HIDE&SEEK

Professional Project

Client: Children's Hospice Across Scotland (CHAS)

Project Goals

Practicing and improving upon game design skills
Designing and creating a game with accessibility as the core
Creating a game with a short, easy to understand loop for community play and sharing

Research & Planning

Project Pitching

The project was developed for my third year "professional project" module, where teams would be chosen to work with a specific client based on a previous interest form that was submitted. I was chosen to work on a game for Children's Hospice Across Scotland (CHAS).

The team gathered research on the organisation and had a brainstorming session to pitch various ideas. After the meeting, I assembled basic pitch documents for the three chosen ideas. The concepts chosen were: a superhero collection game, a photography game and a level maker game. We pitched all three ideas to our professors, who chose the Level Maker pitch, suggesting that the game be made into something more familiar to children. We decided on a Hide and Seek game. Through discussion with the team, I made notes on the suggested features, mechanics and level. I started working on the game design document at this point.

Physical Prototype

A physical prototype of the level was made and tested within the team. The paper prototype was used with the help of other objects, such as a pencil case or water bottle, to provide some obstructions and prevent players from simply reaching every hiding spot.

The hiding spots (bush, tree, bench) were positioned around a table and P2 was hidden behind one of them. Players had to slide the P1 paper over the table towards each object and tap the A button paper, which then lifted the hiding spot to reveal if there was someone underneath it. Timings were recorded accordingly and the notes for the game were added and altered to account for what the team discussed after playing the physical version. We decided that some of the hiding spots would be randomly placed when a new game is started. This allowed for a different play experience every time, as well as allowing us to focus on refining and polishing a single level.

Development Process

Level Design

For this project, the goal was to make a game that would be played at CHAS. The team visited the hospice and took note of the facilities, as well as reference pictures of the back garden. We decided to make the game level based on this garden, not only to personalize the experience but to try to make the hospice seem like a less intimidating place to be in through the association with a fun experience. Based on the pictures taken as well as google reference images of CHAS's garden, I constructed the first plan of the level. The dimensions of the level were built based on the isometric view we had decided on, allowing parts of the level to be visible but still requiring time to cross the entire plane. When designing the level, I made sure that there was at least two paths in every section, and that if a player changed their mind about going to a specific location then they would have an easy way back to the center of the map. The level was then constructed using tilemaps in Unity and tested by the team. Feedback received helped us determine changes to the movement speed and level, and gave us an idea of what we would need to add to the game, such as tutorial content.

In the next set of edits, I added a maze to the left of the map, while making the right side have a playground. This was done to help differentiate the two, providing players with a clear visual reference of their location so as to not get lost in the large level.

After formal playtest sessions were conducted, the maze and playground areas were expanded. The final versions of the assets were added in as well, and the level design focused more on polishing and using the visuals to create a path for the players to investigate and move along the level.

Game Design and UI

From the pitching stage, the team kept accessibility in mind. We made sure that, especially as we moved into prototyping, we maintained a list of elements to avoid and be careful of. This included flashing lights, minimizing the number of buttons to memorize, no quick-time commands and keeping the difficulty at a level where children and adults could play together, among other things. We designed the game with the Xbox Adaptive controller in mind, making sure to test any new updates to the game with it.

The game functions similarly to a game of hide and seek. The hider will be given a time limit in which they can hide around the level. When they have selected a location or run out of time (in which case they will be hidden in the closest spot), the controls must be given over to the Seeker. This is a single screen game, encouraging the players to interact with each other outside of the game, whether that is by giving hints or making sure the Seeker isn't looking.

After this, the game design decisions were made based on constant testing and playing of the digital prototype. Because of the natural advantage the Hider has, the Seeker is given more time to find them. The timer was based on how long it would take for the player to make their way around the level at least once with any given path, and then adding a percentage on top of that depending on the difficulty mode selected. Testing also revealed that due to the size of the level, relying on the players communicating would not be enough. A "Hint" button was added, which would display a "hot" or "cold" symbol to show if the Seeker was close to the Hider or not. This feature also had a cooldown; combined with the timer on finding the other player, it forced the Seeker to use the tool as a reference and keep moving rather than stay in one place and wait for the tool to recharge. The level was created to have sections that the player could use to have an understanding of where they are and to communicate with each other if they wished.

I worked with the UI artist to develop the tutorial and game UI. Our goal was to have the least amount of text and utilizing simple, recognizable shapes to communicate with the players.

What Went Right

The team was able to communicate ideas clearly, allowing for quick prototyping and testing
Because of tilemaps, the level could be assembled and changed easily

What I Learnt

I was able to practice my design with a very specific set of constraints regarding the audience and requirements
Being a small team allowed me to communicate with everyone and gain an understanding on the various aspects of development as well as improve on how I would communicate with others

What Went Wrong

Mid-production team had to shift to remote work
One of the two programmers left

How I Overcame It

Focused communication on Slack and made sure that game design files were backed up to slack and personal devices
Game design was re-evaluated and scope adjusted to ensure that it could be managed by one programmer, with additional work being taken on by designers when needed