Project Description
Dungeon Xpress is a tactical dungeon-crawler game where you and three other adventurers must defeat the boss to receive its riches and escape, even if you have to kill everyone in the party to do it! This project was created by Alec Carter (UAT Game Programming Alumni) for the purpose of allowing fellow students and alumni to be able to practice their skills and create stuff that could be used on their portfolio to prove their mastery of these skills.
My Attributions
Pre-Production
When I joined this project, it was in the beginning stages of being developed into a video game format, so there was a lot to be done for the pre-production, especially in the design section. Whenever I created any pre-production content, I always made sure that it was precise and straightforward, so that other team members would be able to comprehend it quickly with little to no questions asked. The pre-production tasks that I took on for this project include the following:
- Daily / Weekly Challenges Content & UI
- Character Physical Descriptions Document
- Co-Created Enemy Mobs Physical Descriptions Document
- Co-Created Player Items/Weapon Design Document
- Dungeon Room Paper Maps / Asset Lists
- Storyboarding for the Tutorial Level
Daily/ Weekly Challenges
When creating game mechanics for this project, I came up with the idea of adding a Daily/Weekly Quest Log, as it would fit the playstyle of an online multiplayer and also help balance the punishment and reward system. I developed the Content, including the types of challenges, while accurately balancing them between all play styles, and the Layouts for the Daily/Weekly Quest Log Menu.
|
Characters, Enemy Mobs, Items & Weapons
Across all of these documents, I used many differing design styles within my skillset, including Character & Enemy Visual Design, Character Mechanics Design, Character Ability Design, and Weapons & Items Mechanics Design.
|
|
|
Dungeon Rooms Paper Maps
Almost all designers on the Dungeon Xpress Team had to make Paper Maps, which made the experience unique because we would have to communicate with one another, making sure that we didn't duplicate room styles/ideas, while also staying within the game's style.
Storyboarding
When working on this project, it was decided that the best course of action was to really nail down the Tutorial Level, as it would allow us to test and perfect all of the main gameplay and combat mechanics. In order to determine the proper flow of this level, I created a visual Storyboard with an accompanying document, that would explain the gameplay flow, sequences, and triggers so that the other team members would be able to properly create and apply their assets to the build.
|
Level Design / 3D Art
When working on Dungeon Xpress, I focused most of my work on Design, but for one of my art classes, I needed to do an environment, so I decided to work on one the first dungeon room with original assets! I enjoyed working on this portion of the project because I was able to focus on both Design and Art because not only would I get to make the art assets, but also get to set design them in the level as well. I had also never done any 3D stylized art before, so it would be a challenge and learning process. In the end, I was proud of the final product and I learned a lot from this experience, ultimately enhancing both my Art and Design skills.
Pre-Production
As always, I went through the pre-production process when designing the room, including a Paper Map and a physical Whitebox in the game engine. I also created a mini-GDD further explaining the design and layout of this room.
|
My Process
The process that I chose to do when working on this room is to work on the large environment assets first, such as the walls, floor, and walkway, then work on the smaller props like the barrels, crates, and weapons. I would always do the texturing and unwraps last because I always wanted to make sure that my assets were properly sized and working properly in engine before putting a large amount of time into the unwrapping and texturing process.
Textures
Something interesting that I learned while working on this project is that I really enjoy the texturing and unwrapping process; don't get me wrong, 3d modeling is fun, but something about creating a texture and seeing it put on the object is really fascinating to me and it also makes me feel accomplished, seeing that I did my unwrap properly.
Final Environment
Here is a video of the final outcome of the Arena Room environment for Dungeon Xpress.
2D Art / Audio Design
When I joined the Dungeon Xpress team, I mentioned to the team lead that I wanted to work on two things for the main menu: the music and the title screen background and he approved, so whenever I finished my main tasks for the current sprint, I would work on one of the two. My passions for music and art are something near and dear to me, so even though I didn't get to complete the title screen and my main menu music would be replaced later on, I was still glad to have worked on these assets, as I was able to practice both my 2D art skills and my music design skills.
hannar_dungeon_xpress_main_menu_music.wav | |
File Size: | 10425 kb |
File Type: | wav |