Meet Brian! He works with instructor Ben as part of Game-U’s New York Accelerate program. Brian’s busy learning the VVVVVV Level Editor, which comes with the VVVVVV 2D, gravity-reversing platformer game. Ben combines level design and scripting to build playable worlds, including his latest world – Danger Mansion!
In Danger Mansion, the gamer navigates a series of subtly challenging mechanics in order to rescue his lost crewmates. Danger Mansion is full of platforms, moving puzzles, and traps that will defeat the incautious gamer. Using the editor, Brian assembles game pieces, like platforms and spikes, in up to 25 “rooms” (think of them as screens) to create a world for players like himself to navigate. Brian’s become so savvy with the editor that his challenges are both varied and subtle. Some challenges even require the player to reverse gravity!
In their most recent class, instructor Ben also introduced Brian to basic VVVVVV scripting. Scripts, often used by game developers in tools like Unity, GameMaker, and Unreal, are code files that execute as-needed in response to event triggers. Scripts give Brian the ability to create features that go beyond a graphical editor’s power. Notice the moving boxes that populate Brian’s level? Brian used a script to add the box visual effect! Danger Mansion now includes several such cool stylistic signatures. In fact, Brian’s taken to coding so well that Ben wants to show him more advanced ways to use scripts in his games!
Great work, Brian! Danger Mansion looks exciting and fun. Thank for sharing it with us! We look forward to seeing what else you create, especially since Ben says he wants to get you involved with GameMaker Studio after you guys finish up with the VVVVVV editor. Game on, Brian!
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