Polarised
ROLE
Gameplay Programmer and Level Designer
DESCRIPTION
In the battle against climate change, the player must protect their home from being melted away, while the rest of the world ignores the issue. The player at any time can choose to end the game early and watch their world melt away.
Polarised was an artefact developed in Unity3D for an assignment in 2020. I worked on this game with one other programmer and four artists.
DEVELOPMENT YEAR
2020
GENRE
Educational, Action, Strategy
PLATFORM
Windows PC
LEVEL DESIGN
My main task during the development of Polarised was to generate an iceberg and create a melting mechanic modelled on real life. I developed a script that generated the iceberg, at runtime, with a specified width.
At random intervals, the airflow would change, which is indicated by the wind vane in the centre of the map. The wind vane points to the front side of the iceberg that melts the fastest. Additional rubble was added onto the iceberg in order to vary the terrain.
Modelled Iceberg Behaviours:
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All edges of the iceberg would melt at all times.
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The iceberg will melt faster proportionally with the direction of the wind.
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The health of each iceberg cell is represented by its size.
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The largest iceberg cells are located in the centre of the iceberg.
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Iceberg cells melt faster if it has more surfaces touching the water.
Since the game has no win state, the overall temperature of the water would increase over time, until it is impossible to remain on the iceberg.
