lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 12 Playtesting and Finalising

This week we focused on thorough playtesting so that we could evaluate any issues that might arrise and then resolve those issues within the prototype. Our playtesting phase consisted of deep tests with 7 unique users. 5 of the users were naive and had never seen any of the game before, the remaining 2 users were biased and had already seen a great extent of the prototype.

The playtesting consisted of reading them a script for them to understand their role in playtesting, we then got them to fill our questionnaire before we began the test.

during the test I took down every note of what the playtester was saying/ anything they were struggling with or seemed to enjoy. Afer they finished their playtest we got them to fill out a playtesting survey which gave us valuable data which were then inserted into the findings table.

Once all playtesting had concluded, our team analysed the results and implements bug fixes to fix any highlighted issues that arose during the playtesting phase.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 11 Prototyping and Playtesting

For the first half of the week we kicked it into overdrive for the development phase. I began work on several new elements the game didn't have before.

Shop:

Implementing the new skins for the shop took a lot of tedious work. I had to recolour the sprite for every animation frame, for every skin:

this also had to be done for the ShadowClone object which was being used to animate the players double jump / dash. Overall the whole implementation of the shop + skins took around 15 hours.

The shop music:

The shop logic:

The Main Menu:

The Main Menu Music:

The Main Menu Logic:

The End of Level Menu:

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 10: Planning and Playtesting

This week was about organising all of the details about the game "Higher Up" so that we could have an ideae of what the game would look like at a grander scale. While we worked on Assignment 3 part A, we also began development on the game to try and get a headstart.

Level 2 prototype:

Lecture:

This weeks lecture was all about playtesting and understanding usability. The lecture went through all of the important details of playtesting that our groups need to consider, this inlucdes scripts, questionaires, surveys, and lastly, findings. Our group got these doccuments ready so we could begin our phase of playtesting.

Usability in games was a crucial topic this lecture. It made it clear that our UI/ HUD design should be a coherent and obvious as possible so that the player always understands how to play.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 9: Team Formations

This week we formed our teams for the final project. Our team met up through Discord to get familiar with eachother. Once we had greeted and broken the ice, we had a showcase where each of the group members demonstrated each of the games they had been working on throughout the semester. We then took a vote as to who's game we would chose to continue working on as our group assignment.

We decided to work on my platformer game "Deadboy's Rise" although we decided a more fitting name would be "Higher Up". We chose this game as it was the most developed out of all the options available.

We then discussed what eachothers role's would be for the development/ playtesting phase. We decided that we would all assist with the playtesting, development, and report work. This way the work is divided evenly, and everyone is able to participate in a fair opportunity.

Lecutre:

The lecture this week expanded upon some game design concepts. The concept of skills tree's was discussed and how impactful an indepth skill tree can be for a game's overall design. The lecture also talked about "Gear" which when done well, can be a great way of rewarding players and also demonstrate a clear path of progression for the player's character.

The lecture also talks about specific formulae that can be used for game design to achieve maximum enjoyment and overall polish. These formulae can be used for a variety of a functions in a game. An ability might have linear formulaic progression, while level experience might have a levelling curve that requires more xp the more you progress.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 7 Racer Ring: Development Begins

Off to a challenging start with Racer Ring's development. at the moment I am struggling to get the games logic to work.

all other cars are just spawning at the top of the screen and I'm yet to figure out what's causing it.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 6 Idea For a Game: Racer Ring

X Statement: What if a racer game was a roguelike

In this unique top-down racing game, players zoom through an endlessly stretching highway, facing a roguelike twist. Each run presents randomly generated road conditions, obstacles, and power-ups, ensuring no two races are the same. Players must adapt quickly to the ever-changing environment, utilizing strategic decision-making to overcome challenges and improve their vehicle's capabilities. With permadeath and progression elements typical of roguelikes, every failed attempt fuels the next, offering new opportunities for upgrades and strategies. This game combines the thrill of high-speed racing with the unpredictability and depth of roguelike mechanics, making each race a fresh, exhilarating challenge.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 5 Asteroid Souls: Post Mortem

I should have inclued power ups that you can buy with either your score or from lasting an amount of time. an example of one of these power ups would have been makign the debris that explodes everywhere from killing enemies, actually damage enemies instead of just phasing through them. examples of more powerups:

HP increase, speed increase, damage increase.

Lecture:

This lecture covered the importance of rules, and decissions in your game design decisions. Rules create the core structure of games, creating the limitaions that create player decisions and interactions. We explored basic examples like Noughts and Crosses, and Rock, Paper, Scissors to demonstrate how these rules shape gameplay. We went on to discuss the qualities of effective rules, including their role in creating engaging decisions and interatcions. A game with well thought out decision making will make decisions with negative and positive consequences, creating a larger feeling of justice in a games design.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 5 Asteroid Souls: Development Continues

Asteroids now spawn in at random, coming in at 3 varying health points, sizes, and attack power.

The mission of the game is to survive long enough to make it to the final level. each time you succeed you are taken back to the main menu where you can chose to retry, the main menu tells you how much score you need in the next level in order to proceed.

when your health reaches 0 or below, you are presented with this screen, along with an ominous death SFX (an homage to the intial concept of it being like dark souls)

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 4 Asteroid Souls: Development Begins

THe start of development was just focusing on getting the player moving and ready for battle. this involes allowing them to move and shoot.

Lecture:

This lecture we continued using gdevelop for our game development, focusing on its strengths in quick protyping as an indie dev. We analysed the capabilties and more importantly, the limitaions of gdevelop. We focused on managing and leeping scopes of games manageable, as they can quickly become large scale. Moreover, the lecture continued to talk about handling variables, using arrays, and implementing external events and objects for a more robust game logic structure.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 4 Idea For a Game: Asteroid Souls

X Statement: What if Asteroids was a roguelike

Still focused on the genre, imagining Asteroids as a rougelike lets players navigate a spaceship through an ever-changing asteroid field presented in procedurally generated levels, ensuring that no two playthroughs are the same. Each session introduces new challenges and asteroids with varying properties, such as different sizes, speeds, and abilities like splitting into smaller asteroids or possessing defensive mechanisms.

Players can collect power-ups and upgrades for their spaceship, enhancing its firepower, maneuverability, and defenses. The game features a permadeath system; once a player's spaceship is destroyed, the run ends, and they must start over, potentially with new ship options or starting conditions influenced by their previous performance. This roguelike iteration of Asteroids emphasizes strategic planning and adaptability, offering a fresh and engaging experience that pays homage to its arcade roots while providing depth and replayability.

Controller Scheme:

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 3 Deadboy's Rise:

Development Update 2

This week I worked on the music for the game

I'm happy with this draft for level 1, I believe it sets the atmosphere for the game appropriately.

I also worked on the games logic structure, sorting everything into event groups and subgroubs, making it much easier to follow:

Lecture:

This lecture explored dynamic systems and design processes. We dived into the concept of imagining games as a "Magic Circle" of which you can create your own rules and realities. We analysed games as dynamic systems, comprised of interconnected parts, and explored the comments that define a game; conflict, rules and quantifiable results. The lecture made importance of interative design, where prototypes are playtested and refined consistently during development. This creates a positive feedback loop that reinforces the development experience.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 3 Deadboy's Rise:

Development Continues

I've included the addition of consumables to gain the abilities to double jump and dash. You have to pay for these pickups with coins you gather through the level:

Both of these abilities include an animation when activated.

Double Jump:

Dash:

Level 1 Prototype:

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 2 Deadboy's Rise: Development Begins

After reconsidering the initial pitch, some changes were made to the games core design.

Rather than being a roguelike, Deadboys rise will focus on level based puzzle solving platoformer challenges. At the end of each level you can chose to proceed or to buy cosmetics to customise your character. In each level, there will be enough coins for you to have at least 1-3 coins leftover, these coins will be turned into stars. the stars can be spent at the shop for cosmetics.

Lecture:

This weeks lecture discussed the fundamentals of gameplay, defined as the player's experience while interacting the game world's mechaincs. Major points include understanding gameplay as a series of decisions and comparing this to a real life meal where various foods/ elements make up to create an overall experience. Also discussed was the "seeds of gameplay" which are mainly emtions, roles. mechanics, and seeing how these seeds develop to form the core of the game.

[lukaslatimoreigb120n10794433]

Week 1: Brainstorming Idea for a game: Deadboy’s Rise

X Statement: What if Hollow Knight was a roguelike?

A little knight who must make it through the Labyrinth Tower, filled with challenging obstacles designed to stop them in their tracks. The Knight will find a variety of weapons and upgrades on their journey to the top, facing monstrous creatures inhabiting each floor of the tower. Upon each fall the knight plummets, they grow ever stronger, pushing themselves to the precipice; not knowing what lies beyond the top.

Controller Scheme:

Selling Points: Mysterious Setting, Satisfying movement/combat, Core Roguelike gameplay