This month, I wanted to make a game that really invokes a stressful experience for players. It might sound a little sadistic, but I know there are people out there (myself included) who enjoy a stressful gaming experience every now and then. So, starting with that as an idea, I came up with an idea for a game. Here's the basic idea:
As I write this out, I realize that Constantly Dying might actually be a pretty good name for this game, but that's another matter. As is suggested by the potential title, you will always be dying in this game from poison. As far as you know, there is no cure, only a temporary antidote. However, you're not completely doomed. Your friend is in the same situation as you are, and the two of you have found a safe room where the poison doesn't affect you.
Your friend also has the unique ability to transform gems into the antidote for the poison. So, the two of you make a pact: since he is in far worse condition than you are, the two of you agree that he will wait in the safe room while you go out hunting for gems so that he can make antidotes for you. The hope is that maybe, if you can survive long enough, you will find a more permanent solution to your problem.
Of course, these gems you need won't be easy to acquire. They are guarded by difficult platforming challenges, and getting hurt will only worsen your condition.
So that's the general idea of this game. I'm excited about working on it. I think it'll be a lot of fun to figure out what works and what doesn't. Thus far, I'm just setting up the most basic mechanics of the game. I have a screenshot to share:
It's simply the player wall-jumping to collect some gems. I want the platforming to be fast-paced, fluid, and challenging to match the general stressful undertones of the design.
As I started brainstorming for this game, I considered a possibility I haven't really explored in games before: procedurally generated levels. I think this sort of game might work well with procedurally generated levels. Since the threat of death is so legitimate in this game, a changing landscape might provide enough variety to keep things fresh.
Having said that, I know I only have a month to work on this, and I'm already a week into that month. Procedural generation would be cool to experiment with, but my top priority is closing the main game loop right now, so I don't know if I'll get around to it this month. We'll just have to wait and see!
Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for more details about this month's project!
- Jay
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