Detailed Game Plan for Final Project
IMGD3000/3500, C-Term 2010
Game Name: The A-MAZE-ing Light of Truth
Team Name: Thundercats
Development Team:
Tech:
David Becroft
Elliot Brodzki
Adrian Mejia
Art:
Sam Rogers
Alfreda Smith
Game Description:
The A-MAZE-ing Light of Truth is a 3D flashlight adventure in which the goal is to gather gold from a labyrinthine cave as fast as you can while avoiding frightening ancient cat ghosts! The player character, Hedi, enters the maze in one corner, gathers gold, then returns to the entrance to leave again. The player then receives a score based on how much gold he or she collected and how much time he or she took. The player can use a high-tech color-changing flashlight to reveal hidden items and passages and to fill the illuminated space with a swimmable aether while traversing the cave.
Gameplay Features:
Frightening ancient cat ghosts
Color-changing flashlight
Reveal hidden items!
Reveal hidden passages!
Swim through the aether!
3D labyrinthine cave environment
Scoring system
Technical Features:
Random 3D labyrinthine cave generation
Hidden walls
Hidden items
Color-changing flashlight illumination
Movement in 3D (swimming)
Artistic Features:
Color-changing flashlight illumination
3D labyrinthine cave cells
Thematic artwork
Implementation Plan:
We will write the code for The A-MAZE-ing Light of Truth on top of Jaeger: The Hunt for Crazy Gert's Gold, which in turn is based on the C4 game engine. Using Jaeger as a start provides us with basic features such as random 2D labyrinthine cave generation, player controls, jellybean tossing, ghosts, a monochromatic flashlight, mushrooms, and gold. Development will follow an iterative schedule punctuated by regular milestones.
Schedule:
This project started on January 20, 2010 and will continue until March 5, 2010.
Jan. 20 (Wed): Project teams formed
Jan. 27 (Wed): Team brainstorming session
Feb. 05 (Fri): Project summary ideas due
Feb. 08 (Mon): Project approved
Feb. 12 (Fri): Detailed game plan due. Sourceforge project set up. Web page set up to show progress.
Feb. 18 (Thu): Milestone 1. Progress presented in class
Feb. 22 (Mon): Milestone 2. Initial alpha presented in class. Begin internal testing of implemented parts.
Feb. 24 (Wed): Progress presentation in class
Feb. 25 (Thu): Milestone 3. Playable game beta presented in class
Mar. 01 (Mon): Milestone 4. Feature-complete game; all major functionality in place. No new ideas! Time to finish up and test, test, test!
Mar. 03 (Wed): Game complete. Go home and get some sleep before launch day.
Mar. 04 (Thu): Final Prototype Presentations
Mar. 05 (Fri): Final Prototype Presentations
Story:
In his search for Jaeger's gold, Hedi runs across a giant cube in Jaeger Castle's backyard. Suspecting the cube is the secret hiding place of the elusive treasure, Hedi decides to investigate.
He takes three items with him: a bag of jellybeans, his flashlight, and a sandwich. He eats the sandwich on the way. His MQP involved making a special flashlight – one with three buttons. The red button makes the flashlight emit Z-Rays (they're like X-Rays only better) which allow him to see through things. The green button makes the flashlight emit electromagnetic pulses that reveal hidden metallic items, such as gold. The blue button emits a mysterious element that reacts chemically with air to create a water-like fluid. Fortunately, Hedi is a good swimmer. Like all humans, however, he has to breathe. Hedi keeps this in mind as he wanders into the cube.
Historic note: Jaeger built his mysterious maze over his cat graveyard. Cat ghosts haunt the place, looking for their favorite snack – jellybeans.
Once inside the cube, Hedi realizes he is inside a maze. A large, three-dimensional maze. With ghosts. Hedi notices a gothic statue of a cat eating a jellybean. He sees the same cat, now a ghost, standing next to the statue but not eating a jellybean. Hedi figures these ghosts are misunderstood, lost souls. He gives the cat some jellybeans, and it seems happy. Hedi knows there may be trouble ahead – if you give one ghost a jellybean, they all want jellybeans. This is a fundamental truth, and Hedi is ready to face it with both eyes open. The gold collection begins.
Scientific note: The spooky metaphysical aura of ghost cats affects their environment. The ghosts' intense desire for jellybeans has changed the ecosystem of the maze. Mushrooms are no longer regular, delicious mushrooms. Instead, they taste like mushroom- or dog food-flavored jellybeans. When ingested, they impart their flavor to the person who ate them. Hedi quickly finds himself delicious – and beset by ghosts – when he eats a mushroom that tastes like a mushroom-flavored jellybean. On the other hand, ghosts run away from him when he eats a mushroom that tastes like dog food. Poor ancient cat ghosts.
Asset List
Walls
Transparent and opaque
Floors
Transparent and opaque
Ceilings
Transparent and opaque
Cat ghosts
Jellybeans
Red, green, and blue
Gold
Mushrooms
Z-Ray lighting
Electromagnetic pulse lighting
Aether lighting
Hidden gold
Gold chests
Statue of the ghost eating a jellybean
Themed status for decoration
Exit sign
