Design

OVERVIEW

One Sentence Slam Dunk

A robotic intelligence designed for space exploration crash lands on a hazardous unknown planet, losing many of its essential parts in the process; the player takes control as it embarks on a harrowing journey across the surface and deeper inward to repair itself and escape the environment, as well as its hostile inhabitants. 

Game Vision

            This game is intended to give players the experience of controlling an intelligent machine in an interesting location.  It will capture both the adaptability and limitations of this AI, and apply them to the circumstances of the game environment.  Figuring out how to combine the abilities of the AI to overcome its limitations will provide both the challenge and fun of the gameplay experience.  It will be designed for lovers of skill based puzzles, as well as fans of science fiction, space exploration, and artificial intelligence.

            The primary Mechanic of the game is to control the AI that crash landed and lead it to its parts, which will allow it to depart the planet and finish the game.  Environment puzzles and enemies will separate the player from obtaining parts.  As the player obtains parts, new transformations and abilities will be added to the AI’s repertoire.  In order to progress, the player must learn how to apply these abilities in conjunction. 

            As the player progresses through levels, they will discover that the planet they have landed on has had previous visitors arrived there under similar circumstances.   Along with discovering the AI’s missing parts, players will discover how and why these circumstances came to be.

           

Game Audience

Audience:	People who like puzzle games, space, and robotic intelligences
Genre:	Action, Adventure, Puzzle
Platform:	PC
Property:	“Nuts and Bolts”
Expected ESRB Rating:	E or T

 

GAME DESIGN

Game Scope

The game is intended to span about the length of 5-10 levels, each utilizing the mechanics in different ways to progress.  Each level would be based around the pursuit of a main robot part necessary to allow the AI to escape the planet.  Each level would showcase a different part of the planet and contain different environmental hazards and enemy types.  It is not intended to be a character based design, though it is hopeful that players will develop some degree of attachment to the AI.  Increased levels and graphical improvements would be the primary foci of an increased budget.  Currently, the design and development team will focus on 1-2 levels to demonstrate the core concepts.

Core Mechanics

The game will utilize an isometric 2.5d camera with a WASD + mouse control scheme.  The AI will obtain parts in order to unlock access to new transformations.  Each transformation will grant the use of a different special ability.  Using each of the abilities will consume a percentage of battery power, when the battery power is reduced to 0 the game is over. These forms and abilities represent the primary mechanics of the game:

-        (first priority) A normal (starting) form that provides the most balanced speed and strength.

-        (second priority) A battery gauge, representing the player’s power reserve, used for powering abilities and measuring health.

-        (third priority) A small form that allows the AI to travel to smaller spaces with better movement.

-        (fourth priority) A strong form that will give the AI greater strength to move objects in the environment and a melee attack.

-        (fifth priority) A thruster form that will allow the AI to fly/traverse gaps.

Each of these mechanics is central to the concept of the game; although I don’t think it would be possible to remove any of them this is their relative priority.

Secondary Mechanics

Several other ideas have been presented for ways to expand and deepen the gameplay experience.  Their order of priority is:

-        (first priority) A grappling form that gives the AI a grappling hook to pull itself to objects, or objects to it. (which one happens will depend upon their relative strengths + masses).  This form will also give the AI a ranged attack.

-        (Second priority) Upgrades that modify the effectiveness of individual forms

-        (third priority) different battery types, affecting the rate in which the AI consumes power.

It is also unknown what degree of graphical variation will exist between different transformations.  It is possible that many similarities exist between them, but preferably each form will be clearly distinguishable through visuals alone.

Metagame

The ultimate goal for players is to collect enough parts to make their AI spaceworthy.  These parts will be dispersed throughout the levels; some will be hidden, others will just be difficult to get to.  In most cases, more than one solution will be available to find each individual part.  Also strewn throughout environments will be evidence of earlier occupancy, including destroyed ships, information logs, hints describing future puzzles or hazards, and other Easter eggs providing insight to how and why the AI came to arrive on the planet.  Along with discovering its own reason for arriving on the planet, the AI will learn about the other inhabitants of the environment as well.  Unfolding the mystery of these events, as well as improving the functionalities of the AI, is intended to be the main motivators for players to progress. 

Art Direction

Art Style

What does this game look like?  What is the consistent visual style that ties all of the elements of the game together?  What do the characters look like?  What do the environments look like?  What will players see in this game that they haven’t seen before?  What does the game not look like?

Art Example

What is the single key-art image for this game?  What picture will sell this game?  What parts of the vision, core mechanics, art direction and humor can we summarize with a single awesome picture?

Technology

Core Relevance and Competencies

Which game design features represent core competency and comfort level for the studio?  Are there specific developer technologies that will boost quality of features?  Which specific execution will be most appreciable to the player in the final product?

Technology Scope

Will the scale, ambition, and execution of this title be adequately addressed by the technology as it stands today?  Are there interesting or breakthrough ideas in the game scope that have been tried or experimented with in the past?  Is the focus on the game technology directed primarily at providing compelling content and visuals, or interactivity and behavior?

Technology Stretch Goals and Vision

Will technology be pushed and enhanced for this title to do something we’ve not seen before?  I.e. which game features will be supported by new techniques and implementation?  How will technology be used to deliver the core mechanics to an exceptional quality?  What specific game design features represent a degree of new development and invention on the part of the developer?

THEME

Story, Characters, and Setting

What makes up the universe of this game?  What is the overall story that the players are involved in?  Who are the main characters?  The main character doesn’t have to be the sole player-controlled-character.  The main character can be one of many characters the players control (Arthas), a sidekick (Han Solo), a mentor character (Gandalf), or even a villain (Darth Vader, Ursula).  Where is the game set?  How do these locations support the player’s progress through the game?  Do the story, characters and setting all support the theme of the game?

Closing Summary

Goals

What are our overall goals in creating this game?  In many ways this is a follow-up question to the “why” section of the One Sheet.  Cover not only the goals, but also how we think we can achieve them, and how we’ll measure our success towards the goal.