Synopsis
Bygones is a 2.5D narrative puzzle game where players immerse themselves in the role of Mok, a light spirit with the special power to transform objects with the power of light! Rise from the grave to discover yourself and the mystery surrounding your entombment.
My Role
Working with the Game Director and Lead Engineer, I was responsible for creating immersive narrative elements, such as in-game dialogue text and directing the opening cinematic. I was also responsible for programming many elements of Bygones, such as Mok's dialogue, camera behavior, and early variations of the movement and inventory system.
Project Details
Bygones was a three-week-long project created by a team of four as a final project for an Intro to Unity class at USC. Bygones showcases my work in narrative design, cinematic/camera direction, and gameplay engineering.
My Process
When we first began to design Bygones, our main design pillars were story and immersion. As the person in charge of translating the story into gameplay, I researched lots of ways to present the narrative in an immersive way that wasn't distracting for the player. Inspirations included Inside, John Wick, Raji: An Ancient Epic, Superhot, and more.
The main way we convey story to the player is through text dialogue that exists within the game world, often times displaying Mok's (the playable character) thoughts and backstory [1]. I did this because reading lore notes or waiting for VO can be tiresome and ruin the flow of gameplay, but in Bygones, every piece of dialogue is timed individually to appear and disappear in such a way as to not ruin the flow of gameplay.
Camera movement was also very important to retain immersion. From the very start, I decided that I wanted a seamless camera movement system. This meant that when moving from the cutscene to the gameplay, the camera never hard cuts or exposes loading screens. I also use the camera to assist in puzzle design [2]. For example, when the player interacts with the wheel in level two, the camera subtlety shifts to angle itself towards the ants, providing a hint as to what the player needs to do. I also widen the camera the further the player gets in level two to provide better framing so the player can see what they need around them. Then, I push the camera closer afterwards to reintroduce intimacy with Mok and her surroundings.
Bygones Gameplay
Gameplay Clips
[1] Narrative text presentation synced with player movement
[2] Camera change with wheel interaction
Gameplay Media
