BrainStormsDesignDocument

TeamBlueMageis
HarleyFalkoff
DevinKing
JamesSlanina
TravisThomas

TableofContents

Overview
Setting
Player
Movement
AimingandShooting
SwitchingSkills
Lightning
Rain
Snow
Hazards
BoltGates
LightningRod
MetalFloor
Enemies
ClockworkMan
ScrapMan
RunandGunner
Puzzle
PuzzleCube(Single)
PuzzleCube(Multi)
PressurePlate
Vent(Wall)
HUDandMenu
Scope

Overview
BrainStormsisaPuzzlegameatitscorebutusesthetypicalmechanicsofaShootersimilarto
BindingofIsaac.Theplayershootsdifferentkindsofstormstodifferenteffectsandno
interactionwillbeasimpleoneanddoneaction.Theplayerwillusebothenemiesandthe
environmenttoprogressthroughpuzzlesofalldifferentkinds.

Setting
Afantasysteampunkworldwhereautomatonsarecommonplacethankstoingeniousinventors.
ButoneevilpatentofficerhadthebrightideatostealBenjaminFranklinspatentstoclaimthem
ashisownanduseBensrebellionagainstthepatentsystemasacover.NowBens
descendantreviveshisancestorsbrainworksashishandstobuildhimhisfinalinvention:a
stormshootingmechanicalsuitthathecancontrolasabraininajar.Armedwiththepowersof
rain,lightning,andsnow,BenFranklinsetsofftobattlethepatentofficersautonomousarmies
totakebackthepatentsofhisinventions.

ExecutiveSummary
GoalsandObjectives
Thegoalsofourgameistobeauniquepuzzleexperienceamongtopdownshooters.
Interactingwiththeenvironmentwillbekeytouncoveringsecretareasandadvancingthrough
thegameslevels.Ourdevelopmentgoalsarefocusedoncreatinganentertainingvariationofa
classicgenre.Byusingthepowerofdifferentstorms,playerswillexploreandcombattheirway
through5levelsofincreasingdifficulty,untiltheycompletethemall.Withineachlevel,the
playerwillfaceseveralroomsofpuzzles,eachroommarkingacheckpointfortheplayersothey
donthavetoworryaboutgameoversorlives.Playerswilllosehealthwhenhitbyenemiesand
dyingwillrestarttheroomandallofitspuzzles.

MomentsofGameplay
Inatypicaltopdownshootertheplayermustfocusonaconstantbarrageofenemyattacksand
takethemalldownwiththeirarsenalofweaponry.Inourgame,playerswillbeunderfirefrom
enemiesindifferentways,justlikeothershooters.Someenemiesmightshootattheplayer
whileothersactassuicidebombers.However,wewillonlyhaveasmallselectionofenemies

andwillfocusoncreatingpuzzlesusingtheenemiesandtheenvironment.Playerswillbeable
tousetheir3differentstormabilitiesastheirweapons.Thestormweaponswillalsobeusedto
interactwithenvironmentalpropssuchaslightningrods.Solvingpuzzleswilldirectlycontribute
totheplayersprogressionthroughthelevelsbyunlockingdoorsandpaths.Ourlevelswill
includeaminimumof4roomsineachbeforetheplayercanproceedtothenextlevel.

GenreComparison
Mosttopdownshootergamesaredescribedsimplytheplayermovesaroundtododgeand
shoottheenemiesthatappear.Inourgame,weareincorporatingpuzzlesasamainfocusin
additiontothetypicalshootermechanics.Thedifferentstormstheplayercanshootwillhave
differentpropertiesthatarekeytosolvingenvironmentalpuzzlesandproceedingthroughthe
game.Byaddingpuzzlesinthisway,itwillcreateagameplaystylethatkeepsthefocusonskill,
butaddsawaytoincorporatethelogicalthinkingofourfantasysteampunkthemeintothemore
actionorientedshootergenre.

PitchtoProduct:CoreMechanic
Inourgamepitchwepresentedanexampleofhowthesnowstormabilitycreatedasnowpile
thatcoverstheimpassiblebarbedwirefence.However,nowtheplayercannolongershoot
throughthebarbedwireandmusttraveltotheothersideofitinordertointeractwithanythingit
blocked.Thisisanexampleofhowourcoremechanicswillincorporatethepuzzlemechanic.
Additionalpuzzlescouldbecreatedthatwillrequiremultiplestormsinordertosolve,ramping
upthedifficultyofthepuzzlesastheplayersadvancethroughthegame.

TroubledDevelopment
NoneofTeamBlueMagehasworkedonaprojectofthisscopesothereisverylittle
doubtthattherewillbedroppedcontent.OurinitialplanwastobringpuzzlestotheShmup
genrehoweverwesoonchangedtoatopdownshootergenreinstead.Amongthefirstfeatures
tobedroppedintheeventofarushontheprogrammingendwouldbecomplexAIenemies.
Thishascometofruitionaswehavedroppedtheideaofimplementingbossesalmostentirely.
Programmingheavyfeatureswouldhaveendeduptakingtimeawayfromotherportionsofthe
projectthatwerekeytokeepingthegameconceptspuzzlefilledvisionbothfunctioning
properlyandfuntoplay.
Artfeaturestodropwouldbeartassetsthatarenotintegraltogameplay.Thismeans
flashyparticleeffectsanddetailedlandscapetextureswilllikelybedroppedinfavorofenemy
animations,andpuzzlehintssuchasarrows.Withoutthesekeyartdesignfeatures,ourgame

mayprovemorefrustratingthanentertaining,soourartist(s)willfocusonthem.Thismeans
particleeffectsthatarenotnecessaryforindicatinggameplayelementsandappealingworld
texturesserveasmuchlowerpriorityartassetsthatwillneedtobeneglectedinordertocreate
entertaininggameplay.

Player
Movement
FeatureDescription
TheplayermovestheircharacterusingWtogoUp,StoDown,AtogoLeft,andDtogoRight
inperspectivetothecamera.

AimingandShooting
FeatureDescription
Theplayerusestheirmousetodirectthemousepointeronscreenwhichcontrolsthedirection
theplayercharacterisfacingandaiming.Toshoot,theplayerwillpresstheLeftMouseButton
(LBM).Shootingisalsoreferredtousingaskillorability.

SwitchingSkills
FeatureDescription
ToswitchskillstheplayerwillpressandholdtheRightMouseButton(RBM).WithRBMhelda
wheelwiththreepartswillappeararoundthepositionofthecursoronscreen.Toselectaskill,
whileholdingRBMmovethepointertowardsthedesiredskillthenreleasetheRBM.

Lightning
FeatureDescription
Lightningisaplayerstormabilitythatinstantlyflashesacrosstheleveluntilithitsawall.Evenif
theplayersmouseisinanopenspacethelightningabilitywillcontinueinalinepatternuntila
wallisstruck.
MaybecarriedwiththeassistanceoftheRainabilitypassingthroughtheelectrifiedfieldofan
object.

Rain
FeatureDescription

Rainisaplayerstormabilitythatfiresaraincloudthattravelstowherevertheplayermouseis
onscreen.IftheraincloudcollideswithanobjectortheplayerpressesLBMagain,therain
cloudexplodesreleasingraindropletsinalldirections.Whenredenemiesarehitwiththerain
dropletsabubbleformsaroundtheenemypreventingthemfromshootingandmoving.

Snow
FeatureDescription
Snowisaplayerstormabilitythatfiressnowflakesina90degreeconeinfrontoftheplayer.
Whileshortrange,thesnowfreezesblueandbubbledenemies.

Hazards
HazardsaredefinedinBrainStormsasobjectsthatworkontheirown,canharmtheplayer,
andcanneverbecompletelydefeated.

BoltGates
Anelectrifiedgatethatcanpreventtheplayerfromadvancinguntilaeitherthefieldisdownora
puzzleconditionunlocksthegateitself.Notpassablebytheplayerwhenitsasolidboltgate
requiringacondition.
Whenaboltgateissettopulseitwilldosoatintervals.Iftheplayerhitsduringthe
electrificationperiodtheywillbeharmedbutcanstillpassthroughit.

LightingRod
Hastwooptions
Caneitherpulseonintervalsforaspecificdistancespreadingelectricity.
Whenhitwithlightingpoweritwillalsopulseattheplayerswill.

MetalFloor
Harmlesstotheplayerinitsbasestate,Howeverwhenlightningisusedoveritorwhen
anothereffectcauseslightningtooccuronthefloor(i.e.Lightingrod)itbecomeselectrified.
Thisishazardoustotheplayeraswellasenemies.

RollingRock
Rollingrocksspawnatparticularpointsandrollinonedirectionuntiltheyhitawallortheplayer.
Theyhurttheplayer,destroysnowballs,andcannotbedestroyedbytheplayerinanyway.
Theirintentistocreateanobstaclethatrequirestiming,andtomakesnowballpositioning
requireabitmorefinesse.

Enemies
Allenemieshaveameansofdefeatwhichrendersthemunabletodealdamagetotheplayer
foranindefiniteamountoftime.Enemiesrespawnwhentheplayerdiesoriftheyreabsolutely
necessaryforapuzzletobecompleted.

ClockworkMan
Stationaryenemythatwhenplayerisinproximity,willhomeinontheplayerresultinginan
explosion.(i.e.Kamikaze)
EnemyissusceptibletoSnowpowerwhichwillfreezeitintoaiceblockstate.OnceinIceblock
theplayercanthenusetheirlightningabilitytodestroythetarget.

ScrapMan
Stationaryenemythatwhentheplayerisinproximity,willfacetheplayersdirectionandbegin
firingattheplayer.Willadjusttotheplayer'scurrentdirectiontocontinuefiringiftheplayers
distanceisapplicable.
EnemyissusceptibletoRainpowerwhichwillencompasstheminatemporarybubblewhich
stopsthemfromshooting.Whileinabubbletheenemymaynowbeturnedintoasnowballby
beinghitwiththesnowpower.Thesnowballcanbemovedaroundbytheplayerandbythe
playersabilities.Bubblescanbepoppedwithanyformofelectricity,returningthescrapmanto
hisnormalcapabilities.Snowballsdespawnafter2minutesandthescrapmanonlyreturnsif
snowballsareneededforaparticularpuzzle.

RunandGunner
Enemypathsquicklyinaspecificspace,eitheronpatrolorcyclicallythroughcheckpoints.
Whentheplayeriswithinproximitytheenemywillfireattheplayer.Theenemymovesquickly
tomakeitdifficulttopindownandtarget.

TheenemyfunctionsthesameastheScrapmanwithpowerweaknessesandfiringcapabilities.
Mayalsobeusedasasnowballinordertocompletepuzzles,asabarrier,etc.

PuzzleElements
PuzzleCube(Single)
Acubethatwillhaveasinglepowerusehighlightedbyaglyphoneachsideofthecube.When
thecorrectpowerisuseditwillflashgreenandblackout.Iftheincorrectpowerisuseditwill
flashred.
Thecubeisusedtounlockdoors,bothfornewroomsorsubrooms.

PuzzleCube(Multi)
Acubethatutilizesmultiplepowerstobecompleted.Thesemustbedoneinthecorrectorder
andfunctionidenticallytothesinglecubebutwithcombinationsofrequiredstorms.Useofthe
wrongstormrevertsthecubetothebeginningofitssequence.Thecubeisusedtounlock
doors,bothfornewroomsorsubrooms.Theyservethepurposeofencouragingplayersto
defeatallthenearbyenemiesbeforetryingtosolvetheroomspuzzlessincetheplayerislikely
toshootitwithincorrectstormsintheheatofcombat.

PressurePlate
Abowlshapedplateonthefloorthatcanbeeithersteppedonbytheplayertounlockorin
otherinstancesrequirestheuseofthesnowballinordertostaypressedinordertofulfillits
function.

Vent(Wall)
Aclearwallthattheplayercannotpassthrough.Everythingelsecanpassthroughthevent.
Thisincludesenemies,powers,snowballs,projectiles,etc.

HUDandMenu
MainMenu
Showsthetitleandhasbuttonsforthefollowing:
StartGame
Opensthegamewiththetutoriallevel.
StageSelect
Allowstheplayertochooseanylevel.
Credits
Immediatelyplaysthecreditssequence.
ExitGame
Confirmsiftheplayerwantstoexitanddisablesallotherbuttonsuntilaselection
ismade.Yesquitsthegame,noreenablesallthebuttonsandmakestheexit
confirmationdisappear.

PauseMenu
BothEscapeandPwillallowtheplayertopausethegameandopenthepausemenu.Thislets
theplayerreturntothegameorreturntothemainmenu.Unpausingthegamecanbedonein
threeways:pressingEscape,pressingP,orclickingthereturntogamebutton.Selectingthe
mainmenuoptionwillbringupaconfirmationmenujustliketheexitgameoneonthemain
menu,andwilldisablebothoftheotherbuttons.Thisalsopreventskeyboardshortcutsfor
unpausingsotheinterfaceistheonlymeansofinput.Selectingyesreturnstothemainmenu
immediately,andselectingnoremovestheconfirmationpromptandallowstheplayertoreturn
tothegamethroughnormalmeansorclickthemainmenubuttonagain.

UserInterface
Theplayerneedstokeeptrackof2thingsabouttheirstatistics:healthandselectedskill.
Howevertherearemoreaspectstotheuserinterfacethanthis.Theplayeralsoneedstoaim,
sotheplayerwillhaveadirectionindicatorandacursor.Theplayerwillalwaysturntowardsthe
cursor,nomatterwhereitisonscreen.Thecursorwillchangetoreflecttheselectedskilland
theHUDwilldisplaytheselectedskillaswell.Thehealthoftheplayerisbothanumberand
colorcodedtoindicatetheseverityoftheircurrenthealth.Theskillandhealthdisplayshould
matchthemechanicalaestheticofthegame.

Additionaldialogscanbedisplayedbasedonthecontextoftheplayerinthegameworld.These
areknownasTextBoxesandareindicatedbyacomicstylespeechbubblewithanellipsisinit.
Whentheplayerstepsonornearone,itwilldisplaytextonscreenbasedonwhattheyneedto

knowatthatparticularmoment.Theycanhavemultiplelinesofdialogandwillshowhowmany
linestheyhaveineachmessage.PressingE(alternativelyleftclick)willadvancethedialogby1
messageandpressingQ(alternativelyrightclick)willgobacktothepreviousmessage.This
loopsinbothdirections.

Scope
BrainStormswillhaveatutorial,and4otherlevels.Thisisbothtokeepthegamewithina
reasonablescaleforourteamsizeandtokeeptheproductiontimeshortsoitmaybe
completedwithinonlyafewmonthsforeducationalpurposes.Themajorityofourgames
intrigueisfromleveldesignsoweareusingthattoadjustscopemorethanotheraspectssuch
ascodingorart.Wearelimitingourenemyoptionstothreeparticularbaseenemiesandany
additionalenemieswillbevariationsofthosethreetokeepthemechanicsfamiliartotheplayer.