Slidescape

Slidescape is a puzzle labyrinth like no other. Trapped in a sliding puzzle, you must cleverly arrange the various rooms to find your way to the exit. But there's a twist: each area also represents a different video game genre. Now it's up to you to skillfully combine the nuances of these games to break out of the labyrinth.

The game concept originated from a Game Jam during the third semester at Mittweida University. Students were tasked with individually creating a concept over a two-week period with the theme "Push and Pull", which theoretically could be implemented by a small group of developers within a year. The results of the Game Jam were later used as admission criteria for the Game Design Team of the "Echolight" project, of which I became a part.

Since the entire project was to be done individually, I handled the entire conception from ideation to final elaboration myself. Due to the theme "Push and Pull", the options for a concept were already limited, so I followed through with my initial idea of a sliding puzzle.

A special focus during this task was on the analysis of reference games or mechanics. Simplifying and abstracting complex systems, breaking them down to their essential components, understanding, evaluating, and ultimately developing my own mechanics based on the acquired knowledge from the references was a relatively new way of working for me. Analysing other systems and understanding why they work well, but also identifying potential weaknesses, made developing my own mechanics much more enjoyable, as it allowed me not to develop my ideas in a vacuum, but to observe an existing and functioning example within a complete system.

Creating a high level of replayability was also a goal of the project. Therefore, I first had to consider what aspects of a game lead players to repeatedly engage with it. Through observations of myself, I realized that giving players a variety of freedoms can lead to constantly new experiences and make each playthrough unique based on the players' decisions. Thus, the idea of a labyrinth that players can freely manipulate was born. While there is one intended path to the goal, all the tools are there for players to create their own route. Rooms can be entered and mostly completed in any order, and the existing puzzles offer opportunities for completion with different abilities.

• Creating a Game Design Document
• Developing game mechanics and justifying decisions based on the essence of games
• Analysing reference materials and drawing lessons for one's own concept from similar concepts
• Breaking down complex mechanics to their essentials and explaining them simply
• Choosing setting and aesthetics based on essence and mechanics