‘Hourglass’ world-traversal

Game Mechanic
Stylized as H:ourglobe

Creator:

Daniel Henry, Game Design (Artistic Focus)

Last Updated: 10/22/23

Technical Field
My project encompasses the game design and game art fields. This mechanic will be
fundamental to the game that it is used in, and while my own game will see that specific art is
created and stylized around the mechanic itself, the mechanic on its own can be used for any
number of games.

Background Information
The idea of this project was conceived during the confinements that the pandemic
brought upon any average individuals, who are largely confined to their own personal spaces
where time almost feels to seemingly ‘stand still.’ The concept of this brought about the first
thoughts in creating this mechanic, wherein a confined area where the passage of time comes to a
standstill is not unlike the confinements a snowglobe presents; while the snow within falls for a
set duration, the area within is ultimately untouched and timeless to the effects of nature. In
adding the aspect of time, or an ‘hourglass’ to the mix, the concept of the ‘hourglobe,’ stylized as
H:ourglobe, came to my mind. A game that uses a similar concept that provided me with
inspiration is Yume Nikki, which sees the player character confined to her own room seemingly
outside the natural passage of time.

Prior Art (legal term)

An inspiration to my project idea is a Japanese indie-developed game Yume Nikki, also
known as Dream Diary. This game is a 2D puzzle-horror game, built in RPG Maker where the
player controls a girl who explores her dreams in between intermission-sections within her own
room. The concept of the girl protagonist being ‘trapped’ within her room that is essentially
untouched by the passage of time and unknown to the passage of day and night, is not unlike her
room being encased within a snowglobe. This concept was a driving force of inspiration behind
my idea of a world that is split from reality, with its own independent version of time.
Furthermore, this game shares the 2D simplistic art style that my game surrounding this
mechanic wishes to strive for.
Another game with a similar mechanic on the market, is the indie-puzzle game named
Hourglass, in which the player traverses a 3D environment to solve puzzles. These puzzles are
completed by entering an ‘alternate’ playspace, where the game records the players actions for a
set duration, and then plays them as a second entity once the player returns to the ‘real’ world,
giving the illusion of a second player being present to help them in their puzzle-solving. This
concept, as well as the name of the game, is not unlike my concept of the hourglobe, however it
differs in the way it employs the ‘time’-based mechanics.
Moreover, yet another indie game that employs a ‘time’-based mechanic is Minit. This
2D monochromatic indie game employs the mechanic of time in that the player has exactly a
minute to succeed in their endeavors, due to a curse that their sword has where the player-
character will die after only a minute. While the concept is similar in that it utilizes the pressure
of time, it employs the mechanic without the use of ‘flipping’ and resetting an hourglass between
two worlds.
 Lastly, in seeking similarity in the prospect of a mirrored – or ‘inverted’ world at all
times within my hourglobe concept, the massively popular Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
sees that once the player completes traversal of the castle within the game, they are transported
to the ‘inverted’ castle where they then must traverse an upside-down version of the same castle,
albeit with new enemies and story. While this mechanic does not use the concept of a pressure of
time in the players’ traversal of the playspace, the concept of an inverted playspace is not unlike
the two ‘mirrored’ versions of worlds that I wish to employ with my mechanic.

Project Description
My project is the development of a 2D side view game that utilizes my unique concept of
the ‘hourglobe,’ an essential combination of an hourglass and a snowglobe. This mechanic sees
that the game world is shaped like an hourglass, and both halves of this hourglass is its own
‘snowglobe,’ or ‘world,’ playing off the synonym of the word ‘globe.’ The title H:ourglobe is
stylized as such in that the colon included represents the shape of an hourglass as well as
splitting the first letter from the rest, and upon removing the first letter of the title, ‘ourglobe’
refers to the twin-worlds being shared between two beings. As each ‘snowglobe’ is its own
unique reality that is encased in its own globe unbeknownst to the passage of time, they will yet
remain familiar to each other, while both containing their own versions of the protagonist, or
essentially two protagonists in total. Within this mechanic, only one world – the ‘upper’ half of
the hourglobe – will be active, and time will be ticking out of this globe as the player traverses
this space and solves puzzles. As time depletes from the active world, it is gained into the lower
world; at any point before the time fully depletes, the player must ‘flip’ the hourglass, swapping
positions of both of these worlds where the cycle begins anew albeit in this newly mirrored,
alternate reality.
As this mechanic is my essential project, I wish to create a game world to present my
mechanic in its employment. This can be done through the creation of all relevant artistic assets,
all of which will be made by me, and within a 2D game engine that does not require essential
knowledge of programming and the like, to ensure it remains within my preferred scope of a
project. This project will entail the creation of a world – or level – where the entire level will
then be remade a second time albeit with vastly different textures, assets, etc. while still retaining
some form of familiarity, to represent the ‘mirrored’ half of the hourglobe. The same will be
done with other necessary assets, such as UI design and character design, with a focus on
‘mirroring’ the placement and appearance to exaggerate the notion of an ‘opposite’ world.

Innovation Claim
The H:ourglobe game concept and mechanic takes two existing, universally known
concepts of the ‘hourglass’ and the ‘snowglobe,’ combining them into a tale of interdependency
between two ‘globes.’ By interlinking the common threads between the hourglass and the
snowglobe, the game mechanic will see that two worlds/two protagonists share an entwined fate
and lifeforce under the pressure of time the ‘hourglobe’ demonstrates.

Usage Scenario
 The design of the H:ourglobe is intended first and foremost as a game design mechanic.
Using it in a game will see that said game includes a unique atmosphere, based on 2 shifting and
alternating artstyles and essentially ‘worlds,’ while including the constraint of time based on the
hourglass. However, the design itself is practical as a real-life system as well; through the lens of
a physical prototype standpoint, the similarities between the mechanisms of both an hourglass
and a snowglobe use sees that by combining both of them, they can form a brand new product
that serves two purposes without hindering one another. A vertically tall object, shaped as an
hourglass yet both halves contain their own ‘worlds,’ with one world providing its time in the
form of snow to the other.

The demographic for the Hourglobe is primarily for those who would play such puzzle
games, and enjoy unique mechanics such as the hourglobe. Yet the ability for this object to be
created as an actual physical product opens possibilities of a new line of products donning such
features of an hourglass combined with a snowglobe – a demographic that may be completely
detached from the game demographic – or even physical merchandise resembling that of the
game mechanic/world.

Evaluation Criteria
The project of the H:ourglobe is within the scope of creating a functioning segment of a
game with the flagship mechanic at the forefront. It requires the work of several aspects to bring
it to fruition, including: artwork, animation, UI design, character design, world design, story-
building, and finally a game-engine to prepare and build it all. These questions will determine
the success of the project:

Is the game-engine able to build such a mechanic?

Is the game-engine adaptive to my current abilities and inabilities? (Game-engine without

programming prerequisites)

Within the game, is the artwork animated professionally and with an appeasing aesthetic?

Does the created art follow a constant artstyle and fit together smoothly?

Is the mechanic of a time-constraint implemented where the player will find enjoyment in
it?

Are the assets and size of the project within a proper scope given my timeframe for
completion?

Does the game have an underlying story behind it that the player can experience to any
extent?

Is the mechanic implemented where it can be added upon?

Is the game built where it can be added upon?

Does the mechanic help the game more than hinder it, and avoid feeling like a gimmick?

Objectives and Tasks Associated with the Project

The project of H:ourglobe will be completed in several phases.

Preproduction: (Ongoing)
● Asset list creation // Format Continuity
Creating a list of all assets needed to piece together gameworld and project, includes:
1. art
2. animation
3. sound design
4. FX
Deciding artstyle and format, such as pixel art or more advanced – building asset hierarchy to
follow when creating all art pieces.
● Game Engine Research
Deciding on an engine to use to build my project – must be a game engine for 2D game creation
that includes minimal programming abilities. Allow for such a mechanic as the Hourglobe to be
implemented. Must be capable of using artstyle and imaging formats that I decide on.
● Story Creation
Write out a draft of a story that follows and builds upon the mechanic of the H:ourglobe. Must
present the mechanic at the forefront, and sets the rules for the gameworld that will be created.
● Historical Research // Inspiration
Research a variety of architecture, styles of attire, art styles, etc. throughout history. Will provide
me with specifics to implement into the story, artstyle, mechanics, etc. through inspiration.

Asset Production: (December –)

● Asset creation
Commencing the production of all assets to be made by me: includes all visual aspects of the
game as well as the core artstyle.
 ● Backchecking game engine
Game engine testing with early assets to ensure and define a clear path of asset implementation.
Will be a continuation of game engine research, after having decided on one certain engine.
● Sound design
Either creating and implementing my own sound effects to be used within the gameworld, or
finding license-free audio to be used. Creation of short music samples to accompany gameworld.
● Preparing Implementation
Organizing and preparing all assets created for game engine implementation. This will be the
transitional phase into the last section of the project, following the completion and inclusion of
all assets.

Implementation: (TBD)
● Asset implementation
Widescale implementation of all assets created from all types.
● Backend Game Engine Production
Building lite-programming aspects to fit gameworld together. Includes everything from basic
menu-navigation to the complexities of H:ourglobe mechanics.
● Debugging // Testing Phase
Testing phase will be broken into several smaller phases, including:
1. using playtesters
2. acquiring feedback
3. fixing bugs/glitches
Following such phases, phases will revert to either further asset production, further
implementation, etc. to ensure a fully presentable product.

Description of Design Prototype

Describe the design prototype implementation. You should describe the platform on which the
system will be built and provide directions on how to run the prototype (if necessary). Elaborate
on the functionality of the parts that define your project. Effective descriptions will give the
reader an understanding of what the design prototype will be, and how it relates to the final
project.

Note: This section will be drafted in SIP311, but must be revised prior to SIP403 (or SIP409) to
describe the design prototype in its final form.
Evaluation Plan
Provide a complete, paragraph style description of the plan that is to be used to evaluate your
project. This section should be a description of the full plan for how the team will go about
answering the “Evaluation Criteria” questions. Do not simply repeat the questions!

Note: This section will be drafted in SIP311, but must be revised prior to SIP403 (or SIP409) to
describe the full evaluation plan as it was actually implemented.

Project Completion Assessment

Note: This section must completed prior to SIP403/409.

Provide an in-depth description of the completion assessment of your project. Describe how well
the completed components function and highlight the innovative facets of your design. This is
sometimes known as a “Post-Mortem” or “Lessons-Learned Report”. A good approach for this
section is to answer the following 4 questions: “What went right? What went wrong? What was
learned throughout the process? What would be done differently if you had to do it again?

Appendices
Note: While students are encouraged to start citing their sources as soon as SIP311, this section must
completed prior to SIP403/409. For SIP402 (or SIP408), use this as a way to share your progress
TOWARDS completion with your SME

Include as appendices any supporting material for this project, including charts, graphs, and other
data; images associated with the project; or other documentation (e.g., a game design document
or read-me file). Include any prior art that was used such as U.S. Patent Documents, Foreign
Patent Documents, or other sources. Remember that this section should only be a list of
additional files, not the actual data of the files!

Use the following format:

Appendix letter: description of item – file name

Example…

Appendix A: Game design document – myGameDoc.docx

Appendix B: 3D render of primary character – mainCharacter.jpg

Appendix C: References

Author. (date). etc, following APA style.