Milestone 2 - Designing Gameplay Moments
MONTH 1: GAME DESIGN PREPRODUCTION
MILESTONE 2 - DESIGNING GAMEPLAY MOMENTS
Having a couple of mechanics to work with, we decided to stop development on the Shield mechanic and change it into a Protect spell/ability instead to handle damage mitigation. While active, the Player is immobile as a pink aura appears around them, healing and temporarily allowing the Player to be immune to damage while active. The ability gradually drains the Player’s mana while in use. We also decided to replace the Dodge ability from Milestone 1 with a Dash ability that allows the Player to quickly sprint in any direction they are facing at the cost of some mana.
The most important thing about this milestone I wanted to accomplish was to achieve a kind of visual aesthetic that the team could begin to work under. Using rocks I modeled from my Fantasy Low Poly Environment, I staged a new scene for our Main Menu and blocked out a linear level for the Player to test. I wanted the level for this milestone to have simple pacing and gameplay moments in order to create more ideas of what the game can start to become. Having only 4 months to develop this game, I felt it was important to develop this type of visual aesthetic early-on while refining upon movement, combat and player feedback.
Milestone 2 will be our most ambitious milestone all month. I like to think of it as our comeback because of how we regrouped and really thought about how we wanted the game to be played and what kind of feel we hoped to achieve. I believe we will look back to this milestone and appreciate how well we pivoted into this direction!
My group-mates focused on introducing a leveling system where the Player could pick up green experience orbs to level up their character. Two types of enemies were added to this milestone as well, a blue Wraith-like enemy that simply ignores the Player while patrolling an area, but damages the Player if they get too close—and a second purple enemy type that patrols an area but pursues and attacks the Player if they get too close.
Redesigned the Main Menu with smooth transitions for a more modern and immersive feel.
Player activating the new Protect ability to heal/protect themselves from damage.
I focused on refining the point-and-click movement system while introducing combat so that the Player can click upon an enemy, run towards that enemy, and proceed to attack them by repeatedly clicking on them. My work this milestone also focused on the new Protect ability that the player could use to heal themselves as well as prevent damage.
I also worked on Audio SoundFXs, ParticleFXs, as well as Lighting, Environment Design, UI/UX Design, Music and background ambiance. Finally, I also designed and blocked out the level, scripting all the gameplay moments where the Player can collect their weapon to attack enemies, unlocking the next area where they can practice this mechanic, to then collect their shield to unlock their Protect ability, leading them to the next area where they must avoid traps.
Player using the Reality Phase ability to grind and defeat more enemies for EXP.
KEY THINGS I WORKED ON THIS MILESTONE:
Redesign Main Menu with modern transitions into Options and Credits menus
Audio for Menu button selection
Selecting Background Audio for Main Menu, Credits and Game Music including background ambiance
Volume sliders that adjusts the Sound/Music volume
In-game Options menu with Volume sliders that adjusts the Sound/Music volume
Rough Environment Lighting pass to add a mood and tone to the level
The Player also collects blue orbs which unlock the new Dash ability and finally the Shift Reality ability. At the very end of the video demo, you will see all of these events take place, ending with the Player retrieving the Shift Reality ability revealing more enemies and items to obtain.
This milestone has helped myself and the team get a true realization of what our game looks like at a high level, giving everyone the motivation and inspiration to push forward and continuing to work creatively. From here, we now know which mechanics must be refined and how our current mechanics feel together, giving us a lot more to work with going into our final milestone!
Combat that allows Player to click upon an Enemy and begin to deliver damage when their weapon is picked up
Design input to trigger the new Protect ability and script functionality that adds to the Player’s health, making them immune to damage and drain their Mana while in use
Designed and blocked out entire level/environment with scripted events that trigger upon Player interaction
Designed Gameplay moments for pacing giving the Player opportunities to learn and practice new mechanics