Blasted Layoffs is a fast paced First Person Shooter office comedy. Players must use various movement abilities to fight waves of enemies on their journey to the CEO’s office. This project served as the Capstone from my game design degree.
My goal for this project was to learn how to make a First Person Shooter game since I lacked previous experience. I also used this project to learn more about Unreal Engine 5.
Role: Project Lead
Duration: 09/09/2024 - 04/25/2025 (8 months)
Genre: First Person Movement Shooter
Tools Used: Unreal Engine 5, Blueprints, Confluence, Perforce, HanSoft, Autodesk Maya, Audacity, Adobe Premiere, Miro
Responsibilities Overview
Team Management: Coordinated project timeline, documentation, and team meetings to make sure deliverables were completed based on milestones and project needs
Narrative Writing: Wrote a narrative that complimented the mechanics while keeping a comedic tone to avoid active shooter situation comparisons
Support Developer: Worked on various assets depending on project needs including mechanics design, game balancing, 3D model rigging, sound design, video editing, and voice over
#Read More Below#
Team Management
My role as project lead required me to have an answer for any question that was asked. Weekly team meetings and task assignment software were utilized to keep everyone on the same page. Project documentation was reviewed regularly to keep information up to date. Smaller teams were organized based on project needs. Through this approach the game was able to reach a minimum viable product by the deadline despite significant technical debt from switching game engines.
Narrative Writing
Setting an FPS in an office required a comedic aspect to keep it from feeling like an active shooter situation. The story went through several iterations to achieve this but always featured the main character making his way to the CEO’s office to avoid getting laid off. This was to drive home the fast paced nature of the game, giving the player a reason to make use of the speedy movement options.
Players take the role of Philip Placéholter, a new employee at Everything, Everywhere Enterprises. This powerful tech company has a variety of products from cell phones to satellites, with plenty of shady practices to boot. At the end of Philip’s first shift, the CEO Maximillion BigBucks offers everyone at the company an ultimatum: get to his office or get laid off. The rat race begins, with Philip having to fight his new colleagues in a plethora of departments. Eventually he makes his way to the CEO’s Office, where it's revealed that the layoffs were part of a scheme for him to replace all the workers with AI. After the battle Philip realizes that corporate work isn’t for him and decides to start his own business.
Summary
Development
People on small team projects often have to wear many hats and this one was no exception. I tapped into my plethora of skills to make sure there were no bottlenecks in the project. For instance I was the only person on the team with rigging experience, so I did it as quickly as possible to avoid delays. My love of learning proved invaluable in other areas as well, including editing the trailer and intro for the game. My skillset complimented the project lead position as I was able to communicate across a variety of disciplines.
Learnings
The key to a successful team is eliminating roadblocks between the people and the work that needs to get done. This is where soft skills like communication can mean the difference between a good game or a great one. I initially stumbled in that regard but was able to recover through mentor guidance and personal research. It gave me a new appreciation for the people who make game development work: the office managers, the producers, the hiring managers. Everyone on the team is invaluable in making sure the project gets to the quality customers expect.