Sema and I determined early in Module 1 that Impossible Rescue would have shooting-oriented puzzles to help fulfil the stakeholder brief requirement for projectile/shooting focused gameplay. However, by the end of Module 1, we had yet to determine the design of our puzzle tools beyond “doors that can be opened by shooting panels.”
In Module 2, I began experimenting with puzzle mechanics, first implementing a simple forcefield door that could be disabled by destroying a nearby panel.
The first implementation of red and blue panels and forcefields (test level)
When implementing this, I coloured the panel red, which gave me an idea for a more complex puzzle design with differently coloured panels reacting to projectiles of the same colour. I made it so the red panel could only be damaged by primary (red) fire, and created a blue panel that responded only to secondary (blue) fire. Given that secondary fire induces a stunned effect in enemies, it made logical sense for the blue panels to ‘short circuit’ when hit, temporarily disabling the forcefield.
To make these tools as flexible as possible for myself and other level/puzzle designers, I allowed each panel to affect multiple forcefields, and made it so that the same forcefield could be affected by multiple panels.
By the end of this process, I’d created three puzzle assets (red panel, blue panel, forcefield). That not might sound like much, but due to the previously mentioned flexibility, those three puzzle assets could be used to create a wide variety of puzzles for the player to navigate.
The player is introduced to these puzzles in level 2. They're first presented with simple puzzles requiring only one panel to be hit:
They gradually progress to more complex puzzles requiring multiple panel hits in quick succession:
Despite this gradual introduction, early feedback suggested that players were having difficulty figuring out puzzle solutions. Delving further into this feedback, we realised part of the problem was that during the introductory puzzle, the player cannot easily see the forcefield when they first spot the panel. To improve the design of this puzzle, I moved the panel one strut nearer the forcefield. I also changed the frame around the forcefield, removing static meshes that blocked view of it from some positions. These changes made it easier to see both forcefield and panel simultaneously.
Before and after screenshots showing refinements made to the first forcefield puzzle. The blue panel was moved one strut closer and the mesh above the forcefield was removed to grant better visibility of the forcefield itself.
Finally, to help with the affordance of puzzles throughout the game, I added blue and red cables leading from each panel to the forcefield(s) they affected. This ‘in world’ solution increases the likelihood that players of all abilities will can complete each puzzle. Using cables and wires to link puzzle pieces is a relatively common technique used by game designers to help players understand how items interact with each other. This particular solution was inspired by similar usage in The Witness (Thekla Inc, 2016).
Testing indicated that these two changes made puzzle solving much more satisfying and intuitive for players.
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