Designing patterns
Boogey Boy is a side scrolling free runner with randomly generated terrain. As such, the level’s design is based on a set of rules which form the platforms and obstacles the player will need to navigate. Doing this provides a continuous source of fresh challenges, which translate to a positive play experience and adds value to our game.
In the early stages of our game, platform generation was done randomly. However, after playtesting, we found that the game just was too unpredictable, and lacked direction. The solution was to utilize patterns made up of game elements. By doing so we were able to find a positive balance between random generation and meaningful gameplay content.
Here are two early patterns in Boogey Boy:
We created a set of patterns and tested them individually in Unity. The set of patterns worked in the test scene and the player was able to travel between platforms and reach higher locations with no issue. However, introducing them into the actual game scene posed a problem. Because the patterns did not have consistent heights and widths, they meshed poorly with the spawn settings of the terrain generation. For example, some pattern reached too high, leaving the boy stranded once at the top.
To resolve this issue, we created a few rules for patterns.
First, patterns would have consistent widths and heights, which would allow them to fit alongside other platforms. Then, we spaced platforms evenly amongst themselves, locking them to specific heights as shown above. This extended to the horizontal spacing of platforms. This ensured that the player could jump or double jump from a platform to another platform reasonably. Lastly, we determined entry and exit points, represented by the red lines. We created three entry/exit points: low, medium and high.
In the image below, a pattern with a high exit point is highlighted. The next pattern has a high entry point. The player should be able to jump to the next set of pattern with no issue. The rules help us in creating streamlined patterns, which work together to form a more cohesive level with visible gameplay objectives..
