Trade Off - Project Insight
During my time at George Brown College while I was taking the Game Programming program, we were required to take a course called Game Production, where in the 3rd - 6th semester we would be tasked with making our own game, Trade Off was my Game Production game for my 6th and final semester. The game can be downloaded here for free!
Trade Off is a Third-Person 3D Puzzle Platformer where the player has the ability to swap between 3 different characters each with their own ability. In the game the player will encounter coloured blocks that can only be touched by their associated characters. The green character will be able to fire projectiles that can destroy targets throughout the world. The red character does not have the ability to jump and will move the slowest out of all the characters, however, if the red character falls and lands they will be bounced into the air. The blue character is the smallest and fastest of all the characters and also has the ability to dash midair which allows the player to cover greater distances. Yellow coloured objects act as hazards to any of the 3 characters the player has access to. With the game I attempted to make most areas completable using any of the characters, but some areas will force the player to play as a certain character.
In the game the player will collect tokens that can be used to unlock checkpoints throughout the level, the player will only be able to access one checkpoint at a time so they must strategize whether they would want to save their progress now or use their token and activate a checkpoint later.
Breakdown
When the game begins the player will be in a very simple platforming area where they must reach the exit by using the abilities of each character, the player will also have the opportunity to collect a token and learn how the checkpoints function.
The second area will introduce a new type of platform that does not display a colour but is still associated to a character, the player will need to look between two different sides of this area which shows an identical arrangement of platforms where one side will display their colours, and the other side will display them with no colours. Using this clue the player can memorize which colour is associated with each block or try to memorize a few that can lead them to the other side.
The next area features red and blue floors on an incline that the player must go up, before the player ascends the ramp they may notice that the ceiling is green, meaning they will need to swap between characters each time they bounce as the red character.
After the ramp, the player will reach a section of the level that features a linear maze-like structure where a floor with holes in it will spin. This area was inspired by certain sections of Super Mario Galaxy which also featured a long section where a floor with holes would move, making the player have to focus on their movement in order to navigate past the obstacle. The player may notice that this floor is not associated with any of the player’s characters, giving them the freedom to maneuver it however they feel most comfortable.
The fifth area will be the first time the player will see most of the game world, here they will be able to see the environment they are in which consists of towering white buildings in a sea of the yellow hazard. Directly in front of the player will be a straightaway of red floor which has random patterns of the yellow hazard throughout it, as well as another route which the blue character can take which is focused on precise jumping. When the player reaches the end of this area they will need to shoot several targets while midair, destroying all targets unlock the door allowing access to the next area.
The sixth section will introduce a “one-off” mechanic where the player will enter a low gravity like area in which they must make their character fall through a set of holes and land on a large platform at the end. Landing on the platform will bring the player to a small maze that only the blue character can enter. Covering the maze is a transparent floor which the player can use to find a solution to the maze before entering it, originally the maze was intended to be much more difficult, however, this was changed to make the overall game more accessible.
Upon exiting the maze the player will reach a slightly curved portion of the level which introduces a new type of platform that deactivates shortly upon contact, after a short period of time the platform will be activated again. Once the player reaches the end of this area they will encounter a floating wall with a very brief section following it.
The floating wall that forces the player to play as the small character is to hopefully demonstrate to the player how the next platform mechanic works, glowing platforms will change colour alongside the player, forcing them to think about their next move carefully. If the player manages to reach the end of this section they will encounter the final area.
The ninth area in the game is an amalgamation of the various platforms and obstacles the player has faced thus far, using their newly obtained skills and confidence the player should be able to reach the end relatively easily.
When the player reaches the end of the level they will notice that there is one final “checkpoint-esque” looking device that displays a value above itself. If the player has any remaining tokens left and are able to completely lower the value, the player will be allowed access to a secret final area.
In the final area the player will be directed down a dark hallway leading to a hole, if the player decides to go down the hole their character will become yellow and be taken to a new area. In this area the player will be guided to an alternate ending the player can obtain.
With several of the games I’ve developed I have always tried to give the player a reason to play the game at least one more time. In another game I’ve created, Serendipity, I revealed to the player once they had completed the game, that they had been timed the entire time. In Serendipity, if the player then decided to play again, the timer would now be displayed, as well as various pickups placed throughout the world. As a designer, I think if you are able to expose the player to a different albeit familiar way of playing the game, it will allow them to enjoy the game for more than what it is.
What I hoped to achieve with this “reveal” in Trade Off, was for the player to attempt to play the game again but heavily restrict their usage of the checkpoints, by doing this I create a scenario where the player will have their skills tested and make them slightly worried for their safety/progress in the game. This creates a trade off between the player’s safety in checkpoints and the player’s opportunity in saving their tokens in order to reach the secret ending.
Conclusion
Trade Off was my first time focusing on making a puzzle platformer type game and I was very happy with the way the checkpoint system ended up. I think the game holds a lot of symbolic value as well, being my final personal game in the Game Programming program, as well as the idea of “trade offs” the game has. If I could change the game in any way it would be to make the level feel more “organic”.
At the beginning, my main goals were to make a set of obstacles the player would need to navigate using their separate characters and allowing them to use any character to complete any portion of the level, due to the game having puzzle elements, this makes it slightly harder to work around as a designer since I then have to limit either myself or the player’s freedom.
If I were to expand upon the game I would likely add more levels with new mechanics, as well as more characters. New characters could potentially be mixed with the characters featured in this level to allow even more possible mechanics the player would be able to exploit. This project is definitely something I would not mind revisiting some time in the future.