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Psykinesis
Psykinesis is a puzzle game where you move blocks and build a path to escape each level. The blocks have different behaviors and interact with some elements of the level in special ways.
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Clear UX and player goals
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Well tuned difficulty progresion
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Tutorial that didn't feel like a tutorial
My goals for this project:
How I accomplished my goals
To create an experience that had clear player goals and UX, the first step was action feedback. I sat down and mapped out every action a player or actor in the game can take, and designated feedback for that action. This includes mouse hover and click on objects, movement, jumping, laser interactions, and finishing the level. During the implementation phase of the project, I made sure all these actions had feedback.
Difficulty tuning in puzzle games is always a challenge. The puzzle needs to make the player feel smart, but it cannot make them feel stupid or you lose them. I implemented all the puzzle mechanics and started introducing one every level. I tried to minimize the presence of other mechanics when a new one first showed up. Playtests showed that this helped players very quickly and effectively learn what the new mechanic or device does.
What I learned
There is something to say about puzzles that have a simple solution but defies paradigms set up previously by the game, for example a game where movement is a core element of the game but the solution to the puzzle is to stand still. However I've learned through many playtests that solutions like this actually give players a hard time.
When players are thinking of a solution, they usually stick to the first theory they came up with and deviate only slightly from this initial attempt. They get stuck when the solution they have does not work on the current problem. Additionally, players will only do what you teach them. They will not search for new mechanics unless you make it clear that they exist.
Thus, any new mechanic must be made clear and its purpose must be, for the most part, as transparent as possible. I sneaked implied functionality into the explicit functionality of a mechanic whenever possible. For example, in Psykinesis, with the blocks that move up, I had the first one you see spawn mid air under a falling normal block. The player can see the block rise for a moment before slowly falling due to the weight that ends up resting on top of it. This teaches two things. One, that the block rises on its own, and two, the block falls slowly when there is weight on it.
Features
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Block movement and placing system
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Persistent Save Data (Time and Progress)
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Over 15 Unique Puzzles
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Lots of Obstacles
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3 Block types with unique behavior
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Anti-psychic fields (prevent block movement)
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Bouncing pads
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Lasers
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6 Unlockable Character Skins with better stats