July 21, 2024
WHAT IT’S LIKE TO JOIN A GAME JAM AS A GAME DESIGNER?
A week before CGJ (CIGA GAME JAM) started, I suddenly had the idea of joining a Game Jam. After struggling to find a team, I decided to pull in an artist friend and form our own team to sign up for this CGJ. Since everything happened in a rush, we only managed to find programmers and a sound designer a few days before CGJ started. So, I gave our team a rather fitting name: “Barely Made It on Time!”
1.Preparations
Our team consisted of one game designer, one artist, two programmers, and one sound designer. Before CGJ officially started, I thought of some potentially necessary features and had the two programmers test whether they could implement them. This allowed me to design the game mechanics within the scope of what was feasible.
The two programmers were extremely cooperative and proactive, creating several prototypes to test the features. This made me deeply appreciate how dedicated and enthusiastic everyone was. There was a strong sense of unity—working together towards a common goal felt truly amazing. Although, in the end, we didn’t use these particular features, I was still incredibly grateful for everyone’s willingness to collaborate and experiment.
Aside from discussing potential features with the programmers, we also talked about what communication tools everyone preferred. Eventually, I decided to use Figma, since it allows both wireframing and table organization, making it easier to keep everyone on the same page.
The artist and I also chatted, and she mentioned that she could create pixel art relatively quickly. (She later proved that she was super fast!) So, with all that settled, our preparation work was mostly complete.
2. Theme Announcement & Brainstorming
This time, the theme was "Limited and Limitless", a very interesting concept. First, all of us brainstormed separately for ten minutes in a Tencent spreadsheet. Then, we took turns sharing and explaining our ideas one by one.
The reason I set a 10-minute limit was that I didn’t want everyone to overthink it. Sometimes, thinking too deeply can actually trap our thought process. Instead of fixating on one complex idea, it’s often more effective to explore multiple simpler ideas, making our thinking more flexible and efficient.
We came up with a lot of fun ideas, both from a mechanical perspective and a storytelling/world-building angle. In the end, we decided to use Cabbage’s (one of our programmers') idea as our inspiration because it had a very clear mechanical concept. It also nicely illustrated the theme:
"Limited actions counter an unlimited enemy."
I was particularly drawn to the idea of “limited actions”, and an example immediately came to my mind:
Imagine designing a character in a platformer game. The player could either have a limited number of bullets or a limited number of jumps, but they must pick one of these two states to progress through the level.
If the player chooses limited bullets, then jumping is unlimited.
If the player chooses limited jumps, then shooting is unlimited.
This setup naturally creates a contrast between limited and limitless actions, making it fit the theme perfectly and feel intuitive. However, I felt it still needed refinement:
Why should the player be forced to choose one of the two states?
Is this decision strategic?
How can this mechanic be made more fun?
I wanted to design an experience that would make players think and feel engaged.
3. Refining Game Design
Before diving into specific designs, game designers often need to consider what kind of experience they want players to have in their game.
This time, my answer was: exploration and discovery.
When I first started thinking about how to refine the game mechanics, I already knew:
At the start of each level, the player can choose between two modes:
Unlimited bullets + single jump
Unlimited jumps + limited bullets
Regardless of which mode the player picks, the level’s structure remains the same.
From this, I had two options:
Design each mode to have completely different paths through the level.
Ensure that only one of the two modes can solve a specific level.
I preferred the first option because I have believed that there’s always more than one way to solve a problem since I was a kid. This led to the core mechanic of the game:
Using different methods to solve the same problem.
In other words, I wanted players to explore and discover multiple solutions to a single level.
But This Led to Another Question…
If I design multiple solutions for a level, but players can clear it with just one, then why would they replay the level to find the other solutions?
This means the mechanic itself needs to emphasize "exploration and discovery", rather than simply testing whether the player can complete the level.
My Solutions:
Make the exploration process more fun
Instead of just completing the level, players should feel a sense of joy from discovering different solutions.
Introduce unlock conditions for later levels
Players must complete a level using multiple solutions before unlocking certain later levels.
Between these two ideas, if I were to implement both, I would prioritize (1) as the main focus and (2) as secondary.
If exploration isn’t fun, then (2) just forces players to redo the same content over and over, which isn’t enjoyable.
(2) is easy to implement:
Each unique solution could reward a star
Later levels require collecting a certain number of stars to unlock.
Alternatively, special routes could reward unique items, which could then be used to unlock levels tied to the theme.
Regardless of the approach, the key challenges are:
How do we make replaying the same level more fun?
How do we make the exploration and discovery process meaningful?
4. Surprise, Strategy... and a Bit of Tension?
A large part of the joy of exploration comes from surprise, which is also one of the lenses in The Art of Game Design (Lens #4). Surprise plays a crucial role in many games, so when designing levels, I naturally wanted to incorporate this element.
For example, in Level 1, if the player falls into a gap between platforms, they fail the level. However, in Level 2, one of the platform gaps instead leads to a hidden underground path. The player might initially avoid falling into the gap, but when they realize that it doesn't cause failure, they discover a new path—this kind of unexpected discovery creates a fun surprise.
However, rather than just focusing on surprise, I also wanted to introduce more strategic elements into level design. One way to do this is through "limited vision", which prevents players from fully understanding the level's layout all at once. This makes information gathering the key to exploring different solutions for the same level.
For example, if a player takes Path A, they might spot key objects on other paths:
A fruit that Path C needed to open a door.
A crate that Path D needed to trigger a pressure plate.
If the player doesn't pay attention to these key objects or immediately commits to Path C or D, their limited vision makes it harder to easily figure out how the paths connect and how to clear the level.
This leads to the second core mechanic of the game:
When clearing a path, the player isn’t just passing the level once—they're also gathering information for alternative solutions.
After incorporating surprise and strategy, I also wanted to add some tension to the gameplay.
For example, after reaching a specific area, a row of spike-covered boulders might suddenly start rolling toward the player, forcing them to act quickly.
In my view, solving a challenge under time pressure creates a stronger sense of accomplishment because it increases the difficulty and forces players to push themselves. In simple terms, this is like a "moment of sudden insight under pressure."
I want players to feel smart and skillful when clearing levels—but also to enjoy that thrill of risk. (After all, if they mess up, they might get skewered!)
5. Game Scope and Communication
Before we started CG development, our team agreed on one core principle:
Finishing the game must come first.
Everything else—including creativity and extra features—had to stay within feasible boundaries. From setting the initial theme to designing levels and coordinating with programmers and artists, I always prioritized what was achievable within the game’s scope.
At the beginning of the project, I was very busy, constantly thinking,
“If I don’t plan this properly, how can anyone else work on it?”
So naturally, I rushed out 10+ complete level designs in half a day and selected three of them for the demo (yes, really pushing the 48-hour game jam limit!).
Originally, Eternalty should have three levels in the demo version:
A tutorial level (teaching game mechanics and core controls)
A simpler puzzle level
A complex level (with additional mechanics and puzzle-solving)
However, due to time constraints, I had to cut down the tutorial level, turning it into a visual tutorial page instead. The remaining two levels were completed properly.
To help our two programmers get a head start, I made a mechanic list before I started designing levels. Two programmers started to make little prototypes according to the list to see whether they could achieve the features or not, I then designed levels based on what they could realistically implement.
By the second day, one of the programmers had already finished most of the features, which was a huge relief! We also decided on the art style before the second day. The artist decided to use a dark silhouette style, which was both cute and quick to draw. But in the end, she also had to crunch through a ton of animation work, as different interactive objects and environmental elements needed unique animations.
The programmers also worked late into the night. After I finished designing the levels, they needed me to confirm exactly what I wanted in terms of game mechanics, player controls, and some other experiences. This required a lot of clear and precise communication. Sometimes we grasped each others’ ideas immediately, while sometimes we needed more explanation and discussion. I had to be very clear in my feedback, often needing to re-explain my expectations multiple times. But since I understood Unity and C#, I could explain things in a way that made sense to the programmers and even suggest possible implementation approaches.
Throughout development, we constantly reviewed and adjusted to ensure everything aligned with our vision. Even though we were working remotely, communication remained smooth and open, and everyone was willing to collaborate.
Compared to working with programmers, communicating with the sound designer was a bit more challenging—especially with sound effects. I don’t have a deep understanding of music production, so I could only give feedback based on feelings rather than technical terms. Luckily, our sound designer worked efficiently and didn’t require much back-and-forth.
As for the artist, we had worked together before, so communication was much easier. Other than the art style, color palette, canvas size, and character-to-background ratio, most of the time I was the communication bridge between her and the programmers. Since our goal was to finish the game properly, we all stayed focused and aligned.
In the end, despite the challenges, everyone was dedicated to clear communication and committed to completing the game!
6. Game Testing and Uploading
Even though we felt we were working fast, it wasn’t until the very last day that we finally finished the game and had a chance to test it. Everyone was super stressed, scrambling to finish their tasks. The art team had a huge workload, and I was also overwhelmed with UI, title text, and other small details that weren’t properly aligned.
It wasn’t until the afternoon of the final day that we got a chance to test the game. Once testing began, I took the lead in testing, while the programmers and artists continuously adjusted and fixed issues. It wasn’t until the fourth version that we felt most of the major issues had been resolved, and only then did we finally upload the game.
After uploading, we all celebrated, congratulating each other and sharing words of encouragement. Despite all the hard work, this was truly a fantastic game jam experience. Everyone was exhausted, but we were all incredibly aligned, focused, and dedicated, and we gained a lot from the process.
After uploading Eternalty, I played it for a while and felt a deep emotional connection—like watching my child. Even though it had its flaws, it was still a piece of work that I had given my all to create.
Then... I went to sleep. I was completely burnt out after those intense days.
When I woke up, I felt much better, but it also seemed like I still had a lot more to say. Regardless, this journey felt complete, and it was a solid closing chapter to our experience.
I want to thank my teammates—the fact that we worked so united and dedicatedly to finish this game was truly amazing!