Aksel Eskelinen
I’m an aspiring Game Designer who thrives when it comes to understanding games and their design.
My Projects
Jiggle Cats
This game is 2.5D endless sidescroller mobile game made in Unity. Our team had 14 members and we had 2 and half months time and 2 and half days a week to make this. For this project we received help and guidance from Fingersoft.
I was one of the 2 designers and my main responsibilities were game mechanics, gameplay feel, game testing and level design.
It’s far from polished but we managed to do something in such a short time. More information below.
Try the game here!
How we came up with this idea?
This game was made for one of our school courses. The main idea of the course was a demanding game project, where we would get better taste how games are made in a real workplace. We got Fingersoft as our “client” and they told us the required specs for the game. We weren’t really making a game for them, it was just for to learn how client-projects work.
The specs were: mobile game, made with Unity, casual or hyper casual, and some way to make monetization. We had the freedom to come up with our own idea, but the idealizing and prototypes took 2 weeks of our work, so it wasn’t the best decision for a short project.
After couple of ideas we wanted to make a cat-themed game with jelly physics. Then we came up with the idea of endless runner because we thought it would be the best option because of the short timeline. After that we had to create the challenge for the player, and after many days of brainstorming and prototyping we came up with the idea of changing the form of the cat to survive the obstacles in the level.
Start Screen
The Game Design Document
Game title: Jiggle Cats
Platform: Mobile
Genre: Endless side scroller
Perspective: 2.5D
Core idea: Proceed the auto speed level as a cat with 2 forms (Small, Big): Change between these forms to survive the obstacles in the level.
Similar games: Subway Surfers, Geometry Dash
Target audience: Mobile gamers, casual gamers
Core Design Pillars
Challenging endless runner: Increasing speed the further you get => fast reactions
Cute chaos: Destroy buildings on your way as a cat
Mechanics
-Change the form of the character between 2 forms: 1 Big, 6 small ones.
-Giga form
Once you go through 10 obstacles, you can activate the giga form that lasts 10s. In giga mode you destroy buildings and get coins from them.
-Automatic moving to the right
-Power ups: Time slower, every form break walls
Lasts 5-10s
Time slower: More time to change the right form
Destruction: Every form destroys every obstacle
They appear in the level as 2 visually different objects, each one representing their own power
Located in obstacles, so that there’s a challenge to get them.
Rules
-If you make one mistake, the run ends. For example, you hit an obstacle with small form when you should have used a big form.
Controls
-Two buttons to change the form (left and right side of the screen).
Features
Shop
-Two currencies: In-game currency (coins), Premium currency (gems)
You get coins from the level. They spawn to the obstacles. You also get coins from destroying breakable buildings.
-Skins
-You can buy premium currency with real money and by watching ads
Random generated level
-8 level components that spawn in random order
-Ones with 1 possible way to go through but also ones with 2 possible ways.
Jiggly cat
-Character has soft body physics
Power ups
Destroyable buildings
-Comes when Giga mode is activated
-You get coins from going through the buildings
Meta Game
Unlock new skins with both currencies
Shop
Level Design
The game has x number of components that spawn in random order. They are designed regarding on the 2 different forms. Some components are easier, requiring only 1 form to get through. Then there are harder components that require 1-2 forms to get through.
-Small form can fit through narrow gaps.
-Big form can break through walls but won’t fit through narrow gaps.
Here’s some examples:
Here you have 2 options: With small form you don’t break the obstacle and continue your way to up.
With big form you can break the obstacle and go through. Then you have to quickly change to small, so you won’t hit the obstacle, and then again to big, so you can break the other obstacle.
Here the long breakable obstacle can work as a ramp for the small form. If at any time on the obstacle you change to big, the obstacle breaks, and you go the lower way.
Orcs be ballin’
This is a 2.5D party dodgeball game for PC made in Unreal Engine 5. Our team had 8 members and we had almost 4 months and 3 days a-week time to make this.
I was the only designer and it was also my first project as a designer. My responsibilities were mechanics, gameplay feel, game testing and level design.
I’m very proud of this project and of our team for the great work we did. Our scope was clear from the start we knew all time the time what we were supposed to do. We wanted to make a party game with chaos that is FUN and we did it. Of course it has its own bugs but it doesn’t take the fun away, quite the opposite actually.
Try the game here!
Little bit about the game and development:
The game is multiplayer and the idea was to have 2-4 players. One round lasts 2 minutes and the one with most points win. You get a point if your throw hits the other player(s). We added ragdoll mechanic to make it funnier and it worked pretty well. Later we added also power-ups to spice up the gameplay even more.
At first we were going to make it magic-themed with wizards and stuff but due to artistic limitations we changed it to medieval-themed orcs. The art style works really well and the characters being orcs it makes more “chaotic”.
The gameplay feels really good even with mouse and keyboard. We also planned the controls for a controller but the main focus was with mouse and keyboard. With the mouse fully controlling the aim of the throw, moving and dash with left hand makes the game easy to play, as a party game should be.
The Game Design Document
Game Overview
Game title: Orcs be ballin’
Platform: PC
Genre: Party
Perspective: 2.5D
Similar games: Oddballers, Stikbold!, Overcooked
Target audience: 7< years old, social players, PC players
Monetization: The game is free and there are no ads or in game purchases.
Core idea: 2-4 players play against each other in 2min. lasting rounds. Players try to hit others with ball by throwing it and avoid being hit by running and dashing. Players can use power-ups in their favor.
Backstory: Orcs have come up with a new dodgeball-like sport. They call it “orcball”. Being violent towards other orcs was so usual, they invented a sport of it.
Philosophy of design: A game where friends can have fun.
Reason of development: Practice. To learn how to make a game with Unreal Engine, how to make games as a team.
Core design pillars:
Dodgeball: Hit others, avoid getting hit
Multiplayer: Compete against other players
Chaos: Short rounds, fast bouncing balls, power-ups
Emotions: Joy, excitement. For example, player gets feeling of excitement when hits another player and he flies away with ragdoll
Experience: simple to play / easy controls, still eventful gameplay.
Features: Multiplayer, very bouncing ball, power-ups, ragdoll
Goal: The winner is who gets most points. Player gets a point by hitting other players with a ball.
The Challenge: To learn to play the game well, learning how the ball bounces from different spots. “Dash throw” is a cool feature that is fun to do and brings more depth in the gameplay (use dash to find better angle to hit other player).
MVP (Minimum Viable Product): Playable version, finish the basic mechanics, local multiplayer, one map (level design and art), one character, one ground texture
Gameplay
Core loop: Run, dash, catch a ball, throw the ball
Mechanics: Run, dash, catch a ball, throw the ball, ragdoll:
-Run: Same one speed all the time (except power-ups).
-Dash: Short leap to the way the player is moving.
-Catch ball: By pressing a button
-Throw the ball: To the direction where player is aiming, the ball keeps high speed for couple of seconds (2-4) the longer you charge, the more powerful the throw
-Ragdoll: Happens when ball hits player with enough speed.
-Ball contact with player: When hit, player starts to ragdoll for a short time
-Ball movement: Keeps high speed when bouncing from walls. Bounces also from players.
-Arena borders: The players or the ball can’t fly over the arena, invisible walls up to 5m-10m.
Rules: One round last 2min. The map is only area where players can move. Player with the most points win. No one dies so everyone can play the whole round. Scoreboard after a round
Power-ups: They spawn on the map, and you get them by moving to them
-there are two different power-ups:
-Extra speed and one that makes you either smaller or bigger, you become faster when you get small and slower when you get bigger
Controls:
-With a ball: Run by moving the left stick/WASD, aim by right stick/Mouse, throw with RT/R2/LMB. Dash with LT/L2/Shift
-Without a ball: Run by moving the left stick/WASD. Dash with LT/L2/Shift. Catch a ball with A/X/LMB
Level Design
Size: Not too big so the chaos stays. Enough room to run and avoid the ball. Due to playtest results we made the level little bit bigger so it won’t be too tight for the players.
Shape: Simple but doesn’t have to be a square. Designed for bouncing and many different routes for the ball.
Initial design of the map