game mechanics

Below are some of the game mechanics I designed while working on Killzone 2.

SIXAXIS Placed Charge

Below is the Placed Charge I designed for Killzone 2. No art, code, or effects, just the functionality / concept. We needed a placed charge mechanic for use at the end of a few levels, to slow the players progression and offer up something different to advance, as well as utilizing the SIXAXIS controller in a fun and intuitive way. The placed charge went through several iterations before ending up in it’s final state below.

Each charge was designed to remember the lights that had been set. If the player gets shot off a charge or disengages to defend themselves the lights they already set would remain lit and they would only have to set the remaining lights to fully activate the charge.

Lastly it was designed so that Level Designers could place as many or as few charges as they wanted. When the last charge was placed the player would automatically pull out the detonator. The player could of course switch back to their weapon if they needed to defend themselves.

SIXAXIS Valve

This is the SIXAXIS Valve mechanic I designed for Killzone 2. No art, code, or effects, just the functionality / concept. We needed a simple unlock mechanic that would allow the player to utilize the SIXAXIS controller in an intuitive manor. After a couple iterations we found that three turns was enough to make it fun to use but not frustrating if we wanted to have more then one in a level.

Paper Prototype

Final In Game Mechanic

Buddy Assist Mechanic

A big aspect of Killzone 2 was how immersive we wanted the experience to be. Guerrilla wanted to keep as many of the interactions in the game as possible and reduce the need of cutscenes. The Buddy Assist was one of my designs that attempted to do just that. The player would need to be corralled in certain areas for progression purposes and once they were free to move on an AI would take position in a predermined spot and the AI and player would assist each other in getting up and over the obstacle. Should the player jump back down again the AI will take a new position to help the player back up onto the ledge. The act of helping each other in such an interactive way assisted in creating more comradery between the player and AI.

Also of note, the Buddy Assist Mechanic in Killzone 2 was a first of it’s kind in a video game.

Petrol Barrel

Below is the Petrol Barrel I design for Killzone 2, one of several Damage Inflicting Destructibles (DIDs). No art, code, or effects, just the functionality / concept. The concept for this came from the fact I hate flammable barrels in video games that when shot simply burst into flames. I wanted to see if I could improve upon the concept and with the help of the talented game coders and artists at Guerrilla, the below barrel was born. Needless to say I was quite happy with the results. 

Each bullet impact will cause a jet of fiery petrol to spring forth and after the expected 3 seconds of burnination ( timer starts from the first impact) the barrel will explode into fiery goodness. You can of course fire multiple rounds into the barrel in quick succession to cause it to explode quicker.

Electricity Mechanic

I am the first to admit that my electricity mechanic was over designed. Knowing what I know now 

Unused Mechanics

Low Ammo Warning

At the time the player could pick up weapons from off the ground to use. A problem though was the weapons could have low ammo which would be frustrating should you do this in a fire fight. So I whipped up a motion study to show a possible low ammo warning that would appear on both the weapon in hand and weapons on the ground so the player would know and could plan accordingly before picking up a weapon.