COMBAT SYSTEM PROGRAMMER
As the combat programmer for Corruption of Arcana, I designed the concepts of the gameplay and prototyped basic implementations of a turn-based card battling system. From the prototyping to the production phase, I have been implementing HCI improvements and creating a developer tool that allows designers to create custom spells and status effects, which can be used by both the player character and the enemies they encounter. My role in this has also extended from programming into design, and I have used research into Tarot cards to make our combat system more unique.
TUTORIAL PROGRAMMER
Following on from the combat system, I implemented a system that handles the tutorial. This helps the player get a basic understanding of how to play the game. I am planning to extend this into more advanced tutorials that teach game mechanics that get introduced later.
QUEST SYSTEM PROGRAMMER
One of the most interesting features I refactored was the quest system and this was my first attempt at using recursion. While I didn't realise it at the time, I later discovered this use of recursion allows for more complex quest features, like branching quest paths, which were not possible with the first iteration of this system. With some polishing, this new and improved quest system offers designers much more freedom in quest design.
DECKBUILDING SYSTEM PROGRAMMER
Using the existing card drag and drop system for combat, we made a deckbuilding system that allows the player to build their deck by dragging cards from their collection into their deck. I was responsible for how the data from each deck gets used and updates the player's cards in combat.
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Additionally in our second year, we decided to give the player the ability to upgrade their cards, and I was responsible for implementing this. In the upgrade menu, when the player drags 3 cards of the same type, they can combine them into the same card of a higher power level.
REWARDS SYSTEM PROGRAMMER
I also reworked the rewards in our game. Before, the rewards were completely random, but now I have reworked this with loot pools, which segment rewards allowing for more regulated experience. If a quest offers multiple rewards, the player will typically be rewards with a few items from each pool to ensure they get a mixture of cards, potions and weapons
VENDORS PROGRAMMER
Feature in progress
ROGUELIKE SYSTEM PROGRAMMER
In the original concept of the game, we decided to include roguelike elements. Our idea was that Tarot is about accepting the hand you're dealt and moving on past failures with a new outlook. Each run of the game allows the player to seek their fortune with a new hand of Tarot cards.
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We decided to have fortune tellers act as checkpoints, saving your quest data, and the idea is that they are telling the player their future before they set out on their journey, so failed runs are discarded as a bad reading and they are able to try again. When the player dies, they are reverted back to the last fortune teller they spoke to, but they must sacrifice all of their cards to do so. They also get gold for sacrificing cards, which can be used to purchase persistent upgrades.
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This feature was removed because it clashed with our rpg and quest mechanics. We decided to keep fortune tellers as checkpoints for the narrative purposes, but the player's cards are no longer discarded upon death.
NAVIGATION SYSTEM PROGRAMMER
I designed a system for the random events the player will encounter as they travel through the dangerous world of Arcana. As the player travels from one location to the other, they will be dealt a number of cards determined by the length of the journey. These cards will outline the trials and tribulations the player will encounter, from stumbling across a hidden treasure chest to being assailed by bandits.
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Different paths have different events that can spawn, so a path along a field may have bandit encounters, crossing a bridge may spawn a dialogue with a troll toll collector, or more dangerously, the player encounter giant golems if they choose a mountain path. The player must carefully choose the risks they want to take as they travel across Arcana.
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This feature was removed in our second year of development as these random events were mostly used to support the roguelike elements that were also cut.