Polar Shadows

By: Tim, Mark, and Kelynn

The StoryIt is the year 2493, the earth’s resources have been diminished due to overpopulation. Solution team’s have been dispatched to every corner of the universe to gather whatever forms of power they can and return them to our galaxy. Captain Sid Meyers (you) and his task force (Alpha) of highly trained space marines are assigned to explore the moon of Helos. The previous team (Delta) stationed their has been said to be M.I.A. for about a year now. The job of the new team is to investigate what happened to Delta and to see if they had discovered any form of a usable resource. Not long after being in Delta’s base camp Alpha finds records of a valuable energy source called Helite buried deep under the surface of the moon. While journeying down to find the Helite they encounter a humanoid alien species called the Helans. The Helans they meet are a tribe called “The Light Dwellers”, which is a relatively civilized and peaceful group. They teach Alpha of “The Shadow Dwellers” which are former Light Dwellers that were changed by an unknown force. Alpha soon finds they cannot find they Helite without the help of the Light Dwellers, so they agree to help them in finding a solution to deal with the Shadow Dwellers. This is where the story begins with three things in mind: Investigate the Shadow Dwellers, Find the Helite, Stay Alive.

Genre

• First Person Shooter• Thriller/Action/Adventure

Setting

• Helos: moon in a distant galaxy• Surface: icy, windy, dark most of the time (very

short day light hours), rough jagged terrain• Underground: ancient temples/cities,

cavernous, tunnels• Very eerie and haunted feel to the

surroundings

Atmosphere

• Each place will have a different atmosphere:o Light Dwellers City- Sense of sadness, but conservation.

City will be well lit, but the background music will be very calm. Classical piano will play in certain scenes to give a sense of seriousness.

o Shadow Dwellers Areas- A great sense of fear, eerie music will play in the background faintly, not enough to give the game a cheesy feel. Lots of darkness and quick jolts of shadows even if it seems nothing is around. There will be times where you feel like you don’t want to go forward because it is not lit very well, but you cannot go back.

Level Design

• Temples underground similar to Aztec architecture, but with a frozen ruined look

• Dark in certain areas where bad things lurk, and light in safe areas

Main Characters• Sid Meyers “ Captain” –leader of Alpha• John Black - Special Weapons Expert • Eleanor Swan “Doc”• Tom Bearington “Bear”• Arnold Whitell – Civilian Contracted Archaeologist/Geologist • Rasha- Light Dweller Representative -Light Dwellers: humanoid species, well reserved, groomed, but sill

a tribal look to them, definitely signs of intelligence and civility, peaceful but defensive. -Shadow Dwellers: humanoid species turned savage and beastly. No indications of intelligence or civility. Wild, almost soulless creatures.

Objectives

• Find the Helite (Main)• Investigate “Shadow Dwellers” and find

solution by eliminating or returning them to normal

• Investigate how Dleta disappeared, what activities they did while stationed

Features

• Different paths of the game are determined by player choices

• Unique A.I. Interaction - teammates follow only orders that do not conflict with their own morals, which will be revealed as the storyline develops

• Destructible environment

Interface

• HUD kept to a minimum, information is displayed on your helmet’s visor

• Visor also identifies known objects in view, for example: A circle would appear around a case of shotgun shells indicating ammo

• Guns have small screens to indicate ammo, weapons without screens (native weapons) show nothing, you learn how much ammo it holds after using it

Why is it fun?

• Varying storylines, no player will play the same• Thrilling, will definitely keep you on edge• Always some sort of excitement, no trivial

tasks or repetitiveness.

Assigned Jobs & Duties• Tim

Project ManagerWebmasterCharacter Designer

• MarkLead DesignerGameplay Designer

• KelynnArtistLook and feel Designer