Gus the Hamster

I give you Gus.

Game (alpha)

We have finished two levels in our alpha version. Alpha just means it is our first semi-complete version of our game.
Right now the most important thing we can do is test. I have received some very positive feedback on our game. And with this feed back we will remodel our game and make it better.

Things we are going to chance after feedback:

• Touch up art
• Add sound and music
• Fix bugs (problems)
• Increase visibility

After we complete these changes we can move to our Beta version.

Level 1 Complete!

We have finally finished level 1. Here are some pieces of it.

I really like the way the art turned out. We will have two levels completed by Wednesday at midnight.

Level Design Cont.

These are parts of our first two levels. These are very basic and will eventually be redone to look better.

Level Design

Now that our tech demo is over. We are dedication the rest of our time to create fun and creative level design. I am currently using Adobe Illustrator to create basic level design. My partner is creating the art for everything. Kind of a slow week because I have been sick.

Post Tech Demo

The Tech Demo went well. Our game seems to entertain people, so all we need now is to make more levels and polish it. Some things we need to accomplish before our game can be finished:

• Create finished art work
• Polish the mechanics
• Create start menu

Overall I think Gus, the hamster, was the #1 feature of the game. He is adorable.

Tech Demo

My partner and I have completed the first two levels for our tech demo. The art is not complete, but it is enough to work.
We still have an issue with running uphill. It still works but the player cannot hold down the forward key while going uphill. Slight bug, but hopefully we can resolve it soon.
We are going to demonstrate our demo tomorrow to prove that the game can be made. This is common in the industry to make sure progress is continually being made.

Character Design

Character design is a very important part of creating a video game. There are some important features that a sucessful character should have. Keep in mind that a character does not need to have all of these traits to be successful.

• Simple to draw (eg. Pikachu and Pac Man)
• Adorable (eg. Pikachu, Sonic and Mario)
• Cool (eg. Cloud, Master Chief, Solid Snake)
• Personality (eg. Lara Croft, Master Chief, Link)

More information can be found on characters on this page.

Design Document & Tech Demo

As part of the next step in our development we have been asked to create both a design document and a tech demo. The design document is a document that outlines what our game is supposed to be down to very specific details.
Some examples of design documents:

• Claw
  
• Doom

The tech demo is just a playable demo of our game.This usually consists of the first couple of levels in our game.
These are very important steps in game development because it keeps you on track so your final game is what you want it to be.

Power Game Factory

Over the last week we have been using Power Game Factory. It is a game engine for a 2d platformer. We have been told to implement our game design in this engine. My partner and I have tried this with... some success. The reaction commands seems to be impossible with the tools we are given. The physics for the game is very in depth, but very limited. The engine only gives you so much information to modify, and if the thing you want to modify isn't there.. too bad. Implementing our game is proving to be more difficult that we expected, though we are still planning on completing the game as described (minus the reaction commands).

Modified game design

As part of a game design there are many changes that come about. After being paired up with another person we collaborated and came up with another game. Here is our new game:

Hamster Escape


The Story: the game follows a Hamster named Gus whose owners have left for the weekend, but accidentally forgot to take him out of his hamster ball. If that weren’t bad enough Gus is in an intricate hamster cage (and house?) filled with traps that will surely mean the death of the poor hamster. Gus must reach the end of his hamster cage (or front door) although stuck in his ball and gain the freedom and in finite supply of food that he desperately desires.

The Mechanics: The player moves by using the arrow keys (or AWSD). Because the character
is trapped in a ball, he can gain momentum by holding down the right arrow or left arrow key, the trick is slowing down because if too much momentum is gained its hard to stop Gus from falling down the wrong tube leading to his death. However the flip side is some obstacles will require a lot of momentum and therefore the player will need a lot of speed. The player will also have limited jumping ability by pressing the up arrow or W key. Because the game focuses on momentum the more speed a player has the further they will fly when jumping. The player will be given three lives at the beginning of the game and can gain lives by finding food pieces throughout the levels. At certain points in the level a player will be given reaction commands that can help a player to easily accomplish a certain puzzle however if that reaction command comes and goes the player will no longer be able to access the reaction command and will have to complete the level a different way.

The Levels: Each level is a different part of the hamster cage (or house?). There are no enemies in the game except the obstacles. The cage consists of platforms, ramps, springs, hamster wheels and traps that Gus must overcome to reach the end of his cage. All of these are
contained within the tubing Gus is running around in. Essentially it is the biggest and most dangerous hamster cage ever created.


What the Game Teaches: The game teaches several concepts including timing, spatial relationships, momentum and control, and it teaches the player to explore the maze that they are trapped in to overcome the challenges that the levels present. Risk and reward also becomes a factor of the gameplay when a player is trying to gain the most lives possible to finish the game.

Game Design

First step in any video game is design. I created a design to pitch in front of a live audience to determine if my game is worth making. This is my rough design document:

Overview

This is a game that combines the classic fun of a 2d platformer and the fun of reaction commands (like Kingdom Hearts 2 and God of War 2).

Gameplay

The game play will play like a normal 2d platformer. WASD or arrow keys for movement, and ZXC for different attacks. Player can run, jump, attack, and pick up items.
This game will differ from traditional platformers because you can use reaction commands to fight certain enemies and bosses.

Brief description of reaction commands: At certain points in fight sequences you will be prompted to hit a specific key. If you hit the specified key within a given time you will perform a “special” attack usually doing more damage than normal attacks. Each special attack can be specific to certain enemies.

In Closing

Please give me a lot of money to make this game.

Welcome

Just wanted to welcome everyone who is interested in Video Game Development.