Design

Team ICN’TSPL
Design Document for:
Project Golem
All work Copyright ©2010 by Team ICN’TSPL
Written by Alexis De Girolami, Natalie Burke, and Zach Heylmun
Version # 1.00
Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Copyright (C) 2010 Team ICN’TSPL – All rights reserved
Table of Contents
NAME OF GAME ____________________________________________________________________ 1
DESIGN HISTORY ___________________________________________________________________ 4
GAME OVERVIEW __________________________________________________________________ 5

PHILOSOPHY ________________________________________________________________________ 5
Player Immersion __________________________________________________________________ 5
Unreal Development Kit_____________________________________________________________ 5
Game Design Goals ________________________________________________________________ 5
COMMON QUESTIONS _________________________________________________________________ 5
What is the game? _________________________________________________________________ 5
Why create this game? ______________________________________________________________ 5
Where does the game take place? _____________________________________________________ 5
What do I control? _________________________________________________________________ 5
How many characters do I control?____________________________________________________ 5
What is the main focus? _____________________________________________________________ 6
What’s different? __________________________________________________________________ 6
FEATURE SET ______________________________________________________________________ 7
GENERAL FEATURES __________________________________________________________________ 7
GAME PLAY _________________________________________________________________________ 7
THE GAME WORLD _________________________________________________________________ 8
OVERVIEW _________________________________________________________________________ 8
INVENTORY INTERACTION______________________________________________________________ 8
AUDIO INDICATORS ___________________________________________________________________ 8
THE PHYSICAL WORLD ________________________________________________________________ 8
Overview_________________________________________________________________________ 8
Key Locations _____________________________________________________________________ 8
Travel ___________________________________________________________________________ 9
Scale ____________________________________________________________________________ 9
Objects __________________________________________________________________________ 9
Weather__________________________________________________________________________ 9
Day and Night ____________________________________________________________________ 9
RENDERING SYSTEM __________________________________________________________________ 9
CAMERA __________________________________________________________________________ 10
GAME ENGINE ______________________________________________________________________ 10
Overview________________________________________________________________________ 10
Unreal Script ____________________________________________________________________ 10
Element Effects ___________________________________________________________________ 10
Collision Detection________________________________________________________________ 10
LIGHTING MODELS __________________________________________________________________ 11
Overview________________________________________________________________________ 11
Nexus Level______________________________________________________________________ 11
Earth Level ______________________________________________________________________ 11
Fire Level _______________________________________________________________________ 11
Water Level______________________________________________________________________ 11
Air Level ________________________________________________________________________ 11
THE WORLD LAYOUT ______________________________________________________________ 12
OVERVIEW ________________________________________________________________________ 12
Confidential 2 2/10/10
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NEXUS LEVEL ______________________________________________________________________ 12

EARTH LEVEL ______________________________________________________________________ 13
FIRE LEVEL ________________________________________________________________________ 15
WATER LEVEL ______________________________________________________________________ 17
AIR LEVEL _________________________________________________________________________ 19
GAME CHARACTERS_______________________________________________________________ 21
OVERVIEW ________________________________________________________________________ 21
ENEMIES AND MONSTERS _____________________________________________________________ 22
Earth Golem__________________________________________________________________ 22
Fire Golem___________________________________________________________________ 23
Water Golem___________________________________________________________________24
Air Golem_____________________________________________________________________ 25
USER INTERFACE__________________________________________________________________ 26
OVERVIEW ________________________________________________________________________ 26
INVENTORY MENU __________________________________________________________________ 26
GAME MENU _______________________________________________________________________ 26
WEAPONS _________________________________________________________________________ 27
OVERVIEW ________________________________________________________________________ 27
EXPLODING CRYSTAL CROSSBOW ______________________________________________________ 27
WATER TRAP ______________________________________________________________________ 27
PISTOL ____________________________________________________________________________ 28
BUCKET TRAP ______________________________________________________________________ 28
CEILING COLLAPSE TRAP _____________________________________________________________ 28
MUSICAL SCORES AND SOUND EFFECTS ___________________________________________ 29

OVERVIEW ________________________________________________________________________ 29
UDK 3D AUDIO INTEGRATION _________________________________________________________ 29
SOUND DESIGN _____________________________________________________________________ 29
SCRIPT ____________________________________________________________________________ 30
TECHNICAL DESIGN _______________________________________________________________ 32

OVERVIEW ________________________________________________________________________ 32
KISMET ___________________________________________________________________________ 32
CODE DESIGN ______________________________________________________________________ 33
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Design History
This section of the Design Document is responsible for updating the development team on what
has been changed in each iteration of the document. All changes done in later portions of the document will
be noted here in Versions.
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Game Overview
Philosophy
Player Immersion
This game is attempting to create a completely immersive environment. By placing the player in a
position that very little is known about your character, the game will enable the player to react to situations
in whatever way they see fit.
Unreal Development Kit
We are creating this game with the Unreal Development Kit. Not only is it an industry-standard
development kit, but it provides advanced lighting, effects, and scripting that isn’t accessible in other
software available to students at this point.
Game Design Goals
We are striving to create a game that places emphasis and focus on the environment around you
and not so much on the physical act of “controlling” the main character. We aim to create a game that blurs
the line between the player and the main character, to the point that it’s believable that they are one and the
same.
Common Questions
What is the game?
A first-person perspective atmospheric puzzle/adventure game. In the game, the main character is
hit by a truck while walking his dog and must battle against elemental golems to recover from the coma he
is in. He gains instruction from his dog who acts as a conscience/guiding figure. To defeat these golems, he
must solve level-specific puzzles to build traps and weapons.
Why create this game?
There is currently a trend in the game development industry towards first-person games with a
vaguely creepy feel. There is a hole in the market, however, towards indirect combat, with most popular
games in the first-person genre playing as shooters. We aim to fill that hole by creating a game that requires
thought and problem solving from the player.
Where does the game take place?
The “universe” is your mind, as you are in a coma, and manifests as a central nexus level with four
doors leading to the game’s levels. Each door will show quite clearly the type (element) of golem that
resides within (earth, water, air, or fire), as will the levels themselves. For example, the earth level will be
made almost entirely out of rock, the air level out of fog, and so on.
What do I control?
The player will control the main character, and through association the dog, who follows you.
How many characters do I control?
The only controllable character is the main character.
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What is the main focus?
The goal is to destroy the elemental golems in each level. Each golem will have a particular skill
set that the player must take into consideration to destroy it. Once the golems have been destroyed, the
player will be able to wake up. If the player is defeated, they will “flat-line” (die).
What’s different?
While the first-person style games that have been successful focusing primarily on combat as
game play, this game would make a greater shift towards exploration and puzzle-solving to further the
story. The player can get as little or as much out of the game as they wish purely by exploring.
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Feature Set
General Features
First person perspective
Elemental themes (fire, water, etc)
3D graphics
Gameplay
Four different elemental levels
Golems haunt each level and must be defeated
Puzzles are solved by gathering items throughout levels and assembling them
Items can be retained from level to level
Many different ways to complete a level/defeat a golem
Set traps
Create weapons
Focus on stealth over “guns blazing” combat system
Ambient sounds set mood and give clues
Sounds signify items/areas of significance
Dog is a sarcastic guiding figure (indicates items, methods, etc)
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The Game World

Overview
The game is organized into four main stages/levels with a single, circular nexus level where the
player begins. Each of the four levels have a theme towards an element—earth, fire, water, and air—which
reflect the golem character within that you must defeat. The golems have their own sets of skills and pitfalls
that are reflected in the elements they represent and must be considered when facing these elements
Inventory Interaction
The primary feature of the game requires the player to integrate items picked up in the
environment into weapons and traps. These can then be used to defeat the golems.
Audio Indicators
To find or avoid golems, using every aspect of the player’s senses is important, particularly in
audio elements. The player will be able to hear the golem coming, and will use sounds to find particular
elements in the game that will aid in defeating it.
The Physical World

Overview
The main character spends a vast majority of the game in a coma, so the “physical world” is the
world created in the main character’s own mind. It focuses on a single nexus level with four elemental-
focused levels branching from this central area.
Key Locations
The player is walking his dog across the street on the University of Florida Campus facing Fine
Arts B when he is hit by a bus. The player wakes in the circular Nexus Level surrounded by the doors to the
levels. The dog guides you as to which order to enter the levels.
The Earth level is the first level you visit.
The Earth Level is a circular level with four corridors leading to a central square
chamber. Items can be picked up throughout the level at 20 defined locations where items
have a random chance of being placed. A majority of the locations are focused in the
central square of the level, where the golem lingers unless it is lured away. One of the
locations is a pool of water with a crack in the wall where a trap can be set. The player
will be able to hear water rushing when nearby.
The Fire level is the second level you visit.
The Fire Level consists of a number of winding chambers within a pointed oval shape.
The central area again is where the golem will linger unless drawn away. Items can be
picked up throughout the level at 20 defined locations where items have a random chance
of being placed. A majority of the locations are focused in the central area of the level, an
industrial setting, where the golem lingers unless it is lured away.
The Water level is the third level you visit.
The Water Level is split into two stories, a freezing “ice” portion and a lower “water”
portion. In order to defeat the golem, the player must lure the golem up to the ice level
and prevent it from escaping by setting up a trap, thus freezing the golem and using
another weapon to shatter it.
The Air level is the fourth and final level you visit.
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The Air level is an open colonnade where you wander, with a minimal ruin-like quality to
allow for hiding behind objects. The golem tries to blow you off the platform that makes
up the level and you strive to direct air currents to blow it off the platform. To do so you
must move around randomly placed ruin pieces, which are placed in a possible 12
locations, and are concentrated in no particular place.
Travel
Standard keyboard controls (w/a/s/d are forwards, left, backwards, and right, and spacebar is
jump) allow the player to move the character from a first-person perspective. Running over items on the
ground automatically picks them up and places them in the inventory, which can be accessed by hitting the
key “i”.
Scale
The Main character’s size is used measured using the standard Unreal Unit ratio of 96 units tall
when standing. Each golem will be, in ratio to that size:
Earth:MC — 3:1
Fire:MC — 1:1
Water:MC — 2:1
Air:MC — 3:1
The levels, in order of size in units:
Earth is the smallest, Water is second, Fire is third, and Air is the largest. Each level’s
ground to ceiling height will be in proportion to the golem’s size, thus:
Earth 300 units
Fire 120-130 units
Water approx 200 units in the “water” portion of the level; infinitely high in
the ice portion
Air infinitely high (the player will be unable to see the ceiling)
Objects
Objects in this game are items that can be assembled to be used as a trap or a weapon. The traps
and weapons’ corresponding parts will be listed in the weapons section. The weapons are:
Earth level
Exploding crystal crossbow
Water trap
Fire level
Water gun
Strategic ceiling trap
Water level
Crossbow from earth level slows golem down but doesn’t kill him when in water form
However, in ice form, it shatters the golem
Air level
Pillars and other ruin-style architecture are moved around to direct air currents
Weather
Each level has appropriate effects according to the element (ex. Fire is hot, air is windy, etc)
Rendering System
We are making use of the Unreal Engine, which has a built-in 3D rendering engine which includes
HDRR, per-pixel lighting, and dynamic shadows.
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Camera
As a first-person perspective game, camera movement represents the player’s movement, whether
in gameplay or in cinematic sequences. As such, you never see the main character.
Game Engine
Overview
We are using the Unreal Engine 3 developed by Epic games. It includes a core made in C++,
though most game coding is done in UnrealScript. It integrates rendering, physics, collision detection, AI,
visibility, networking, and file system management into one complete engine. See Rendering for rendering
specifics.
UnrealScript
UnrealScript is syntactically similar to Java. As in Java, UnrealScript does not support multiple
inheritance, classes all inherit from a common Object class and are define in individual files named after
each class. Interfaces are supported in Unreal Engine 3.
Element effects
Water Unreal handles water with animation for flowing effects.
Fire Unreal handles fire effects.
Earth Unreal handles fracture of solid meshes, which we will use for a majority of this level.
Air Unreal handles fog and steam effects, which we will use for both the Air level and the
Nexus level’s walls.
Collision Detection
Unreal has a built-in collision detection system. When a BSP brush is created, the Unreal Static
Mesh editor handles collision box creation. Static meshes imported into UDK allows for collision detection
through the creation of bounding volumes for each mesh.
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Lighting Models
Overview
For each level we will use Unreal’s Light Mass system as well as additional lighting which will be
described below.
Nexus level lighting
There will be a blue emissive light around the ridged edge of the room, which will cast a glow on
the fog throughout the rest of the level. We will also add a single, low intensity point light in the center of
the room for global illumination.
In addition, the Fire level’s door will include an emissive channel from the magma-like material
inside the door’s mesh.
Earth level lighting
Earth level is very dark with lighting arising from several different glowing mushroom meshes
and several crystal meshes. These will have emissive channels as well as point lights to accent these
meshes further. Additional point lights will be included as needed for illumination.
Fire level lighting
The Fire level is one of the brighter levels in the game. The level will be primarily lit by magma
and lava walls and ceiling which will have emissive channels within the static meshes. In addition, point
lights will be used for increased illumination. All lighting will focus on a red-orange hue to give the
impression of heat throughout the level.
Water level lighting
The Water level will be slightly dim, and will vary throughout the level. The lighting on the lower
layer of the level will consist of primarily point lights in a white hue for basic illumination, and significant
environment detail will be shown by these lights reflecting off the water effects available in Unreal Engine.
The upper level will be illuminated by a global blue light, giving the impression of a “cold” feeling.
s
Air level lighting
The Air level will be the brightest level in the game. White global lighting will make up all
illumination. It should be noted, however, that possibilities for the ruin-structures may also be given a
minor emissive channel, for a vaguely “heavenly” effect. This will be determined at a later date.
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The World Layout

Overview
The game world is composed of five primary areas: four playable levels and a central Nexus level
that acts as a point prior to and between levels. They are described in detail below.
Nexus Level
This level is the central area where all levels can be reached. After a golem is defeated,
the player must return to this level before moving to the next. It is a circular room with a groove in
the outer floor which light emerges from. Four doors occupy the perimeter of the room at the
north, south, east, and west places in relation to the center. Each door will clearly represent the
level it leads to. Between the doors will be walls with fog effects that make it appear as if the walls
are shifting slightly, or that they aren’t quite tangible.
Earth Door
This is the first required level entry. This door will be made entirely out of rough rock,
and will be static until the player approaches it. When the player approaches the door (i.e. triggers
it to open), the rocks will crumble downward and scatter, allowing you to enter the level. Once
you pass the door, the animation will reverse and the door will appear to “rebuild” itself.
The symbol of the Earth level will light on the ground when the level is complete and
will emit a tone throughout the rest of the game while in the nexus level.
Fire Door
This is the second required level entry. The door will be made out of partially-cooled
magma with hotter lava within as well. The edges of the door will have flame licking upwards.
When the door is approached it will explode inwards, opening up the entryway. Once you pass
through, flames will shoot up behind you. We will use a post-processing effect to make the area
around the door (both before and after entry) look very hot.
The symbol of the Fire level, will light on the ground when the level is complete and will
emit a tone throughout the rest of the game while in the nexus level.
Water Door
This is the third required level entry. The door will be made entirely from a water effect
(water will fall from the door’s edge). When the door is approached it will quickly stop (as if the
“faucet” is turned off) and once you walk through it will begin flowing again.
The symbol of the Water level, will light on the ground when the level is complete and
Air Door
This is the fourth and final level entry. The door will be swirling, thick clouds. When you
approach the door the clouds will disperse, but if you approach the door before you have
completed the other levels, you will fall into a bright light and reappear in the center of the level
where the dog will warn you not to repeat going through the door until you are ready. If you are
prepared to complete the last level, then you’ll fall again but land in the Air level.
The symbol of the Water level, will light on the ground when the level is complete and
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Earth Level
When the player first enters the level, we are aiming for the environment to be dark, damp, and
quiet, save for the steady thump of the golem’s walk as it wanders the level (see the Music and Sound
Effect section for more on this).
The environment will be rocky and will primarily use color palette as follows:
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Tunnels will be vaguely circular—though irregular—and the central room will be the largest
space in the level. This room will have a single support-like structure: a column of thick roots with
mushrooms decorating them.
We aim to use 5 rock-wall meshes and 3 rocky-ground meshes which we will vary (mirror etc)
throughout the level. Other decorative/lighting meshes are as follows:
Large root-column
Three mushroom clusters
Three crystal clusters
Three vine meshes (wall decoration)
Three root meshes (ground decoration)
Three debris meshes
Please note that the golem’s mesh will fit precisely within the tunnel, thus, it will be impossible to
slip past it.
There are twenty possible locations for items to be picked up within the Earth Level. Please see
the map above for these locations (marked as white “X”s). At the initial loading of the level the possible
items that can be picked up will be randomly placed in nine of these positions. Should the player die before
the level is completed, then the items will reset in different positions. The items will be plainly visible—not
hidden—and will be picked up by the player walking over the item. Some items will be indicated as
“special” due to unusual properties (ex. water dripping, exploding crystals “hum”, etc). However, not all
items will be obvious in their importance.
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Fire Level
When the player first enters the level, we are striving to make the level as hot-feeling as possible.
Sound effects for crackling fire will be used, as will any effects involving the Fire golem itself (see the
Music and Sound Effect section for more on this).
The environment will be rocky but will place emphasis on more volcanic-variants of environment.
The rock that makes up the floors of the level will be primarily black (as cool lava) and grey, with little to
no emissive channel illumination. The walls, in contrast, will appear to be hot lava, with emissive
illumination that will make it appear to be moving. The tunnels will be only slightly larger than the main
character, increasing the impression of a close, hot environment.
The central oval of the level will be designed in the style of an industrial boiler. There will be
numerous pipes and incinerators throughout this aspect of the level which will emit steam and smoke
respectively.
The color palette of the level will be as follows:
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We aim to use 5 lava wall meshes and 3 floor meshes which will vary throughout the level. Other
decorative/lighting meshes as follows:
Three debris meshes
Two lava-waterfall meshes
Collapse-ceiling mesh
Boiler mesh
Pipe meshes
There are twenty possible locations for items to be picked up within the Fire Level. Please see the
map above for these locations (marked as white “X”s). At the initial loading of the level the possible items
that can be picked up will be randomly placed in seven of these positions. Should the player die before the
level is completed, then the items will reset in different positions. The items will be plainly visible—not
hidden—and will be picked up by the player walking over the item.
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Water Level
The level will be split into two sections connected by a passageway: an “upper” ice section and a
“lower” water section. The upper section will be primarily an open area with ice-cliff meshes allowing for
the main character to draw the golem around successfully. The lower section will be constructed in a spiral
with passageways occasionally connecting the loops (as seen above).
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The environment of the ice section will be made almost entirely out of cloudy ice, with a ground
mesh made of a rocky—but partially-frozen—material. The walls that mark the barriers of this level are
entirely made of ice, though they are thick enough that it will not be possible to see through them.
The environment of the water section will be made entirely from UDK water-effects over
transparent meshes. This will allow the user to see through the walls, though it will still be difficult to
detect the Water golem.
We aim to use 3 ice wall meshes and one water wall mesh which will vary throughout the level.
Other decorative meshes include:
3 ice/debris meshes
3-4 ice-rock meshes
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Air Level
When the user enters this level it will give the impression of a completely open space. The level
will be designed as a rectangle with the center cut out as seen above. However, the level will be scattered
with a colonnade structure that will hint at a Grecian temple. The columns will be both upright (in which
case they will extend, to all appearances infinitely, upwards) and knocked over (as if the level is a ruin).
In the center, open section of the level there will exist a series of knocked-over columns (3) and
“floating” islands of marble (also 3), which the user will be able to jump to. However, due to the nature of
the golem (see the Enemies section under Characters), it will be very easy for the player to be knocked off
this island. As such, important items (such as the spike to hold in a ruin piece) will be located on these
islands, making it difficult to obtain them successfully.
The primary difficulty of the level revolves around a series of air currents that run throughout the
colonnade. These currents can be manipulated by the spare column pieces located around the level, and
must be used to defeat the golem inhabiting this level to blow it off the level’s perimeter.
The floor meshes will be marble with a light fog effect placed over them for ambiance, with the
only other structural meshes including:
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1 column mesh
2 debris (marble fragments) meshes
2 column ruin meshes
2 floating island meshes
There are twelve possible locations for items to be picked up within the Air Level. Please see the
map above for these locations (marked as “X”s). At the initial loading of the level the possible items that
can be picked up will be randomly placed in four of these positions. Should the player die before the level
is completed, then the items will reset in different positions. The items will be plainly visible—not
hidden—and will be picked up by the player walking over the item.
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Game Characters
Overview
The primary characters of the game include:
The main character is not given a name, but is the player’s controllable character. We are aiming
for this character to be ambiguous, allowing for the player to feel as if they are genuinely playing through
the story as themselves, not another character. The player stands at approximately 100 units tall.
Doug the dog is the guide and side-kick figure throughout the game. He is the only character that
you communicate with directly (or rather, he communicates with you). He has a human voice within the
“coma” state the main character is in and has a propensity towards snide remarks and sarcasm. He follows
the main character throughout the game. Doug stands at approximately 60 units tall.
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Enemies and Monsters

Earth Golem
This enemy stands at approximately 300 units tall, and is wide enough to fill the corridors
of the Earth level. It is clumsy and stiff-moving. It is made of a primarily grey and brown color
scheme, but has crystals embedded in its “flesh.” Simply put, it will look very similar to its
environment.
It will linger primarily in the central room, but will wander the outer circle if the player
comes within visible distance, which will be relatively close to the golem.
This enemy is slow in its “passive” state, moving slower than the player. However, in an
“active” state (i.e. if it sees you), it moves slightly faster than the player.
As this enemy wanders the level, it will stop at junctures along it’s path (branches, etc)
and—if in passive mode—will randomly choose a direction to go, but only after pondering its
decision for a few seconds. In active mode, it will take the same amount of time to choose, but
will always go in the direction of the player’s last “turn.”
The golem kills you by crushing the player (i.e. should the player make contact with the
golem, a matinee of the golem punching the screen, then the screen going dark). Its weaknesses
include the Exploding Crystal Crossbow and the Water Trap (see the Weapons section for more
information).
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Fire Golem
This enemy stands at approximately 100 units tall, and is roughly the same
size as the player. It takes a feminine form, thus all vocal capture done for this
character will be done by a woman. It is fast and smarter than the Earth golem, giving
it an advantage when chasing the player. It is made of a thick lava like material but
will be set aflame though UDK fire effects (see concept sketch above for reference)
and will consist of a primarily orange and red color scheme, but may include some
light blue (ex. very hot fire).
It will linger primarily in the central circles of the level, but will chase the
player if spotted. The visible distance moving into an active state will be a fairly long
distance in front of the golem.
This enemy is quick even in its passive state, moving at precisely the
player’s speed. When in its “active state” it will move at a significantly greater speed
than the player. The method which the golem will chase the player is specific to this
golem. As the level is made primarily of long, thin corridors, the golem will rush
down the corridor as far as it goes to a flat juncture. When the golem reaches that
juncture, it will smash against the wall, showering the area with sparks and creating a
large amount of noise. Only after the golem recovers will it look again for the player.
It should be noted then that the player’s method of evasion would be to turn down
offshoots of the initial hallway, thus allowing the golem to rush past and the player to
remain unharmed.
This golem’s method of killing the player includes engulfing you in flame.
Its weaknesses include the Collapsed Ceiling trap and the Water Gun (see the
Weapons section for more information).
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Water Golem
This enemy stands at approximately 200 units tall and is built for water travel, but can
move successfully on land as well. It takes a feminine form and will be made of a combination of
UDK’s water effect and a mesh structure similar to a fish’s bones. The color palette of this golem
will be primarily blues, grayscale, and greens.
This enemy will linger in the lower, “water” section of the level, though will not actively
enter the hallways accessible to the player while in its passive state. Should the player come within
a few paces of the golem, however, it will enter the hallway-structure of the level and will be then
in it’s “active” state.
This enemy is fastest when in the water, moving at a speed significantly greater than the
speed of the player, even though it is in its “passive state.” When in its active state, the golem
moves fastest when in the water part of the level, though it will speed up by approximately 30%
even while out of the water. However, when in the upper, “ice” portion of the level, the golem’s
speed will decrease by a small factor every five seconds until it is completely stationary, giving
the player an opportunity to “smash” the now-frozen golem.
This golem’s method of killing the player is though biting with its sharp teeth. Its only
weakness is to smash it once frozen. It can, however, be temporarily halted with the Exploding
Crystal Crossbow when in its water-state, blowing it temporarily back before reforming (see the
Weapons section for more information).
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Air Golem
This enemy stands at approximately 500 units tall, dwarfing the player, and it will be
wide enough to just barely move between the columns that make up a majority of the level. It will
be constructed of UDK fog effects but will have a small central mesh for shape and for animation
purposes. The color palette of this golem will be primarily grayscale.
This enemy will have equal reign of the entire level, wandering in a random pattern until
it comes into its “active” state. Should the player stand in the same row of columns in front of the
golem, it will go into its active state and try to blow the player off the level.
The enemy has a constant speed of a drastically greater speed than the player, no matter
if it’s in a “passive” or “active” state.
This golem’s method of killing the player is through blowing it off the level’s perimeter.
Its only weakness is to use items and column pieces to direct air currents to blow the golem off the
level. Air currents can also be used to slow down the golem prior to blowing it off the level, giving
the player more time to solve the puzzle. Note that this is the only method to either kill or slow
down the golem.
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User Interface
Overview
The goal of this interface is to make all GUI components as straightforward and minimal as
possible. As the main character has no discernable “health” (the player is either alive or dead), there is no
need for a status/health bar. Instead, we will make use of an inventory menu that will tally the objects the
player is currently in possession of. Tapping the “ i ” key will open up the inventory menu described below.
This menu is a real-time feature. That is, though the menu will maximize when the player clicks
the Inventory button, animations, enemy movements, and all other real-time game aspects will remain
functioning. On the left side of the window there will be a series of tabs that the player can click through to
display different aspects of the menu. These tabs will consist of “Inventory” and “Game Menu.”
Inventory Tab
The Inventory tab will consist of a list, with small icons depicting the object, all pieces of
inventory that the player currently is “holding.” These items, when clicked and dragged into the play-
window, will manifest as a transparent mesh that the player can place in the play-window at will. Should
items be used from the Inventory menu, these items will disappear from the menu unless they are collected
again. To ensure that the player can successfully “build” weapons and traps, there will be a certain
acceptance of error on the user’s part and a suggested area (in the form of a wireframe mesh) for the correct
object to be placed in the correct location. There will additionally be verbal queues from Doug that will aid
the player in completing the game’s puzzles accurately.
Game Menu Tab

The Game Menu tab will consist of three options: Continue, Save and Quit, and Quit.
10
Weapons
Overview
The weapons and traps of this game are vital to gameplay. Instead of directly battling the golems
in each level, the player is required to assemble objects picked up from their environment into potentially
useful items. See the User Interface section for plans about assembly of these items into their respective
wholes.
Exploding Crystal Crossbow
Level: Earth
Required items: Short rope, Wood x2, Humming crystal
This crossbow is equipped with a humming crystal that
explodes shortly upon impact. Note that
ammunition for this weapon is endless.
Effect on each enemy:
Earth: Crystal, when shot, embeds in the rock
of the golem’s body before exploding. Effective.
Fire: When contact is made, small explosion.
Ineffective.
Water:
While in Water area: Embeds in golem’s body
before exploding. 10 seconds before golem reassembles
itself. Partially effective.
While in Ice area: If golem frozen, shatters golem.
Air: When contact is made, small explosion.
Ineffective.
Water Trap
Level: Earth
Required items: Long rope, Humming crystal, Curved boulder,
Pool of water
The location of this trap is key to its function. The player must
set up a trip wire for a boulder to drop onto an
exploding crystal set into a crack in a wall, producing
a rush of water that crushes the Earth golem.
10
Pistol
Level: Earth
Required items: none
What appears to be an ordinary pistol. Contains
6 rounds.
Effect on each enemy:
Earth: Angers golem. Ineffective
Fire: Angers golem. Ineffective.
Water: Angers golem. Ineffective.
Air: Angers golem. Ineffective.
Ceiling collapse trap
Level: Fire
Required items: Fuse, weakened ceiling location,
sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate
(from an exploding crystal) (which form
gunpowder)
The player sets up a trap with gunpowder set off by
a fuse, which then collapses a ceiling on
top of the golem.
Water Gun
Level: Fire
Required items: Large pipe, thin rod, O ring, water
The water is obtained in the earth level, which is then placed inside the pipe and shot at the Fire
golem, which then kills it.
10
Musical Scores and Sound Effects

Overview
While a musical score will not be used in this game, sounds effects ensure that audio is one of the
more important gameplay aspects in the game. To create an immersive and different method of playing,
sound will be used to alert the player though a number of methods.
UDK Integrated 3D Audio

The Unreal Development Kit has integrated 3D audio capabilities for ambient sounds. This sound
system can be implemented as actors and parented with moving objects.
Sound Design
The player will be alerted to a number of locations where traps can be set off (water dripping for
the Water Trap, the humming of exploding crystals, etc). In addition, a golem’s location in relation to the
player can be estimated due to ambient sounds. As such, the Earth golem’s heavy steps will become louder
as it comes closer, the Fire golem will crackle louder, and so on.
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Script
Introduction Matinee
[First person perspective. In front lies a crosswalk leading to the University of Florida’s Fine Arts B
building. Your dog is on a leash in front of you. Currently you hear the sound of nearby traffic and wind
rustling the trees behind you. The crosswalk signal changes to “walk” and the camera (representing the
main character) moves across the street. Your dog is walking ahead of you.
Right as your dog steps up to the curb, queue loud bus horn and squealing breaks.
Screen goes to black.
You awaken in the Nexus level. It is round, dark, and has four doors. Camera pans around the room, past
dog, and, startled, turns until you view your dog, a Great Dane.]
Doug the Dog: Way to go dumb ass.
[Camera startles backwards (surprise). Doug’s tail wags.]
Doug: Don’t look at me like you’ve never seen me before, you can’t be that dumb. Oh, wait…
Where are we? You tell me, I didn’t create this place… But from the looks of it, I’d say it’s
somewhere between your cerebellum and your ass.
[Pause]
Doug: [long, suffering sigh] Today was a pretty good day until you walked us in front of a bus. So now,
here we are, stuck inside of your head, until you decide it’s time to wake up. Do you know how
awkward this is? Us? Together? Here? I think it’s high time you get to work.
See that massive door over there?
[Camera pans to earth level door]
Yeah… that one, that’s where we need to go.
[Doug walks to the door, rocks crumble as the door “opens.” Doug walks into the black void]
Doug: [voice emerges from the darkness] Hurry up! I’m not waiting on your lazy ass.
Matinee ends
Gameplay begins
•If you die

[Screen goes black, fades to a shot of a heart monitor flat lining. Sounds are heart monitor sounds. Menu
asks user to try again or quit.]
Inside Earth Level
[Rocks cave in behind you. The player stands in a dark, rocky cave, with vines, glowing crystals and
mushrooms, which give off an eerie light. The cave seems silent except for various ambient noises (water
dripping, a very faint thumping, etc)]
Dog: Well this is creepy. You seriously came up with this shit?
10
[Player starts exploring level]
•When player spots the Golem for the first time

Doug: Oh shiiii…
[Golem makes loud noises and charges. Doug runs.]
•When/if player picks up the pistol

Doug: Oh man, not this kind of dream! The dog better not die first!
•When/if player shoots Golem with pistol

[Golem flinches back before growling and charging]
Doug: [in an imitated Scooby Doo voice] Ruh-Roh!
•When/if player spots pool of water

[The sound of rushing water is obvious]
Doug: Do you hear water? I have to pee.
[Doug walks off screen. Sharp, electric buzz is heard. Doug yelps.]
Doug: [in a pained voice] Giant note to self, do not pee on the crystals! Who the hell has electric crystals
in their dreams?!
[Crystal explodes behind Doug, who cowers. He looks accusingly at you.]
Doug: Dude, really?! What the hell?!
•When you finish collecting items for a weapon or trap

Doug: I bet someone who didn’t get hit by a bus could figure out a useful way to put these things
together.
•When you kill the Earth Golem

[Defeated earth golem crumbles.
Camera shakes and current view blurs and darkens. Camera lightens and focuses again in a hospital
room. View is as if you are in a hospital bed. Doctor stands off-screen, clearly speaking to someone.
Doctor says something intelligent about the skeletal system having mended.
Camera view blurs and darkens. When camera is refocused you are again in the Nexus level. The door to
the earth level remains a black void allowing for reentry but no threats exist within.]
Doug: [in a concerned voice] Oh good, you’re back. Thought I lost you for a moment there.
[after a short pause, he continues in his usual voice] Do you have any idea how pissed off I would
have been if you’d just left me here?
[Pause]
Doug: Whatever. So, you ready for the next one? See the door that looks like the gates to hell?
[Pause while the camera pans to the Fire level’s door, then back to Doug, who is now backing slowly away
from it]
Yeah…you first…
End of Earth level
Other levels follow in a similar fashion, but will not be included in this document for spoiler-
prevention purposes.
10
Technical Design
Overview
The technical design for this game primarily focuses on Kismet, Unreal Development Kit’s
internal scripting engine. In addition, UnrealScript will be used for all hard-coding segments of the game
(AI, etc). Assets that Kismet will be used for will be listed below, as well as all descriptions of objects
using UnrealScript.
Kismet
Beginning matinee
• Camera
-movement across the street
-panning once in Nexus level
• Effects
-crossing signal changing
• Sound effects
-windy outside
-bus horn and breaks squeal
-dog talking once in nexus
-click of dog nails inside room
Doors
• Crumbling of Earth door
• Moving lava through Fire door
• Water door effects
• Whistle of wind through Air door
In all levels
• Animations
-combining character animations to create complete walking and fighting animations for all
characters (golems and dog)
-player death animation (heart monitor, etc)
• Traps
-selecting items from inventory and placing
-activating trap in right location
• Weapons
-selecting items from inventory and placing
Earth Level
• Mushrooms (glowing)
• Crystals (of both buzzing and simple glowing varieties)
• Water dripping effects
• All cut scenes
-when you first see pistol
-when you first see golem
-when you spot water
-finish collecting all the items you need for a weapon
-when you kill the golem
• Sounds
-buzzing
-water dripping
10
-foot steps(yourself, Doug, and the golem)

-ambient golem noises (growling, etc)
-golem dies from trap
-golem crumbles from crystal crossbow
Fire Level
• Decorative items
-lava walls, both moving and illuminated
-steam and smoke emerging from pipes
• Sounds
-fire crackling and popping noises
-sound of fire snuffed out (steaming)
• Cut scenes
-pick up final item for either Water Gun or Gunpowder
-player kills golem
-see Fire golem for the first time
Water Level
-water tunnel effects
-ice effects
• Sounds
-water rushing
-splashing for player and Doug walking
-hissing golem sounds
-shattering noise for golem when in Ice portion of level
-walking on ice sounds (both player and Doug)
• Cut scenes
-frozen golem death scene
-discover ice can freeze/slow down the golem
-discover you must injure the Water golem while its frozen
-see the golem for the first time
Air
-wind blowing effect, can push player off side of level
-fog effects
• Sounds
-wind whistling
-golem’s wind sounds
• Cut scene
-wind blows against player
-discover items in level can be moved
-golem death scene
Code Design
This section of the design document will not follow the standard UML diagram format. Because
the code for or project will consist almost entirely of UnrealScript extending the engine’s base classes, a
UML diagram detailing the entire attribute list and structure of the project would be unwieldy, very time
consuming to produce, and generally of very little use once the actual programming gets under way.
Instead, the design document will include an overview of each class, an explanation of the entity which it is
extending, and an explanation of the functions each class will perform.
10
CPGPlayerController:
Controls character movement, and player and environment interaction. It extends the basic Unreal
Reference Source class PlayerControl.uc. The player’s speed and height will both be modified. This class
contains method useItem(Actor actor) which is used to signify that an item has been used. The class also
determines the player’s health characteristics, and determines many small
staticGameActor:
Controls environmental objects that are static. This includes wall mesh pieces, permanent items of
the environment, and destructible environmental pieces. It extends the basic Unreal class InterpActor. The
location, rotation and if the item is destructible of each stationary item is defined here. This class also
contains the method used to destroy static environment items.
GameItem:
Controls objects the game character interacts with. This includes objects used to make weapons
and traps as well as objects used for ammunition. It extends unreal class InterpActor.uc. The location,
rotation, and if the object has been picked up, spins on the ground and re-spawns for each object is stored in
this class. If the object re-spawns there is also a re-spawn time. Re-spawning objects are mostly
ammunition items. Method pickUp(Actor actor) will determine when a GameItem object has been picked
up and if it is a re-spawning item method respawn() will be called after the timer expires.
InventoryItem:
Stores the items the main character has picked up. Each item has a 2D graphic associated with it
and a quantity.
Inventory:
Contains the array of items that have been placed into the InventoryItems. The methods in class
Inventory determine if an item in the inventory has been placed or used, and how an item can be used with
other items to build a trap or weapon.
Crystal Crossbow:
The crystal crossbow extends the Weapon.uc class. It will need to define the weapon as a non-
instant fire weapon, similar to a rocket launcher. The class will define the fire mode, reload time, and
damage that the weapon causes. The class will also call upon the projectile with travel time class to define
its properties (this does not require a custom class, the information is contained by the weapon class.).
Water Gun:
The water gun’s base class will be very similar to the Crystal Crossbow, defining it as a non
instant fire weapon, while being different in its reload, and damage models. Because the water for the
water gun is not available within the fire level, it will do tremendous damage, but carry a heavy penalty for
missing a shot.
Pistol:
The pistol class will be the easiest of the weapons, being an instant fire weapon with a limited
amount of ammunition and only one magazine. The class will still define its damage, fire rate, and other
stats, but will not require some of the more advanced function of the other weapons.
Golem:
The golem class will be, by far, the most involved segment of code to be written. It must define
the attributes common to all golems, such as height, movement speed. More importantly however, it must
define the basis for the AI for the different golems. The golem class will define attributes, which control
the various golems perceptiveness, perceived intelligence, attack style and state logic. UDK uses a state
based AI system, which allows functions to be defined differently for a given state, allowing for a dynamic
AI experience.
Rock Golem:
10
The rock golem is the slowest of the four golems, and the least difficult to evade. His stature will
clearly mark him as a major threat, but his limited perceptiveness and slow maneuvering should be such
that players can easily avoid being squashed flat. The rock golem’s routines will be defined to cause him to
pursue the player vigorously when he finds them, but his poor navigation of tight corners will hinder his
chase.
Fire Golem:
The fire golem is the fastest of the golems, however, like the rock golem, the navigation is slow.
She will rapidly fly down a corridor if she sees the player, overshooting by a great distance if the player
evades her charge. If the player is near a wall and the golem misses, she will slam into the wall, stunning
her and providing the player with an opportunity to retaliate. Her stature is much smaller than that of the
rock golem, but her speed makes her significantly more of a threat than the rock golem.
Ice and Air Golems:

These golems will follow the same general patterns of the first two golems, but each will be
defined by their own unique style to define the game play of the last two levels.
10

Design

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Team ICN’TSPL

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All work Copyright ©2010 by Team ICN’TSPL

Written by Alexis De Girolami, Natalie Burke, and Zach Heylmun

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

NAME OF GAME ____________________________________________________________________ 1

DESIGN HISTORY ___________________________________________________________________ 4

GAME OVERVIEW __________________________________________________________________ 5

NEXUS LEVEL ______________________________________________________________________ 12

MUSICAL SCORES AND SOUND EFFECTS ___________________________________________ 29

TECHNICAL DESIGN _______________________________________________________________ 32

Unreal Development Kit

Game Design Goals

Why create this game?

Where does the game take place?

How many characters do I control?

The only controllable character is the main character.

What is the main focus?

The Game World

The Physical World

Nexus level lighting

Earth level lighting

Fire level lighting

Water level lighting

The World Layout

Enemies and Monsters

Game Menu Tab

Exploding Crystal Crossbow

Air: Angers golem. Ineffective.

Ceiling collapse trap

Musical Scores and Sound Effects

UDK Integrated 3D Audio

Doug the Dog: Way to go dumb ass.

[Camera startles backwards (surprise). Doug’s tail wags.]

[Camera pans to earth level door]

Yeah… that one, that’s where we need to go.

•If you die

Inside Earth Level

[Player starts exploring level]

•When player spots the Golem for the first time

[Golem makes loud noises and charges. Doug runs.]

•When/if player picks up the pistol

•When/if player shoots Golem with pistol

Doug: [in an imitated Scooby Doo voice] Ruh-Roh!

•When/if player spots pool of water

Doug: Do you hear water? I have to pee.

[Crystal explodes behind Doug, who cowers. He looks accusingly at you.]

Doug: Dude, really?! What the hell?!

•When you finish collecting items for a weapon or trap

•When you kill the Earth Golem

-foot steps(yourself, Doug, and the golem)

Ice and Air Golems:

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