Project Duration
4 weeks
Team Size
12 members
Engine/Tools
Unreal & Perforce
Pok'our is a fast-paced, third-person style speedrunning game that combines the freestyle movement of parkour with the ancient, Mesoamerican sport called Pok-ta-Pok.
Run, jump, wall-run, and airdash your way through a colorful sky kingdom. Test your skills against multiple different paths and use your Pok-ta-Pok ball to activate floating rings, either taking time off the clock or opening up even more alternate routes.
Contributions
Gameplay Design
I was in charge of designing the main mechanics of the game, such the player movement mechanics and projectile interactions.
Level Design
Co-Designed the games level together with one other game design student.
Blueprint scripting
Co-scripted some of the games smaller systems, such as one of the projectile interactions and the system that handles opening alternate paths.
Product Owner
I was tasked with making sure the project stayed on track and unanimously moved towards creating our original vision.
Design Pillars
High Speed
For a speedrunning game, going fast is a given. Pok'our aims to provide ample opportunitys of fluid and satisfying acrobatic action.
Player Choices
Experimentation is also key to keep speedrunning games interesting. Pok'our provides alternate routes to explore in order to allow players to find the route that suites them best.
REplayability
Although the game is rather short, the hard to master player mechanics and the alternate paths offer the player ways to dive back in and improve their score.
Game Loop
Try again for a faster time
Play/Explore the level
Plan out new route
Receive final score/Time
Practice successful execution
Icons made by Freepik from www.flaticon.com
Movement Mechanics
Wallrun
Lets players run along most flat surfaces.
All main paths are decorated with wall patterns to easier discern possible wall-run opportunities. Maintains momentum and may even accelerate.
Dash
Lets players dash once while in the air or on the ground, as long as they are moving. Grounded dashes make the player airborne, making them unable to dash again. Landing Resets the players' ability to dash.
SLide
Lets players slide along the ground. Can be used anytime the player is grounded and allows them to traverse small gaps and openings. Maintains momentum but stops acceleration.
Heave
Lets players heave themselves on top of ledges and platforms by holding down the jump button while being airborne.
Projectile Mechanic
Players may use the left mouse button to utilize their Pok'ta'Pok ball. Tapping the button throws it and holding it allows them to aim their throw with an assisting outline that shows the throw trajectory. After a throw, the player must wait for the ball to return before throwing it again.
The ball returns after a set period of time but players may also left-click again after a throw to recall the ball prematurely.
The player may also perform a throw from any movement mechanic, such as from a wall-run, slide, or heave.
Projectile Uses
Path Unlocking
Throwing the Pok'ta'Pok ball through Orange Hoops spread around the level opens up new alternate paths or opportunities for shortcuts.
Time Reduction
Throwing the Pok'ta'Pok ball through Purple Hoops gives the player a time reduction from their overall score/time.
Movement and projectile Synergy
Both the Dash and Heave mechanics were added to alleviate some of the difficulty that comes from trying to maintain high speeds while simultaneously utilizing the projectile mechanic.
By giving the player tools to adjust their trajectory and make the precision platforming a bit more forgiving, we aimed to allow the player more time to line up shots, while simultaneously keeping our intended difficulty and point of mastery.
Player Respawning
Keeping with the game's focus on speed, we decided to forego a traditional respawn system when failing during platforming. Instead, we decided to draw upon the setting of the game, utilizing the sky island setting and large cloud formations to create a wraparound effect.
The main reason for this style of respawning was to try and prevent the player from losing their momentum in between eventual mistakes and, while descending down, provide them with an overview of the area they are struggling with.
Concept Mock-up
![Pok'our Respawn [1-3].png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/d1500a_c84289f0ca464fd387f0086775bb98b1~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_168,h_168,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/Pok'our%20Respawn%20%5B1-3%5D.png)
Player falls down
![Pok'our Respawn [3-3].png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/d1500a_989ae77f8b7b486682062da8de636103~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_168,h_168,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/Pok'our%20Respawn%20%5B3-3%5D.png)
Clouds obscure vision, masking the position shift
Player emerges from above
Gif recorded from "AER: Memories of Old" (2017)
Final Version
In the final version, the player respawns at specific checkpoints but since they possess a large amount of aerial control, they may keep their momentum and instantly get back on track. The players' rotation is also set to be facing the correct way to advance the level.
Level Design
This slide features an overview of some of the large set pieces and design intentions of the game's first half. The map was created together with fellow game design student Johan Hyberg.
Shortly after the player begins the level, they encounter their first split path. This time, they player has three alternatives to choose from. Slide [1 - 6]
Yellow Path: allows the player to ascend further up onto a more closed in area full of smaller obsticles. Red Path: Allows the player to head down into a lower path. The easier path due to generous platforms but there are no platforms further beneath, meaning the player must respawn if they fall. Purple Path: An open path without many walls. Features a chance of a shortcut but failing to activate it means potentially heading down towards the red path. Slide [2 - 6]
Having succesfully navigated the Yellow or Purple path, the player now makes a large leap onto the large temple island. If by chance the player fails on either of the tracks, they always have the opportunity to salvage their momentum by landing on the Red, lower path. The Red path instead features a large launch pad powerful enough to boost them up onto the main path. [6 - 6]
Shortly after the player begins the level, they encounter their first split path. This time, they player has three alternatives to choose from. Slide [1 - 6]
Purple hoops and Path Balancing
The team recognized early on that making the many different paths distinct from one another in the challenges they provided could pose a problem. Making a path full of twisty turns or filled with obstacles could possibly become a less viable choice compared to a more straightforward path.
To balance the different routes, we created the aforementioned Purple Hoops which provide a time reduction when triggered.
