Slam Junk
Role
Level Designer,
Sound Designer
Engine
Unity
Genre
Sports
Platform
Itch.io
Year
2024
Design Pillars
Cute Aesthetic, Education,
Frantic Gameplay
Ranked #3 out of 50 Games
in the Ubisoft Game Jam!
"A concept as small as a pond, but as deep as an ocean. Well done on executing it and scoping so well! You have the main mechanic of aiming and throwing trash into bins and expanded really creatively with moving bins, extra steps to process the trash, and it all just melds into a perfect hectic multiplayer storm! Oh yeah, AND ITS MULTIPLAYER!"
I contributed a lot to this project, not only in creating all of the levels and other hand-on design work, but also in team morale. I created detailed asset lists for the artists so that model sizes would fit the layout of the level, and I was always on call to discuss mechanical decisions with the other devs.
This helped create a culture of hard work and constant communication within the team. This project was a success largely because the team shared a strong coherent vision for the game, and I believe I as a designer did a lot to help foster this.
"Very well done! For me the standout was the very clever design decisions made. Nice core mechanics and a very consistent difficulty curve, plus the use of diegetic elements through the menus added a lot to the charm of the game. You can tell everyone here worked their heart out on this project and it definitely payed off."
- Rederex on Itch.io
This is the Core Game Loop of Slam Junk. It is very simple, however, this doesn't mean the game can't be an interesting challenge.
When designing levels that would increase in difficulty, I considered how to design interesting challenges for each of the four gameplay phases:
-
Observe Trash: An extra conveyor belt was introduced in one of the late levels, diversifying where the trash would come from.
-
Identify Bin: Over the course of the game, more and more bin types and trash types are introduced.
-
Aim: Bins that appear farther away and bins that move naturally make aiming a more dynamic task.
-
Score: With fans that sometimes block the goal and bins that periodically swap positions, later levels involve timing as a crucial part of the challenge.
By breaking down the gameplay loop and mechanics in this way, we were not only able to increase the difficulty of an otherwise simple game, but also add challenges that were unique from each other, keeping each level fresh and interesting.