Josh Kleber
Bullet Heal
Bullet Heal is a single player game in which the player must survive in an enclosed game space while simultaneously directing a spray of healing energy away from incoming enemies.
Platform: PC
Engine: Unity2D Version 4.6 Beta
Supported Devices: Xbox Controller
Duration: ~5 Months
Role: Game Designer, Programmer, Artist
Game Modes:
In Bullet Heal, there are 2 gameplay modes: Normal, and Infinite.
Normal Mode allows the player to battle through 5 levels; each with their own new enemy to encounter and a spike in difficulty. The player must survive in each level until the timer at the top of the screen goes down to zero. This mode teaches the player about the different types of enemies gradually while still providing a good challenge.
Infinite Mode allows the player to test their mettle and skills in an endless score-based method of playing Bullet Heal. Instead of surviving until the end of a round, enemies will continue to flood the screen in increasing number and aggression. This mode begins with every enemy type unlocked to begin with and only ends when the player dies; resulting in a game over and saving their highest score.
Intent statement:
The goal of creating Bullet Heal was to take the core mechanics of a "bullet hell" game, and altering them by making the player's projectiles heal instead of deal damage; creating a very different feel and experience to set it apart from the norm.
General Description:
In Bullet Heal you play as a spacecraft that is leaking radioactive energy. As you fly around space you are attacked by multiple forms of enemy ships that can't handle the intensity of deep space. Their framework not strong enough; enemy ships' health will constantly decrease until they wither away into nothingness. The only way for them to regain their health is to absorb your ship's leaked energy. In order to survive this onslaught of enemies, you must weave around the swarms while also aiming which direction the energy is leaking in. Classic bullet hell games have the player's projectiles deal damage to enemies whereas in Bullet Heal, they are the only thing keeping the enemies alive.
Sample gameplay footage of Infinite Mode.
Overall Work:
Bullet Heal is a game created off of a proof of
concept for a unique healing system I had
created in a Champlain College class. When
deciding to create a full game out of it, I
accepted the challenge of doing the project
without the aid of any team members.
I created the art
in Adobe Illustrator.
I did the programming
in the game using C# in Unity2D.
I made my design Documents
in Adobe Illustrator.
-5 Enemies with individual art and stats
-1 Player with fully functional controls
-2 Temporary power ups
-3 Unique AI patterns
-2 Different game modes
Post Mortem:
Working on Bullet Heal has helped increase my proficiencies with creating new mechanics and getting them to mesh well together, as well as my ability to balance enemies' stats.
Balancing the different enemies' strengths and weaknesses against the level of the player's skill level was a very valuable experience for me on this project. From this I gained more experience with setting up a difficulty curve on how enemies should be spawned and how levels should be divided.
I first began working on Bullet Heal in Unity3D before Unity2D had become available. When I had begun working on converting my prototype into a full game, I made sure I converted it completely into 2D so that I could maximize the amount I could polish it.
Once I started adding different enemy types and power ups into the game, there was an immediate difference in "fun level". Bullet Heal had started off as a neat prototype that proved my intent, but had begun to develop into a full, fun experience.
This project, more than anything has provided me with the reminder of how much effort it takes to create a game. Bullet Heal is the first full digital game that I completed entirely myself and my planning and organization skills increased tremendously because of it. I learned firsthand how long the 'polishing stage' of game production takes and how important it is to allot time for it.
Systems:
Movement: Being a bullet hell-styled game, I applied the
stereotypical dual stick controls for movement and for
shooting. I've done this to allow people who have played
the genre before: to already know what to do. The healing
"bullets" are what trips up these bullet hell veterens though,
and that's where the twist of the game originates.
Enemies: Every bullet hell game needs its multiple types of
enemies; each with their own ai paths and usually bullet
spreads. I've chosen not to give enemies the ability to fire
projectiles in Bullet Heal in order to have the player focus
more on their own projectiles. Weaving around different
enemies with their own ai while also avoiding to shoot anyone
is hard enough and would be even harder with them shooting
back at you.
Power Ups: Bullet hell games are hectic, and sometimes the
player would like a little bit of help. I've introduced two
different collectible power ups that temporarily alter gameplay
in the player's favor.
The shield power up calls upon the player's sense of anxiety
and their fear of being hit by an enemy. Giving yourself an
extra shield of protection is a pretty good carrot for the
player to go for. Getting the power up helps the player out
by giving them essentially an extra life, but they usually
will need to go out of their comfort zone and into a swarm of enemies to pick it up; giving the player a high risk, high reward situation.
The shot reduction power up cuts down the rate of how many shots are being fired by the player, and will help them not heal
the enemies as fast.
Health: Since you are not shooting the enemies to kill them;
like in most bullet hell games, I needed a way to get them off
the screen. I created the enemies' health system in a way that their health bar is constantly shrinking, and that by avoiding
them, they will simply cease to be after they run out of energy.
The only thing that can sustain them for longer is the player's
projectiles. This core system is what makes this game
different from others that are similar, and what ties it all together.