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Parkour Chasers
Parkour Chasers is a competitive midcore sports game based on chase tag, that blens a platforming experience with a simple game of tag. We condensed the parkour gameplay using only jump, slide under and the dive, a powerful put punishing move. The game unfolds within a multiverse tournament, where a champion from each universe is sent to compete in chase tag matches. The game introduces four characters, each boasting a distinct passive ability and a choice of two active skills, all working towards a cohesive playstyle. For each character, we designed a thematic map with a special gameplay feature.
Roles
Game Designer
As a game designer on this project I coocreated the core gameplay and designed some of the characters and arenas. Throughout the project, I followed the mantra "build the toy first", ensuring we built the ideal and smoothest platforming experience for mobile before adding additional content. With the extra feautures, we aimed to characterize each chaser uniquely, designing a coherent and engaging package.
Economy Designer
As an economy designer on this project, my role involved balancing the core gameplay, keeping a close eye on the metagame, and overseeing the monetization system. We aimed to create a fun and deep gameplay experience to engage players while also catering to the broad mobile audience. The monetization system was developed through a careful study of reference games with a similar target audience.
Producer
In our school, the producer role is assigned to one of the game designers. Fulfilling this role helped me gain a comprehensive understanding of other roles in the game development field. It forced me to evaluate and understand priorities at each step, using my knowledge of game design to guide me in making important decisions.
Sound Designer
As the sound designer, I selected and edited the sound effects for the game. I utilized Fmod to implement these sounds in Unity. Many sound effects played a crucial role in helping players understand on-screen events and contributed to creating an immersive experience, enhancing the overall game feel.
Hooga the Clown uses circus abilities to trick and obstruct his opponents while also having an advantage on athletic abilities
Passive: When running above the floor level his speed increases faster
Throws a sadness aura that slows down opponents
After a short delay, switch position with the opponent
Izzy the Robot uses engineering to boost itself, taking advantage of its superior movement skills and its gadgets
Passive: A harrow shows you the direction opponents are facing
A short dash forward that also works in the air
Gain more speed for a short amount of time
Kleo, the Red Panda uses ninja abilities and features a mix of improved dexterity and interfering with the opponents, often through a connection with nature
Passive: Can move freely while sliding on the ground
Kunais that paralyze the opponents for a short period of time
An ice area that makes opponents glide
Uzqlot, the Demon uses otherworldly and
arcane powers in order to deceive opponents, messing with them in unexpected ways.
Passive: Knows when opponent's skill is ready
Becomes invisible and creates a clone that is diving forward
A black hole that sucks opponents
Designing the Characters
Working with Cameras
In this project we had to balance two contrasting needs:
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An isometric camera was ideal to show both players and a good portion of the arena
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The parkour theme required a lot of obstacles and a varied set of movements
These elements created much ambiguities and confusion. We had to be very careful in making level design choices, and we iterated a lot on the arenas to ensure everything was clear. Meanwhile, we introduced UI/UX elements to help players navigate the environment, such as colored dots under players in the air and characters overlays behind objects. This was accomplished thanks to a thorough study of references of both isometric and 3D platform games.
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Another important challenge was balancing the fast-paced nature of a game of tag with the casual audience of mobile games. We tackled this task in many ways. In the beginning, the game punished collisions against obstacles with a short stun. Instead, we opted to give each player an acceleration bar that grows only while they're moving, rewarding those who can avoid obstacles without punishing too much those who can't. We then introduced Coyote Time and active skills. The skills helped level the playing field among players and also balanced the two different roles in the game. While usually, the evader would be advantaged, when the chaser uses a skill successfully, it is likely that he will tag the evader. When the opposite happens, the chaser still has many seconds to regain the advantage.