Final Major Project Proposal Doc

Ross Nixdorf & Lewis Gohl
NIX09163493 – GOH07113944
The Gingerbread Man (Working Title)
Final Major Project Proposal Document
rossay@gmail.com
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itslew@hotmail.co.uk
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Abstract
Two Dimensional platform games have been extremely common throughout the
history of gaming. It has been proven to be a very successful concept, not just in the casual
sector, as many gamers hold a place in their heart for the nostalgic side-scroller. While side
scrolling platform games often appear dated or unoriginal, in recent years especially,
developers have produced titles with unique selling point’s capable of revolutionising the
genre.
The game in which we are proposing is a universally friendly platformer marketed
towards both the young adult and teen market, while also keeping the children’s audience
interested. Children will be able to relate to the use of primary colour and contrast, while
older audiences will be able to enjoy current generation visuals provided by the Unreal
Engine. Using a 3D engine for a 2D concept brings the dated genre new looks and style,
keeping it up to date with other recent similar products sold as indie games.
The game opens with our main character and protagonist “The Gingerbread Man”
waking up on a bake tray surrounded by his less than fortunate friends. In a state of disbelief
the Gingerbread Man springs to life from the tray and makes a dash for the exit (a cat-flap in
this case). Staying true to the short story of origin, the Gingerbread man is chased by the old
lady and her husband. A future chapter of the game features the Gingerbread man escaping
the garden and farmland; taunting his pursuers with his famous line “Run run as fast as you
can, you can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbread man!”
The choice for the project was quite simple, using a simple proven concept such as
the platformer, and bring its back to life with a familiar yet unique feel. In terms of work done
towards the final project, we soon found while brainstorming that there are limitless
directions in which we can take the game, and recognised that attention to detail would really
make the game flourish. The more time and effort that goes into the project will be
proportional to the outcome in terms of visuals, as the game engine brings environments to
life. When exploring the different paths we did not expect to have chosen the Gingerbread
Man, but when looking for stimuli one lunch time we decided on the idea after someone from
the class bought the personified biscuit as a snack. The Gingerbread Man idea opened up
many doors when constructing ideas generation. We decided that we should not constrict
ourselves strictly to the Gingerbread Man, but instead broadened our ideas spanning into the
world of adventure, nursery-rhyme and fairy tale. This way, we can easily pull inspiration
from other related children’s stories and media to create unique content which people of all
ages and backgrounds can relate to. It is also important not to have our creativity affected
too much by one of the better known gingerbread faces in recent cinema; The Gingerbread
Man as seen in the Shrek series of films.
Goals
While making this product we aim to improve our group working skills as a team,
collaboration and compromise are extremely important in the professional workplace. These
skills should prevail as transferable in our future lives. This project will also provide great
practice in both 3D studio max and the Unreal Development Kit (UDK), as level design is
something of interest in our possible career paths, these skills are invaluable.
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User Experience - Audience
We have decided to keep the target audience for our product quite broad this way we are
able to maximise the collective interest of anyone who takes a look, regardless of age. By
making the game both family, and teen friendly, we are creating something that can be
enjoyed either in the living room as a group, or in the bedroom by one individual. Nintendo’s
sales figures have shown to prove that the casual market is booming and generally maintain
an open mind when buying new innovative products and software.
Competitive Analysis
Since using a generic game-play model it is quite likely that we will face some similar games
in terms of market competitors. However, while many indie developers continue to develop
less accessible more complex indie style games, we are able to provide something much
more accessible in the same way that the Super Mario franchise has attained customers.
Critical Analysis
Throughout the project self-analysing will be on going to ensure that our project conforms to
what we had originally planned, rather than losing direction during ideas flow.
Project Content
The main component for submission will be a fully completed level or a fragment of said
piece as a demo, depending on technical restrains of the engine and our own skill or
capabilities.
Functional Requirements
In September 2011 the UDK Engine was updated with the ability to export games to run on
either a Mac running OSX or a PC running windows, this opens an extra window in terms of
platform choice. For the showcase demo to be run, users will either need a DirectX capable
PC or Mac. A tablet such as the iPad is an optional extra feature if we are able to export to
that platform.
Visual design
Sketches and mock-ups are shown below as well as ideas and concepts (work in progress).
The “Baker Lady” will have her top half hidden off screen, in the same fashion as Mammy Two Shoes from “Tom and Jerry”.
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A basic tech demo in the unreal engine of how the game would appear in 2D style.
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Possible HUD?
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Early Development schedule
October – Finish the conceptual side and research
November – Finish all primitive game engine work
December - Begin developing 3D artwork from sketches
January - Import 3D artwork and use for building levels
Development Blog Link
http://rlvidya.wordpress.com/
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