Game Designer, Google Techmakers Scholar 2020
Stasis
Role: Level & UI Designer --- Team Size: 7 --- Development Time: 3 months
A 3D platformer focused on conveying narrative through environment and dialogue cues. Play as Kai, a young girl journeying beyond the safety of her solar-punk city home above the trees in order to fix her mistakes. Created with Unreal.
Click the images for descriptions
Level Design
Stasis is a game in 3 parts - Upper Canopy, Midbranch and Cave system. Each is meant to reflect a microcosmic beginning, middle and end of the protagonist's larger journey.
As level designer I:
-
Used the core concepts of elevation and lighting to create wireframe levels, integrating the battery mechanic into level difficulty
-
Created grey boxed levels to test them in a playable space
-
Gathered the visual influences and asset lists for our environment artists to create, and integrated them into the Unity project
-
Conducted playtests for player experiences and traversal ease, iterating on feedback
Core gameplay intentions - highly visual, natural environments and a focus on player traversal.
Overall game breakdown in relation to narrative
Stasis was intended to be a snapshot of a larger adventure, and so the ending reflects that - hopeful for a task yet to be completed.
Core gameplay intentions - highly visual, natural environments and a focus on player traversal.
Mock up animation of the final UI representing Kai's solar battery charge.
UI elements were intended to be as diegetic as possible, and so the battery life was concepted as being attached to Kai. Due to her small size on the screen, this was scrapped as it would not have been noticeable.
Concepts for non-diegetic battery UI that would be inobtrusive with the game's natural environment.
Mock up animation of the final UI representing Kai's solar battery charge.
User Interface
Solar energy powers Kai's legs for greater jumping and allows the use of checkpoints, and so players must keep an eye on their battery life throughout the game.
-
Direct sunlight charges the battery - hence why the upper tree canopy is the safest place to be.
-
Darker shadows drains the battery, meaning the danger only increases when Kai falls deeper into the forest.
Character Design
Initial character art for Avum, Kai's holographic travelling companion and guide beyond the city. He has travelled with many before - some successful, and some that have met their end - such is the danger outside the walls.
-
Avum acts to indicate energy levels, direct the player to points of interest and convey interaction between Kai even as a silent protagonist.
final visual design of Avum, that was then given to our character artist for modelling.
Visual reference for the birds Avum is derived from, and how his holographic nature could be shown.
Initial designs for the protagonist, Kai. To fit with the forest environment she was given hoods and cloaks to emphasise movement, however this removed for being difficult to implement within the timeframe.
final visual design of Avum, that was then given to our character artist for modelling.