GAME DESIGN

SYNTHSLIDER

INTRODUCTION

This small project started as me simply experimenting in Unreal Engine. I had previously built a solid third-person template for a school assignment and decided to expand on it, adding new features and refining mechanics. The result is a movement-based shooter with a strong emphasis on weapon and enemy design. Oh, and right. you’re inside a synthwave album.

The system is breaking, the glitches are endless, and the music must not stop. Keep moving, keep fighting—because once you crack, there’s no coming back.

STORY

Solo project
Developed in my spare time
Unreal Engine 5
Self scripted
Models made in blender

BREAKDOWN

EXTERNAL ASSETS

Military Weapons Silver
Realistic Starter VFX Pack Vol 2
Stylized shaders

This project was entirely created with the Unreal Engine Blueprint system (node scripting).

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MOVEMENT

BALANCING COMPLEXITY AND FUN

Since the gameplay was confined to a small arena, the core experience that would make players stay relied almost entirely on the characters movement and feel. To ensure the game remained fun and dynamic, I focused heavily on designing a movement system that offered a diverse range of actions without overwhelming the player with too many inputs.

The result was a movement system built entirely around a dash and a slide, which could be combined in various ways to create fluid "movement combos." And to reward player movement i made it so aiming while performing these moves would trigger slowmotion which both felt satisfying and looked cool as hell!

WEAPON DESIGN

INCENTIVIZING WEAPON SWITCHING

While working on this project, I had recently played DOOM Eternal, and I was inspired by how the game encourages players to use every weapon in their arsenal. Rather than forcing weapon variety, I aimed to achieve the same effect by carefully balancing each weapon so that players would naturally want to switch between them.

The pistol is optimal in the midrange with its fast fire-rate an ability to one-shot enemies in the head. However it has problems handling large groups of enemies.

ENEMY DESIGN

CREATING FUN ENEMY TYPES

Since the enemy design was fairly simple (they rush the player and explode on contact) I focused on incentivizing weapon variety through enemy types instead. Each enemy was designed to encourage different approaches, making certain weapons more effective in specific scenarios. This added depth to combat without overcomplicating enemy behavior as players now had to plan how to tackle enemy groups.

This is the most basic enemy type with low health and moderate movement speed. While it doesn’t encourage the use of any specific weapon, it becomes a threat in groups, forcing players to manage positioning and crowd control effectively.

UNCUT GAMEPLAY

REFLECTION

Creating this small game experience was a blast. I let go of all constraints and focused on having fun, which I think resulted in a genuinely enjoyable experience. Had I not embraced the freedom to experiment and play around, I never would have discovered the movement system and mechanics that became key to the project. This really reinforced how important it is to simply have fun and test things out during game development – sometimes the best ideas come from just playing around with possibilities.