BeatBlitz
Light up the dance floor. Can you play the right tune?
We were asked to make a 3-D game. It was definitely harder to think of a concept for the 3-D game. I’ve always loved rhythm-based mobile games — Tap Tap Revolution was everything to me. I’ve never been a very good dancer, but I feel like being good at rhythm games gives the same feeling as dancing.
So, we decided to make a rhythm based game because 1) it’s fun 2) we could conceptualize how this game would look in a 3-D space and how we would make it.
We realized keeping time and rhythm would be difficult as soon as we started the project. Most rhythm games have some sort of “cue” for the player and a time frame in which they must do something on beat. With this challenge, we decided that we would manage the rhythm within the game and the player would only need to get to the right notes.
Because the mechanics were more simple and it is a musical game, I knew I wanted the environment to have a fun vibe. We created colorful spotlights for the dance floor, used environmental lighting, and bloom to bring our vision to life. I was responsible for the tiles, bloom, and environmental lighting.
Looking back on this game, if we had more time, it would be important to me to add more features to the game. For example, the next thing I would add is stars the player collects throughout the song. They lose a star/life when they hit a wrong tile. I think the current version of the game is a little too frustrating and I think this would allow the player to improve while also not “failing” too much. It also allows perfectionist players (like myself) to “get 3 stars.”
I also would want to add power-ups, more game modes, and more chords. Power-ups would help make this game more “gamey” and fun. I want to add a “concert mode” where there are no cues. Or maybe a puzzle mod where you need to figure out where the tiles go. I just think hitting the chords is really satisfying. I would also make sure all the songs sound right — some of the songs are not quite right due to how difficult it was to plan the layout of the tiles.