The Raven's Scroll

The games development blog of NJ, student of CGD at Plymouth University. Current project: The Search For Enlightenment, an exploration game made with the Unity engine. 

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Implementation

In terms of the actual gameplay mechanics, I am reasonably happy with the way the code turned out. A few particular snippets that I am particularly proud of shall follow.

The code, as you can see, is structured in small and tight packages. I found that with a lot of previous projects, my code would tend to become quite convoluted and spaghettified - not so here. Fragment (top) deals with the game objects of the same name, and tells the HUD (above) to display a certain piece of lore depending upon which was recently collected using a list of enumerations. I found this much easier than loading every single image into the code and using arrays or if-statements all the way down in order to deal with what would appear and when. Shadow (below) deals with the enemy logic. Although relatively simple again, it works using tags to make absolutely sure that they only interact with the player. Depending on the player having T as a companion or not, it either transports itself to the edge of the map upon contact, or transports the player back to their apartment. Using the shadow as a “follower” of the player when in a certain range allows for the correct result every time, and makes sure that the player does not get mobbed unless they walk into an ambush of several shadows at once. Finally, FadeInOut (bottom) is generally robust and can fit into multiple projects, and allows for smooth fade-to-black transitions between scenes. This was one of the very few bits of “juice” that I was able to put into the game in this build before I ran out of time.

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Design

The second mandatory post I must make on this blog is to explain the design process behind this game. I originally planned for something much larger and in-depth than the current build. As it stands, the player simply walks around collecting pieces of a puzzle that they may not understand. Had there been more time, I would have added in a large number of recorded segments to use as part of the overall worldbuilding. Exposition and explanation in a listenable format to go along with the written pieces would have given the player a better experience overall. Additionally, I may have included a way to review all the Fragments the player collects - currently, they are only readable once before being discarded, and cannot be retrieved once lost. Much like a real memory, I had planned for it to become less and less easy to remember (or view) particular Fragments as the game progressed. That said, the level design, along with current gameplay and the look and feel of the story, I am rather proud of. I am fully aware that this is a somewhat esoteric game, and one that only I may fully understand at this point in time. But, given enough time and space to work upon it fully, I shall slowly reveal to those that do play the game exactly how the story ends. Attempting to build a game based around memories and the retention thereof is rather demanding, and I worry that this game may be misconstrued in its current build for a sort of Dementia-warning-story. This was not the plan. All will become clearer to the player on each subsequent playthrough, as well as on each subsequent build of the game. The Search For Enlightenment is one of the few games I have truly wanted to make for a long time, and I hope that I can do the grand idea that I have trapped in my own mind some justice in later builds. The story is yet to be fully told.

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The Fragments that the player finds will eventually, once they find enough and piece together the puzzle, create a memory so strong that it gives itself a corporeal form. The player must find all three Companions in order to end the game (though in later versions of the game, there shall be much more to it than this), and find peace with their inner self. The first, known only as T, will protect the player from the Shadows to an extent. Although the player can no longer be harmed by them whilst she is present, they are simply banished to another area of the mindscape. D is the second. She was hot-headed and brave in life; in the dream she is no different. Although in the current version of the game she cannot assist in defeating the Shadows, in later versions I plan to allow her the power to attack and destroy Shadows. The final Comapnion is S, a figure shrouded in mystery. What caused her to be caught up in your memories to such an extent, and why is she the reason you cannot leave? Upon collecting her, along with the other Companions, the player fades from the dreamscape and into the beyond. Whether they find peace with themselves is another matter. After all, although the player in the game has ended his brief stint, it is the player in real life that must put together the pieces of a broken and tormented mind.

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The black clouds in this picture are what are known as Shadows. They are, put simply, manifestations of those memories that every human being wishes they never had; those which we all wish would go away. Like bad memories in the real world, these tend to haunt the player if you stay around for too long, and are never too far away from those memories that are precious to you. In this case, the Shadows protect the Fragments from being picked up, and attempt to prevent the player from understanding the story. Should the player encounter one of the Shadows, they are thrust back to their original starting position. And although the player cannot be harmed by them initially, the supposed safety of the apartment they find themselves in at the beginning of the game is not guaranteed, should they choose to step outside and attempt to discover the truth. That said, the Shadows can be defeated if the player finds enough Fragments to conjure up a memory of a Companion long-forgotten... the next update shall speak of those which we have lost, but have never truly forgotten.

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A quick snapshot of most of the game’s written lore. The next update shall shed light on some Shadows.

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The first stages of game creation: Top image: fragments of memory that the player must collect, to determine who they are and why they are here. Bottom-left: the current world map. The player has awoken in their apartment, yet is trapped in a mindscape full of clouds, broken memories, and (soon-to-be-implemented) shadows of memories best left forgotten. Bottom-right: the player, an ethereal and nondescript player. Although they do not know who they are, they know that they are a) human and b) do not belong in this dreamscape. As the player moves around the world, collecting the fragments of who they once were and who they are yet to be, they will discover meaning in the world they find themselves trapped in. There is a reason why they are here: all the player must do is understand why. The next update shall show some small part of the game’s lore and how the player goes about getting it, as well as shed light on the shadows that hound the dreamscape.

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Concept

In this post, I shall explain what this game shall entail. Essentially, I plan for this game to be a journey through one’s subconscious memory. In order to complete the game in its submitted format, the player must navigate the Mindscape of the character, find Fragments, or memories, of who they are and why they are here whilst avoiding the Spectres that have infested it, and restore their memory through the hidden Altar of Memories. The player’s task is to retrieve all these Fragments and discover (through written lore, sound clips and new characters) the story for themselves. The player may choose to go it alone and get to the Altar without fully understanding their purpose, or they may choose to delve deeper and deeper into the subconscious of the character and find out everything, or they may succumb to the Spectres - it is the player’s choice. I plan to fill the game as much as possible with written, audio and visual clues in order to build up the story from the very beginning. All my previous games had no real purpose to them - no true beginning and end. This story, The Search For Enlightenment, shall do exactly the opposite. The following images are the first stage of creating this game - paper prototypes of exactly what I plan to create and how it fits into the experience. The next post shall include either the first stages of game creation or a segment of some of the game’s lore.

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The Search For Enlightenment

With this blog, I aim to develop over time an exploration-based Unity game called The Search For Enlightenment. With each new iteration of the game, and with each new mechanic added, I shall update accordingly here. This is not just a piece of referred coursework, but an attempt to create something more nuanced, detailed and design-based than any of my previous work. This is a game that I am interested in making for myself, and not to satisfy a lecturer. This game is the first true work that I will have made as an independent developer. I hope that it can live up to my expectations, and that I can make something that I am genuinely proud of. As part of the initial period, where this game shall be assessed, I am obligated to split the development process into three distinct categories: concept, design and implementation. The first shall show my thoughts leading up to creating the game, its scope and meaning, and how I approach making a game. The second deals with the content of the game itself - the look, feel, sound, and so on; it shall document how and why each consistent part of the game is there. The third deals, simply, with the code behind the gameplay mechanics I shall include. My assessment for the initial prototype shall include a trailer, to be posted when the game is relatively complete, as well as a help screen and some kind of scoreboard. As this is an excercise in design and creativity, the scoreboard shall simply be the amount of time one takes to complete the game. I imagine that it shall take a player roughly ten minutes to complete, if all goes well. In the next update, I shall begin with the concept stage of development.