3D Artist
KAIJU THE CHAMELEON
My role: Project Lead, Level Designer & Programmer
Software Used:
What is Kaiju?
Based on challenging kid-focused games such as Crash Bandicoot and Banjo Kazooie, Kaiju the Chameleon is a 3D platformer that challenges the player to survive on a sinking island.
The objective of the game is to carry Kaiju's eggs to the safety of his boat before the whole island drowns. Kaiju can jump, bounce, glide and swing from his tongue to evade danger as he saves his eggs.
Gameplay Design
The goal for my team was to create a challenging, but kid-friendly platformer. We wanted it to be accessible to a younger audience, but still difficult enough to entertain a more mature audience.
I landed on creating a mobility-based game, where the player could mix together different abilities to navigate the map at crazy speeds. This opened up the gameplay to speed runs and more technical maneuvers, while still keeping the level of entry fairly low.
The game can be beaten with a moderate level of skill. However, if you want to challenge yourself, the game keeps track of your time and the player can always challenge themselves by shooting for a better time. There are complex techniques that can be used to accomplish a better time, such as comboing swings and bounces together, or even using the enemies' attacks to your own advantage.
Level design
I wanted to use the idea of Kaiju's island slowly sinking to create a unique gameplay challenge. As the island sinks, less and less areas are available for the player, and they are forced to come up with new, more risky routes to get around the level.
I was responsible for the development of the level at every stage of it's construction. I did initial sketches for the level, and then blocked it out and playtested it, experimenting with different routes. Once I was confident with the layout of the level and how it's gameplay felt, I setdressed it using the beautiful environmental assets created by my team's artist.
