Off The Rails
Off the Rails is a asymmetrical cooperative VR experience where one player drives a speeding train with instruction from player two who acts as the Rail Traffic Controller. Both players cannot see each other’s screen, so both players must work cooperatively to reach the train to its destination.
My role on this project was Level Designer and Game Designer. Although the project was cancelled due to Covid-19, the alpha milestone was prepared as a proof-of-concept.
While designing the game, we had to ensure that everything we added, whether it was a mechanic, map or asset, fit our theme and core pillars appropriately. A great example is our day-night cycle - by switching the player gradually to night time, we force them to use the headlights and cab lights on the train. Not only does this decrease the visibility ahead of the train, it also requires the rail traffic controller inside the train to shovel coal more frequently in order to keep the lights on.
Tutorial
This stage is a punishment-free way to introduce mechanics and communication to both players. There is a straightaway to introduce train acceleration and power, followed by a turn to introduce slowing down around corners, and finally a track split. Tracks are switched when the track prompt is successfully described to player 2, who changes variables on their swichboard based on the description from the VR conductor player.
If the track switch is completed succesfully, the track switches to guide the train to the next section of the level. If not, the track continues around the roundabout where the player can try the track split again without penalty continuously.
