KeyBoardJam

Dodge, Collect, and Survive!

You can use the ↑ and ↓ arrow keys to move between the three tracks, collect coins and dodge obstacles!

Goal: Collect 15 coins while avoiding obstacles!

Technical Details

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PbTPQJv4Folan6tikLZFulcOX4aOzlo_p4KbtTSMG74/...

Lecture Details

My Prototype is a keyboard-based three-track dodge game.

The player needs to use the arrow keys to switch between the three tracks in order to collect coins and avoid oncoming obstacles!

Initially, I planned for the game to be time-based and survivable, but this resulted in the player just moving around without enough challenge.

Eventually, I adjusted the game so that the player must collect 15 coins to win, which makes the goal clearer and encourages the player to move accurately while avoiding obstacles.

The core challenge of the game is pacing - the player must react quickly and make decisions about the best path to take.

Gameplay Video

Balance
I'm designing and tweaking the rules for refreshing obstacles and gold coins. The gold coins and obstacles have inconsistent speeds to ensure that players can plan their paths wisely.

Iteration

The core track movement and collection mechanics have been tweaked several times!

The original design was that the player only needed to survive for 30 seconds to win, but during testing it was found that the player only needed to keep moving left and right to win, which lacked enough strategy.

It was eventually modified to require the player to collect 15 coins to win, so that the player must actively approach the coins while avoiding obstacles, increasing the strategy and challenge of the game.