https://erikasampson.cargo.site Portfolio Mon, 03 Jul 2023 19:25:53 +0000 https://erikasampson.cargo.site en https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Echoes-of-the-Past Thu, 29 Jun 2023 19:57:44 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Echoes-of-the-Past ECHOES OF THE PAST Virtual Reality <img width="2770" height="1554" width_o="2770" height_o="1554" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/091a6f98076fbc1c6c386fbb9c3bacff260f37850e59c45cf7279e8aec1e5046/Screen-Shot-2023-07-03-at-14.52.14.png" data-mid="184037950" border="0" data-scale="80" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/091a6f98076fbc1c6c386fbb9c3bacff260f37850e59c45cf7279e8aec1e5046/Screen-Shot-2023-07-03-at-14.52.14.png" /> <img width="2778" height="1560" width_o="2778" height_o="1560" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/888a8b412ef4fb95809debce9238154926ffd1a56e07536983afa7f253c62a8d/Screen-Shot-2023-07-03-at-14.51.31.png" data-mid="184037949" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/888a8b412ef4fb95809debce9238154926ffd1a56e07536983afa7f253c62a8d/Screen-Shot-2023-07-03-at-14.51.31.png" /> <img width="2776" height="1552" width_o="2776" height_o="1552" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ab4569baa1d098c770e4d191933cc8650f02d865fa47fcc8fc9ff4144aaa10eb/Screen-Shot-2023-07-03-at-14.53.17.png" data-mid="184037951" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ab4569baa1d098c770e4d191933cc8650f02d865fa47fcc8fc9ff4144aaa10eb/Screen-Shot-2023-07-03-at-14.53.17.png" /> <img width="1920" height="1080" width_o="1920" height_o="1080" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/980025ff9509bc68184c1506348fc5054d1ad35db0fa08308cba8d2ad4dafe87/VR_IS23-4_9_2023-2_53_30-PM.png" data-mid="184038110" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/980025ff9509bc68184c1506348fc5054d1ad35db0fa08308cba8d2ad4dafe87/VR_IS23-4_9_2023-2_53_30-PM.png" /> <img width="1920" height="1080" width_o="1920" height_o="1080" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ce50e1db4c531637adba0f207a020101461baaec7a0889b7b7ce692dffac5ba2/VR_IS23-4_9_2023-2_54_50-PM-1.png" data-mid="184038097" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ce50e1db4c531637adba0f207a020101461baaec7a0889b7b7ce692dffac5ba2/VR_IS23-4_9_2023-2_54_50-PM-1.png" /> Worked for: &nbsp; &nbsp; 14 weeks, Jan - May 2023 Created by: &nbsp; &nbsp; Kate MacVicar and Erika Sampson Individual Responsibilities:&nbsp; game designenvironment designmechanic designprogrammingshaders &nbsp; &nbsp; Echoes of the Past was a semester-long project I developed with a partner as an independent study in virtual reality for my Media Arts and Sciences major. In this VR experience, players have the ability to see the past when interacting with certain objects, and they can use this power to figure out the mystery behind why the town has been abandoned. Having taken the CS 321: Virtual Reality course the previous semester, this project was an opportunity for me to apply all that knowledge and learn more about the full game development process. To do this, we were also reading A Playful Production Process: For Game Designers (and Everyone), a book detailing the major game production phases, and applying what we learned to our own project. At the end of the year, this project was submitted to the 2023 senior art exhibition at Wellesley College.&nbsp; Development Process: &nbsp; &nbsp; As we were developing our project, my partner and I were reading A Playful Production Process: For Game Designers (and Everyone) by Richard Lemarchand and drew major inspiration from the game development process outlined in the book. While not every process described in the book was applicable to our project, as it was a semester long academic project and not a AAA title, we had to figure out how to personalize things to fit our own needs, but in general, we tried our best to follow what a professional game development process would look like. Since this was a semester-long project, I also applied these ideas to the other, shorter projects I worked on during the semester for my CS 221: Digital Worlds for Gaming course, like A Thousand Miles and Ten Thousand Waters and Fish Simulator. &nbsp; &nbsp; Ideation &nbsp; &nbsp; In our first phase, ideation, we started with 20 minute individual brainstorming sessions where we wrote any and all ideas that came to mind, and then worked together to see what could be built upon them. While there were some plot ideas that cropped up, we mainly focused on brainstorming for game mechanics first. Only once we had found our core game mechanic - giving the player the ability to touch an object and see past interactions involving the object - did we finally begin to build the narrative and supporting mechanics. In the final stages before the development phase, we realized that in our quest to figure out plot holes in our narrative and build a cohesive world, our concept had gotten too complex for the limited time we had. Even though we were almost finished with ideation, we decided it would be better to start over with a new narrative while still keeping the original game mechanics. We began to think of our project as a very simple proof of concept, or a vertical slice of a vertical slice. We had nowhere near enough time to create a full game, but we could develop a very small portion of a game while still keeping in mind the larger game. &nbsp; &nbsp; After we had a basic idea for our game mechanics and story, we began to do more in-depth planning. This included creating a game design macro chart to outline the relationships between our assets, scripts, and scenes - something that we modeled after examples from the book. We also researched references to help us draw out a physical map of the area and visualize how the world would look. For example, the visual look of the halo involved in one of our game mechanics is inspired by how The Force is visualized in the Lego Star Wars games. &nbsp; &nbsp; Preproduction and Production &nbsp; &nbsp; Before we delved into our equivalent of the preproduction process, we created a burndown chart, again inspired by examples from the book, to help us divide up the work into sprints and break down our project into smaller, more manageable tasks. This chart was helpful in keeping track of the completion status of our tasks, how much time we anticipated spending on tasks vs. the amount of time we actually spent, and predicted if we were likely to complete our tasks for each sprint. This chart was instrumental in combating “crunch time”. &nbsp; &nbsp; Our plan was to start with gray boxing the entire area, making sure our core mechanics worked, and building the “beautiful corner” of our game before working on the aesthetics / details for the rest of the project. We chose one object from our scene, the fountain, and focused on making the important game mechanics work with that object only. &nbsp; &nbsp; The core mechanic of the game, which we often referred to as the “snapshot” mechanic, involved the player being able to see scenes from the past when they touched certain objects. In our visualization of the mechanic, after touching the fountain, the present version of the fountain would fade away before the past version of the fountain faded in, accompanied by a model of some character and dialogue to indicate what was happening in the past memory. To make the switch between the past and present, we knew we had to make the past memory very visually different from the present world. Our first approach to this problem was to figure out how to exclude the past models from the post processing filter that covered the entire scene, so the past objects would look “normal” while the present world was desaturated and dreary. Although I figured out how to do this, we ended up abandoning this approach because we weren’t sure if messing around with the cameras would cause problems down the line because our project relied on a VR headset. Instead, I ended up adding a light that affected only past objects so they would look brighter, and developed a shader using Unity’s Shader Graph that gave each past object a glowing, golden outline and a white base material. To tackle the models fading in / out, I wrote a script that would change the alpha value of the model over time, though I ran into problems with the model materials, as I needed the material’s rendering mode to be fade to fade the object to / from complete transparency, but I needed the material’s rendering mode to be opaque if it had fully faded in so the object wouldn’t be strangely see-through. To solve this, I wrote a script that would be attached to each model, and could switch between opaque and fade materials. &nbsp; &nbsp; The second mechanic we added to the game was the “halo” mechanic, where a halo-like light would appear around objects that contained past snapshots if the player looked directly at those objects. The purpose of this mechanic was to help the player determine whether or not an object would reveal the past when touched, and prevent players from randomly touching objects in the hope of triggering some reaction. Initially, this mechanic would be activated with a button press and would continuously indicate which objects were interactable, but we felt this would have de-incentivised exploration, as all players would really have to do was press a button. While we wanted to help our players, we didn't want to make it so easy that it was boring. The halo mechanic works by using a spherecast and checking if the ray hits any of the snapshot objects. The origin is set slightly behind the camera, to account for the sphere size and prevent the spherecast from starting within the boundaries of a snapshot object, and the spherecast rotates with the camera rotation. &nbsp; &nbsp; Playtesting &nbsp; &nbsp; Once we had the two main mechanics implemented on the fountain, it was time to start the playtesting process. After sending out an interest form and scheduling the participants, we wrote a script of prepared statements and questions that we would say to each playtester to try and keep each playtest consistent. If they had no prior experience with VR, we also made sure to instruct them on basic movement controls like turning and teleportation. While each playtester was playing, we didn’t talk or direct them in any way, instead taking notes on their actions and recording the screen of their playthrough. &nbsp; &nbsp; Based on the gathered answers from our playtesters and our own notes, we were able to determine several things that needed work in our project. Firstly, we needed a far more extensive tutorial section to teach not only our own mechanics, but also the movement mechanics included with SteamVR so we didn’t have to give verbal instructions for every single person who wanted to play. This tutorial section also had to be in a closed space with a more linear route, so we could ensure that players were learning everything we needed them to, and should have some kind of narration to convey the instructions better. Secondly, we noticed that people sometimes had trouble with spatial perception in VR, so we needed a feature that would outline snapshot objects when players were touching one. Thirdly, our halo mechanic seemed like a visual glitch to some of our playtesters due to its sudden appearance / disappearance, so we needed to change our mechanic to allow the halo to more naturally fade in / out. As we were expanding our game to include more examples of snapshot objects and give the player more to explore, I was also implementing those three major changes to our game, courtesy of our playtesting data. Challenges Faced: &nbsp; &nbsp; One of the main challenges I faced was during the playtesting process. While listening to feedback about our game, it was difficult to not get emotional or defensive. While I made sure to never act on any of my emotions and get frustrated with playtesters, I had to internally remind myself that comments on the game were not comments on myself, and getting constructive playtesting feedback was integral to making a better game and providing the best experience possible to players. &nbsp; &nbsp; Another challenge I faced was dealing with hard coding in the scripts. While first developing the snapshot mechanic specifically for the fountain, there were some parts of the code that were hard coded to only work with the fountain, which was okay since I was mostly playing around to see how to get the mechanic to work. Once it was time to expand the game however, the code could no longer be hard coded and I had to rewrite it to be able to work with multiple cases. While the better route probably would have been to start off with general code in the first place, this experience taught me to never be afraid to ask for help and reinforced the importance of not hard coding. Hard coding was easier as a short term solution for the fountain, but it wasn’t sustainable long term. As I was struggling to translate the hard coding into general code, our advisor reminded me of Unity’s getComponentsInChildren, which ended up being the key to making the code work, saving me a lot of time and research. I was reminded that the people around me were probably more experienced than I was, and there was no shame in asking for help since they want to share their knowledge and see me succeed. Lessons Learned: &nbsp; &nbsp; One of the most important things I took away from the development of Echoes of the Past was that sometimes your ideas don’t work out, and it’s important to recognize that as early on as you can, so you can move your project into a more plausible direction instead of wasting time working on something unsustainable. While it was certainly painful scrapping our ideas right before we were due to start development, I can only imagine how much worse it would have been if we had to start over after already developing parts of the project. &nbsp; &nbsp; I also learned about the part meticulously planning things out and giving ourselves buffer time plays in combating crunch culture. When we were first writing down our plan for the burndown chart, we left the two final weeks empty just in case there were unforeseen issues in the development process that we would have to tackle. This resulted in the initial vision of our project being completed much earlier than anticipated, as we refused to let everything be left until the end. We were able to use those extra weeks to expand our game to include more examples of our mechanics and flesh out the environment of the game. While this was the longest I’ve ever spent on a video game project, this was also the most comfortable time-wise as we didn't really experience crunch and maintained a rather steady pace throughout the development process. &nbsp; &nbsp; If I had had more time on this project, I would have liked to polish the instructional narration in the tutorial section, improve the visuals, and clean up the code. I would also have liked to figure out how to incorporate motions into the control scheme. For example, instead of having the halo mechanic activate whenever you look at an object, it could be interesting if the player had to put on special “glasses” or activate a special vision mode with a specific movement. It would have been cool to explore how to take advantage of the game being in the unique medium of VR and how we could have pushed past the conventions of video game development. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/A-Thousand-Miles-and-Ten-Thousand-Waters Thu, 29 Jun 2023 19:57:35 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/A-Thousand-Miles-and-Ten-Thousand-Waters 千山萬水：A THOUSAND MILES AND TEN THOUSAND WATERS 3D Video Game <img width="2080" height="1176" width_o="2080" height_o="1176" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/671c6a81ead8cfaf464bd051b6a90bd3210e6215936d1f8d1ab7da5fe6fac089/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.18.17.png" data-mid="183733724" border="0" data-scale="79" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/671c6a81ead8cfaf464bd051b6a90bd3210e6215936d1f8d1ab7da5fe6fac089/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.18.17.png" /> <img width="2084" height="1176" width_o="2084" height_o="1176" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/af42a69027034e5733dda17ff50e2e3f92ee0615f7f8faf2ec1289929051f7ae/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.18.57.png" data-mid="183733726" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/af42a69027034e5733dda17ff50e2e3f92ee0615f7f8faf2ec1289929051f7ae/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.18.57.png" /> <img width="2078" height="1172" width_o="2078" height_o="1172" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/024ba58e91d7e3d868a23998af7b66124cfe07f0fbc1b6a11bac8fd0189fa164/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.19.45.png" data-mid="183733728" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/024ba58e91d7e3d868a23998af7b66124cfe07f0fbc1b6a11bac8fd0189fa164/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.19.45.png" /> <img width="2082" height="1174" width_o="2082" height_o="1174" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/327cf329449e03ec7b88329fb5713c646d5376b5cf61539842d0e47528cab8fc/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.22.00.png" data-mid="183733731" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/327cf329449e03ec7b88329fb5713c646d5376b5cf61539842d0e47528cab8fc/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.22.00.png" /> <img width="2080" height="1172" width_o="2080" height_o="1172" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/03c347ac6e5d142b1f849f7a58a64137ef30ce586658a5f19b3ba6ad0ebcea9d/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.22.45.png" data-mid="183733733" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/03c347ac6e5d142b1f849f7a58a64137ef30ce586658a5f19b3ba6ad0ebcea9d/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.22.45.png" /> <img width="2080" height="1172" width_o="2080" height_o="1172" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c52820508e98bdba62b4c7f227efddd8bbbc8761d8819826afeba7b79f32c92d/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.22.58.png" data-mid="183733734" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c52820508e98bdba62b4c7f227efddd8bbbc8761d8819826afeba7b79f32c92d/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.22.58.png" /> <img width="2084" height="1176" width_o="2084" height_o="1176" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c20ce2386a4243fe26d0da3600e5818532fe4ec6335e8c2de7baa1e8c84c61f1/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.23.11.png" data-mid="183733736" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c20ce2386a4243fe26d0da3600e5818532fe4ec6335e8c2de7baa1e8c84c61f1/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.23.11.png" /> Worked for: &nbsp; &nbsp; 5 weeks, Apr - May 2023 Created by: &nbsp; &nbsp; Rachel Wu and Erika Sampson Music composed by:&nbsp; &nbsp; Nan Jiang Individual Responsibilities:&nbsp; game designmechanic designprogrammingshaders &nbsp; &nbsp; A Thousand Miles and Ten Thousand Waters was the final project for my CS 221: Digital Worlds for Gaming course. It is a 3D third-person puzzle game where the player plays as Xiao-mei, one of the many attendants of Xiwangmu (the Queen Mother of the West), who has been tasked with finding the peaches of immortality. In the section of this game that we developed, Xiao-mei has fallen into a cave and must find a way out. The purpose of this project was to practice using Unity and C# for third-person 3D game development, as well as introduce us to developing games for controllers. Development Process: &nbsp; &nbsp; My partner and I both wanted to explore representation with games and agreed that we wanted a game that explored our shared heritage. We were initially inspired by titles such as Nine Sols and 8 Doors: Arum’s Afterlife Adventure, games developed by Taiwanese and Korean game developers, respectively, that are influenced by each country’s mythologies. Our brainstorming process started with researching Chinese / Taiwanese mythology and folklore, until we finally determined that our game would incorporate elements from the story of Xiwangmu, the Queen Mother of the West. Afterwards, we worked on a one-page design document for the entire game, despite only working on a small section of the game, so we could understand how the section would fit into a larger game. Once we had a general idea of the game, we worked on creating a map of the physical layout of our smaller section, to make sure the section we were developing was manageable in the amount of time and manpower we had. Next, we greyboxed our scene out and planned out details like the scripts, game assets, dialogue, puzzles, and visual style. &nbsp; &nbsp; While my partner worked on gathering assets and building out the physical scene, I worked on scripting all the gameplay elements. The very first mechanic I worked on was the sliding puzzle, where players moved shuffled tiles around until they created a complete image, a mechanic central to this section’s gameplay. This mechanic involved a script that would switch the camera to an overhead view and the controller to the puzzle controls when the player entered “puzzle mode”, as well as a script that slid the in-game blocks around by keeping track of the empty space within an array of arrays and checked if the blocks created the solution image. For the camerawork, I learned how to use Unity’s Cinemachine system to switch between cameras, create cutscenes, and use dolly cameras on tracks. &nbsp; &nbsp; For our first playtesting session, we created one complete puzzle with simple UI instructions on the controls for people to test. The objective of this playtest was to determine the difficulty of the puzzle, whether more instructions were necessary, and if the image used for the puzzle was too confusing. Having this playtest was important for us because as the person who created the puzzle I knew how to solve it in five steps, and therefore couldn’t be objective on the true difficulty of the puzzle. During the playtest, we timed our players to give them an equal amount of time and we had a set of prewritten questions for our playtesters to answer once they were finished. The feedback that our five playtesters gave us helped us determine that while our instructions were clear and players had no problem figuring out how to play, the difficulty of the puzzle was a little high, mostly because people could not figure out what the final image was supposed to look like. Some people remarked that seeing the solution image would have helped, while others expressed that the difficulty of the puzzle was what drove them to keep playing. &nbsp; &nbsp; After playtesting, I created a hint system to work alongside the puzzle mechanic. Taking into account the different opinions of our playtesters, I designed the hint system so players could choose whether they wanted to see the final image and how much of the final image they wanted to see. This meant that players who only wanted a little nudge in the right direction could choose to see the placement of two tiles, while players who wanted an easier experience could choose to see the entire image. The hint system scripts allowed players to navigate the hint UI and pulled up the appropriate level of hint according to player selection and the current puzzle. &nbsp; &nbsp; Once my partner finished building out the tunnel systems at the very beginning of the game section, we realized that the environment was dark and players might get confused, potentially never entering the final cave area containing the bulk of the gameplay. To solve this problem, I designed a guidance system where players would follow a floating entity that emitted light toward the tunnel exit. The script for this mechanic was partially inspired by my train movement script from my previous VR project, Alien on a Train. It involved the floating entity, visually represented by a particle system, moving towards the next waypoint once players had arrived at the trigger area around the current waypoint. I also wrote some scripts for a narration system that operated in a similar fashion, typing out the current narration text if the trigger area was entered while keeping track of the next text object from an array of text objects. &nbsp; &nbsp; Since our game was using Chinese paintings as the images for our puzzles, I wanted to incorporate a painted aesthetic into the visuals of our game. Taking inspiration from the visuals of Okami, I learned how to use Unity’s shader graph to produce an inverted hull outline shader to replicate Okami’s ink wash painting aesthetic, and overlaid a simple parchment texture over the camera to make the game feel more like a painting. Challenges Faced: &nbsp; &nbsp; During this project, we decided to explore a new approach by collaborating with a student from the MUS 213 - Video Games: Composition &amp; Criticism class to create music for a specific part of our project. For the collaboration, we had to be mindful that our project's progress relied on our collaborator's progress with her own final project—the music for our game. As a result, we made sure to provide timely updates of our own project by providing her with detailed descriptions and screenshots of the game, and later providing a recorded playthrough of the finished tunnel sequence she could use for her final presentation. The result was a captivating and haunting piece inspired by traditional Chinese music, which effectively enhanced the initial sense of unease in the tunnels. This collaboration tested our ability to coordinate effectively, meet multiple different deadlines, and maintain clear communication. &nbsp; &nbsp; Another challenge we faced was with the narrative portion of the project. In every video game related project I’ve done, some part of the original plan has had to be cut out, and this project was no exception. As we neared the deadline for our project, it became apparent that we would not have time to implement the narration system, despite already having the dialogue written out and a script to trigger the narration text. Had we pushed ourselves to simply stay up and dedicate all of our free time to this project we might have been able to implement it, but my previous experience with another project had taught me otherwise. The possibility of running into unforeseen errors was too high, and in our opinion, having no narration system was preferable to having a sloppily implemented and bug-riddled narration system. Instead, we dedicated our remaining time to polishing the features already present in our project, and using the environment to invoke the senses of uncertainty and awe we were originally using the narration for. Lessons Learned: &nbsp; &nbsp; While developing A Thousand Miles and Ten Thousand Waters, I learned the importance of planning and once again experienced the value of playtesting your game. Having a detailed understanding of everything we would need for our game and staying with our plan made the development process smoother. After developing our previous project, Fish Simulator, my partner and I decided that we wanted to continue exploring game and level design for a confined space, which is where the idea for a tunnel system leading into a larger cave came in. Rather than feeling restrictive, having a defined area for our game challenged us to smartly make use of the space and prevented us from expanding the project to an unmanageable size. Bigger isn’t always better! &nbsp; &nbsp; Working on A Thousand Miles and Ten Thousand Waters also allowed me to further my skills with Unity and C#, as well as learn about shaders, how to make shaders, and how to create games meant for a controller. If given more time to work on this project, I would finally implement the narration system to fulfill our original vision for the project. I would also make the controls smoother, and have a better transition in and out of “puzzle mode”. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/TCO-Merch-Design Mon, 03 Jul 2023 19:25:53 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/TCO-Merch-Design TAIWANESE CULTURAL ORGANIZATION MERCH DESIGN Design <img width="1742" height="3251" width_o="1742" height_o="3251" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d47ab6af2ba37759579d25baad1a2653a7e566d47c228bdf8a72ec513a6f5828/TaiwanFood3.png" data-mid="184043164" border="0" data-scale="40" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d47ab6af2ba37759579d25baad1a2653a7e566d47c228bdf8a72ec513a6f5828/TaiwanFood3.png" /> <img width="2100" height="2100" width_o="2100" height_o="2100" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c33ec6d3e132e081b307c932f96f877a1d62586d13be16fb12dd19c0a7649cc0/Logo2.png" data-mid="184043161" border="0" data-scale="49" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c33ec6d3e132e081b307c932f96f877a1d62586d13be16fb12dd19c0a7649cc0/Logo2.png" /> <img width="1208" height="1248" width_o="1208" height_o="1248" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1dca5d15ffbf057203d0dd716940cd30e3d4b4f52a963acec42102b97a9ce9a4/Screen-Shot-2023-04-19-at-09.37.16.png" data-mid="184043143" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1dca5d15ffbf057203d0dd716940cd30e3d4b4f52a963acec42102b97a9ce9a4/Screen-Shot-2023-04-19-at-09.37.16.png" /> <img width="1200" height="1246" width_o="1200" height_o="1246" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c368f9dd5281044ab6e6c04c3fb94cc3d577725c9839e9ce5cc9077109c42404/Screen-Shot-2023-04-25-at-00.40.09.png" data-mid="184043146" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/c368f9dd5281044ab6e6c04c3fb94cc3d577725c9839e9ce5cc9077109c42404/Screen-Shot-2023-04-25-at-00.40.09.png" /> Besides creating publicity materials for Wellesley College’s Taiwanese Cultural Organization (TCO) as their design chair, I was also responsible for our merchandise, overseeing everything from the design to ordering the final product. Before I put anything on paper, my first step was brainstorming possible designs. They obviously had to be related to Taiwanese culture, and some of my initial ideas included TCO’s logo, the Taiwanese black bear included on all of TCO’s publicity materials, Taiwanese food, and the Taipei 101 building. After much research and thought, I settled on designing a collage of Taiwanese food arranged into the shape of Taiwan itself. Although I was given complete creative control, I still wanted input from the rest of TCO and created a simple mockup of what I was envisioning to present. After getting approval, I started working on the actual design. Underneath my drawing layer, I had a map of Taiwan so I could fit each food as I was drawing, but I wasn’t afraid to move sections around if they looked better positioned somewhere else. I also had a list of Taiwanese foods to include in my design that I had gathered from my own experience, as well as from asking other Taiwanese people. And, as always, I compiled various reference images for each food item. In an effort to keep costs low, I drew everything in only one color, including a basic outline of TCO’s logo. Once the design was completed, I compared prices across different companies, created examples of what the design would look like on different merchandise options and in different colors, and compiled everything into a questionnaire that I sent out to the rest of the organization. After making a decision on what the final product would look like, I created another questionnaire to gather order information and we finally ordered our merchandise. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Fish-Simulator Sun, 02 Apr 2023 15:50:18 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Fish-Simulator FISH SIMULATOR 3D Video Game <img width="2150" height="1206" width_o="2150" height_o="1206" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/81281ae877b8c28d7d1b47f13cd05d2c991ba303aa8cad59d5d3fd401a837c75/Screen-Shot-2023-04-02-at-20.51.19.png" data-mid="174036452" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/81281ae877b8c28d7d1b47f13cd05d2c991ba303aa8cad59d5d3fd401a837c75/Screen-Shot-2023-04-02-at-20.51.19.png" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ca6ca53c2e986474b5deaf29bf06c8130f9b25a1d9728a78567712b3b800a267/Water.gif" data-mid="174035351" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/ca6ca53c2e986474b5deaf29bf06c8130f9b25a1d9728a78567712b3b800a267/Water.gif" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/55d8790189e34827ac2d12350f90ae0c85402a552868e56fe1dcd9a924fb1181/PurpleRing.gif" data-mid="174036263" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/55d8790189e34827ac2d12350f90ae0c85402a552868e56fe1dcd9a924fb1181/PurpleRing.gif" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/de56b857350a6f3227d0622b1d2e9e6c39b73d6e8b7f154068599181cec98600/Rock.gif" data-mid="174035836" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/de56b857350a6f3227d0622b1d2e9e6c39b73d6e8b7f154068599181cec98600/Rock.gif" /> <img width="2156" height="1208" width_o="2156" height_o="1208" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e5a0a01f9c69f5b7194907c14e01598f88a73ed48cfdef4f970982e7912bedb0/Screen-Shot-2023-04-02-at-20.49.56.png" data-mid="174036450" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e5a0a01f9c69f5b7194907c14e01598f88a73ed48cfdef4f970982e7912bedb0/Screen-Shot-2023-04-02-at-20.49.56.png" /> <img width="2156" height="1208" width_o="2156" height_o="1208" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/76c0234ed0cb8791a0ed7fb9a55336f438918a0e39d7246361622ee5b71983a8/Screen-Shot-2023-04-02-at-20.50.42.png" data-mid="174036451" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/76c0234ed0cb8791a0ed7fb9a55336f438918a0e39d7246361622ee5b71983a8/Screen-Shot-2023-04-02-at-20.50.42.png" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e23f36608c8c9fef72bf5013a2792c2dc0900eb949aa6c93ded3c9b629b27a21/GreenRing.gif" data-mid="174035834" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/e23f36608c8c9fef72bf5013a2792c2dc0900eb949aa6c93ded3c9b629b27a21/GreenRing.gif" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/91fa86b5dbfa910307be9cf8cff61c85bc60cf4faa599d4d6dadd40581686d8e/Disco.gif" data-mid="174035345" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/91fa86b5dbfa910307be9cf8cff61c85bc60cf4faa599d4d6dadd40581686d8e/Disco.gif" /> Worked for: &nbsp; &nbsp; 4 weeks, Feb - Mar 2023 Created by: &nbsp; &nbsp; Rachel Wu and Erika Sampson Individual Responsibilities:&nbsp; game designlevel designmechanic designprogramming &nbsp; &nbsp; Fish Simulator was my first project for CS 221: Digital Worlds for Gaming course. It is a 3D first-person game where the player takes the role of a fish, navigating through an aquarium and solving puzzles to collect stars. The main objective of the project was to learn fundamental 3D game development skills using Unity and C# and introduce us to 3D environmental/level design.Development Process: &nbsp; &nbsp; My partner and I started by ideating and brainstorming concepts that would make for an enjoyable first-person game, eventually settling on the idea of a fish simulator. After settling on a rough concept, we organized the assets and scripts and made a plan for working on the project. &nbsp; &nbsp; We began by creating a greybox, which allowed us to develop a sense of scale and space usage. While my partner worked on acquiring or creating the necessary 3D assets, I began working on the character and camera controller scripts. Since typical character controller features like jumping and gravity weren't applicable to our project, I developed a system that enabled players to move in any direction that the camera was facing, including swimming up and down, using wasd. Additionally, I included the ability to move directly vertically on the y-axis with the q and e keys to facilitate movement. I also enabled players to push specific objects in the scene. &nbsp; &nbsp; Next, I developed the water currents script, which created water currents in the tank environment that could carry players and objects along at a faster pace. This involved deactivating player movement input while inside the current trigger area, as well as adding particle systems of bubbles and motion streaks to help players navigate the currents. &nbsp; &nbsp; The creation of water currents led to another idea: using the currents to push balls through a stack of rings. Once all the rings were cleared, a star would appear for players to collect. The script for this involved detecting if the ball entered the trigger area within the correct ring, disabling that trigger, incrementing the count, changing the color of the ring, playing a sound, and enabling the star once all rings in the stack had been passed. To prevent any confusion, the ball and corresponding ring stack were color-coordinated. Finally, I created the star collection system and UI, as well as the final disco party scene once all the stars were collected. &nbsp; &nbsp; With all the scripting and visual elements completed, we worked on arranging everything to create a cohesive player experience in the tank environment. Since players were playing as a fish, we kept in mind their extra axis of movement and designed the level accordingly to make sure players could take full advantage of this. Challenges Faced: &nbsp; &nbsp; One major challenge I encountered was related to the water currents in the game. Originally, the idea was to have the currents speed up player movement when the player was facing the current direction and slow down player movement when the player was facing against the current. However, in the first iteration of the water currents, players were able to move quickly in any direction as long as they were facing the current direction. This meant that players could easily move backwards out of the current, even though they should have encountered resistance. After several attempts to fix this, I decided to change the water currents so that players couldn't move within them and had to be carried along instead. This new version of the water currents solved the issue and made the game experience more cohesive. &nbsp; &nbsp; Another challenge I faced was related to the pushable balls in the tank environment. In the beginning, when the balls were pushed against the tank walls or water surface, they would remain stuck there and the player would be unable to push them away from the obstacles. Although it wasn't a common occurrence, it was still a significant problem. After some thought, I realized that the water currents could be a possible solution. If the currents only affected the objects and didn't have the particle systems attached, they could act as an invisible "cushion" and gently push the balls away from the obstacles, preventing them from getting stuck. This required changing the water currents script so we could indicate in the editor whether the current should affect the player, objects, or both. Ultimately, this was a simple fix involving the addition of booleans and conditionals. Lessons Learned: &nbsp; &nbsp; The development of Fish Simulator taught me the importance of being flexible and adaptable when creating a game. Initially, I tried to find a way to fix the water currents without scrapping the code I had already written. However, I realized that trial and error is a natural part of the development process, and sometimes starting over is necessary. Furthermore, I learned that game mechanics can often shape the design of the game. In our case, the idea of pushable objects and rings was not connected to each other or to the star collection system until after we developed the water current mechanic. If I had more time to work on this project, I would have liked to expand on the ring mechanic and find better ways to guide the player's understanding of the game's objectives. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Debt-to-a-Forest-Witch Sun, 02 Apr 2023 16:42:37 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Debt-to-a-Forest-Witch DEBT TO A FOREST WITCH Virtual Reality <img width="2154" height="1212" width_o="2154" height_o="1212" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4984533e65f725786627643b7d65d696298c6effef441129f9d317c8d59a3285/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.54.40.png" data-mid="174086147" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4984533e65f725786627643b7d65d696298c6effef441129f9d317c8d59a3285/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.54.40.png" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/dbd6f706608783a5ed5faa950c9aee6b4ef48652fbf941c52f99a502a82c43bd/Wand.gif" data-mid="174086645" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/dbd6f706608783a5ed5faa950c9aee6b4ef48652fbf941c52f99a502a82c43bd/Wand.gif" /> <img width="2150" height="1202" width_o="2150" height_o="1202" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/e77658a8d9de6514ba87366ff1bfdf26467315c20a2b2fd1642d0999252dcc1d/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.57.02.png" data-mid="174086149" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/e77658a8d9de6514ba87366ff1bfdf26467315c20a2b2fd1642d0999252dcc1d/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.57.02.png" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/a3c9f7e16ef103a08d616919688d4b1bb0b07e70452da198df79e94e49ccaaa8/Inventory.gif" data-mid="174086650" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/a3c9f7e16ef103a08d616919688d4b1bb0b07e70452da198df79e94e49ccaaa8/Inventory.gif" /> <img width="2152" height="1208" width_o="2152" height_o="1208" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5e10f3895b0aa2cea0ac6cf4158fcf528ba89b55b3023bd23627a2d91814f8d6/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.58.51.png" data-mid="174086837" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5e10f3895b0aa2cea0ac6cf4158fcf528ba89b55b3023bd23627a2d91814f8d6/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.58.51.png" /> <img width="2154" height="1208" width_o="2154" height_o="1208" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/05410cc6e4f199b5ca402c1bc18b7d226e441a0e2b5a30d1a5c62f983d625c83/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.59.28.png" data-mid="174086148" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/05410cc6e4f199b5ca402c1bc18b7d226e441a0e2b5a30d1a5c62f983d625c83/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.59.28.png" /> Worked for: &nbsp; &nbsp; 7 weeks, Nov - Dec 2022 Created by:&nbsp; &nbsp; January-Jones Carter and Erika &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Sampson Individual Responsibilities:&nbsp; game designmechanic designenvironment designprogramming &nbsp; &nbsp; Debt to a Forest Witch is the second and final project I developed for my CS 321: Virtual Reality course. In this game, players owe money to a witch and must make potions for her business to pay off the debt. Since we had used the previous project (Alien on a Train) to experiment and familiarize ourselves with VR development, the focus of this project was to design a fun and cohesive VR experience using the Unity engine and C#.Development Process: &nbsp; &nbsp; Since the focus of this project was more on creating a cohesive VR experience instead of just experimenting, the development process followed typical game development practices. &nbsp; &nbsp; We began with ideation, where my partner and I brainstormed ideas and created a rough map of the environment, as well as an inventory of necessary assets and scripts. &nbsp; &nbsp; The second phase involved greyboxing the world and fleshing out mechanics. One of the first mechanics I implemented was the ability to float objects towards the player with a wand to make the experience more accessible. The object movement script was inspired by the previous train movement script I developed, and mainly involved rotating the object to face the player’s hand and moving the object until it was within a certain distance from the player. I also worked on the potion making system by using trigger areas to track ingredient placement in the cauldron and compare the inputted ingredients with the recipes. &nbsp; &nbsp; The final phase focused on replacing greyboxing with actual models, adding audio and text, and continuing to improve mechanics. As part of this process, I created a simple inventory system using scriptable objects and developed a dynamic inventory user interface. However, after playtesting the game, I realized that the inventory system needed further refinement to make it more intuitive and user-friendly. So, I made some changes, including adding a chest near the player's base where they could store their collected items, and a portable pouch that players could carry with them while searching for ingredients in the forest. In addition to the inventory system, I also worked on a quest system to track orders and update the player’s knowledge of recipes. Challenges Faced: &nbsp; &nbsp; The major challenge we faced with Debt to a Forest Witch was overscoping our project. Our ideas were too large for the amount of time and people we had, which mainly resulted in difficulties integrating the mechanics and visuals towards the end of the project. I had focused on scripting the mechanics using our greyboxing as placeholders, while my partner worked on the 3D modeling separately. Unfortunately, we did not allocate enough time to combine the two, leading to a period of intense pressure and time crunch. Through this experience, I learned that sometimes it's necessary to sacrifice certain features of a game in order to keep the project's scope manageable. Although we were able to complete our project just in time, it required a significant increase in the amount of effort we put in. In retrospect, it would have been better if we had simplified the complexity of our project before getting too deep into the development process. Lessons Learned: &nbsp; &nbsp; During the development of Debt to a Forest Witch, I came to the realization that even if a particular feature was ultimately cut from the project, the work that went into it wasn't necessarily wasted. For example, the waypoint finding script that I had to abandon from my previous project, Alien on a Train, ended up being repurposed for the movement spell in this project. Additionally, this project reinforced the importance of making gameplay easy and accessible for players. The movement spell, in particular, received positive feedback from players because it eliminated the need to bend down or stretch out to interact with objects in the game, and is the mechanic in the project that I am most proud of. &nbsp; &nbsp; Developing Debt to a Forest Witch taught me the importance of project scoping and prioritizing features to ensure a manageable development process. I also expanded my knowledge of Unity and C# by integrating multiple mechanics into the game and learning how to use scriptable objects. Moving forward, if given the opportunity to work on this project again, I would focus on improving the player's experience by finding better ways of conveying information and making more conscious decisions about the placement of elements in the world. On a more specific level, I would also want to add the ability to stir the potion using the controller movement. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Alien-on-a-Train Sun, 02 Apr 2023 16:49:30 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Alien-on-a-Train ALIEN ON A TRAIN Virtual Reality <img width="2560" height="1440" width_o="2560" height_o="1440" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ac0a46439aa4a08aef7943c678576bf93e53205a9ef6ad0ee4c0cf875601f325/AlienOnATrain.png" data-mid="174024443" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ac0a46439aa4a08aef7943c678576bf93e53205a9ef6ad0ee4c0cf875601f325/AlienOnATrain.png" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ca52fb4461777c24eeeb1877c45deeaa6ec9e91037ce70555c8bf2bd50af1c56/Table.gif" data-mid="174082975" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/ca52fb4461777c24eeeb1877c45deeaa6ec9e91037ce70555c8bf2bd50af1c56/Table.gif" /> <img width="2152" height="1204" width_o="2152" height_o="1204" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f6830d324a7ee25a48d387465e4f6a81768deb2f30541a6800a4be666d4ebf0c/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.26.38.png" data-mid="174082602" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f6830d324a7ee25a48d387465e4f6a81768deb2f30541a6800a4be666d4ebf0c/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.26.38.png" /> <img width="2148" height="1212" width_o="2148" height_o="1212" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4f6f5d23ac5b651a28c9fac2a67919f7b1b7dd6f6eb6f1a7a9d78563946ff09d/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.27.04.png" data-mid="174082603" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4f6f5d23ac5b651a28c9fac2a67919f7b1b7dd6f6eb6f1a7a9d78563946ff09d/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.27.04.png" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3a0efc5138cff5ac54e922522cde86273e14182471736ec70891187e3e0c8849/Utensils.gif" data-mid="174082972" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/3a0efc5138cff5ac54e922522cde86273e14182471736ec70891187e3e0c8849/Utensils.gif" /> <img width="2144" height="1208" width_o="2144" height_o="1208" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/409906feb5a73bb251f641a20ce9849c7d8fba274ca2e9356f1290aa9125523e/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.24.49.png" data-mid="174082600" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/409906feb5a73bb251f641a20ce9849c7d8fba274ca2e9356f1290aa9125523e/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.24.49.png" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/466e878dbbab08c7a7c57d414c9be1e2bc9645c1839d81dd480a9f034a4e96d9/Wine.gif" data-mid="174082974" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/466e878dbbab08c7a7c57d414c9be1e2bc9645c1839d81dd480a9f034a4e96d9/Wine.gif" /> Worked for: &nbsp; &nbsp; 7 weeks, Sep - Oct 2022 Created by:&nbsp; &nbsp; Jeeyeon Barnes and Erika Sampson Individual Responsibilities:&nbsp; game designenvironment design3D modelingprogramming &nbsp; &nbsp; Alien on a Train is the first project I developed for my CS 321: Virtual Reality course. In this VR experience, you play as an alien sent to retrieve items from a train in order to further your research on humanity. The main goal of this project was to familiarize ourselves with working in VR with the Oculus headset using the Unity engine and C# scripting.&nbsp;This game won third prize at the computer science department’s 40th anniversary.Development Process: &nbsp; &nbsp; The development of Alien on a Train was divided into three main phases. During the initial phase, we began by creating a greybox model of the train, and subsequently created and added all the 3D models. At this stage, we also implemented basic levels of interactivity by enabling the player to pick up almost any object in the scene. &nbsp; &nbsp; In the second phase, we added additional elements like materials, audio, text, and animations. I also expanded on the interactivity by integrating a radio playing jazz music that the player could turn on/off. I incorporated simple door opening and closing animations for added realism, and implemented movement to the train to further enhance the immersive experience. &nbsp; &nbsp; For the final phase, we incorporated a trigger system for UI text and a new mechanic in the form of a ray gun that sends items back to the spaceship. &nbsp; &nbsp; Throughout the development process, we conducted playtests with our classmates after each major phase, presenting the project in class-wide demos. These sessions provided valuable feedback. Since we were the ones who created the project, we were unable to objectively gauge how difficult it was the play or understand it. We used our experience playtesting to refine the game's mechanics and clarify potentially confusing aspects. One key feature that we were inspired to add was train movement, which helped players to more readily identify their surroundings as a moving train. Challenges Faced: &nbsp; &nbsp; One of the major challenges I faced while developing this VR game was implementing the train movement feature. This process presented multiple difficulties that required innovative solutions. &nbsp; &nbsp; Initially, I attempted to use a waypoint finding script attached to the train to simulate movement. However, I soon realized that this approach could not accurately replicate the train's natural movement because the train was composed of two cars. The movement of the second car was awkward and inflexible. To solve this issue, I employed Unity's Hinge Joint, which allowed me to create a more realistic movement for both cars. Nevertheless, the use of rigidbodies in both the hinge and player interaction with objects resulted in a significant problem. The solution could not function correctly without completely eliminating object interactivity, which we did not want to sacrifice. &nbsp; &nbsp; As a result, I explored an alternative method for train movement that would not compromise interactivity. I decided to move the terrain instead of the train, creating the illusion of train movement. This solution involved the terrain moving in a circular motion around the train and the addition of an oasis area in the scene to assist the player in orienting themselves and recognizing the train's movement. Lessons Learned: &nbsp; &nbsp; During the development of Alien on a Train, I learned about the importance of user testing and incorporating feedback to improve our project. Additionally, I discovered the value of compromise, whether it be in collaborating with a partner or sacrificing certain elements to achieve the overarching goals of the project. If given more time, I would have liked to create a proper ending for the game, providing players with a clear indication of when they have completed the experience. &nbsp; &nbsp; Alien on a Train was a challenging yet fulfilling project that allowed me to hone my skills in game design and development, particularly in Unity and C# programming. The project also provided an opportunity for me to explore the realm of VR development, broadening my skillset and understanding of the field. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Studying-Shapes Sun, 02 Apr 2023 16:49:42 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Studying-Shapes STUDYING SHAPES 2D Video Game <img width="4699" height="4112" width_o="4699" height_o="4112" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9b49f242a2bb1597691b8f7ee4fa3a0c26575d63b9d2a18d2ae60a9b26b746a2/NPCreference2.png" data-mid="174020522" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/9b49f242a2bb1597691b8f7ee4fa3a0c26575d63b9d2a18d2ae60a9b26b746a2/NPCreference2.png" /> <img width="4883" height="4037" width_o="4883" height_o="4037" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/cc558f3d7be4d491e912ed9b89f3af0efdabb5f2f9ad093ca7790f9038608866/NPCreference.png" data-mid="174020520" border="0" data-scale="83" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/cc558f3d7be4d491e912ed9b89f3af0efdabb5f2f9ad093ca7790f9038608866/NPCreference.png" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fb3c468ae329b6a1121078296eac25d3cd5233865f89dc711449cf70eceb5958/304Help.gif" data-mid="174023636" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/fb3c468ae329b6a1121078296eac25d3cd5233865f89dc711449cf70eceb5958/304Help.gif" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/c23a03dfc6b24814d6662db8ff20ef1a44316ae2ded57e128eb024361841d40a/304Quiz.gif" data-mid="174023634" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/c23a03dfc6b24814d6662db8ff20ef1a44316ae2ded57e128eb024361841d40a/304Quiz.gif" /> <img width="600" height="338" width_o="600" height_o="338" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/104eec8ae64c56a91c3d74f57173b90f787c69c41987b5ec22b10cc4771daefb/SciCircle.gif" data-mid="174023632" border="0" data-scale="90" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/600/i/104eec8ae64c56a91c3d74f57173b90f787c69c41987b5ec22b10cc4771daefb/SciCircle.gif" /> <img width="1043" height="634" width_o="1043" height_o="634" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ee097f622d89402278e31d2d2b66d785efe2a52082a519c478a9dd4ac0780e9b/ControlsScreen.png" data-mid="174020563" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ee097f622d89402278e31d2d2b66d785efe2a52082a519c478a9dd4ac0780e9b/ControlsScreen.png" /> Worked for: &nbsp; &nbsp; 3 weeks, Oct 2022 Created by:&nbsp; &nbsp; Anabelle Mandel and Erika Sampson Individual Responsibilities:&nbsp; game design2D art assets for:&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;characters, environment, UI &nbsp; &nbsp; Studying Shapes is a 2D video game that I created as a student project to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Wellesley College's computer science department. The development process revolved around the prompt of "centering the experience of being a student at Wellesley." The game is inspired by trivia games and puts players in the role of a computer science student. The goal is to answer questions during office hours for various classes and help fellow classmates with their problems. Our game won first prize at the event. Development Process: &nbsp; &nbsp; In the development of Studying Shapes, the first step was ideation and design. Once we had established the core concept, we documented the necessary assets and decided on the visual style. I drew inspiration from the simple coloring book aesthetic of Chicory: A Colorful Tale and the 2D isometric style used in games such as Hades and Into the Breach. Initially, I tried a simple 2D top-down look for the art, but it was challenging to convey dimension and distinguish each object. Therefore, I switched to the isometric style. &nbsp; &nbsp; The game is set in our college's science center, and I used both reference pictures and personal experiences studying in the building to create the game environment. This included larger background drawings of the two floors of the science center and drawings of the individual classrooms where players would take quizzes. &nbsp; &nbsp; The UI elements maintain the drawn look present in the environment and connect to the game’s setting. The quizzes' background, the game's title screen, and the instructions for the game controls are all represented as a whiteboard because of the prevalence of whiteboards in the actual science center. The actual science center also has a strong orange and blue theme, which we carried over in the drawn depictions and the color choice for the UI. &nbsp; &nbsp; As the game's title suggests, the characters are represented as shapes. This decision was partially due to time constraints and also to match the established visual style. I made sure to give each NPC a unique appearance and simple animations to add life to the scene. The player character had more complex animations, such as a walk cycle. Challenges Faced: &nbsp; &nbsp; One of the challenges we encountered during the game design process was figuring out how to create a game that accurately represented what it was like to be a computer science student at Wellesley and embodied the core values of the computer science department. We drew on our own experiences taking computer science courses to determine that one of the things we wanted to showcase was the department's emphasis on collaboration. At first, helping your fellow students was not a requirement to complete the game, but we ultimately decided to make it a central part of the gameplay. During the early stages of ideation, we also considered implementing a grading system as a form of reward. However, after careful consideration, we determined that this type of reward system would place undue pressure on players to earn good grades instead of focusing on learning and helping the other characters. Lessons Learned: &nbsp; &nbsp; The development of Studying Shapes taught me the importance of time management and playtesting. As an extracurricular project, we had to balance it with our classes, and as the deadline approached, we felt the pressure of crunch. While we managed to complete the game on time, we didn't leave any time for playtesting. It wasn't until the day of the anniversary event, when we watched other people play the game, that we discovered some bugs. Fortunately, the bugs were not game-breaking, but if I had more time, I would have made player feedback an integral part of our development process. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/TCO-Posters Sun, 02 Apr 2023 16:49:57 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/TCO-Posters TAIWANESE CULTURAL ORGANIZATION DESIGN CHAIR Design <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b180103ee786d033ede25e4a66e46080392a4123f69acae7e7ee4ba0f5c39597/FY-Picnic.png" data-mid="178647970" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b180103ee786d033ede25e4a66e46080392a4123f69acae7e7ee4ba0f5c39597/FY-Picnic.png" /> <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/64a81aa8a6b090e15679d74c82d7da2c9a8c2481d57b93b5e4e83a91cf1a29e7/Copy-of-Nightmarket---8.5x11-Printed-Flyers.png" data-mid="174002407" border="0" alt="The flier depicts a bear behind a night market stall surrounded by flowers. Two rabbits sit in front of the stall. Several stars and the moon are hanging from the top of the flier. The text on the flier reads: TCO presents Night Market. The event will take place on Saturday March 11 in Tishman Commons from 5 to 8pm.&quot;" data-caption="The flier depicts a bear behind a night market stall surrounded by flowers. Two rabbits sit in front of the stall. Several stars and the moon are hanging from the top of the flier. The text on the flier reads: TCO presents Night Market. The event will take place on Saturday March 11 in Tishman Commons from 5 to 8pm.&quot;" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/64a81aa8a6b090e15679d74c82d7da2c9a8c2481d57b93b5e4e83a91cf1a29e7/Copy-of-Nightmarket---8.5x11-Printed-Flyers.png" /> <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/f98734a7dcb446a58f20e23b6607a647df891a1ddc492cb50c04cf24a888dfe2/Copy-of-TCO-Fundraiser.png" data-mid="174002408" border="0" alt="The flier is from the point of view of inside a box. A bear has opened the box and is reaching in, obviously surprised by the contents. The text on the flier reads: &quot;TCO presents Mystery Boxes. Get some stationary and snacks! Preorder by 11:59 pm on Monday 11/28. Order pick ups are happening 11 to 3 pm, from Wednesday 11/30 to Friday 12/2, near Bates dining hall and Lulu entrance.&quot;" data-caption="The flier is from the point of view of inside a box. A bear has opened the box and is reaching in, obviously surprised by the contents. The text on the flier reads: &quot;TCO presents Mystery Boxes. Get some stationary and snacks! Preorder by 11:59 pm on Monday 11/28. Order pick ups are happening 11 to 3 pm, from Wednesday 11/30 to Friday 12/2, near Bates dining hall and Lulu entrance.&quot;" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/f98734a7dcb446a58f20e23b6607a647df891a1ddc492cb50c04cf24a888dfe2/Copy-of-TCO-Fundraiser.png" /> <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d36482bd0b1559ea9857953c2a302a0dff981ebce68f42fd00b7303c2adfbeb6/Copy-of-FY-Study-Break.png" data-mid="174002405" border="0" alt="There are two bears on this flier on top of a green background. One bear is pulling out a block from a giant jenga set. The other bear holds a paintbrush and palette, and is wearing an apron covered in paint. The text on the flier reads: &quot;TCO presents First Year Study Break. Come for painting, snacks, and giant jenga! The event will take place on Sunday 11/20 at Acorns from 1 to 3 pm.&quot;" data-caption="There are two bears on this flier on top of a green background. One bear is pulling out a block from a giant jenga set. The other bear holds a paintbrush and palette, and is wearing an apron covered in paint. The text on the flier reads: &quot;TCO presents First Year Study Break. Come for painting, snacks, and giant jenga! The event will take place on Sunday 11/20 at Acorns from 1 to 3 pm.&quot;" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d36482bd0b1559ea9857953c2a302a0dff981ebce68f42fd00b7303c2adfbeb6/Copy-of-FY-Study-Break.png" /> <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/52f01485a96427e19e97c945760218f54bcfb1a3c3c262910eeee7a9ca6519e7/Copy-of-Hot-Pot.png" data-mid="174002406" border="0" alt="The flier has a light brown background. There is a large hot pot divided into a spicy and non spicy side, filled with fish balls, tofu, and vegetables. There is a bear stirring the pot and another serving hot pot, while other bears are carrying the ingredients. The text on the flier reads: &quot;TCO presents Hot Pot Night. The event will be on Friday November 11th from 6:45 - 9:15 pm at Acorns House.&rdquo;" data-caption="The flier has a light brown background. There is a large hot pot divided into a spicy and non spicy side, filled with fish balls, tofu, and vegetables. There is a bear stirring the pot and another serving hot pot, while other bears are carrying the ingredients. The text on the flier reads: &quot;TCO presents Hot Pot Night. The event will be on Friday November 11th from 6:45 - 9:15 pm at Acorns House.”" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/52f01485a96427e19e97c945760218f54bcfb1a3c3c262910eeee7a9ca6519e7/Copy-of-Hot-Pot.png" /> <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/554bc786fb854bf6446dbd62844a0826991f3082762d96e593ca7326353497ce/Copy-of-Calligraphy-Event.png" data-mid="174002404" border="0" alt="The flier has a white background with several bears doing calligraphy. The bear on the left is doing calligraphy on a piece of long vertical paper hanging from a wall. Two bears sit at a table to the right, writing on small pieces of paper, while a bear underneath them uses a large calligraphy brush to write on the floor. The text on the flier reads: &quot;Taiwanese Cultural Organization Calligraphy Event. Learn calligraphy and enjoy some snacks with TCO! The event will take place on Saturday 11/19 at Acorns from 3 to 5 pm.&quot;" data-caption="The flier has a white background with several bears doing calligraphy. The bear on the left is doing calligraphy on a piece of long vertical paper hanging from a wall. Two bears sit at a table to the right, writing on small pieces of paper, while a bear underneath them uses a large calligraphy brush to write on the floor. The text on the flier reads: &quot;Taiwanese Cultural Organization Calligraphy Event. Learn calligraphy and enjoy some snacks with TCO! The event will take place on Saturday 11/19 at Acorns from 3 to 5 pm.&quot;" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/554bc786fb854bf6446dbd62844a0826991f3082762d96e593ca7326353497ce/Copy-of-Calligraphy-Event.png" /> <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/82bb7472ba92b20e09ec62eb0c6a1f01b1d7000b5478327640800d1efe9d01d9/Copy-of--886.png" data-mid="174002403" border="0" alt="There are two bears making mocktails behind a bar. One is wearing a backwards cap and the other is wearing heart sunglasses, and both are covered in glowsticks. Six finished mocktails are on the bar top, and there are two colored spotlights crossing in the background. The text on the flier has a neon glow. The text on spam reads: Taiwanese Cultural Organization Tau Chi Omega (TCO) presents +886 Saturday November 5, 9pm at Acorns House. We will be serving mocktails.&quot;" data-caption="There are two bears making mocktails behind a bar. One is wearing a backwards cap and the other is wearing heart sunglasses, and both are covered in glowsticks. Six finished mocktails are on the bar top, and there are two colored spotlights crossing in the background. The text on the flier has a neon glow. The text on spam reads: Taiwanese Cultural Organization Tau Chi Omega (TCO) presents +886 Saturday November 5, 9pm at Acorns House. We will be serving mocktails.&quot;" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/82bb7472ba92b20e09ec62eb0c6a1f01b1d7000b5478327640800d1efe9d01d9/Copy-of--886.png" /> <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ed00fe414f19b20ea920a4d4fa30e004f2bf2f05d1ce9e5575cd9028d10f04d5/one-teapot.png" data-mid="174002409" border="0" alt="On the flier is a tiered serving tray filled with yellow and pink cupcakes, and three cups of tea to the side. There are two bears sitting on two of the cupcakes, and one is waving to the viewer. There is a cupcake sign with the Chinese character for big, and another cupcake sign with the Chinese character for little. In the top right corner of the flier is a teapot. The text on spam reads: TCO presents Big + Little Afternoon Tea Sunday October 16, 1:30-3:00pm at Acorns House. Come enjoy some fun games and family bonding! Snacks and milk tea will be provided.&quot;" data-caption="On the flier is a tiered serving tray filled with yellow and pink cupcakes, and three cups of tea to the side. There are two bears sitting on two of the cupcakes, and one is waving to the viewer. There is a cupcake sign with the Chinese character for big, and another cupcake sign with the Chinese character for little. In the top right corner of the flier is a teapot. The text on spam reads: TCO presents Big + Little Afternoon Tea Sunday October 16, 1:30-3:00pm at Acorns House. Come enjoy some fun games and family bonding! Snacks and milk tea will be provided.&quot;" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ed00fe414f19b20ea920a4d4fa30e004f2bf2f05d1ce9e5575cd9028d10f04d5/one-teapot.png" /> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; As design chair for Wellesley College’s Taiwanese Cultural Organization (TCO), my job is to create publicity materials for all TCO events. Once I have the event information from the heads of each event, I gather reference materials and ideas, before drawing out the design in Adobe Fresco and then arranging all the drawn elements with text into a complete poster. &nbsp; &nbsp; When I first started my role, I wanted to develop a cohesive style to use for the entire year, so people could instantly recognize that the poster was for a TCO event. Each poster is drawn in a cartoon style, and all of them feature bears in some way. This bear, called the Formosan black bear or the Taiwanese black bear, is sometimes treated as an unofficial mascot of Taiwan, and it felt fitting for such an animal to help represent the organization. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Murder-Murder Sun, 02 Apr 2023 16:50:15 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/Murder-Murder MURDER? MURDER 3D Video Game <img width="2866" height="1764" width_o="2866" height_o="1764" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fe4dec09fd5e9a820cba6ebd4783ad6dac0dd61d151fc278f6350b75310643ab/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.31.14.png" data-mid="174082786" border="0" data-scale="66" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fe4dec09fd5e9a820cba6ebd4783ad6dac0dd61d151fc278f6350b75310643ab/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.31.14.png" /> <img width="2860" height="1776" width_o="2860" height_o="1776" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/165cdfb7383e87613db5a05662f263a06cd0774f32dd78ae08c042efc5a1f739/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.32.38.png" data-mid="174082806" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/165cdfb7383e87613db5a05662f263a06cd0774f32dd78ae08c042efc5a1f739/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.32.38.png" /> <img width="2852" height="1762" width_o="2852" height_o="1762" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/03edc908b5a3ba24ef0280d7a1262a24553e16c0b32e66d6ae2de622d0f1a2bb/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.29.01.png" data-mid="174082752" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/03edc908b5a3ba24ef0280d7a1262a24553e16c0b32e66d6ae2de622d0f1a2bb/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.29.01.png" /> <img width="2846" height="1776" width_o="2846" height_o="1776" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/65ccb476088e6e0147f08fca17c98f5b6742f1bd8479f10fd64585c6db105c86/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.30.11.png" data-mid="174082754" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/65ccb476088e6e0147f08fca17c98f5b6742f1bd8479f10fd64585c6db105c86/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.30.11.png" /> <img width="2854" height="1786" width_o="2854" height_o="1786" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/af9a0e13cb4c9ecb90399a9b27e4b9421bcd6ea9c27cfdeb553ff9d0df2aa29a/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.31.56.png" data-mid="174082794" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/af9a0e13cb4c9ecb90399a9b27e4b9421bcd6ea9c27cfdeb553ff9d0df2aa29a/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.31.56.png" /> <img width="2852" height="1764" width_o="2852" height_o="1764" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b162904e7c3a21cf3b4323cdfba3e7abdfc632f3348ecaa7a989ff3e3fba6fb1/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.29.39.png" data-mid="174082759" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b162904e7c3a21cf3b4323cdfba3e7abdfc632f3348ecaa7a989ff3e3fba6fb1/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.29.39.png" /> Worked for: &nbsp; &nbsp; 5 weeks, Apr - May 2022 Created by:&nbsp; &nbsp; Lucy Anderson, Yosslay Cervantes, &nbsp; &nbsp; Isa Walters, and Erika Sampson Individual Responsibilities:&nbsp; game designnarrative designprogramming2D art assetsanimation &nbsp; &nbsp; Murder? Murder is a 3D video game and was the final project for my game development course while studying abroad in Denmark. The game is set in the 1880s, and players assume the role of a private detective tasked with solving the murder of a prominent grocery store mogul by collecting evidence. At the end of the game, players must choose the suspect they believe committed the crime. Our goal for this project was to create a cohesive gaming experience with all the typical elements of a video game while working in a team of four, which was a larger team than I'm used to working with. Development Process: &nbsp; &nbsp; The initial phase of Murder? Murder's development was ideation. Our team decided on the core idea for the game, identified the assets and scripts we would need, and split up the responsibilities among ourselves. &nbsp; &nbsp; Once we had the basic framework for the story, I focused on fleshing out the details of the mystery. This involved developing character motivations, backstories, alibis, and a precise timeline of events for the day of the murder. I also determined which pieces of evidence would be available to the player and where they should be placed. Next, I wrote all the letters that would serve as the main sources of evidence for solving the mystery. I also created 2D art assets for the evidence and implemented basic animations like the opening of drawers and doors. &nbsp; &nbsp; Prior to starting development, I created a shared document to keep track of all the assets we needed and what tasks remained to be done. Throughout development, I delegated tasks and kept everyone on track. As I was familiar with what each member of the team was working on and their progress, in the final phase of development, my focus shifted to ensuring that their work could come together cohesively to form the game. Challenges Faced: &nbsp; &nbsp; As my teammates worked on their sections of the project in separate test scenes, it fell to me to integrate everything together in the actual game scene. Since they were working in isolation, there were unforeseen clashes that emerged once we tried to bring everything together. Often, these issues stemmed from conflicts in the scripts, which meant I had to dig into their code and fix any problems that arose, whether it involved the UI, camera movement, player mechanics, or other aspects of the game. Lessons Learned: &nbsp; &nbsp; The development of Murder? Murder pushed me out of my comfort zone and showed the importance of playtesting. As the person responsible for the narrative design, it was especially hard for me to judge the difficulty of the mystery. When our classmates were finally able to play our game, we found that our game was more difficult to figure out than we thought, and that most people didn’t want to engage with the large portions of text in our game unless they were players typically drawn to mystery games. If I were to come back to this project, I would try to reduce the game’s reliance on text, both to make the game more accessible and lessen the information overload on the player. I would also like to add some kind of voiceover option for the text, to contribute to accessibility. https://erikasampson.cargo.site/All-Projects Sun, 02 Apr 2023 15:50:19 +0000 Portfolio https://erikasampson.cargo.site/All-Projects PROJECTS&nbsp; <img width="1920" height="1080" width_o="1920" height_o="1080" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ce50e1db4c531637adba0f207a020101461baaec7a0889b7b7ce692dffac5ba2/VR_IS23-4_9_2023-2_54_50-PM-1.png" data-mid="184038440" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ce50e1db4c531637adba0f207a020101461baaec7a0889b7b7ce692dffac5ba2/VR_IS23-4_9_2023-2_54_50-PM-1.png" /> ECHOES OF THE PAST Echoes of the Past was a semester-long project I developed with a partner as an independent study in virtual reality for my Media Arts and Sciences major. In this VR experience, players have the ability to see the past when interacting with certain objects, and they can use this power to figure out the mystery behind why the town has been abandoned. At the end of the year, this project was submitted to the 2023 senior art exhibition at Wellesley College.&nbsp; Read more Virtual RealityJan - May 2023 <img width="2084" height="1176" width_o="2084" height_o="1176" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/af42a69027034e5733dda17ff50e2e3f92ee0615f7f8faf2ec1289929051f7ae/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.18.57.png" data-mid="183734307" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/af42a69027034e5733dda17ff50e2e3f92ee0615f7f8faf2ec1289929051f7ae/Screen-Shot-2023-06-29-at-16.18.57.png" /> 千山萬水: A THOUSAND MILES AND TEN THOUSAND WATERS A Thousand Miles and Ten Thousand Waters&nbsp;was the final project for my CS 221: Digital Worlds for Gaming course. It is a 3D third-person puzzle game where the player plays as Xiao-mei, one of the many attendants of Xiwangmu (the Queen Mother of the West), who has been tasked with finding the peaches of immortality. In the section of this game that we developed, Xiao-mei has fallen into a cave and must find a way out. This project aimed to practice using Unity and C# for third-person 3D game development and introduce us to developing games for controllers. Read more 3D Video GameApr- May 2023 <img width="1742" height="3251" width_o="1742" height_o="3251" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d47ab6af2ba37759579d25baad1a2653a7e566d47c228bdf8a72ec513a6f5828/TaiwanFood3.png" data-mid="184043351" border="0" data-scale="39" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d47ab6af2ba37759579d25baad1a2653a7e566d47c228bdf8a72ec513a6f5828/TaiwanFood3.png" /> TAIWANESE CULTURAL ORGANIZATION MERCHANDISE Part of my job as design chair for Wellesley College’s Taiwanese Cultural Organization (TCO) included coming up with designs for our merchandise, overseeing everything from the design to ordering the final product.&nbsp; Read more DesignApr - May 2023 ︎ <img width="2150" height="1206" width_o="2150" height_o="1206" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/81281ae877b8c28d7d1b47f13cd05d2c991ba303aa8cad59d5d3fd401a837c75/Screen-Shot-2023-04-02-at-20.51.19.png" data-mid="174036480" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/81281ae877b8c28d7d1b47f13cd05d2c991ba303aa8cad59d5d3fd401a837c75/Screen-Shot-2023-04-02-at-20.51.19.png" /> FISH SIMULATOR Fish Simulator was my first CS 221: Digital Worlds for Gaming course project. It is a 3D first-person game where the player takes the role of a fish, navigating through an aquarium and solving puzzles to collect stars. The project's main objective was to learn fundamental 3D game development skills using Unity and C# and introduce us to 3D environmental/level design. Read more 3D Video Game Feb - Mar 2023 <img width="2154" height="1212" width_o="2154" height_o="1212" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/4984533e65f725786627643b7d65d696298c6effef441129f9d317c8d59a3285/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.54.40.png" data-mid="174086927" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/4984533e65f725786627643b7d65d696298c6effef441129f9d317c8d59a3285/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-08.54.40.png" /> DEBT TO A FOREST WITCH Debt to a Forest Witch is the second and final project I developed for my CS 321: Virtual Reality course. In this game, players owe money to a witch and must make potions for her business to pay off the debt. Since we had used the previous project (Alien on a Train) to experiment and familiarize ourselves with VR development, the focus of this project was to design a fun and cohesive VR experience using the Unity engine and C#. Read more Virtual Reality Nov - Dec 2022 <img width="2560" height="1440" width_o="2560" height_o="1440" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ac0a46439aa4a08aef7943c678576bf93e53205a9ef6ad0ee4c0cf875601f325/AlienOnATrain.png" data-mid="174082231" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ac0a46439aa4a08aef7943c678576bf93e53205a9ef6ad0ee4c0cf875601f325/AlienOnATrain.png" /> ALIEN ON A TRAIN Alien on a Train is the first project I developed for my CS 321: Virtual Reality course. In this VR experience, you play as an alien sent to retrieve items from a train in order to further your research on humanity. The main goal of this project was to familiarize ourselves with working in VR with the Oculus headset using the Unity engine and C# scripting. This game won third prize at the computer science department’s 40th anniversary. Read more Virtual Reality Sep - Oct 2022 <img width="1043" height="626" width_o="1043" height_o="626" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d7d87adaa5e9546a98e58a53b9e0840322c3e1a02715244ce5269f998a79a0b7/TitleScreen.png" data-mid="174023828" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d7d87adaa5e9546a98e58a53b9e0840322c3e1a02715244ce5269f998a79a0b7/TitleScreen.png" /> <img width="180" height="180" width_o="180" height_o="180" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5b8decd31907af973078912a1d533d75dd7fec9697a3f1961ffcd82dbf484661/playerIdle.png" data-mid="174023984" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/180/i/5b8decd31907af973078912a1d533d75dd7fec9697a3f1961ffcd82dbf484661/playerIdle.png" /> STUDYING SHAPES Studying Shapes is a 2D video game that I created as a student project to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Wellesley College's computer science department. The development process revolved around the prompt of "centering the experience of being a student at Wellesley." The game is inspired by trivia games and puts players in the role of a computer science student. The goal is to answer questions during office hours for various classes and help fellow classmates with their problems. Our game won first prize at the event. Read more 2D Video Game Oct 2022 <img width="1545" height="2000" width_o="1545" height_o="2000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/64a81aa8a6b090e15679d74c82d7da2c9a8c2481d57b93b5e4e83a91cf1a29e7/Copy-of-Nightmarket---8.5x11-Printed-Flyers.png" data-mid="174003812" border="0" data-scale="70" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/64a81aa8a6b090e15679d74c82d7da2c9a8c2481d57b93b5e4e83a91cf1a29e7/Copy-of-Nightmarket---8.5x11-Printed-Flyers.png" /> TAIWANESE CULTURAL ORGANIZATION EVENT POSTERS As design chair for Wellesley College’s Taiwanese Cultural Organization (TCO), my job is to create publicity materials for all TCO events. Once I have the event information from the heads of each event, I gather reference materials and ideas, before drawing out the design in Adobe Fresco and then arranging all the drawn elements with text into a complete poster.&nbsp; Read more Design 2022 - 2023 ︎ <img width="2866" height="1764" width_o="2866" height_o="1764" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/fe4dec09fd5e9a820cba6ebd4783ad6dac0dd61d151fc278f6350b75310643ab/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.31.14.png" data-mid="174084037" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/fe4dec09fd5e9a820cba6ebd4783ad6dac0dd61d151fc278f6350b75310643ab/Screen-Shot-2023-04-03-at-00.31.14.png" /> MURDER? MURDER Murder? Murder is a 3D video game and was the final project for my game development course while studying abroad in Denmark. The game is set in the 1880s, and players assume the role of a private detective tasked with solving the murder of a prominent grocery store mogul by collecting evidence. At the end of the game, players must choose the suspect they believe committed the crime. Our goal for this project was to create a cohesive gaming experience with all the typical elements of a video game while working in a team of four, which was a larger team than I'm used to working with. Read more 3D Video Game Apr - May 2022