restarts the in-game soundtrack, composed by Chris Fassl. Have I mentioned how amazing he is?

DELTA WAVES ON/OFF:  Zen Games features a binaural delta wave  (spaced by 6 hZ) playing at a comfortable, non-damaging level meant to induce relaxation. It is completely optional but is defaulted to OFF as to allow the player the option to utilize it or not. (Headphones necessary to enjoy delta wave benefits. This option is not recommended if not using headphones.)

STATS: What have you achieved in Zen Games? Stats are tracked through your play, saved every game and can be accessed on the Stage Select after completing any six games in any order. (Quiet Repose does NOT have to be played to unlock this feature.)

WORDS OF WISDOM: Want more wisdom? We won't keep it from you. After achieving six states of Zen, you may access your dose of enlightenment any time from the stage select. (Quiet Repose does NOT have to be played to unlock this feature.)

LEGAL ZEN:

Game, code and visuals developed by Gustuf Young (aka negative_development), copyright of developer, 2022. Music composed by Chris Fassl, copyright of the composer, 2022. All rights reserved.

This game does use a microphone but no data is recorded. Microphone permissions only allow volume levels to be monitored. No audio data is captured, nor will we EVER do so. Disrespecting your privacy is very much not ZEN.