Keeper Sprint 15: Building the Tutorial Level

During development of the vertical slice for Keeper, the player's platforming capabilities were never fully explored due to the time constraints we were working under. However, now that we have more time and a larger team, I have started greyblocking and testing the first platforming level which will take place in an old well and serve as our game's tutorial on how to maneuver through the world.

Of course a ham-fisted tutorial would feel out of place within our narrative, so I worked with my other designers to try and work it into our story. We decided a good use of characters would be to have your mole friend Bonsai lose his glasses at the bottom of the well and task you with recovering them. We drew up a sketch of the order of events needed along with their respective scene locations.

The Well will be the first area the player explorers, and it will be used as a tutorial to help teach the player their platforming controls and mechanics. We have placed the well atop a hill with increasing verticality so that the player learns to single jump, double jump, and then ledge grab as they advance toward their goal. Once the player has reached the well, they are instructed to use their leaf as a parachute in order to safely float to the bottom, teaching them their ability to glide. At the bottom there will be an item the player must carry back out with them, providing the first small challenge they should encounter. After this portion is complete, we then plan to introduce the gardening mechanic to the player, but that will be for another sprint.

In addition to completing the greyblock this sprint, I also decided to test it at QA. My intent was to make a clear and simple level with as little difficulty as possible as this is going to be the tutorial level of a children's game. I am happy to say the feedback suggests that I was largely successful, and any difficulties players had have been identified and addressed.