Between 2013 and 2015, when mobile games became fun I continued to have one large pet peeve. None of them cared for the commuters who had only one hand available, using the other to hold onto their bag or onto a handrail.

I've created a few concepts dubbed "1-thumb." This restricted the controls to what the player would have available when texting or browsing. This in effect restricted the gameplay to be simple, which in effect forced me to think of short game sessions long about one to two train stops. Lastly, since most of the underground stops often lack internet connection single-player, local or async play was a must.

Soulevator

I take you up. I take you down. I listen to you when you fart. Don't make me angry as I have grown a mind of my own. We'll see if I also got a soul.

Experience

This one thumb control arcade game has you play as an elevator in a building filled with these funny characters called humans. See people get into fights, shake them up a little to fall back in love. Stop robbers by falling and stopping. Just don't break their necks. Or do? It's your soul, you decide if it'll be good or evil.

Behind the Scenes

I've had this concept in the pocket probably since 2013, but didn't get around it until 2016 and then later in 2018. It was a lof of firsts - relearning Unity, learning pathfinding, learning coding, learning physics, learning mobile dev. It was a lot.

I've produced a working physics-driven prototype, where you had people get into the elevator and you could beautifuly shake them up and down, before they got out on their floor.

Sadly today the initial paper sketches and the physics-fun-filled prototype were lost to time. Only the below digital sketches have survived.

Swordfighting

When my mom took me to see the "wrong" samurai movie back in 2003 she gave me a fascination for life. Till today I remember the pivotal final scene from Kitano's Zatoichi. The opponent first tests the blind swordsman with a throw to understand his style and then plays out a perfect attack in his mind. Zatoichi, the playful devil he is, switches his handgrip last second to take the win. All of this is an under-a-minute moment. I hoped to evoke the same experience.

Experience

In Sword-fighting the player is given a randomly generated character that has its own unique Achilles heel only they know about.

professional modeling work right here

It's an actiony three-dimensional rock paper scissors with progression to see how long can you last. The gameplay has two of these characters face each other last standing style and exchange blows until one hits. There's a countdown, during which you move your thumb in one of 8 directions or keep it centered for forward thrust. As you choose the direction of the move it is telegraphed and your opponent can see it and adjust their strategy around it. You might move it last minute just as them. If you both attach from different angles you will just kill each other, if you go from the same angle you parry each other.

Shute

You and your friend had to jump out of the plane. There's just one parachute and the ground is nearing.

Behind the Scenes

Since this wasn't my first project, I knew I'm likely to fail once I hit the coding part. I've made the below brisk presentation to get the help of my friends first and when that didn't work out, the help of a stranger over Unity forums (failed). I got somewhat far in Unity myself, but eventually got busy with work and university to ever finish it.