PunchPunch! is a 3D alt-ctrl boxing game where the player uses the makeshift boxing controller to simulate real boxing by punching certain areas. We added a dodge mechanic that players must step on to dodge punches.

Roles

• Game Designer

• Sound Designer 

Team Size: 6

Year: 2022

Timeline: 1 Week

I designed it where the controller would be the enemy boxer. There would be 5 points that the player must hit in order to register in the game. I designed a block button that the player must step on to block an upcoming attack but that would be changed into dodge buttons in the future. I designed a health system for the game where the player would have 3 hearts before they are knocked out.

The team really liked the idea and thought it would be a fun, active game for the player to experience. In the end, my idea was chosen to be developed.

We had access to some cardboard provided by the professors of the program which came in handy. We decided to use one of the members of the team to draw out a silhouette which we were able to cut out at the end.

We used this model just for testing purposes and testing how we were going to add the points on the model where the player will hit.

We then placed padding where the player will be hitting the controller in order to damage the enemy boxer. We made sure to add some cushion underneath it so the player wouldn't get hurt from punching the controller since it would be placed on a wall.

We had an option to use a makey makey kit that was provided by the college. We signed out a few in order to get all the buttons working on the controller (Don't worry, there were plenty of kits for the other teams!) We used tin foil in order for the kit to recognize what button was being hit which would register in the game with thanks to our one and only programmer.

The original idea was to add a button on the controller that the player must hit to dodge oncoming punches from the enemy boxer. We thought that would be confusing for the player to do. I came up with an idea where the player must step on pedals on the floor which would simulate dodging in the game. We had to add a lot of cushion to the pedals as when we playtested it for ourselves, we found that we would be stomping on it while in the game.

After getting all the buttons working on the old controller, we felt like we needed something a little better than what we had. We wanted the controller to be like an actual boxer that you will be fighting against. One of our members of our team was an excellent artist and quickly whipped up a new concept for the controller.

Afterwards, we transferred the kit to the new controller and we did some cable management to make it look cleaner instead of all the wires hanging out from it. We had a lot of positive feedback when we showcased the game to the other teams. 

Our programmer had each of us design a sequence that will be used in the game. We had to design what the enemy boxer would be doing. For example: punch middle, punch left, dodge left, etc. The player would be able to select which sequence they wanted to try at the main menu. In the end, it came out great and we were happy with the end product.