ROCKSTARS! (WIP)
Glass Record StudioS
An in-game screenshot of the player bouncing onto a Sporrus Maw enemy’s head.
-
RockStars! is a 3D action-platformer with an unforgettable psychedelic rock aesthetic!
The player takes on the role of the lead singer/guitarist in a wandering band of space hippies on their way to the gig of their lifetime, the Protostar Palooza! In what is essentially a cosmic Coachella, bands from around the galaxy gather in one place to witness the forming of a protostar, and get this: they’re the opening act!
While on their way, their rocket minivan smashes into an asteroid and crash lands on a mysterious new planet, leaving the player and their other band members scattered on its surface. With the gig starting in only 4 hours, it’s up to the player to round up the troops, repair the ship, and head back into space before their chance is up!
-
GAME GENRE: 3D Action Platformer
ENGINE: Unreal Engine 5.4
PLATFORM: PC (Steam)
TEAM SIZE: 15 Members
DURATION: 32 Weeks
ROLE(S): Lead Programmer & Combat Designer
-
RockStars! is scheduled for a Steam release on April 29th, 2025.
WISHLIST IT HERE: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3629470/RockStars/
-
Direction of the team’s Programming department, including code revisions and repository control
Implementation of all the attacks in the game for the player character and enemies, including the final boss
Adjustment of all attack hitbox data to ensure attacks have properly balanced range and damage output
Definition of all enemy and boss behavior trees and blueprints to control established attack patterns
Creation of the Sound Wave ability used by the player to stun foes and break blockades in levels
Development of the Rhythmic Attack system, granting doubled damage to well-timed player hits
CODE SNIPPETS
The Rhythmic Attack System - RockStars!
Enemy Behaviors - RockStars!
METHODS AND REASONINGS
Multiple Weapon Types
RockStars! was developed with the idea of having multiple different instruments as weapons from the outset. A variety of instruments that radically change the player’s move set depending on their equipped weapon was pushed as a way to promote player experimentation and expression. The idea of having a quick way to switch between weapons was a natural desire to allow players quick access to the weapon of their choice. Thus, when the parent weapon class was created, being able to switch between each in rapid succession was incentivized. With the press of a button, the player can adjust their weapon index to select from a given array of weapons inheriting from the same parent class.
Weapon Abilities In Combat
Naturally, the weapons of RockStars! have different attacking properties. From close-ranged melee swipes to projectiles that blast the player back with recoil, the preferred weapons of players help to accommodate their play styles and lean into player archetypes. This is represented in their special abilities and their applications to combat.
Being the most balanced of the three weapons, the XLR Mic blends offense and utility through its quick melee strikes and grappling techniques for evasion. While grappling is not used much against standard enemies in combat, it does provide opportunities to escape damage and progress to later sequences. This becomes crucial to self-preservation in non-mandatory combat sequences and the final boss battle, where standing still puts the player in grave danger. It also applies the most forward momentum when attacking to give it a sense of nimbleness the other weapons lack to the same degree.
The Lead Electric is built for all-out offense; its slower swing speed makes its attacks much more committal than the XLR Mic’s, but each swing makes up for the slower attack rate with raw power. Exacerbating this is the Lead Electric’s special ability: the Stun Wave. Rather than bolstering the player’s defense, this weapon can render mobile foes helpless, allowing players to cash out with huge chunks of damage. Each swing was designed to feel weighty and satisfying, and when coupled with proper timing through the Rhythmic Attack system, players can shred through enemies with ease.
As a defensive weapon, the Keytar keeps enemies away by conjuring offense from a farther range than any other weapon. Sacrificing damage output for reach, the Keytar was intended to be handy at preserving distance to minimize risk. This becomes especially important when other enemies, like Shroombos, have means of attacking from a distance themselves. By outpacing their fire rate with quick blasts, creating more distance via recoil and utilizing the Double Jump to stay in the fight while evading targeted offense, players looking to lose as little health as possible have the proper tool for the situation.
Mother Erg Mechanics
A final boss is an encounter meant to test the player on everything they’ve learned as a proper culmination of the journey before its end. To reflect this, many previously-used systems make a triumphant last hurrah and tie directly into evading or damaging the boss, being ramped up to feel completely in tune with the last combat sequence.
Grappling out of harm’s way was once a convenience for players using the XLR Mic; in the context of the Mother Erg boss battle, it becomes a necessity for the player to keep themselves in the fight. Standing still for too long during the Mother Erg’s Tantrum sequence will leave them vulnerable to the platform crumbling beneath their feet.
Early on in the adventure, the Lead Electric shows promise with its ability to affect the environment. This power is put to use in the Cave with destructible columns that force stalactites to fall from the ceiling. Recontextualizing this unique ability to have an offensive presence against the boss encourages the player to use the Lead Electric’s Stun Wave in a new fashion to leave Mother Erg exposed to new avenues of being damaged.
Mother Erg comes equipped with the Eyeball Slam, a move that can damage a player from anywhere if they’re moving on the ground. This is where the defensive capabilities of the Keytar excel: keeping the player aloft as the slams rain down plays into the defensive theming of the Keytar’s powers. Moreover, the Jump Refresh Collectibles in the boss battle allow for ease of evasion against all of Mother Erg’s moves.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
RockStars! is my first project developed with Blueprints in Unreal Engine 5. With the experience I’ve built over the course of development, there are many takeaways I will take from this project for my future endeavors.
Firstly, I have learned the importance of prioritizing tasks that entail the creation of base class types for many files. I was admittedly not used to the syntax and differences between Unreal Engine and Unity, so when I created many of the enemies in the project, I created them as entirely separate classes without a parent, increasing my workload as I had to repetitively create many blueprints that used the same methods. This maintained until I began work on the Shroombo enemy, where I finally realized I could re-parent a blueprint and decided to work off of the Erg Crawler to reverse-engineer an Enemy Base Class blueprint. In the future, I will start with a strong foundation that accommodates many different types of enemies, which will allow me to make more enemy types and more complex behaviors.
Secondly, I have learned that using behavior trees and blackboards within Unreal Engine 5 to define how enemies should behave can also utilize techniques associated with parenting. Much like the way I created Erg Crawlers, I made many behavior tree variants that could have been condensed down into a singular parent type with deviations in tasks. If I were to ever tackle behavior-based tasks again, starting from the strongest possible base class would save me hours of time in advance.
Thirdly, I have learned the value of collaborating within my department as a lead. At first, I admittedly felt massively overwhelmed jumping into a new engine and trying to figure out how things worked to the point I felt underqualified to be the team’s Lead Programmer. However, I learned over time that the strength of a lead programmer is not that they know every implementation and optimization technique. These are marks of a well-rounded and intelligent programmer, but being a leader is equally about communication with one’s team and keeping the team unified through thick and thin. By being courteous with comments, writing notes on implementations and recording video examples of my work, I could explain any and all problems I had with ease.
Fourthly, I have learned that prioritizing tasks that involve other departments is a crucial step to expediting team workflow. As the Lead Programmer, I noticed that many tasks involving the Stun Wave involved aspects of other disciplines on my team, including VFX creation and level design. By reaching out to other team members in an amicable fashion, the Stun Wave tasks were much easier to accomplish. Even with so many revisions needed, the ways in which we communicated never made it feel like a chore.
RockStars! is scheduled for a Steam release on April 29th, 2025.
To be brought to its webpage, click here!