Gameplay Programmer
Transmission (Global Game Jam 2018)
Department breakdown
Table of Contents
Game Summary
This game was done as a part of the 2018 Global Game Jam, and created at the Collin College site. It is a 2D platformer where you play as a cube (Tunie) and your goal is to collect all of Tunie's kids and bring them back to their home safely. Tunie must avoid certain death with well timed jumps and by using the power of the gravity zones.
I Contributed all of the code in the game save for one script on one of the sound wave shaped platforms. I also did a little bit of the art (Primarily UI, but also Tunie's death face).
Personal Contributions
Gravity Zones and Platforming
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Platforming
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Without gravity zones, this is pretty straight forward
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Jump is up, Gravity is down, move left or right
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Dragging force applied in whatever direction moving towards
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Platforming and Gravity Zones
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When introducing different directions of gravity, this does change how all regular platform actions are calculated
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Two Types of Zones:
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Box
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Circle
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Box Gravity Zones are set up to only apply gravity in one designer defined direction
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Circle Gravity Zones are set up to pull the player towards it's center
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Control differences are generally you just apply gravity or jump or movement in the rotated direction
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Ex: if gravity is now to the right, then jump is to the left, and player should be able to walk up/down
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For this project, I locked the player's inputs for left right to be either left/right, or down/up respectively.
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If trying to determine if on the ground, line trace in the direction of gravity.
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Actor Script
Base Gravity Change Zone Script
What Went Well
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Adjusting basic platforming functionality to allow gravity to change went generally well.
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Despite having only 2 people working on the team, we achieved some decent gameplay mechanics.
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Even when had to work remote on one day, communication was very clear; though that is expected on a team with fewer people.
Challenges
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Double jump functionality was added late and did not get all the polish it deserved (feels as though have to button mash the jump button to get the second jump).
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Being that we only had two people, and neither of us level designers, the game is not built for first time players to the platforming genre (May turn off people that try the game).
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Was a little rusty at coding in Unity.
What I Learned
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Even with gravity changing, platforming is still a mater of getting the base functionality, then lots of polish.
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Considering how simple getting the 2D version of changing gravity was, I am willing to bet that the 3D version would be almost as easy to get started.
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When making an animation, ask the artist on the team before manually creating 60 frames of arrows going up.
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Wound up trying to create an animated arrow animation for the box zone, wanted it to change based on the direction the gravity is going, but had to abandon in favor of more mechanics.
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Gallery
A Gif of Tunie jumping into an upwards gravity zone, and dieing to the spike waves.
A gif of one of Tunie's kids following him.
Tunie dieing leads to him no longer being effected by gravity. Originally this was a bug, but after seeing it, me and my teammate just found it too hilarious to not make into a mechanic.
A Gif of Tunie jumping into an upwards gravity zone, and dieing to the spike waves.