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Making a Rhythm Game Competitive

Goals

Come up with the basic principles of the game design for a 3d runner/platformer. This game should be multiplayer; not only should it be rhythm-based, but also it should reward players for following the rhythm, increasing their chances to take higher places.

Result

Developed a list of ideas that should help to achieve the goal.

Solution

1. As the game is a racing runner, permanently killing the player when he touches an obstacle won't agree with the game's genre. Instead, the players should be stunned for a moment.


2. As the game should belong to a racing genre, the players can be located in different parts of the map at the same moment. This makes developing rhythm-based gameplay (like it was done in Geometry Dash and Dub Dash) nearly impossible. To compensate for this, the obstacles should move according to the rhythm, not the players. This also allows for completing the level in different ways.


3. Moving and modifying the obstacles according to the rhythm isn't enough. The players will feel the rhythm only if they'll follow it. That said, the players should be motivated to follow the rhythm. The solution is to increase their running speed when the players jump, strafe or duck according to the rhythm. This also provides a challenge to the players: they should try to move in rhythm while avoiding the obstacles because if they run into it, their efforts will be wasted.


4. It is easy to retrieve the rhythm from the level soundtrack. The so-called "rhythm map" should include not only the beats but also the notes of other musical instruments used in the song. If the player succeeds in, for example, jumping to the beat and strafing according to the rhythm of the piano, it should give him an extra boost.


5. The characters in the game should be gameplay-wise different. This can be achieved by assigning the ultimate ability to each character. Some of them can be a super boost, an ability that stuns all the opponents, an ability that changes the controls for the opponents for a brief time, an ability that allows you to ignore obstacles for a short time, etc. They can be charged just by following the beat or by performing the "close calls" - the risky actions after which you managed to survive. If used according to the rhythm, the ultimate ability can charge the following one for up to a half.

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