Disaster struck our team this week as two of our team members (including myself) caught an illness at GDC. The other team member recovered quickly, but I was a bit slow going. This left the team to determine tasks for the week and prep for Playtest Day.

First up: The Plunger. William created a diagram to help figure out how the electronics would be positioned in the box, and then Dave and William built the plunger reinforcement. The top isn’t screwed on yet and players currently have to hold the box in order, but the overall feel of the plunger is miles different from our initial paper/cardboard prototype. It gives a good sound when the plunger is released and finally lets players have the freedom to pull it whenever they want!

Second: Creating convincing 2.5D. We opted to switch to a 2.5D view to allow the assets to shine more, as well as to mimic a bit of traditional pinball. Skye created a new encasing for the playfield, creating a rounded shape to the game. This was implemented alongside the Vaporwave background and bumpers for the Frutiger Aero theme. Additionally, William added effects to the experience, creating fun interactions with the bumpers.

Finally, playtest day preparation. We were assigned a different room from our project room, so we moved our entire set up there. This room actually ended up being perfect for our project, so our setup will remain there until the end of the semester. I created a feedback form for playtest day, as our schedule indicates that we will have a lot of players for each time slot.

We’re looking forward to finally being able to playtest with our primary audience!

Challenges:

• Reinforcing Plunger
• Polishing for Playtest Day

Goals for Next Week:

• Address Playtest Day feedback