ABOUT

This project had initially started for Sheridan’s 2023 Design Week event where students from all years were randomly paired up into teams to make a game based off a theme. That year, they made it based off of alt.ctrl.GDC’s event to be creative with alternative controller games. Later on, I was approached by a sized-down team to continue the project as a 3D artist within a tight timeframe of three days to hit GDC’s contest deadline.

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BoxBall is a unique twist on a very simple premise, become the ball and navigate the complex puzzle landscape of the Box. Designed to mimic the sensation of playing with sphere puzzles, the unique cube foam controller repurposes a Nintendo Switch joy con, using the gyroscope to control the BoxBall cube, to allow players to navigate through a charming and nostalgic 3D puzzle environment.

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ART

I focused mainly on making textures for the new obstacle 3D models and visuals for the environment. Their keywords of “charming” and “nostalgic” made me refer to reference older games such as Super Monkey Ball and Wii Sports. This inspired me to make patterned tiles for the pre-existing objects, which also helped the player with their perception of depth and direction. I also made a skybox in Photoshop, but there was a technical issue with the Unity main camera that stopped it from  being implement on time. The painted textures for everything else took inspiration from kid toys, including rubber hammers and hand-held flower fans. When I was unsure of what to do, I typically defaulted to a wooden texture because it reminded me of alphabet/building blocks and train tracks children typically play with.