Failing makes success

We started off the sixth of October with getting the assignment. Each team consists of 5-6 people. The task was to design a concept for a simple space shooter type of game with the following requirements:
– 2D
– No gravity (not requiring a gravity system in the game)
– PC controls
– No network
– Single player (Multiplayer and Co-Op can be optional as long as the game is playable as 1 person.)

Each team got two things they had to incorporate in the concept. My team got ”Dia de los muertos” and snacks.
Dia de los muertos means ”day of the dead” and it is a Mexican celebration where they gather to remember their dead family and friends and pray for them. And when it comes to the word snacks, I´m pretty sure you are familiar with this one, (hopefully not to much).

Our team got to agree on our roles in this project where we thought we would get the best out of it.
The set up is as follows:

–Producer: Eva.
Will be overseeing production and organizing the team. Gets the final word in conflicts. Will ensure timely delivery of deliverables.
–Game designer: Nayomi. (Me)
Responsible for design decision. Responsible for design documentation. Communicating the vision to the rest of the team.
–Lead code: Gabriel.
Responsible for technical solution. head of the code team.
–Lead art: Tova.
Responsible for the visual representation. Head of the art team.
–Lead sound: Kevin.
Responsible for the audiovisual representation. Head of the sound team.
–QA: Marcus.
Responsible for the quality of the documentation. Responsible for the quality of the prototype.

The game took the form of a side scroller game where you walked around as a skeleton that got brought back to life during the festival Dia de muertos. Our way of implementing the snacks was easy since the candy and snacks is a big part of the festival. So, the idea was that the player would walk around as this skeleton shooting candies at evil spirits. The scenery was a town during the festival. The target audience was supposed to be ”the achiever” and the goal to be and try to get as many points as possible by shooting enemies, collecting power ups and extras like churros (a type of Mexican snack). Then during a chance for feedback our teacher asked us to explain how it made sense that the player was shooting candy at the spirits. Would that make them happy so that they would leave you alone? How would it make sense on screen during play? How did this appeal to the achiever type of person? They want to feel like they can master a game with finding hidden objects etc.

Eventually we figured out that having everyone’s ideas and consent for everything just gave us a terrible and flat outcome. Everyone should absolutely be able to propose ideas, but that does not mean that they are great and should be put into the game. Like our teacher said ”It´s not like the sound guy is gonna oppose a scene during a movie shoot with Steven Spielberg” That´s why there is a lead team that makes the final decisions.
So of course we decided to overhaul half way through the project time limit. The team hated me and the project leader for a while.. Us two ended staying up almost all night trying to figure out something that would work and have all the requirements.

The new game finally came to us! The game narrative is now about a piñata that got possessed by an vengeful spirit during a Dia de muertos celebration. And it isn´t happy about the life of a piñata so far. So now the task is to crash the festival before to many piñatas is sacrificed. By eating candy the piñata grow in size and gets the ability to smash bigger objects. Dropping candy makes the piñata smaller and faster. But the player has to keep track of how much candy is eaten because if it gets to big it will blow up and too small will cause it to run out of energy and dissolve. The player also has to avoid the people during the festival. If kids spot the piñata they will want the candy and lets just say it´s not a good thing for the piñata. So by dropping candy they will go for the candy instead.
The game is time based so gathering points and surviving will be a challenge.

Today we had our pitch. And I must say that I´m feeling proud. We got great feedback and this shows us that we made the right choice by redoing the game. I´m sure by now that our team no longer hates us and feel just as proud.

You can view all of our power point pitch here!

/Nayomi

About Nayomi Arvell

2014  Graphics

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