Unity
13 Developers
9 Weeks
PlayStation 4
Power Golf Arena is an action-filled PVP golfing game leaning into the chaotic nature of future extreme sports. The idea behind Power Golf Arena was to have a sports game that neatly balances the core golfing experience with party game action.
Power Golf Arena can be described in two words, Golf Deathmatch. Duel your friends in action packet golfing tournaments. It was developed by Artillery Green as a part of Game Project 2 at Playgroundsquad.
CONTRIBUTIONS
UI/UX Design
Power Golf Arena at its core is a game focused on elevating the traditional golfing experience to an imagined version of futuristic extreme sport. We realized that science fiction would be our main source of inspiration, alongside looking into motion graphics for real-life sports events to emulate the feeling of a live event.
A game of this nature didn't exist when this project was taking place, which gave us a lot of creative liberty when sculpting the UI. Due to the game's action pace, this freedom became both a blessing and a curse. We needed to keep the UI minimalistic to give players as much sight as possible and not break any immersion. On top of that, balancing the UX showing of point gain, item pick-ups, and general player feedback all together made for a heavy feat to tackle.
Development Process
Ideation
Blockout
Art
Implementation
IDEATION
To begin with, we researched how traditional golfing games as well as sci-fi-inspired games styled their UI. We started discussing the UX layout and functionality with the GDD as a base. We came to the decision that I should create a digital mockup to capture my envisioned idea. This mockup became the starting ground for the HUD and the main inspiration for the game's UI style.
All mockups started on paper to allow for easy iteration and quick discussions about practicality and functionality. The Idea behind the UI/UX was to offer the player as much screen space as possible. This was why ideas such as a minimap were on the fence throughout development. We wanted a minimalistic UI that would immerse the player.
I always account for readability and cognitive load as too much not only breaks immersion but can also hinder the players ability to play. In my process, I sketched out several ideas on paper first and then discuss them with the art team about potential problems. Have the process set up like this made for an agile workflow where iterations came quickly and in loads.
BLOCKOUT
art implementation
Level Design
The level in Power Golf Arena is one built to elevate the game's different items and possible playstyles. The goal was to create a level that felt fitting to out idea of a futuristic extreme sports event. We wanted to emphasize on giving the players different ways to utilize their items. The level design was created in close collaboration with the environment artist to ensure an aesthetically pleasing and functional level.
The fundamental layout of all levels was our first challenge. The originally concepted level design had more of a traditional golf inspiration, rather than action party game. However, we decided to lean more into extreme sports to create a more chaotic experience. Inspiration was taken from sports, like world chase tag, to try and find a balance between open play space and a deathmatch feeling.
Development Process
Ideation
Blockout
Set Dressing
Ideation
The level design for Power Golf Arena was filled with concepts exploring every detail the environment could offer. This lead to levels of varying complexity and stature.
The main inspiration behind my design came from the competitive sport World Chase Tag. The sport offered a great understanding of having different angles and obstacles for players to interact with. It, together with the openness of traditional golf courses, created the exact balance we were aiming for. Power Golf Arena was originally set to have three playable levels, hence the abundance of concepts. Each level made to offer players unique interactions with reused assets. This idea was the backbone of the level design in Power Golf Arena.
Blockout
I made multiple blockouts using Autodesk Maya, since the original idea was having three levels. The process started by visiting the extremes of both ends, in this case regular golf courses and world chase tag inspiration. After iterating on the idea and concepts together with the environment artist I created a testing area more suited to the envisioned style of levels.
Due to some misunderstanding and unclear communication, the level which is in the game was not prototyped or iterated on by a level designer, but rather created by the environment artist without design iteration. I created a blockout of a potential second level, the concept of which was discussed with the environment artist, and assets such as the looping ramps were added to the game's level.
Set Dressing
lead game Design
The concept for Power Golf Arena was originally created by my co-designer Carl-Henric Ehn-Hjältman. The lead game designer role had me take his original concept and elevate it to into something unique. The path of which I took the concept was one neither golf nor party games had gone down, that of a union.
Instead of being focused on creating a golf simulation or a high pace action PvP, I wanted the two elements to mix. Having the player battle in a never seen setting while still keeping true to the logistics of the golfing sport. The team and I decided that striking up a balance would not only make for diverse gameplay but also a game that encourages competitiveness in a light-hearted way.
Along with reshaping the core concept, I also maintained all documentation for the game's different parts. This meant I was the one to inform the sound designers appointed to our group of all that they needed to know. All of this on top of being responsible for most items in the game and tweaking their gameplay impact made the role of lead game designer a tough challenge. However, I worked heartily and overcame it with the team's help.
I was the one responsible for fixing gameplay elements such as a navmesh to keep the player from reaching points on the level they shouldn't be able to. As well as adjusting the collision of all player interactable objects to optimize the game and performance.
PROJECT MANAGER
I assumed the role of project manager as I was the one who kept track of all documentation and was in charge of the team's daily standups.
Furthermore, I kept track of the team's Trello board. I was the one to oversee all parts of production to make sure that we were meeting our goals.
I was also the one to hold our weekly sprint and milestone reviews. The weekly sprint reviews were a part of the agile workflow aimed to keep the team making progress on a steady basis. The milestone reviews acted as key points in the development cycle, points where we presented the game in its entirety to pitch it and the changes made.
