GAME BRAINSTORM

Game devices from Creative Market.

For my first game idea, I was thinking of creating an infinite runner game like the well-known mobile game, Subway Surfers. This is a game that I'm very familiar with and used to spend a lot of time playing. What makes my idea different is that I want to have a more nature-based theme and have the player be extremely small, similar to the character Arrietty from the Ghibli Studios film, "The Secret World of Arrietty," who is a tiny girl who lives with her parents beneath the house of a regular sized family. She often ventures outside to gather supplies.

Just like in Subway Surfers, the players main objective is to avoid getting caught. I was thinking of putting the player in a garden where they have accidentally disrupted a sleeping dog and waking it up which results in a chase across the garden. The player must continually run away from the dog while collecting seeds which add up as points. As the game progresses, so does the player's speed. When it comes to obstacles, there will be stones that the player must jump over as well as falling sticks and branches. The shadows of the sticks and branches will warn the player so they can quickly switch paths to avoid them. 

              

"The Secret World of Arrietty" poster from Pinterest.          Subway Surfers gameplay image from Pinterest.

I read a blog called "Studying gameplay progression on runners" written by Marcelo Raimbault and I learned about each stage of a runner game from the perspective of a player. Runner games usually begin with a "Warm up" to allow the player to ease into the game before approaching any obstacles. The second stage is when the obstacles begin to appear which leads onto the third stage where the player is able to collect rewards. In relation to my game idea, these rewards will be seed points. The main challenge of a runner game is its progressive speed increase. The final stage is a rest period where the player does not have to face any obstacles for a few seconds. In my game, I was thinking of including a special item such as a leaf that allows the player to fly for a couple seconds as well as collect seeds while in the air.

Runner games progression chart by Marcelo Raimbault.

I thought about creating a basic escape simulator for my second game idea. Keeping the theme of being small from my previous idea, the player has been captured by a regular sized child and is now trapped in the child's dollhouse. Just like every other escape room game, the game's main objective is to escape. The player will do so by locating a number of keys which need to be used to open the dollhouse's door. These keys will be hidden and it is the player's job to move things around to look for them. However, only one key works so the player must figure out which one is the correct key while working under a time limit. 

Escape room illustration by Doris Gray from Dribble.

I played many virtual escape rooms when I was a kid and remember downloading several of them at a time so I could move onto a new one once I solved the previous one. I don't remember the exact names of the ones I played but there were some where I had to escape studies, living rooms, libraries, hotels and many more. Escape games are very addicting and immersive and although I don't have the skills to make an escape game at a high level, it would be interesting to make anything close to one.

I found a document written by Jason Fritts called "Instructions for using Object Collection and Trigger Mechanics in Unity." It includes the outline of how to collect objects to allow players to earn points which could hopefully help with whichever game idea I choose. Collecting objects is usually included in games whether it is the main objective or not.

My third game idea is a little similar to my first idea in that it is infinite. There is inspiration drawn from games like Subway Surfers and Temple Run. However, the player is driving a vehicle rather than running. I want the game to be set on an endless two-lane woodland road where the player must keep driving while avoiding animals that may be in the way. The vehicle's speed gradually gets faster as the game progresses. The player will be able to collect coins or other objects which equate to points. The player's main goal is to remain driving and to collect as many points as they can. #DRIVE is an example of an endless driver game that links into my idea.

Image from "#DRIVE" game from #DRIVE website.

I have already tried making the beginning of a driving game when I completed the Unity tutorials for this week so this idea does not feel so daunting. However, I would like to learn how to give the player control of the vehicle and how to switch lanes. 

For my final idea, I have thought about producing a simulator game where the player is a robot that is partially broken, like WALL-E and its video game without all the action. This game will be set in a lab in which the player must roam to find a number of different parts to fix themselves. The game's main obstacle is to not get caught by the scientist who appears every so often. 

Image from WALL-E The Video Game from Wiki Fandom.

With this idea, I want to try creating characters that resemble people within the game. Taking a look at the Unity manual, there is a section about making characters which I can put to use if I end up choosing this idea.