Artifact Hunt
A top-down 2D android puzzle adventure game where you play as an explorer venturing into a dungeon in search of a mythical rune.
Role
Generalist Programmer
Technology
Unity
Team Size
5
(4 programmers)
Development Time
~2 weeks (72 hrs)
Contents
Roles and Responsibilities
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Generalist Programmer: We had 4 programmers on the team and everyone was responsible for a variety of features. Work included implementing the HUD, mechanics such as the pressure pads and all of the audio
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Audio Director: I also had the responsibility to source the music and sound effects used in the game and make sure they were of acceptable quality
Development Challenges
This project was the first team project for most of us and it was the first time using Agile for all of us. Naturally, we had plenty of interesting challenges to overcome
Brand new team, nine days and, Agile
None of us knew each other from before. With a basic introduction to Agile development we had about nine days for development with roughly a day for each sprint. This created a high pressure environment in which we had to work together, design and implement a game from scratch.
New engine and no artists
To add to the pressure, a couple of us had never worked with Unity before. This meant those who knew Unity had to take out time to help those who didn't. We also didn't have an artist on our team (4 programmers and 1 designer). This meant we had to take the help of an external contractor and figure out an art pipeline in the limited time that we had
The Aftermath
Any one of the challenges above could have a reason for failure. However, we persevered and came together as a team. In the end, we were able to complete our game and deliver a fun and polished game
Screenshot - Level 1
Screenshot - Level 2
Screenshot - Level 3
Audio Programming
As the audio director, the job was to find usable audio assets, edit and implement them in game. This included the music for the intro, gameplay and outro as well as the sound effects used in the game.
Spatial Audio
One of the hazards in the game was a set of chomping spikes. We found that having the chomping noise play all the time was really annoying and hurt the exploration aspect of the game. This is why we decided to make the audio spatial i.e. you only hear it when you're near the hazard and have an idea of the direction from where the sound is coming
Spatial Audio for the spikes hazard
Game Introduction Sequence Audio
Gameplay Music and Sfx
Game End Sequence Audio
Retrospectives
What went well
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We designed, implemented and iteratively completed a game in nine days
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We created a successful art pipeline with our external contractor
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We divided the programming work and collaborated cohesively
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We quickly adapted to an Agile workflow and learned how to scrum effectively
What went wrong
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Lack of design pillars led to excessive discussions about our mechanics
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We left UI work till the very end which led to lackluster UI in the final product
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Our design process lacked the perspective of artists and designers
What I learned
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It is important to have design pillars during development to have a cohesive game
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Inconsistent bugs are more concerning than consistent bugs and must be prioritize higher
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Using Agile to improve the development process