Final Major Project Proposal Doc
Transcription
Final Major Project Proposal Doc
Ross Nixdorf & Lewis Gohl NIX09163493 – GOH07113944 The Gingerbread Man (Working Title) Final Major Project Proposal Document [email protected] - [email protected] 1 Abstract Two Dimensional platform games have been extremely common throughout the history of gaming. It has been proven to be a very successful concept, not just in the casual sector, as many gamers hold a place in their heart for the nostalgic side-scroller. While side scrolling platform games often appear dated or unoriginal, in recent years especially, developers have produced titles with unique selling point’s capable of revolutionising the genre. The game in which we are proposing is a universally friendly platformer marketed towards both the young adult and teen market, while also keeping the children’s audience interested. Children will be able to relate to the use of primary colour and contrast, while older audiences will be able to enjoy current generation visuals provided by the Unreal Engine. Using a 3D engine for a 2D concept brings the dated genre new looks and style, keeping it up to date with other recent similar products sold as indie games. The game opens with our main character and protagonist “The Gingerbread Man” waking up on a bake tray surrounded by his less than fortunate friends. In a state of disbelief the Gingerbread Man springs to life from the tray and makes a dash for the exit (a cat-flap in this case). Staying true to the short story of origin, the Gingerbread man is chased by the old lady and her husband. A future chapter of the game features the Gingerbread man escaping the garden and farmland; taunting his pursuers with his famous line “Run run as fast as you can, you can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread man!” The choice for the project was quite simple, using a simple proven concept such as the platformer, and bring its back to life with a familiar yet unique feel. In terms of work done towards the final project, we soon found while brainstorming that there are limitless directions in which we can take the game, and recognised that attention to detail would really make the game flourish. The more time and effort that goes into the project will be proportional to the outcome in terms of visuals, as the game engine brings environments to life. When exploring the different paths we did not expect to have chosen the Gingerbread Man, but when looking for stimuli one lunch time we decided on the idea after someone from the class bought the personified biscuit as a snack. The Gingerbread Man idea opened up many doors when constructing ideas generation. We decided that we should not constrict ourselves strictly to the Gingerbread Man, but instead broadened our ideas spanning into the world of adventure, nursery-rhyme and fairy tale. This way, we can easily pull inspiration from other related children’s stories and media to create unique content which people of all ages and backgrounds can relate to. It is also important not to have our creativity affected too much by one of the better known gingerbread faces in recent cinema; The Gingerbread Man as seen in the Shrek series of films. Goals While making this product we aim to improve our group working skills as a team, collaboration and compromise are extremely important in the professional workplace. These skills should prevail as transferable in our future lives. This project will also provide great practice in both 3D studio max and the Unreal Development Kit (UDK), as level design is something of interest in our possible career paths, these skills are invaluable. 2 User Experience - Audience We have decided to keep the target audience for our product quite broad this way we are able to maximise the collective interest of anyone who takes a look, regardless of age. By making the game both family, and teen friendly, we are creating something that can be enjoyed either in the living room as a group, or in the bedroom by one individual. Nintendo’s sales figures have shown to prove that the casual market is booming and generally maintain an open mind when buying new innovative products and software. Competitive Analysis Since using a generic game-play model it is quite likely that we will face some similar games in terms of market competitors. However, while many indie developers continue to develop less accessible more complex indie style games, we are able to provide something much more accessible in the same way that the Super Mario franchise has attained customers. Critical Analysis Throughout the project self-analysing will be on going to ensure that our project conforms to what we had originally planned, rather than losing direction during ideas flow. Project Content The main component for submission will be a fully completed level or a fragment of said piece as a demo, depending on technical restrains of the engine and our own skill or capabilities. Functional Requirements In September 2011 the UDK Engine was updated with the ability to export games to run on either a Mac running OSX or a PC running windows, this opens an extra window in terms of platform choice. For the showcase demo to be run, users will either need a DirectX capable PC or Mac. A tablet such as the iPad is an optional extra feature if we are able to export to that platform. Visual design Sketches and mock-ups are shown below as well as ideas and concepts (work in progress). The “Baker Lady” will have her top half hidden off screen, in the same fashion as Mammy Two Shoes from “Tom and Jerry”. 3 A basic tech demo in the unreal engine of how the game would appear in 2D style. 4 Possible HUD? 5 6 7 8 Early Development schedule October – Finish the conceptual side and research November – Finish all primitive game engine work December - Begin developing 3D artwork from sketches January - Import 3D artwork and use for building levels Development Blog Link http://rlvidya.wordpress.com/ 9