Tasks for this week:

• Technical challenges:
  1. Implement head tracking for a single player
  2. Experiment with joint focus for 2 players and split focus
• Art challenges:
  1. Find art references suitable for Unity 
  2. Make a cube with different colors on each face for testing.
  3. Get to know our skillsets. 
• Game design challenges:
  1. Come up with at least 2 collaborative game ideas.

Plan for next week:

• Candice: make the asset list for the environment & start building the environment
• Alex: panda sketch/references & start making poster.
• Cici : start the experience flow chart & narrative design.
• Lydia: interaction documentation.
• Mike: quarter preparation.
• Esther: prepare jira for the team & prepare for the quarter presentation.

Technical challenges:

1. Implemented Head tracking camera for single player.

2.Implemented joint focus for two players.

*For 1,2 above, Vive trackers are not compatible with Unity right now, so I used a moving cube to simulate movement of players.

3.Added artist’s golden spike asset

4.Debugging of existing package.

Art challenges:

Our artist made a cube to test with the head-tracking function.

Game design challenges:

We decided to move on with the 1st idea, cause we all think we can create fun interactions and beatiful environment for the concept.

We came up with 3 game ideas during this week.

1st game idea:

Setting: Bamboo forest
Activity: Catching pandas

One person is responsible for catching runaway pandas, and another person is responsible for cutting bamboo. The screen is split, and the two people are in different locations, coordinating with each other.
Alternatively, they are in a vehicle that sometimes moves and sometimes stops. Among the three people, one is responsible for driving and stopping the car. When the car stops, the person cutting bamboo starts their task, and when the car is moving, the person catching pandas is responsible for capturing them (perhaps using a net).
After catching a panda, they need to be fed bamboo. Each panda requires a fixed amount of bamboo to stay in the vehicle and not escape.

2nd game idea:

Setting: fantasy world
Activity: rowing, boating

We were inspired by the traditional Chinese Bamboo raft from Guangxi Provience (see the image below). We want to let people collaborate together and simulate the scene that they are on a narrow bamboo raft. Since the raft is narrow, players need to be carefule about falling off the raft, and they need to row the paddle to speed up or turn the direction.

3rd game idea:

Setting: space
Activity: fight with aliens to save the cat

It would be a bizzar and funny game. Steve came up with this game idea. The aliens kidnapped the player’s cat. Players, all three of them, need to fight with the aliens to get their cat back. All of the 3 players’ positions are tracked, and they need to change their formations to deal with alien’s attack.