In the year 2049, a shadow falls upon Earth as the Zephari, a ruthless race of alien conquerors, launch a devastating assault on the planet. Their relentless campaign threatens to plunge humanity into darkness, but Earth is not defenceless. The Central Power Station within Facility 45 stands as a beacon of hope, generating a protective shield that shields the planet from the Zephari onslaught.
Genre: Shoot-Em-Up, Wave Based, Base Defence
Tools Used: Custom Engine, Adobe Creative Suite
EXODUS is a 2D top down wave based defence game that was conceived as a milestone project during my second year at university. The constrains of the module necessitated the creation of a fully-fledged video game driven by a completely custom engine. The project spanned two trimesters, with the initial focus on crafting a viable prototype using a well-established third-party engine like Unity. The latter half was dedicated to transitioning this prototype into our custom engine for a seamless and tailored gaming experience.
A dynamic and rewarding experience, I was the art lead and a secondary designer for this project. Collaborating closely with a multi-discipline team of programmers and designers, I played a pivotal role in shaping the visual identity and aesthetics of the game. This involved conducting research, creating mood boards, and leading discussions to ensure a shared vision among the team.
This project required a departure from fantastical elements, focusing instead on conveying a sense of raw, gritty and stylized art direction. Given the context of the story, I designed and produced environments that reflect urban decay, emphasising the wear and tear on structures, and incorporating weathered textures. In character design, the goal was to craft individuals who felt like they belonged to a harsh and unforgiving world, with attention to realistic details in clothing, scars, and expressions. Overall, working as an art lead on a gritty and semi-realistic world had demanded a meticulous balance between creativity and practicality. Culminating in a product that is able to transport players into a world that felt harsh, lived-in.
During its development journey, EXODUS underwent multiple design iterations, each with its own degree of impact. The most significant transformation occurred during the transition to our custom engine. Initially conceptualised with a sprawling map, a climactic alien mothership boss battle, and a creeping poisonous fog, EXODUS had to pivot its overall concept and gameplay loop to accommodate unforeseen technical constraints of the custom engine. This led to a refined iteration, transforming EXODUS into a wave-based tower defence experience.