Unnamed Project "Project One" (2024)
Platforms: Windows
Roles: Project Lead | Game Designer | Programmer | Writer
Team Size: 2
Project Length: ~3 months
Engine and Tools: Java Swing | Sesame
About
“Project One” was a visual-novel narrative experience centered around serving ice cream to an eccentric cast of characters. Players would form connections with customers over the course of multiple work days and slowly piece together the true nature of the world they find themselves in.
This is an unfinished project not in active development. Made in collaboration with zombi.milk.
Development History
Following the further development of Sesame in the wake of Adrenaraid's release, I once again seeked to stress-test (and put to use) the capabilities of Sesame and its toolset.
To start, I made a test scene in the style of a 2D top-down exploration game. Scope was a major concern even at this stage so I worked under the assumption that levels would be reused. As such, I settled on a bedroom setting. Each time you visited, it would be a new day and things would be moved around/have changed about the room. Through this simple loop, some sort of observational narrative following the inner life of the main character could be achieved.
With a working prototype made, I moved to create a design document with which to map out the game and its systems. Constructing the prototype had given me a good deal of confidence in my ability to deliver a game of yet-unseen scale and, always eager to push myself, decided to seek collaborators for the project.
In order to get people on board, I would need a more fleshed-out vertical slice to present. So I revisited the original prototype and developed it further. I also expanded the scope of the game. Now the bedroom segments were to be followed by a visual-novel-esque section mimicking the experience of working a customer service job. The player was to serve ice cream to an eccentric cast of customers, all with their own unique stories that would unfold over the course of the game's shifts. Once work was done for the day, the player would travel home and start the loop anew.
With a new hook and demo in hand, I started shopping the game around to artists. The procurement of art assets had always been a pain point when working alone, so I hoped to find someone to alleviate my struggle. Beyond simply needing assets, I also hoped to collaborate closely with an artist to develop a compelling world for the game to be set in. Since the core gameplay focused so heavily on experientially coming to understand a setting and its characters, interesting visual design was a high priority.
Eventually I was able to partner with the artist, zombi.milk, and work began. Over the course of about a month, we met regularly to discuss characters, story, and world-building as well as review progress and plan further development phases.
The game was beginning to take shape: the bedroom section had been cut in favor of focusing more closely on the visual-novel elements, a visual identity had been settled on, and basic systems were in a working state. Unfortunately, however, upcoming obligations in both our personal lives pushed us to put the project on indefinite hold.
Postmortem
While no finished product was able to materialize out of my time on this project, I am extremely grateful to have worked on it at all.
Creating and presenting a demo introduced me to the skillset required to pitch projects and helped me to better understand project development. Furthermore, my time working closely with an artist expanded my interdisciplinary communication skills while also providing fun new challenges.
Overall, this project was an important stepping stone in my development journey and help orient myself towards future endeavors.