9 Lives (Unity / Development Ongoing)
9 Lives is a single-player 2D platformer game. The game follows the adventure of a fat house cat, Lord Louis IV, who needs to travel to other timelines represented by his other 8 lives. Each life has a different theme and gameplay mechanic, creating a unique experience.
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What I did:
- Created the concept of the game;
- Designed the gameplay mechanics for each different theme and playable character;
- Designed and develop the main characters;
- Designed levels for 2 characters;
- Designed the AI mechanics for some of the enemies;
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I worked closely with Adriano Gonçalves, lead programmer of the project, to create the mechanics and gameplay of the game.
First trailer for the game, showcasing 3 playable characters.
Archeologist Cat
The Archeologist Cat is a puzzle-oriented gameplay, with minimal combat.
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I have included a gameplay footage of the Demo Level created for the game, to the right.
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The Archeologist Cat's World is themed around tropical jungles and ancient temples that could exist on those areas. He is an adventurer using his sharp wits to help him navigate those unexplored areas and discover new treasures.
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Enemies were not implemented in this version.
Puzzle Flow
The flow of the puzzles will teach the player different mechanics and how to use the characters abilities to overcome the possible challenges along the level.
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As soon as the game starts, the player is introduced to the first type of challenge.
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The settings are built in order to teach the player that the red statue can destroy red-colored walls with their laser blasts when the player comes closer to it.
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The images to the right illustrate the puzzles.
The second challenge introduces the player to walls that cannot be broken, but are controlled by yellow buttons that must be pressed to keep the door open, and the stone rocks that can be used on said buttons.
Gameplay footage for the Archeologist Cat's demo level.
Next, players are reintroduced to the coloured wall and the statue. This time, the statue is facing the player directly and will not hit the red wall behind it.
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This challenge shows the player the use of charging attacks to flip certain targets in his world, allowing the laser statue to destroy the coloured wall.
Continuing the charged attack mechanic, players are introduced to a gap with a stone rock standing on the other side, with the yellow button below the gap.
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This area teaches the players the possibility of charging their attack and pulling objects from distances, clearing puzzles or keeping safe.
The next puzzle introduces the player to a second ability of his character, the handgun, which can interact with certain objects in the area.
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The puzzle consists of a color changing jewel connected (through the black trail) to a wall with purple jewels stuck on them. The statues are on a platform, keeping the safe player to try their effects on the jewel in the center.
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Using the handgun, the player changes the colours of the statues, shooting the jewels on stands below. The small squares indicate the colours of the statues on top.
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The colour changing jewel in the middle changes according to the lasers that hit it. Red and blue makes purple, red and green makes yellow, blue and green makes cyan.
The next puzzle brings back the coloured walls, but this time with a different colour, green. The challenge introduces the player to another mechanic of the statues inside the game: if they hit another statue of a different colour, the target statue changes to the same colour as the one firing the laser.
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A jewel is set next to the statues so the players are not locked into the are if they make a mistake.
This part of the puzzle introduces the player to the existence of moving platforms inside the ancient temple.
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It mixes some of the already introduced mechanics, creating a more complex puzzle.
The last puzzle of the game is to open the door. It adds most of the mechanics surrounding the colour changing jewels.
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The colours that need to achieved by the player are indicated on the door, with the black trails tracing to where that colour needs to be achieved. When the player gets the correct colour, the trail lights up back to the door.
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Clearing this puzzle, the player can end the demo level going inside the newly open door.
Pirate Cat
The Pirate Cat is a beat'em up gameplay, focusing on fighting against more than one enemy at a time. The perspective gains depth, allowing the player to move to the back and front of the area.
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I have included a gameplay footage of the Demo Level created for the game, to the right.
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The Pirate Cat's World is themed around pirate ships and vast oceans. She is a captain of a cruel pirate crew using her strength to acquire anything she desires. She cares for her crew as a family, and treats others like nothing.
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She fights with a cutlass and a flintlock, performing combos to destroy her enemies.
Gameplay footage for the Pirate Cat's demo level.