Mind Forest (2017)

Controls

Shift	Dash
Space	Double-jump / Wall-run (jump towards wall)
Right-Click	Bullet-time
F	Rail-grind
Ctrl	Crouch / Slide

About

An FPS project made to explore creative movement abilities and fun feedback effects.

This prototype is set in a single sandbox level where you can do some platforming and shoot some enemies and objects.

The core essence of this project is in the player's sense of flow as explored in Csikszentmihalyi's book of the same title (1990) where players remain immersed in an experience as the level of challenge matches their skills in a sandbox that invites creativity.

The game approaches the conceptual spirit of the Tony Hawk Pro Skater series (Activision) where players can chain together combos for long stretches without breaking their streak. Simultaneously, I was exploring the idea of a sandbox with no inherent goals, where joy is derived by a player's own sense of creativity, as seen in the game Burnout Paradise (EA, 2008) where most players find enormous amounts of fun simply driving, or in other open-world titles with fun level design and player movement.

Many games served as inspiration: 

• Sunset Overdrive (Insomniac, 2014) for its rail-grinding and air-dash,
• Titanfall 2 (Respawn Entertainment, 2016) for its wall-running and sliding,
• Vanquish (Platinum Games, 2011) for its shooting and bullet-time ,
• Bulletstorm (Epic Games, 2010) for its skill-shot scoring system,

and many others for their arcade aesthetics and sensibilities, such as the Devil May Cry series (Capcom), DOOM (id Software), and more.