What was your original idea? Did it change as you worked?

My original idea was to go through the tutorials. Do exactly what they said at the bare minimum. Then go back and improve on it when I finished with it. That idea didn't change throughout the whole thing. I just kept that idea to keep on the limited time we had to do this.

Which parts were most fun or most difficult to create?

I found the initial Islands the most fun to create mostly because it was the most loose tutorial. You were generally told what do to but you didn't follow any strict line of things and just made the islands yourself with no real guide for how to place them. you just had to use the space there to do whatever you wanted.

What tools or techniques were most useful?

The most useful tool was definitely the content drawer. I feel like that is kind of an obvious, lazy answer. Although I feel it is a very useful tool. Seeing as the content drawer is the navigation tool over everything you put into the viewport. I really like the organization system and the naming system as it is so easy to navigate and use. I think it is the most useful tool in that. The most useful technique on the other hand I do think is the combo of alt and shift. As alt copies the item that is already in the viewport and shift makes the camera move as you move the item. I think it is the most useful technique because it saves time even if it is just a small amount.

What are you most proud of?

I'm most proud of the moving Islands. Mainly because of the fact I enjoy animation. I really love animation and seeing that final animation of something that is finished just makes me feel accomplished. I don't think that feeling of seeing the finished animation will ever not make me feel that way. So seeing a finished animation will probably always make me the most proud in a project.

What would you improve with more time?

I'd probably improve the animation. I'd probably move to make the animation more complex and challenging. Possibly adding more island with more advanced animation and harder timing to calculate for the player. Also making more challenging speeds and jumps to push the abilities of the player and make it more fun for them.

Introduction

The valley is where this level takes place. In the story the valley is the place you as the character is returning to after a long time for some reason has made you return. What was added to this was the checkpoints, the village, and the castle. Along with the path and foliage that will lead you through this level. As you go through you follow the path through the level to the checkpoints into the village and then the castle which is the end. What makes this world interesting to explore is the details and variety. Each checkpoint is different, getting more detail as you get towards the village. They also include bits and pieces of the story that you can observe through observation to make the player stop and explore.

The Valley

In this unit the parts I expanded most on were definitely the checkpoints, foliage, and the mood of the level. I didn't really have a clear idea of what I wanted. I just knew I wanted it to be calm, peaceful, and eerie, and I definitely think I achieved that.

The most useful tools of the level building were the landscape tools for me. as when you go back through as you continue building it's important to have flat ground for the foundation of what you're building on. I think to mesh the props and world together to make it look real was definitely the landscape tool to adjust and make the world look more cohesive.

From this unit I'm most proud of how the foliage placement turned out. As foliage was a big part of the execution of mood in the level I'm really happy it turned out the way I wanted it to. Even if it is a small detail it definitely changes the mood a lot. The world feels completely different than the end of Unit 4. It's kind of hard to compare as it is a whole new level, but it feels more like you are getting into the story unlike level one in unit four which feels more like their is no story to it and it's just a level to kind of play through and figure out mechanics. Rather than actually playing a part in the story. I think it mostly feels that way because in creating this level we had more creative liberties in being able to make it tie into something that might actually grow into a story. 

If I had more time I think I'd want to improve the village and the castle. I'd like to polish and decorate as well as expand a bit more to make it more fun to explore for the player. I definitely think for an end to a level at the moment it feels a bit underwhelming. so that Is definitely something I'd improve.

Which challenge was the most difficult to build, and why?

Probably the guarded marketplace. It was more difficult to understand with the math calculations involved. I was never best at math when it involved word explanations. So that part was confusing to follow along with. Also because I was behind at that point and I was trying to move a bit faster to get to the point I needed to be. So the stressor of time was definitely something that also made it difficult to do.

How did you balance difficulty to keep it fun but fair?

Each challenge had it's balance. It's mostly about not making it feel too easy that it eliminates the feeling of tension and not too hard that it feels impossible. The thing to do is find the happy medium between the two. With the narrow path it was an issue with spacing of platforms that had to be fixed. With boulder hill it was about the spacing of the safe spots. With the timed gate it was about how long the timed gate was open. Lastly with the guarded marketplace it was about the spacing of the safe spots and how frequent the bottles were. Each challenge had it's parameter that effected it's fairness and fun.

Which mechanic are you most proud of, and how does it fit the story of The Valley?

I definitely think I'm most proud of the towers. Mostly because they were the most difficult to build. They fit into the story in a way that these are the first people you see. Immediately the first thing you notice is they look different from your character, possibly a different species. You don't really know, all you know is that they're trying to kill you from their wooden structures. This is really left up to interpretation why they're trying to kill you.

If you had more time, what new challenge would you add?

I'm not sure what I would add to it. I don't really know what other challenge I would make. In the landscape that I made there's not really enough room for another large challenge really. I think I'd probably customize and decorate the challenges more if I had more time. I didn't exactly have enough time to customize or decorate really since I was on a time crunch, but that would be something that i'd probably do.

What did you learn about storytelling through visuals and sound?

Visuals and sound convey emotions and ideas. In a story telling sense you can get the feelings of what the story is and will be. It sets the expectation from the player for the story and game ahead. It helps immerse the player not just in gameplay but also in story. If the visuals and sounds are up beat and the story is sorrowful and evil it completely throws off the player and the full enjoyment from the story. 

Which feature do you think most enhances the player’s emotional experience?

I think the cutscenes do. They add a lot to the game that's surprising. It makes the game feel finished and exciting. It also adds more immersion to the game and gives more to what the player will expect. It makes the emotion and the expectation for the game more exciting and immersive for the player.

If you could add one more cinematic or audio element, what would it be - and why?

I don't think I would add anything. Personally I don't think I'm well enough equipped to do so. Although I would like to add a title screen. Like in some game when the initial cutscene ends they go to a title screen of the game and then switch to the main menu when it's over. I think it would add just a small detail to the game that the player may appreciate and also adds a cue when that cutscene is done.