Arcade Rush is a project produced as part of the 2023 edition of the Ubisoft Game Lab. The objective was to produce a prototype that met several constraints provided by the jury:
¤ Theme: Arcade
¤ Must contain one construction and one destruction mechanic
¤ Must have gravity manipulation
¤ Must contain an online scoreboard
The prototype won in the "Best technical challenge and innovation" category.
¤ Time: 10 weeks
¤ Team of 8 people
¤ Engine: Unreal Engine 5
¤ Roles: Game design
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. My tasks
2. Results
3. Arcade research
4. Game design / UI / UX
5. Encountered challenges and solutions
6. Download + credits
Gameplay
My tasks
- Arcade research
Search for information on popular arcade game genres and mechanics from the 1980s and 1990s, then create documentation for the game design document (GDD).
- Game and UX design
Test the character's mechanics in the engine, then make modifications based on the game feel.
- UI design and coding
Design and code the character select and introduction screens.
- Sound composition and integration
Composing and integrating the game's sound effects into the engine.
- Communication with artists and programmers
Take on the role of producer, then communicate with artists and programmers in relation to their tasks. Also organize meetings with mentors and teachers.
Results
Fast replay value and competition
¤ Arcade Rush has a fast, addictive and easy-to-understand gameplay loop.
¤ It was important for our team to reproduce an experience as if the player were playing on an arcade machine (a lot of deaths, must pay many tokens).
¤ Thanks to the ghosts, being the technical challenge of the project, previous players contribute to the competitive feeling present in arcades (fighting for high scores).
Awards and nominations
¤ As previously mentioned, the prototype won the "Best technical challenge and innovation" award.
¤ Arcade Rush was also nominated for "Best UX" and "Best prototype."
Arcade research
Research document
¤ As soon as the theme was revealed, I began researching both the arcade genres and popular elements in games from the 1980s and 1990s.
¤ Gather search results on our Notion documentation, available here (page is in French).
References and easter eggs
¤ During the research, my team and I (with the help of one of our teachers) wrote down references to put in the game, our target audience being gamers who grew up in the 1980s / 1990s.
¤ Intro screen: FBI screen ("Winners don't do drugs") and Pogs (popular 1990s fad).
¤ Characters: inspired by the games Dragon's Lair, Mrs. Pac-Man, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Ice Climbers
Game design / UX / UI
Game design
¤ Arcade-inspired gameplay loop.
Intro --> Character selection --> Game --> Death --> Start over
¤ Simple controls: all character actions are performed using a joystick and a button. In an arcade game, the control needs to be understood quickly.
User experience
¤ It's an arcade game, so the player must get into the action quickly. With that said, the game has no tutorials and no menus. The tutorial is the scripted gameplay in the intro, and the player can progress through the "screens" by pressing the main button.
¤ The game can be played on keyboard, on controller and X-Arcade, an "arcade box".
Interfaces
¤ Design and coding of the intro screen and character selection.
¤ Arcade-inspired interfaces: intro screen plays in a loop and character selection contains a countdown.
¤ Character selection screen: use of Widget Blueprints, Render Targets and Blueprints (character animations, controls).
Encountered challenges and solutions
Tough design difficiles
¤ During production, we had the choice of either creating a single-player game with the ghosts (current version) or a multiplayer game where two players compete.
¤ Due to the scope and gameplay potential of the ghosts, we decided to go for the single-player mode.
Meeting deadlines
¤ First experience as a producer/team leader.
¤ Kanban board set up on Notion for artists, programmers and myself.
¤ Even though deadlines were set for certain elements of the game (alpha, beta, gold), it was difficult for the team and me to meet them.
¤ Solution: stay in constant communication with team members and check with them on the status of their tasks.
Download
If you want to try Arcade Rush, follow the link:
Credits
Artists
Sophie Bauer (animations, rigging, concept arts)
Sofia Deshaies (environment, animation)
Antoine Kwey-Du Sablon (VFX, characters, animations, shaders)
Renée-Claude Séguin (characters, concept arts, UI)
Programmers
Diego Duran (University of Montréal/coding),
Isaac Roy (coding and design)
Antoine Turgeon (coding and design)
Designer
Alexandre Séguin (Game design/UX/UI)
Special thanks:
Our UQAT teachers (Théo Boisvert et Guillaume Roux-Girard) and our Ubisoft mentors (Renaud Lavergne-Mayer et Marc-Antoine Grondin-Fortin) for their support and advice!
Big thanks to Sam Beaulieu for composing the music!