Trailer by Marco Yuei and Francesco Catalano
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My Role: Designer, Programmer, 3D Artist
Worked on:
Worked on:
Prototype
Gameplay Design
UI / UX
3D Assets modeler
Pitcher
Genre: Noir Detective Game
Engine: Unreal Engine 5
Platform: PC (Itch.io)
Team Size: 8 People
Duration of Project: 6 months
OVERVIEW
OVERVIEW
Detective Leone is a project that I worked on during my last year at Event Horizon School, this project was an important milestone in my training as a designer, allowing me to refine my skills.
Detective Leone is an investigative game that blends comic book storytelling with 3D gameplay. My role in this project was to design the game mechanics and ensure a seamless connection between the comic book narrative and the interactive investigative elements.
GAMEPLAY DESIGN
GAMEPLAY DESIGN
MECHANICS
MECHANICS
ENVIRONMENTAL INTERACTIONS:
Players can explore and interact with the environment.
As a detective, you want to enter the crime scene and interact with the environment to find all possible clues to solve the case, so we have given the player this opportunity by clicking on the elements to interact with them. To help the player figure out which objects can be interacted with in the scene there is an adaptive cursor that changes shape as you hover over the elements.
Inspect objects by picking them up, rotating them, and zooming to see details.
The player can inspect the objects, we needed a tool that would allow them to analyze the items, to see the details, so the inspected objects come closer to the camera and the player can now zoom in and rotate that object. To help the player understand what is happening with an object, after inspection, the detective himself helps the player with a suggestion.
DETECTIVE'S NOTEBOOK:
A notebook is available for writing down suspicions and notes.
This tool helps players keep track of important details and avoid missing key information by giving the player the opportunity to write down in the notebook their ideas about the possible killer or individual items found. The user interface of the notebook pages helps the player to associate, on a page, a photo and text.
POLAROID CAMERA:
Players can use a Polaroid camera to take pictures of crucial evidence.
This function helps organize evidence and distinguish useful clues from misleading ones. Giving the ability to take pictures of objects should help, during the course of the game, to immediately associate what it reads with a visual memory that is stronger than a textual one.
RIDDLES AND PUZZLES:
The killer in the story enjoys challenging the detective with riddles. Players must solve these puzzles to advance in the investigation.
To increase interactions with the comic, and not just use it as a tool to tell the story, we decided to implement puzzles in it, the story we were inspired by helped us with this mechanic, in this story the murderer sends the police several letters to test them with riddles, so we used this gimmick to develop this mechanic, giving the player the chance to identify even more with the detective
SOLVE THE CASE:
As players collect evidence and solve riddles, they complete comic book vignettes with the correct pictures.
Another important interaction with the comic book is the page where the player is able to solve the case, to solve it the player has to get the right information in the 3D world, in fact inspecting the objects unlocks an image that can be used to solve the case, but how could the player figure out what is needed to solve the puzzle, the comic book itself helps the player with a text bubble that gives a hint. this is a gimmick to give the player the idea of being part of the story itself.
UI / UX
UI / UX
I designed the UX and UI of the game by thinking about how to make them work in synergy to create an enjoyable experience. While the UX ensures that the product is easy to use, accessible, and engaging, the UI ensures that the interface is aesthetically pleasing, consistent, and functional.
USER EXPERIENCE
USER EXPERIENCE
NAVIGATION FLOW
I designed the UI of the game with players in mind who need to be able to navigate through the product smoothly. Avoid frustration and confusion while interacting with the game
SIMPLICITY AND USABILITY
I designed the game to be simple and intuitive. Players should be able to achieve their goals with as little effort as possible.
Usability implies that interaction with the product or interface is efficient, frustration-free, and understandable from the very first use.
USER FEEDBACK
The game provides immediate feedback for each user action, such as confirmation messages or error notifications. This helps users understand what is happening and what to expect. For example, a feedback system is when the case is completed feedback is given immediately on whether it was successful or whether it was an error
USER INTERFACE
USER INTERFACE
VISUAL CONSISTENCY
Consistency is key. All visual elements are uniform throughout the product-from buttons to colors, icons to fonts.
AFFORDANCE
In developing the game, I thought about the affordance of interactive elements that must clearly communicate their function. For example, an interacting vignette must look clickable.
MINIMALISM AND COGNITIVE LOAD REDUCTION
The UI is designed to avoid overloading the user with too many visual elements or options. A clean, minimalist design reduces cognitive load, making it easier to interact with elements.
Following the principle of “Less is More,” a phrase by German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, helps eliminate superfluous elements and focus attention on the most important aspects.
THE GOLD PHASE
THE GOLD PHASE
During the final stages of development, I was able to work on the presentation of the game, create the composition of the presentation itself, and write the script.
I was able to present the game several times, counting more than 5 publishers, plus I had the opportunity to pitch the game, at the OGR in Turin. Presenting the game in front of a hundred people was a significant personal challenge, but overcoming it gave me great satisfaction and motivated me even more to keep innovating and improving as a game developer.
CONCLUSION
CONCLUSION
My design choices aimed to provide players with the tools they need to fully immerse themselves in the investigation. By combining traditional investigative tools with interactive elements of the comic book, I help create an immersive experience that challenges players to think critically and reconstruct the mystery.
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