DEVELOPMENT INFO
GAME: Lost in the Dark
GENRE: Third-Person Exploration
TOOL: Unreal Engine 4
DEV LENGTH: 5 months
TEAM SIZE: 17
RESPONSIBILITIES
Game Designer
-
Developed initial vision
-
Communicated with interdisciplinary team
-
Worked with team to achieve design goals
-
Developed lore
-
Oversaw cinematic implementation
-
Maintained Game Design Document
-
Created and delegated tasks (Agile)
Link to Design Document
Download "Lost in the Dark" Installer
TEASER TRAILER
GAME SUMMARY
Lost in the Dark is a third-person exploration game with horror elements set during an epidemic in Victorian-era London. Players play as a young orphan trapped in her own psyche who must find a way to escape from a nefarious entity seeking to drag her into the depths of the darkness. Players are equipped with a lantern as their sole means of protection, and must stay in the light to avoid fading away.
PROJECT INFO
Lost in the Dark was developed with three design goals in mind:
​
1) Light & Darkness
​
Players must use light to protect themselves from the terrors in the darkness.
​
2) Sense of Vulnerability
​
Players feel a strong sense of vulnerability while they move through the space. Players feel on-edge, always wary of the dangers lurking in the darkness. Players feel unsettled. The light source feels fragile and temporary, and the player must maintain their sanity as they travel through dark spaces and frightening encounters. This pillar is an atmosphere pillar, and heavily ties into the player experience.
​
3) Exploration
​
Players make constant progression as they play through the game. Players work towards a clear goal, and the game periodically reminds the players of this goal through checkpoints and collectable pieces that lead to the goal. Exploration includes finding clues that lead players to objects important to Caroline (the player character). The player brings these objects to paintings to unlock new areas in Caroline’s dying mind.
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
Screenshot Gallery
Poster by Zhang Jianghong
PRESENTATION VIDEO (IP SHOWCASE)
Shown here is an 8-minute excerpt from a livestream showcase event held by SMU Guildhall. In this video, our team demonstrates the prototype of Lost in the Dark while lead producer Justin Gibbs narrates. I am at the controls just off-camera.
MY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
PITCH TEAM
I was a member of the original pitch team that pitched this idea to faculty and fellow peers. My main vision was to create a game that could impact players on a raw emotional level, and to immerse players within a contained experience that they would remember after playing. As one of the leading proponents of the idea, I drew storyboards and created written documents to communicate the systems clearly and passionately to potential team members and stakeholders, helping them understand the merits and potential of the idea.
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
Early Concept Storyboards
GAME DESIGNER
As Game Designer, I was responsible for the overall implementation of the game vision, making sure everyone was on the same page regarding what to make and ensuring that the gameplay experience would ultimately end up being enjoyable for the player. I was heavily involved with the development of Lost in the Dark from the initial idea creation phase through post-production, and served as the creative center-point for the other team members to contribute their own ideas and maintain overall consistency throughout the development process. I created and maintained a Game Design Document, and worked to keep the whole team motivated and on the same page through in-person conversations every day.
Game Design pipeline (for team ideation)
GAMEPLAY SYSTEMS
I was charge of developing gameplay systems for the project, including player actions and enemy behavior. One of my main tasks was developing the moment-to-moment gameplay for Caroline, the protagonist of the game.
COMMUNICATION
Communication was key throughout development. I had a very close working relationship with my producer and the rest of our lead team, consisting of a Lead Level Designer, Lead Artist, and Lead Programmer. The five of us kept constant contact throughout the planning process, utilizing Scrum boards and visual backlogs to plan our sprints. As Game Designer, I regularly updated the team with individual discussions, board aids, and group meetings. When discussing with my team, I made sure to actively listen to their thoughts and opinions on proposed changes, balancing those with our overall design goals in order to make the best decision for the project going forward.
During discussions with team members, I would sketch out the results of our discussion to keep everyone thinking on the same page
ADAPTABILITY
This project went through many adjustments over the course of the development timeline. Originally, the concept focused more on inducing vulnerability through puzzles. We came up with several different puzzle types including dual-state tile puzzles, matching puzzles, and platforming puzzles. But when we sat down to playtest, we discovered that the puzzles undercut our vulnerability design pillar. Further communication within the team revealed that our designers were more comfortable creating action-based gameplay rather than puzzles. To address this, I led the decision to move away from puzzles and place more emphasis on action and exploration, utilizing enemies as the main obstacle that players have to deal with over the course of the game.
POST-MORTEM
WHAT WENT WELL
-
Overall transparency led to solid team buy-in
-
Team excited about product potential when all elements were brought together
-
Diagrams helped communication immensely
-
One-on-one conversations with team members helps both sides a ton
-
Team successfully conveyed intended experience to player (and then some)
WHAT I LEARNED
-
Clear direction is super important
-
Trying to make everyone happy = no one happy
-
Clear direction with confidence = team happy
-
Important to reiterate direction continuously to individual team members
-
Important to establish direction early