Labels

Games Development - Task 1 : Game Design Document

06.04.2023 - 27.04.2023 ( Week 1 - Week 4 )

Michelle Angeline Gunawan / 0349760 / Bachelor of Design in Creative Media
Games Development
Task 1 : Game Design Document

LECTURES

Game Development Component
  1. Design
    The development process of designing the Content and Rules
    Pre-production Stage
    Design of Gameplay, environment, storyline, characters
     Requires artistic and technical competence as well as writing skills

  2. Art
    Visual, concept artist, UI

  3. Technology
Elements of a game
  • Story
    • How what happens
    • Affects someone
    • In pursuit of a difficult goal
    • How he or she changes
    • Whose story is it
    • What is happening
    • What is at stake
    • What problem does the protagonist have to deal with
  • Story Spine
  • Exposition
    • Introduction
  • Conflict
    • Obstacles and challenges
  • Climax
    • Final battle
  • Resolution
    • Conclusion
  • Gameplay
    • Challenge
    • Strategy
  • Chance
    • Help prolong the Life of the player
    • ex: special bomb weapon, extra health, bonus health
  • Choice
  • Luck
    • an item can bring luck to the player
Game Ideation

How to generate ideas for your game
  1. Brainstorming
  2. Brainwriting 6-3-5
  3. SCAMPER
    Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put to another use, Eliminate, Reverse
  4. 3(I)
    Incorporate, Improve, Inverse
TASK

Instructions
We need to design and create our own 2D side-scrolling/platformer game. The game design document serves as a blueprint for the game and will contain all the necessary information and visual references to develop the game.

Game Ideation
First of all, we are asked to prepare 3 storyline ideas for our game.
  • The Cat-Venture Quest

    Storyline #1
    Once upon a time, in a faraway magical land, there lived a group of adventurous cats. They loved nothing more than going on quests and exploring the unknown areas of the land.

    One day, they heard of a magical artifact that could grant wishes to whoever possessed it. The magical artifact was guarded by the Evil Witch in the Dark Forest. Determined to find it, the cats set off on a perilous journey through the Dark Forest. Along the way, they encountered many challenges and obstacles. They had to face fierce predators, solve tricky puzzles, and overcome their own fears and weaknesses. But then they got separated and got caught by the Evil witch. Only Max manages to survive. The Evil Witch casts a spell that makes Max fly to nowhere. To save it’s friend, Max starts a new journey through the Dark Forest. What will Max face this time?

    Objective #1
    The objective of The Cat-venture Quest is to guide the main character, a cat, through various levels, defeating enemies and collecting items along the way, with the ultimate goal of rescuing their cat friends who the Evil Witch has captured.

  • Lyra's Gem Adventure: Portal to the Unknown

    Storyline #2
    Celestia had always been fascinated by gems. From a young age, she had collected them, admiring their beauty and uniqueness. As she grew older, her collection grew more impressive, and she became known as one of the best gem collectors in her small town.

    One day, while out on a collecting trip, Celestia stumbled upon a gem she had never seen before. It was a deep shade of blue, with flecks of silver running through it. As soon as she touched it, a bright light shot out from it and hit Celestia directly in the face.

    The next thing Celestia knew, she was waking up in a strange dimension. Everything around her was unfamiliar - the sky was purple, the trees had bright pink leaves, and the ground was made of a strange, spongy material. Celestia felt disoriented and scared, but she knew she had to find her way back home.

    As a seasoned gem collector, Celestia knew that every dimension had its own portal. So she set off on an adventure to find it. But she quickly realized that this was not going to be an easy task. The terrain was treacherous, with steep cliffs and bottomless chasms. Strange creatures lurked in the shadows, and Celestia had to be constantly on guard.

    Days turned into weeks as Celestia trudged through the strange dimension, her feet sore and her spirits low. But she refused to give up. She had to get back home.

    Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Celestia saw a glimmer of light in the distance. She ran towards it, her heart pounding with excitement. As she got closer, she saw it was indeed the portal back to her own dimension.

    But just as she was about to step through it, a massive beast emerged from the shadows. Its eyes glowed red, and it bared its sharp teeth menacingly. Celestia knew she had to act fast.

    With a deep breath, she pulled out her bag of gems and tossed them at the beast. The gems hit the creature with a bright flash of light, blinding it momentarily. Celestia took her chance and darted through the portal, feeling a sense of relief flood over her as she emerged back into her own dimension.

    She collapsed on the ground, exhausted but triumphant. Celestia faced countless obstacles on her adventure, but she persevered. She looked down at the gem that had brought her to the strange dimension, wondering what other adventures it might hold.

    Objective #2
    The objective of The World of Celestia is to find the portal back to the main dimension while overcoming various obstacles and challenges along the way. The game could also involve collecting and using gems as weapons or tools to navigate the strange dimension. The player would have to use strategy, quick thinking, and resource management to succeed in the game.
  • Shutdown Protocol: Infected City

    Storyline #3
    In the sprawling cyberpunk city of Neo-Gen, you are a skilled hacker and operative working for a powerful corporation. Your job is to maintain and protect the city's advanced computer systems from external threats.

    One day, a deadly computer virus infects the city's systems, causing a catastrophic shutdown of the entire infrastructure. Chaos erupts in the streets as the citizens are cut off from food, water, and medical supplies. The corporation that you work for tasks you with finding and stopping the virus before it can cause irreversible damage to the city.

    As you investigate, you discover that the virus was created and spread by a mysterious figure known only as "The Phantom". The Phantom is a legendary hacker who has evaded capture for years and is rumored to be behind some of the biggest cyber-attacks in history.

    You must track down The Phantom and stop him before he can cause more damage to the city. Along the way, you will face off against cyber-enhanced soldiers, hack into complex security systems, and uncover a conspiracy that goes deeper than you could have imagined.

    As you get closer to The Phantom, you begin to question your own loyalties and the true motives of the corporation you work for. You must decide whether to continue following orders or to take matters into your own hands and expose the truth.

    In the final showdown, you face off against The Phantom and must use all of your hacking skills and wits to defeat him and stop the virus. However, you soon realize that The Phantom had a hidden agenda all along, and stopping the virus was only a small part of his plan.

    You must race against time to stop The Phantom's true plan, which could cause irreparable damage to the city and its citizens. Your decisions will determine the fate of Neo-Gen, and the choices you make will have far-reaching consequences.

    As the city begins to recover, you must decide what your next move will be. Will you continue to work for the corporation, trying to make a difference from within, or will you join the ranks of the rebels fighting against the corrupt system? The choice is yours in this world of technology and deception.

    Objective #3
    The objective of Shutdown Protocol: Infected City is to stop a deadly computer virus that has infected the city's infrastructure, causing a complete shutdown of all systems. The player must use their hacking skills and combat abilities to investigate and track down the source of the virus, a mysterious figure known as "The Phantom."

Then I put all of my ideas into a presentation

Process

After receiving feedback from the consultation, Mr. Razif said that the second idea was the best idea. He suggested that I could develop his idea later. First of all, I made a control game for the player. There are four movements that the main character can do. The following is a table of movements from players.


Then I thought of an idea for the game elements. There are two game elements, challenge and chance. Here are ideas for my game elements.

Challenge
  • The main character will fight against various enemies using her gems
  • The main character resolves some puzzle
  • Limited lives (5 Health/ 10 HP)
Chance
  • There will be limited checkpoints, if the main character dies, the game will restart at the checkpoint
  • There will be items to recover the main character's health

Level Design
After that, I started designing the levels in the game. I decided to create 3 levels. The first level is a level that contains tutorials to help players. I also make rough sketches for each level. Here are the levels I've designed for my game.
  • Level 1: The Arrival
    The game begins with Celestia's arrival in the strange dimension. The player takes control of Celestia, who wakes up disoriented and scared. The level serves as a tutorial, teaching the player the basic mechanics of the game, such as movement, jumping, and using the gem weapons. Celestia has to navigate through a dense forest and dodge dangerous creatures.



    On Level 1 there will be tutorial on how to
    • Jump
    • Double jump
    • Basic attack using blue gem
    • Collect item (heart) to restore health
    • Grow plant to climb platform using green gem
    • Enter the portal to go to the next level
  • Level 2: The Caves
    Level two takes place in a series of dark, twisting caves that are home to some of the most dangerous creatures in the game. The player has to guide Celestia through the maze-like caves, using the gems to light the way and defeat enemies. The caves are also filled with puzzles and traps that require the player to think outside the box.


    On Level 2 there will be:
    • Falling spikes that the player has to avoid
    • The player will fight the Slime
    • The player needs to avoid the lava and falling into the void
    • The player needs to jump over the moving platform
    • The player needs to collect a key to open a gate and enter the battlefield to fight the mini-boss while avoiding the falling spikes once
  • Level 3: The Final Battle (The Cliffs)
    The final level takes place in a large open area where the portal back to Celestia's world is located. The player must help Celestia fight off a massive beast that guards the portal. The creature has multiple phases, each requiring the player to use different tactics to defeat it. Once defeated, Celestia can finally return home, marking the end of the game.


    On the Final Level, there will be:
    • The player needs to shoot an object to be able to land on a platform
    • The player will jump over platforms that can appear and disappear
    • The player needs to use the green gem to make a spiky bush disappear
    • The player will face the Stone Minion twice
    • There will be secret rooms that can only be opened using green gem and there will be a power-up
    • The player will fight the Final Boss while avoiding the falling spikes during the fight
Flowchart
Then, I created a flowchart for my game. I use MIRO to help me design the flowchart.


So at first, the main menu and start screen will appear. After that, a cutscene will appear. Players are given the option to watch or skip. If it skips, then the player will go directly to level 1. The point is that for each level, if the player fails then they will be given the choice to retry or not. If so, the player will repeat the level. If not, then the player will go directly to the end screen.

Art Inspiration
These are the inspiration for my game.

Character


Effects


Enemy



Items

Gems

Starting Page


UI



In-game Dialog



Background



Art Bible
I prepared some sketches for this game. I sketched using Adobe Photoshop and Pixel Art Studio. Most of my sketches are still made using regular styles, but later to finalize the design, I will make it pixel. The following are the sketches that I have been working on.

Main Character (Celestia)


Gems


Enemies

Level 1 Enemies


Level 2 Enemies


Final Level  Enemies
FINAL RESULTS

Game Proposal Document

Game Proposal Presentation

FEEDBACKS
  • The idea that players can choose gems that have each ability is not complicated. The difficult ones are like climbing the walls, combo attack, can swing on a rope. Choosing gems is not difficult because it can be made based on logic.
  • Better to create your own in-game character.
REFLECTIONS

I was excited to start working on our Games Development module for a 2D platform game since I thought it would be fun. It required coming up with a variety of ideas, including game ideas and other game elements. Pixel-based games particularly caught my attention because they seemed to be quick and simple to make. When I tried to use Pixel Art Studio to sketch my character, though, my opinion of how straightforward pixel art is was altered. It proved to be harder than I had anticipated, which presented a potential barrier to the development of my game.

I made the decision to watch pixel art lesson videos to improve my skills because I was not confident. These videos turned out to be very helpful, offering direction and boosting my confidence. I gained insightful knowledge and gradually improved my skills in pixel art by paying attention to the methods used in the tutorials.

In general, making a 2D platform game has been a learning experience. I initially underestimated how difficult it was to create pixel art. Nevertheless, I was able to overcome this challenge and seeking out advice.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment