Kung Fu Clean

Kung Fu Clean  - a game based on scrolling along 2 axes

The theme of this project was to research and come up with an idea for a game based on scrolling along 2 axes.  I was part of a team of 5, alongside Zoe Rice, Matthew Fenn, Tom Donachie and James Dyer.

We had a couple of meetings where we have discussed the classics in this type of game and decided that the ones that influenced us all, were the ones mentioned in the first slide listed below.

 Dariusz Jacob Boron, in his essay: "A short history of digital gamespace", talks about the games that allow the player to scroll along to axes and describes very well how this has improved gameplay and what this game space a is actually all about. He says that : "Gauntlet (1985) and SimCity (1989) permitted  scrolling  along  both the x and y axis on a two-dimensional  plane; players moved through puzzle  world with free rein over the flat plane of the perpendicularly  positioned  viewing screen.  Later versions of SimCity, rather  than giving the player a bird's-eye  view, evolved to provide an

isometric viewing  angle. The  combination of two axes  of movement  and a drawn

perspective  allowed  players in side-viewing  games such as Blades of Steel (1987)  and

its football  equivalents  to move from left to right, but also allowed  up and down

play. The  simple eight-button controller  sufficed  for these games  and many  of the

games to follow.  Chiefly,  the lelt hand controlled movement  while the right hand

controlled the action buttons to shoot,  jump, kick, etc."

As a group, we have chosen totally different examples of games using this particular game space, such as Sonic, Mario, Metroid and Metal slug. These are the games we have played and have influenced our future view on games in general

Just a few visual examples of some of the games based on scrolling along 2 axes

Just wanted to mention a few restrictions and opportunities that this type of game have encountered / produced.

Our game - very simple game mechanics: you need to get from A to B and score points. Because of the type of game space, where you can only move left - right ( or forward - backward) and jump or climb, it is pretty much self explanatory in regards to the game play. We have introduced however, on the y axis, drains to climb down into ( and collect extra bonus points - similar to Mario) and also trees, to climb up on ( that's where you need to jump from and break the drain cover in order to gain access to the drain itself and the bonus points). So we have used the y axis in all its expanse. :). The x axis was used in a normal way, starting the game from the left side of the screen (or starting point A) and moving along till you get to finishing point ( B), while trying to collect as many points as possible (points represented by pieces of litter collected, as this is a street cleaning game) and at the same time fighting off the litter creating "enemies" (pigeons, hobos). At the end of each level the player will have to fight the Big Boss which is a hobo with a shopping trolley. Weapons used by player will vary from broom, to squeegee, or trash picker).

This slide explains exactly the where and when, the action takes place, what its purpose is and who the characters are (and by this, I mean the enemies as well). The first level is set up in the day time in a park. Player will be able to chose one of four characters to play as, and depending on character chosen, the "weapons" will adapt. Also, the moves used when fighting will be specific for each character, as the names invoke famous martial artists. 

This is basic sample of the level concept. This was designed by James Dyer, and it shows the basic elements we wanted to include: we have litter, in the form of banana peels, we have a checkpoint in the form of the sidewalk lamp (which turns on once you have passed the checkpoint), we have a tree to climb, and an underground level to jump into, in order to collect extra bonus points/litter).

These are our characters ( designed by Tom Donachie). First one is Chuck, second is Jackie, third is called Jean Claude and the fourth one is Bruce. They all have different / specific kicks and punches in their arsenal, and at the beginning of the game, the player can chose which character to play as. Because the characters are based on martial artists, they will, of course, perform the trademark punches or kicks that define each one of them. :)

Not much more left to say about this slide. We have chosen simple, arcade style controls, as the game itself makes reference and intends to take us back to the arcade era of gaming.