Project Title
Project Type
Skyrim: Potion Dungeon
The goal of this prototype was to practice implementing systems from scratch while contextualizing the project as an add-on to an existing game.
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Skyrim is one of my favorite games and has always been a huge influence on my design process. Outside of gaming, I have a dedicated interest in historical and practical alchemy and wanted to build a prototype that explored ways of using potions as a puzzle mechanic.
TOOLS:
Unity, C#
LENGTH:
2 Weeks
GENRE:
Fantasy RPG
Dungeon Design
Because some of my playtesters were not familiar with Skyrim or its alchemy system, I structured the puzzles to teach basic concepts like pick-ups, trying ingredients to discover their attributes, and using the alchemy table to create potions.
1. Glowing mushrooms, Blackreach. 2.Flame spout trap, 3. Flamethrower statue.
4. Tomb of Giants, Dark Souls.
1. In the first room of the dungeon, there is a large brass scale with different ingredients. When players take ingredients and balance the scale, a hidden door opens to reveal the next area.
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2. In this area, the cave is pitch black except for a few glowing mushrooms near the beginning of the room. The mushrooms cluster around an alchemy table and a skeleton with a note that mentions one of the ingredients and its properties.
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3. If players try to progress further into the cave, they will encounter a series of platforms across a chasm. This forces the player to create a potion of light, allowing them to progress to the next area.
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4 & 5. In the final area, there are two challenges: a fire trap and a ledge near the top of the cavern. First, the player needs a potion to resist fire, and then a potion of flight to jump up to the final ledge.
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Takeaways
As one of my first projects in Unity, I learned a lot about playtesting and building on concepts to create engaging puzzles. The goal of this project was largely technical, but if I could go back I would spend more time designing potion effects and situations that are fun for the player, like bouncing across moving platforms or turning into a spider to make it through a dangerous spider den.
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