Ronald Wang

Showcase 1: Spell Casting System Design

Design Goals:

• To design a system serving for players to summon elemental abilities

Steps:

1. I created a flow chart to help me break down the sequences into three stages (Before Casting Stage, In Casting Stage, After Casting Stage), containing all the function and visual feedback we needed, such as player animations, object sequences, VFX, and SFX.

2. We took inspiration from the cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender as a useful reference, researched its remarkable bending shots, and planed interaction on better visual effect.

Examlpe 1:

Prototype Stage

The player casts the Earth Spell.

Solutions for Example 1:

• Having a dirt VFX on both the wand and the pillar when the player is casting the spell. It builds up the connection between the player and the interacted object.
• Adding camera shake functionality when the player casts the spell successfully. It makes the ability feel powerful, and also provides strong visual feedback to the player.

Result 1:

Final Visual Performance

The player casts the Earth Spell.

Examlpe 2:

Prototype Stage

The player casts the Wind Spell.

Solutions for Example 2:

• The target is shaking when the player is casting the wind spell on it.
• The direction of the arm animation matches the target's moving direction.
• The target is moving with sudden acceleration and deceleration.

Result 2:

Final Visual Performance

The player casts the Wind Spell.

Challenge & Lessons:

The spellcasting system design taught me how to solve complicated problems step by step. At the beginning, I struggled to explain my thoughts through words. Then I communicated a lot with different diciplines, and also found video references as well as drew pictures to convey my ideas clearly.

Showcase 2: No-text Narrative Design

Design Goals:

• To tell a story without any text

Solutions:

• Using cutscenes to draw the player's attention

By chasing the wand and seeing the gems split off, the player experienced its magic.

• Using wall paintings to present the past of the artifact

• Setting up a unique atmosphere with different instruments for each level

In wind level: Using a bansuri to create a curious mood.

In earth level: A similar rhythm using a dilruba to create a relaxing mood.

In fire level: A similar rhythm using a horn and a tuba to create a dangerous mood.​

(Musics Credited by the composer )

Challenge & Lessons:

The challenge came when we tried to create a narrative that was both abstract and expressive. Some players struggled to understand the purpose of the paintings relating to the story while others found it hard to learn the mechanics they tried to teach. Finding the balance was a struggle but in the end created an immersive experience.

Showcase 3: Central-Hub World Layout

Design Goals:

• To create a realistic non-linear world space

Solutions:

We constructed the temple with a central hub and several hallways splitting off different sections. Though the player starts at the central hub, they cannot access further areas without first obtaining the appropriate abilities to clear the obstacles blocking the path. This design allows the player to have a strong understanding of the temple after returning to the central hub several times.

Example:

The first time the player returns the hub, they can only go right with their wind ability.

The second time they return the hub, they can cast their earth ability to generate a bridge to the next level.

The third time they come back to the hub, they can burn the pillars by using the fire ability which gives them access to the next area.

Challenge & Lessons:

We made a mistake with the layout design because we forgot to leave space for the tutorial level, which created a problem in the alpha milestone. The holy palace, which was designed as a landmark, was in the opposite direction of level 1, which means the player could not see both of them at the very beginning. We had to give up the idea of using landmark to draw attenion in case the players were leading to wrong directions.