OrdnanceBy Charlie CrossCIS 487 Design Document11-15-04OverviewStory 2420 AD:The Feudal Legion, an outlaw organization, is laying siege to Earth. As a last resort, the Earth Defense council sends out the heavy cruiser U.S.S. Reckoning to draw away the attacking forces by sallying out. The cruiser will attempt to launch a counterattack on the Legion at their headquarters, an outpost orbiting Phobos. You are a turret gunner stationed on deck B-6 aft. Your mission is to preserve the Reckoning’s hull integrity at all cost. Destroy the Feudal Legion’s waves of attackers and eliminate their headquarters. Good luck!Development Specification- Ordnance will be developed using the DirectX 8.1 SDK. It will feature 2D graphics with changing backgrounds.- There will be three “chapters” consisting of 20+ scenes total.- The programming will be done in C++ and use a heavily modified version of Andre LaMothe’s Blitter Object (BOB) Engine.- The sound will mostly be used from LaMothe’s sound library.- The music will be original compositions by Charlie Cross.- Estimated Implementation Time: 4 WeeksProduct SpecificationProduction Team Description- Programming: Charlie CrossThe programmer will be responsible for implementing the game logic and bringing the artwork and sound together in a cohesive presentation.- Artwork: Charlie CrossThe artwork will be primarily borrowed from Andre LaMothe’s sample content. However, the artist will be responsible for modifying the existing artwork to make the content suitable for the game.- Animation: Charlie CrossThe animations are constructed from various borrowed artwork, bitmaps will be spliced together to form cohesive animations.- Sound/Music: Charlie CrossThe sound director will be responsible for composing the musical score for the game as well as managing, modifying, or creating any sounds used in the game.Target AudienceThe ideal audience for Ordnance should be a reasonably wide age range. The game contains minimal violence other than destruction of realistic objects, so the content should be suitable for ages 5 and above. The game does not cater to the highly experienced or skilled gamer, as its simplistic dimensions will not provide a significant challenge to the hardcore enthusiast. However, the presentation and flow of the action sequences should be reasonably challenging and entertaining for casual game play.Game PlayThe game will be played from a constant side view perspective of the ship. The player will be able to aim the turret left or right and fire at enemy objects. The challenge of the game will be for the player to position and manipulate the turret in such a way that the number of enemy objects that hit the surface is minimized.There is a shield level that starts at 100% each game. If an object hits the surface, the shield level is deducted. The ship also has a hull rating (100 is the maximum) If the shieldlevel reaches zero, objects making contact will deduct the hull rating. If the hull rating reaches zero, the cruiser will be destroyed and the player will lose. The shield level will slowly recharge throughout the game at a certain rate. It will not go above 100%. The cannon and the shields draw from the same energy reserve, so the rate at which the player fires the cannon affects the recharge rate. For example, if the player isusing the turret minimally, the recharge rate will be higher, but if the player is holding thebutton down, this rate will be much slower. Hull damage is permanent and the hull rating does not recharge.To win the game, the player must survive the entire sequence of events that occur in the game. The player will experience a series of challenging battles, and finally reach the final objective. Once the final base is destroyed, the player wins the game.One of the primary features of the game will be the presentation. The goal of this design is to make the player feel motivated to survive by providing an epic game experience. The music will be designed to precisely accompany the action on the screen. The enemy ships should appear in interesting and/or artistic patterns that accompany the music andmake the experience memorable for the player. The key to surviving Ordnance will be the player’s memorization skills and sheer reflexes.Production ToolsThe core game programming will be done using Microsoft Visual Studio.net 2003. The program will utilize the DirectX 8.1 API and Andre LaMothe’s Blitter Object (BOB) Engine. The music will be composed using Melody Assistant v7.1. This program lets users create musical scores and export them to wave formats to be used in other programs.Game MechanicsOverviewThe entire game takes place in outer space, beginning in low Earth orbit and ending in orbit around Mars. The player views the turret placed on the Heavy Cruiser U.S.S. Reckoning and the stars and typical space settings surrounding it. The game will combine the intense action of shooting the objects with accompanying music to create a tense, anticipated atmosphere that gives the player a feeling of increasing tension and excitement. At times the number of enemies will become almost overwhelming to the player, and the frantic action and music will create a sensation of great excitement.Camera PositionThe camera is positioned on a side view of the ship, facing your turret. The player sees the turret and surrounding objects. Between chapters 1&2, and between chapters 2&3, thecamera will appear to “shake” as the ship enters and exits hyperspace.Interface and Control SummaryThe game will use a very simple interface which can be broken down into two categories:HUD objects and user controls:HUD objects- Shield Indicator: The shield indicator shows the player the current level of the shields. It is placed in the lower center of the screen.- Hull Integrity Indicator: Like the shield indicator, only it shows the current hull integrity. It is placed in the lower right corner.- Score: This will display the user’s score in the lower left corner.User ControlsTitle, story, and victory, screen controls:- Escape key: Quits program- Spacebar: Advanced to next story screen/game.In game controls:- Left keyboard button: Moves turret to the left.- Right keyboard button: Moves turret to the right.- Spacebar: Fires the turret weapon.- Right Alt: Charges the turret weapon.Game over screen controls:- Escape key: Return to title screen.- Spacebar: Reload last level.- Right Alt: Reload last level, with cheat option.Replaying and
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