Snailblazer: A Metaphysical Maze

Snailblazer: A Metaphysical Maze is the first game prototype I've published. Throughout this process, I scripted the following features using blueprint scripting: player movement, camera motion, pop-up HUD text, level transition, fall detector, and UI menus. As a storyteller, my primary goal was to convey a message through Snailblazer. The game seeks to explore the relationship between player and character. Psil the Snail begs you to continue keep playing in order to perpetuate his existence. Psil is aware of his limitations as a digitized object, drawing some inspiration to Magritte's "The Treachery of Images." The player's desires contrast Psil's. On one hand, Psil will only be satisfied if the maze is endless, as this will allow his existence to continue. On the other hand, players do not have limitless time; they want to feel the satisfaction of completing the maze and moving onto other activities. In such a conflict lies the narrative tension. This tension confounds as the puzzles become more complex. By the third and final level, for example, the puzzles have both vertical and horizontal dimensions.