Magescape

Magescape
Studio	Project: Magescape
Erstveröffent- lichung	Summer 2022
Plattform	PC
Genre	Action, Adventure
Spielmodus	Singleplayer

Magescape
Allgemeine Informationen
Mitglieder
Project Management, Game Design	Michael Plasser
Level Design, Sound	Jan Neuburger
Programming	Elias Wolschlager
Story, Art	Viktoria Moosleitner

Vision

Magescape is a fast paced action-escape game, in which the player takes the mantle of a mage-turned-thief who has just been discovered by guards, moments after he tried to steal the treasure for which he had planned this heist. Now the player needs to control the mage and attempt to flee the caste grounds while dodging and destroying various guards and obstacles and making your way from the treasure room through the castle halls over the rooftops and into safety, all while being chased!

Assisting the mage on this chase is his control over ice and fire. The player could, for example, blast through a door blocking a path with a fireball, freeze a puddle to give him a speed boost and trip his foes or use his projectiles offensively against the castle guards.

While some guards and many obstacles lie ahead of the mage, there is even more danger pursuing him from behind in the form of the king's wizards casting their spells to stop the mage, whether they conjure a massive steel boulder eager to flatten the mage or fling fireballs themselves depends on the part of the castle that the player ends up finding themselves in.

Game mechanics

The player has to constantly move forward throughout a level as he is trying to complete it as fast as possible, while on a tight time limit, because there is some dangerous environmental element behind him (a horde of guards, a massive metal ball, etc.) which will kill him if he remains too long in one spot. The player can also move from side to side as well as jump to dodge incoming obstacles, such as spikes, crates, small magical barriers or stationary enemies in his path. Additionally, if the player runs against a wall to his side, he will be slowed slightly.

The player has two types of magic at his disposal: ice magic, which is fired from the character’s left hand and fire magic, which is fired from the character’s right hand. When either one is used, a projectile shoots out from the respective hand, colliding with the environment or enemies it was aimed at. While enemies are usually simply killed when they are hit, magic that hits certain objects in the environment may have various effects. Fire magic might melt an ice wall which stands in the player’s path while ice magic may freeze a small pond so that the player can take a shortcut across it.

There are two types of enemies: melee and ranged. Melee enemies stand directly in the path of the player and try to stop his advance when he gets too close. They can potentially take multiple hits from the player’s spells without dying, however the player can potentially avoid them by simply moving around them. Ranged enemies may stand outside of the player’s course, but bombard him with projectiles of their own. They are, however, also a lot more squishy and usually die in one hit.

Description of a game level

While the final level will look different, there are elements that are sure to be included. Be it obstacles like ice walls and curtains that can be destroyed with fire or crates and pit traps making the mages way difficult as well as the guards armed with swords and axes or bows and crossbows ready to eliminate the intruder on sight.

The Environment itself should take the Mage through various parts of the Castle, starting down in the claustrophobic Dungeons, moving up into the vast castle halls and even out onto the windy rooftops and walls.

Story

You’re a mage robber, who broke into an old castle, trying to steal a magical staff. However, you’re still severely lacking in your magical capabilities, and you are thus only able to use fire and ice magic. Despite all this, and without a single stealth spell in your arsenal, you tried to pull off this heist! Well, you are quite predictably caught red handed, but not before you managed to grab the magical staff you had longed for! With your limited skills, you’re now facing the challenge of escaping this castle filled with deadly traps and hostile guards. Your trusty horse is waiting outside for you - and it’s your only way to flee from this suboptimal situation - so you better be fast getting there!

UI Scribbles

If we find the time to do so, we'd love to have the main menu be the mage standing in front of his treasure like Indiana Jones ready to grab the goods, but as soon as the players presses "play" or "new game" torches ignite around the mage and the guards are alarmed. We then see the guards running towards us before we transition into first person view and the player gains control.

Title Screen: Pause Menu: Gameplay UI:

Asset List

• Environmental
  • Crates
  • Castle Walls
  • Tables
  • Ramps
  • Floors
  • Doors
  • Stairs
  • Rocks/Debris
  • Curtains
  • Pit
  • Ice Walls
  • Water Sources (Waterfall, leaking Pipes, Waterfall)
• Decoration
  • Buckets
  • Chandeliers and Candleholders
• Traps
  • Hidden Spikes
  • Jaw Spike Trap
  • Fireball Trap
  • Caltrops
  • Giant Steel Ball
• Characters
  • Mage
  • Ranged Guard
  • Melee Guard
  • Wizard Guard
  • Butlers (?)
• Other
  • Fire and Ice Particles/Assets
  • Arrows
  • Indicators (Direction/Checkpoint)
• UI
  • Buttons
  • Enemy Indicator (how close are they behind the player)
• Sound
  • Music
  • Footsteps (Wood, Stone, Carpet, Tile)
  • Fireball
  • Fire Explosion/Burning
  • Iceball
  • Ice cracking
  • Door slamming
  • Various impact sounds (jumping/land, bumping into objects)
  • Enemy Sounds
  • Mage (Player character) Sounds