Lucas' Portfolio Website

PurrBlaster

March 1, 2024

About:

PurrBlaster is a shoot 'em up game designed for our self-made hardware, for Project Lift Off. We built and coded a controller using an Arduino and created an arcade machine with it. I mainly focused on UI and gameplay.

This game was made in two weeks.

Created by:

Paw-Paws

Engine:

Made in the custom-made GXP engine

Platforms:

Windows

Videos:

Screenshots:

Process:

Research

The arcade video game genre generally refers to endless video games, have a high score, and get faster and faster every time you play. Many arcade games have short levels, simple and intuitive control schemes, and rapidly increasing difficulty. The classic formula for a successful arcade video game is "easy to learn, difficult to master" along with a "multiple life, progressively difficult level" paradigm. First, it needs to give the impression that it’s beatable or that you can get good at it. It can’t just make you fail each time; it has to be challenging but not impossible. This way, you get the player to put in more and more quarters/tokens.

Input devices are needed. Buttons and/or joysticks are common, but there are also new and creative types of input found in arcade machines. The video game industry transitioned from discrete integrated circuitry to programmable microprocessors in the mid-1970s. Virtually all modern arcade games (other than the very traditional fair midway) make extensive use of solid-state electronics, integrated circuits, and monitor screens, all installed inside an arcade cabinet. During the early 1990s, games such as Sega's Virtua Racing and Virtua Fighter popularized 3D-polygon technology in arcades. Coin-operated arcade video games from the 1990s to the 2000s generally use custom hardware, often with multiple CPUs, highly specialized sound and graphics chips, and the latest in expensive computer graphics display technology. Many arcade games have more immersive and realistic game controls than PC or console games. This includes specialized ambiance or control accessories such as fully enclosed dynamic cabinets with force feedback controls, dedicated lightguns, rear-projection displays, reproductions of automobile or airplane cockpits, motorcycle or horse-shaped controllers, or highly dedicated controllers such as dancing mats and fishing rods.

The game must be easily understood, while not getting boring upon replaying it. Usually, a score and a high score are important elements in a video game. Timers and high score times are also fairly common. The player must, of course, feel challenged by the game and feel the need to continue. This is achieved by using new gameplay elements later in the game and high scores, making the player want to beat it. Because the arcade machine is in a public place, it needs to be eye-catching and have a good attention-getting marquee and attract mode. The game has to allow for two or more players, either competing or co-op, and it needs good audio and graphics: it just needs to sound good and be visually appealing. The controls need to be responsive and durable to make the game enjoyable, so the player will not get frustrated.

Concept

We had concepts for shoot ‘em up, maze, and rhythm games. Rhythm game 1

Rhythm game concepts

Maze & Shoot ‘em up concepts

Our chosen concept was a shoot ‘em up arcade game for 1-2 players, involving space cats!

Art

Mood board part 1

Mood board part 2

Stylesheet

Prototyping

Game Prototyping

Controller prototyping

Assets & background

Character design

Spritesheet

Building

Arcade cabinet

Playtest

During the playtest, we focused on the feel of the movement and special mechanics, the HP System, and the enemy density. Some feedback that we gathered and adjusted upon later was:

The game is too easy
More feedback than sound alone -> visual indicators
What does each button do?
Background planets feel like enemies
The movement is nice
The enemy diversity is good

Poster

Conclusion

We have created this game by following these user story principles:

As the player, I want to set a good high score, to be able to brag to my friends.
As the player, I want visual indicators to be able to understand what I must do.
As the player, I want multiple different waves of enemies with different difficulties, to have the ability to replay the game multiple times.
As the designer, I want fun gameplay mechanics to have players wanting to continue playing.
As the engineer, I want a good scene manager to make managing the scenes easier.
As the artist, I want a cute art style to emphasize the cuteness.

I have improved my skills as a designer in this project and understand better what it takes to create a game and controller.

During this project, I learned a lot about Sound Design, Cost Calculation, and Playtesting.

Link:

Download it for free on my Itch page!

Download the Windows version for free on my Itch page!