Vibrant Actions

• Researched sustainable waste management practices, their relevance in early middle school curricula, and how a designer might approach conveying the topic to a younger audience through interactivity and play.
• Improved on feature/context analysis skills by considering similar games, their goals, and mechanics.
• Designed core gameplay loop around the procedural rhetoric to teach players about sustainable waste management through repeated in-game actions.
• Designed a minigame where the player recycles trash by disposing it in the correct bin.
• Created a feedback-driven experience by leveraging sound effects and animations.
• Enhanced game feel by animating trash flying to the player in an arc when collected, accompanied by swoosh and thunk sound effects.
• Added different sounds to the recycling minigame that play depending on whether the player sorts trash into the correct bin.
• Coordinated and ran playtests, compiling and analysing feedback from observing testers and survey data.
• Contributed to and maintained core design documentation.

• Developed player feedback systems that were used to improve the overall game feel.
• Spherically lerped the movement of trash when collected to make it fly in an arc towards the player's location.
• Used two AudioSources to schedule playback of the swoosh and thunk sound effects when players interact with trash.
• Wrote gameplay and input-handling logic for a recycling minigame where the player sorts trash collected into recycling and landfill bins.
• Developed an inventory system to be used alongside the recycling minigame by using a stack to create the impression that the player is pulling trash out of their bag, one at a time, to be disposed of.
• Built a StateManager class to handle switching of input setups and camera views when the player transitions between collecting and recycling trash in the scene.
• Programmed compass-like arrow UI that points the player to the nearest uncollected piece of trash.
• Added volume sliders for music and sound effects in the main menu screen.

• Directed cross-functional team of 4 using Scrum methodologies.
• Scheduled regular standup meetings and facilitated brainstorming sessions to make sure the team was on the same page regarding project goals throughout the course of development.
• Tracked project timeline and managed scope with respect to upcoming deadlines.
• Maintained project Trello board.

• Creating an experience appropriate for the game's target audience (5th and 6th graders in the US).
• Striking a balance between engagement and learning, keeping in mind the project's educational goals.
• Making sure good habits depicted through gameplay were grounded in real-life best practices.
• Finding an efficient, sensible, and scalable way to handle player state and transitions between states.
• Managing project scope, making pivots as needed whilst maintaining a shared vision for the project.
• Facilitating internal communications and development processes over a short turnaround period to ensure the team felt supported.

Beautifying Environments and Tying Progression to Feedback

Having coastal and marine life appear gradually as the player cleans the beach up will make the environment feel livelier. It will also positively reinforce the player's actions in-game, by giving them a visual representation of their progress.

Obtaining More Feedback

Holding more playtests with people from our target audience will help us better understand how we can further enhance and tweak the experience to be as educational and engaging as possible.

Smoother Camera Movements when Switching States

Currently, the camera jumps between positions when the player changes state between collecting and recycling trash. Lerping its movement between these two positions will make the transition less jarring and provide a smoother experience overall.