Here we brain stormed what the specifics of the game would be, so what kind of game it would be and how the story would progress. What kind of levels we would have and plan out how they would be played.
The biggest singular change to the project since last semester is the change in mindset we have had while setting out the layout and structure of the puzzles in the game. We originally wanted a Metroidvania-style level layout but after several problems found during testing and too much time being spent on reworking the puzzles, we transitioned to work with a semi-open world design that has served us much better. These changes also inspired changes to the narrative, resulting in the game now existing as a simulation aboard the spaceship we had originally planned as a tutorial area.
Some of our mechanics have changed significantly between semesters. Originally we had a fuel gauge for our jetpack jumping, which could be used by holding the button down. This has been changed and now the jetpack acts as a double jump. There is no longer any need for a fuel gauge as it is a single burst. The point in the demo at which powers are given to the player has also changed, for example the player is given the telekinesis glove immediately upon loading the demo rather than as a reward for completing a puzzle.
A big milestone in the development of the project was the completion of our first key area. Prior to the second semester we had only made temporary/experimental puzzles that we were not entirely happy with. We split the areas we wanted to create into three week sprints and the first was the right-hand-side pathway that the player can take once they reach the simulation. This area contains the telekinesis puzzle in which the player must plug wires into sockets and includes platforming to make this more challenging.
The second section of the game we worked on split the team slightly. One programmer worked on the puzzle for the tutorial/introductory area and the other on the puzzle down the central pathway. The artists split their time between the two. These areas were developed at the same time and brought the structure of the game together in a way we had not managed to find previously. The introductory area contains simple puzzles that teach the player the basics of using their telekinesis and platforming. The central pathway puzzle for the prehistoric area sees the player ride a T.Rex and use their telekinesis to catch lava rocks falling from nearby cliffs, then using the rocks to reopen the mechanism that locks away a key item.
The final section of the game we worked on during the second semester was the boss area, the third of the three planned pathways for the demo. This area was difficult to design because we began to run short of time and so had to cut the mechanics down. The boss is not one that you fight, but one you must avoid and outsmart. Buttons around the arena lower a forcefield, within which is a button that kills the boss and drops the key item needed to end the demo. This was the last of the bulk of the work for the game and we transitioned to bug fixing and polishing the content that we had made.