Every player was able to figure out how to play the game so I don’t really need to make any changes to the controls.
Difficulty
Overall most players found the game to be pretty easy. I would want my game to be a bit more challenging so I might go back and add more obstacles.
Walking Speed and Jump Force
These were two very important questions because this is what I was most concerned with. Overall most players were satisfied with the walk speed so I will leave that as it is. However, most players thought the jump force was too high. If I have the camera follow the player it might take care of this issue.
I’m glad to see that everyone was able to make it to end of the level.
The name of my game is “Wendigold” it is about a mythological creature that hunts for gems in the woods.
This is my start menu. The title is off center for the time being but I plan on returning later to fix it.This is the green gem. My game will include a variety of gems that give different boosts to the player.These floating rocks are an example of one of the different platforms that will be featured in my game. In some cases the player will have to hop onto tree branches in order to reach them.
Zombie Hand: Zombie hands hold the player in place. The player must struggle to get out of their grip. These traps do not cause damage or death unless the player fails to struggle out on time.
Haunted Axe: These flying axes will randomly appear in certain areas and the player must jump to avoid them or they will take damage.
Hunter: The hunter is a reoccurring enemy throughout each level and cannot be permanently killed only knocked out. The hunter uses tranquilizer bullets which can’t harm the player but will cause disorientation making it harder to avoid obstacles. Being touched by the hunter results in a capture or instant kill and the only way to defeat him permanently is to lead him into a trap (like the zombie hand).
Rewards:
Green Gem: These rare gems grant the player a jump boost but can only be used a certain amount of times.
Red Gem: These gems grant the player immunity for a certain amount of hits.
Moon Coin: Grants the player an extra life and also freezes all enemies in place momentarily.
The goal in Syoban Action is to reach the end of the game, the obstacles are the various traps and enemies the player must avoid, and there is really no conventional reward except the satisfaction of beating the game since it is excruciatingly difficult.
2. Because the game is designed to look like Mario it gives the player a sense of familiarity about how it should work. The game plays with expectations with cleverly hidden traps that most platformers would not use.
3. Aside from being a platformer I think that this game could fit in the puzzle genre since it requires experimenting to figure out each following move.
4. Syobon Action is a commentary on the gradual decline in difficulty video games have shown over the years. Big game companies tend to make games generally easy in order to reach a wider demographic. Indie games on the other hand can provide a much more challenging experience since they don’t fall into this trend.
Unexpected Moments:
In other platformers enemies don’t usually spawn from item boxes. At least not so early on in the game
I was expecting the cloud to just be part of the background but it turned out to be a hidden trap.
Reaching the flag generally marks the completion of a level so I did not expect for there to be a trap at the end as well.
Since my character is based on the wendigo, a mythical forest monster, it made sense to go for a more horror themed platformer.
Trees:
It’s only natural for forests to have trees. These trees are not only decorative but have branches that serve as platforms as well. I’ve only used one type of tree in this demonstration but for my full game I would like to incorporate a variety of tree shapes with different platforms.
Floating Rocks:
These floating rocks would serve as moving platforms. Players will have to climb trees in order to reach them. These harder to reach places is where I would place any treasures or items.
Clouds:
The clouds are just a simple addition to the background and I made them purple to make them look more dark and unsettling.
Moon:
I added the moon to the background to make it clear that it is night time which adds to the dark tone of the scene.
I chose the game Persona 5 once again. Persona 5 is a JRPG/Social Simulator developed by Atlus and released in 2016. The game takes place in Tokyo Japan and is split into two segments, the Overworld and the Metaverse. In Persona 5 you play as an average looking high school student who leads a double life. In the real world he is a typical teenager. However in the “shadow dimension” or Metaverse he is the leader of the Phantom Thieves, a group of vigilantes who target the minds of corrupt adults and get them to have a change of heart by defeating their shadow versions in the Metaverse. In the mornings the player goes to school and in the afternoons they have two choices, hang out in the overworld or travel to the metaverse. The player must balance these two segments to excel in the game.
School:
In the mornings the protagonist usually goes to class. During the classroom segments the teacher will ask the player various questions that they must answer. Answer correctly and the player is rewarded with Knowledge points but guess wrong and they will be mocked by the other students and miss out on obtaining points for their Social Stats (Charm, Guts, Proficiency, Knowledge, and Kindness.)
Overworld:
All the Social Simulator aspects of the game can be found in the Overworld. Here the player is allowed to explore different locations throughout the city like parks, shopping districts, and landmarks. The player can participate in everyday student activities like studying, spending time with friends, watching movies, shopping, working out, etc. Completing tasks in the Overworld can greatly aid the player in the Metaverse. For example going to the gym will expand the player’s Health and Special Points. Certain activities here also reward Social Points which are required to unlock certain characters and skills.
Metaverse:
This is where the main JRPG action happens. The Metaverse is shown as a corrupt version of certain real world locations from the game. Here the player and their team traverse through different palaces/dungeons, fight enemies in a turn based style, and defeat each palace ruler to progress through the story.
I call this little character I came up with Wendigold. The inspiration for this character comes from the mythical creature called the Wendigo. My three designs include an unhooded version, one where his hood is up and one where he is wearing a cloak.
Unhooded Design
This is probably the design I’ll be going with. I find it to be most realistic because having the character’s hood down reveals more details such as the entire eye and the ear and where the antlers meet the head. It’s also the most iconographic.
Hooded Design
This design is the least realistic. Having the hood up hides more of the character’s details and makes him less relatable in my opinion.
Cloak Design
This design falls in between most realistic and least realistic. Although the face is uncovered and recognizable you can’t see the character’s feet or how he moves.
I chose one of my favorite games, Persona 5 developed by Atlus. Persona 5 is a JRPG/Social Simulator with elements of dungeon crawling. It was released in Japan in September 2016 and worldwide in April 2017 and is available for PS3 and PS4.
The dungeons or “Palaces” that the player infiltrates in Persona 5 are filled with “Shadows”. These enemies are the obstacles of the game and they must be defeated to level up and progress through the game.
The goal in each Palace is to traverse through its many levels and locate the treasure room. Upon reaching the treasure room the player will encounter the Shadow of the Palace Ruler as the final boss and must defeat them.
Drops from enemies such as items, experience points, and money are the most common rewards in the game. The game also rewards the player for exploring every corner of the Palace. Rare items, treasures and weapons are hidden throughout the Palace, but it is up to the player to locate and unlock them.
