Circadian
A turn-based puzzle mobile game
Sound ON for the best experience!
"Prevent eternal darkness! Control the sands of time and use your fluctuating size to traverse the landscape of dreamland and restore the balance of night and day."
Project overview
A collaborative TGA-project by Smørrebröderna Inc.
Team
2 Animators
4 Graphical Artists
3 Level Designers
5 Programmers
Credits at the end of the trailer!
Time
6 weeks halftime
Engine
Unity
My Contribution
Game design
Level design (One level per world, four in total)
Sound design
Contribution example
Crafting good puzzles is a challenge, so I created two cardboard prototypes to aid the process.
This turned out to be a very good move as it improved our communication with other disciplines, giving us a clear understanding of the mechanics and its uses.
I also feel it helped people feel more involved in the process of making the puzzles.
Fairly deep into our project, we stumbled upon an exploit with how the player could backtrack over its trail. We used the card board prototype to come up with a solution.
Fun fact: I made most of the sound effects, although uncredited!
Reflections
This was my second project using Unity as an engine. I really enjoyed crafting the puzzles and think I contributed a lot. Not just with level design, but also with game design, and keeping the group focused and work toward the same goals. At times there was definitely a rush to get things moving, but I believe it's equally important to take time and prototyping and iterating ideas properly.
Using a physical prototype (like the cardboard version) and having a solid mockup helps tremendously in ensuring everyone is on the same page and cuts down on unnecessary work. It helps with rapid prototyping, making tough scope decisions, as well as solving issues.
Our group put in a lot of effort, with a solid vision and strong teamwork. It's amazing what you can accomplish when everyone brings their skills together under pressure. It paid off, as we created a great game, even winning Best Mobile Game at the Swedish Game Awards.
Gallery
