BETHANY RAINBIRD

IFRIT is a first-person puzzle stealth adventure. Solve puzzles, avoid guards, and explore an academy of magic and science set in a fantasy world inspired by the Ottoman Empire.

With my peers at Falmouth University, we co-founded Octoghost Studio under the mentorship of the university's incubation program, Launchpad. Here, we gained in-depth insight into indie game development and the process of incorporating our studio.

My main tasks were:

• Designing, prototyping, implementing, and playtesting game mechanics.

• Designing stealth-based puzzles and levels in Unreal Engine 5.

• Designing and writing the narrative flow, characters, and dialogue for the levels and game as a whole.

• Developed the worldbuilding by writing a story bible for the fictional setting.

• Comprehensively researching Ottoman and Turkish history to ensure an accurate and inspired representation of culture within the story.

• Testing and QA.

• Market research through analysing competitors and similar games, including revenue distribution.

• Graphic/logo design and trailer production.

PACT is a Metroidvania platformer with bargaining and boons. Trade away basic abilities (e.g. the ability to jump, or walk backwards), in exchange for new powers to assist you through levels.

The design requirements for this prototype were to create a functional prototype in a week, in response to the prompt: Create a trading game.

My main tasks were:

• Designing, prototyping, and iterating on various ideas to create an innovative response to the prompt.

• Implementing mechanics in Unity using C#.

• Designing and playtesting different level layouts to accommodate the various bonuses and hindrances.

Vignette is a narrative photography game where you must gift photos to the characters around you Build closer relationships by paying attention to the personality and stories of the characters around you, taking pictures of their favourite things, and gifting them.

The design requirements for this prototype were to create a functional prototype in a week, in response to the prompt: Maximum Rewards. I decided to take an anti-Skinner Box approach, focusing on how games could heal and provide respite.

My main tasks were:

• Researching and designing around skinner boxes to create a game that offered 'maximum rewards' without effort. 

• Implementing mechanics, including a photography mechanic and day/night cycle, in Unity using C#.

• Designing characters and writing dialogue to reflect their photography needs.

Command is a voice-acted RTS game where, in order to gain information about the world around you, you must tune into the Soldier's communications and listen to how they interact with the environment. Inspired by the existentialism of DEFCON and literary themes of Eighty-Six, Command is designed to reconnect players to the brutalities of real-life wars.

The GDD is available here. The script sample for voice actors is available here. You can read more about the development on my dev blog here.

My main tasks were:

• Thoroughly researching war games and the representation of war in the media to develop a strong, effective theme.

• Designing, prototyping, iterating, and implementing mechanics in Unity using C#.

• Liaising with voice actors and providing direction for bark lines I had written.

Jukai is an interactive narrative based on Japan's Aokigahara forest, widely known as the 'suicide forest'. Originally designed as a multiple-choice narrative around suicide, after learning of the efforts to improve Aokigahara's representation, I pivoted to create a quest based on researching Japanese folklore and wildlife.

My main tasks were:

• Researching how suicide and mental health can be safely represented.

• Researching Japanese folklore and wildlife, as well as Aokigahara and its reputation.

• Implementing branching narratives through Fungus.

• Designing, drawing, and painting all graphics and assets.