Role:
-System Designer
-Blueprint Programmer
-Level Designer
-UX/UI Designer
-Music
Timeline:
Nebulis is a 2.5D Momentum-Driven Platformer. Focus on maintaining speed and performing tricks for momentum. Travel across different planets, collect unique items across your journey, meet strange travelers, and more! This game appeals to fans of exploration, collecting, and fast-paced games.
This is a team project consisting of 4 developers, developed in Unreal Engine 5.4.
January 2025 - May 2025
Engine:
Unreal Engine 5.4
Time Trial System
The Time Trial System was designed to support speedrunning and replayability by offering a dedicated mode separate from the main story. This mode allows players to complete individual levels as quickly as possible and saves the fastest player time.
To maintain efficiency and consistency, the time trial system reuses existing story levels rather than creating separate time trial versions. When a level is loaded, the GameMode blueprint checks whether it was entered through the time trial menu. If true, a time trial flag is enabled, activating the mode without duplicating level data. This approach reduces overhead and ensures that any level updates automatically apply to both story and time trial modes.
Once time trial mode is active, a timer is displayed and begins tracking the player’s time. Upon level completion, the timer stops and compares the player’s time against the current best time stored for that level via the save data. If the new time is faster, it replaces the previous record and is saved to the player’s save file. The updated best time is then displayed within the time trial menu UI for future runs.
Level Design
Level design in Nebulis is structured around progressive learning, introducing mechanics in controlled scenarios before combining them into more complex challenges. Across four levels, players are guided from foundational movement to full mastery of the game’s systems.
The first level serves as a tutorial, introducing core movement through guided paths, clear signage, and simple platforming challenges. Players are then transitioned into more open environments with hazards such as death pits and optional skill-based challenges that reward exploration.
Subsequent levels introduce new obstacles, including bounce pads and mirage steps, each presented through staged learning. Players first encounter these mechanics in simple, readable scenarios before applying them in more demanding platforming sequences. As difficulty increases, levels incorporate branching paths, risk-reward decisions, and hidden collectibles that encourage mastery of movement and timing.
The final level acts as a culmination of all previously introduced mechanics, combining movement, obstacles, and player abilities into a sustained endurance challenge. Inspired by Super Mario 3D World’s Champion’s Road, it serves as a final skill check, requiring precise execution and full understanding of the game’s core movement and systems.
UI/UX Menus
I was responsible for designing and implementing all menu systems in Nebulis, including the main menu, time trial menu, options menu, credits, collectibles, and pause menu. The goal was to create a cohesive and easy-to-understand interface that aligns with the game’s visual identity while supporting smooth navigation across all features.
To enhance player feedback and responsiveness, menu interactions were paired with smooth animations and audio cues. I collaborated closely with the sound designer to synchronize hover and selection sounds with UI animations, creating a polished and cohesive user experience.
The interface was also designed to support both keyboard and mouse as well as controller input. Custom button interactions and focus states were implemented to ensure consistent navigation across input methods, maintaining usability and accessibility for different player preferences.
Movement
Players move along a 2.5D plane, gradually increasing their speed over time, with a defined maximum velocity that rewards sustained movement and flow. When movement input is released, speed quickly decays. Jumping preserves the player’s current momentum, allowing for seamless transitions between ground and air movement.
To further support momentum-building, the boost system allows players to rapidly increase speed when needed. Boosting consumes a limited resource, encouraging strategic use during traversal and obstacle navigation. This resource is restored through the trick system, creating a direct connection between movement, skill expression, and resource management. While airborne, players can perform tricks to build score and restore boost energy. Successfully chaining tricks rewards players with additional momentum upon landing, reinforcing a gameplay loop centered around maintaining flow, optimizing movement, and mastering traversal mechanics.
