Go On

Position

Game Designer, Game Developer, Illustrator, Writer, Animator

Description

Go on is a simple, short platformer game in which the players climb up through obstacles to gain their ability

Duration

2022 Spring Final (3 weeks)

Genre

Platformer

Platform

Core Statement

User Experience Goal

I wanted to limit the use of words for the tutorial, and experiment with visual cues to guide the player throughout the game.

Target Audience

For platformer gamers, and PC gamers, the game was balanced so that even inexperienced gamers can clear the game within 10 minutes.

Design Process

Research

I looked into other platformer games in which the player gains their ability after going through obstacles, and how they tie their narrative in to the newly gained ability

Hollow Knight ties in power-ups and new abilities in 2 different ways. One is to find or buy a charm with abilities and memories of other beings, which allows you to make minor alterations to your tool kit. The other one is to learn from other masters. There are some NPCs in Hollow Knight that possesses a certain type of power or movement and are masters who can teach the player a new skill.

Ori and the Blind Forest gives a narrative that Ori, the main character, is born after the prime time of the Forest of light. Ori starts out with no abilities except for simple movements, but as they explore the Forest, they find trees that used to be other light spirits like Ori. Channeling through their memories, Ori is able to learn their abilities. Ori is also able to get certain abilities through items they've collected through out the journey.

Making the Game

Since my goal was to make a short game, I wanted to keep the narrative simple and straightforward to understand, while focusing on connecting the narrative between power-ups within the game.

The main character was chosen to be in a simple ghost form, which is familiar to many while keeping its shape basic. It was given a timid but blank expression to fit the narrative while looking friendly to the player.

The main goal was to minimize the use of words, but guide the players to the goal of the game. I eliminated the tutorials as I wanted the game to be available even for those who don't speak English. The environment was specifically designed to look simple, but not interactable. The Walls were made impenetrable, and there were signs placed to suggest that the only way was to go 'up'.

The particles on the jump pad were placed for that specific purpose. Instead of giving a tutorial for it, I chose to give visual cues and lead the players toward the jump pads and find their effects by themselves. By placing floaty, sparkly particles, my hope was to cause the player curiosity, and make them walk toward the jump pad and acknowledge that they move up when they step on it just like the particles.

Signs were used to indicating directions and objectives, and colors were used to show areas that can affect the player's position. Blue was chosen as it typically is used to indicate friendly or safe environments in many games. The NPC's have a simple form, but the dialogue was written to show their personality that goes along with their visuals.

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As the player continues their journey, they gain a fragment that is shown on the right side of the screen. When they finally collect all the pieces, they are able to use their wings to reach the final point.

The game feel was something I also deeply considered, and to make the game more immersing, I focused on animating the character fluidly, making its shape change according to the direction and momentum that they are moving.