N.E.M.A.
Platform: PC (WebGL)
Engine: Unity
Team Size: 3
Project Duration: 5 Weeks
Playtime: 10 Minutes
Build: itch.io
Game designer
Designed the main ON/OFF mechanic, designed and iterated on five levels focusing on the binary state change
Additional Responsibilities
Programmer
Scripted the core movement and menu systems on Unity/C#
Artist
Created and animated the player character and other assets
Postmortem
Iteration- Level 4
Version 1- Jumping Between Elevators
Players can freefall to the bottom- no meaningful platforming done in the first half.
One mistake and players will fall to the bottom to start over- it's good to avoid meaningless backtracking.
Version 2- No More Freefall
Added spiked floors so players are forced to platform around the vertically moving platforms
These spikes also reduce the delay between making a mistake and seeing the result of it- no more meaningless backtracking
Final Version- Polish & Balancing
Playtest feedback: lasers are too hard to avoid, adjusted timing and number of lasers placed
Playtest feedback: have to wait for a while for vertical platforms to arrive/their size is too small, adjusted speed and size.
Iteration- Level 5
Version 1- There and Back
Too linear/one note. Obstacles feel like they are just there for the sake of it
We should "spice it up" more since it's the final level of the game.
Version 2- "Spiced Up"
Must reach the right corner first before reaching the exit- solved the linearity problem
The golden path is still a straight line- still too linear
Final Version- Polish
Now nonlinear (must reach the top first before coming back down)
Now it feels like the level can be extended- the way back isn't recontextualized enough (lasers aren't enough)
Conclusion
For the time spent and the number of people involved, this project was smooth from start to finish.
+High polish, with frequent iteration cycles and feedback-driven team environment- more communication meant more opportunities to find problems.
+Lots of technical implementation work done by me- understanding how things work allowed me to design around that, and vice versa.
+Doing art made me think about visual design from a game design standpoint- I was able to communicate better through ways other than game design.
-I wish we did a bit more levels- such an interesting concept for just 5 levels!
The very first diagram I drew for the game, made before the first team meeting. The core foundation of the game was already there.