Null Undone
Null Undone is a collaborative student game project under development using Unreal Engine 5.3. It is a first person rogue-like game where the player is trying to escape a black hole by collecting resources on floating islands and upgrading their airship. Null Undone is still under development and we are working on releasing a playable alpha build.
I designed and implemented core mechanics of the game using Unreal Engine and did integration using Github.
Overview
As a core gameplay programmer for Null Undone, I designed and implemented the main ship navigation systems for the game. This included the island behavior, an interactive map, and also an interaction system between the player and world objects.
Island Behavior
The main gameplay loop of Null Undone revolves around exploring islands for a limited time before they are destroyed by a blackhole. The islands mutate over time based on how close they are to the blackhole, and the resources on the islands change as a result. I created representations of the island in an overworld where islands slowly move towards the blackhole and calculates what phase of corruption the island is in. The variables that are recorded in the island are used to spawn a procedural island level that the player is able to explore, and there in place that spawns islands into the overworld.
Map System
As a complement to the islands, I also created a dynamic map that keeps track of the locations of all islands in the overworld. When you click on an island, the ship charts the island as its destination and moves towards it. Additionally, the island map system saves when transferring levels, ensuring consistency when transferring between the overworld and a specific island.
Interaction System
Another more general gameplay system that I implemented was the interaction system, which lets the player interact with objects in a world. The player is given an interaction prompt when near an interactable object and the effect is able to be customized depending on what was interacted with.
Monster Behavior
In addition to the ship navigation system, I also implemented monster behavior for the game. The monsters are currently missing their animations and models but they will be integrated once those are completed.
Zombie
The zombie has a relatively simple pattern of behavior: When a player enters its detection radius it will chase the player then attack them when it gets close enough. After an attack there is a brief delay before the zombie continues to chase the player.
Squid
The squid has a slightly more complicated behavior pattern, and will aim to get within a certain range of the player to start shooting projectiles and strafing side to side.
Crab
The crab has a powerful and fast lunging attack where it charges in a straight line towards the player, with side to side movements between these lunges.