Devourer is my first game, which I created while learning how to code and use Unity. This indie first-person adventure game takes place in a typographic wasteland, where the player must navigate past wicked alphabet characters and feral emoticons. The world is ruled by the vicious Devourer, who punishes people for their crimes against the English language by stripping them of speech and trapping them in a labyrinth of broken alphabet letters. To escape, the player must solve word puzzles, outsmart enemies, navigate through the maze of empty phrases, and confront the fiendish Devourer.
My role: Game design & narrative design & Unity development
Art direction: AOKU
Unity mentor: Jozef IAmYourGod Barančik
Voice artists: Peter Walters, Chelsea Bradley, Áron Kovács
This game was created during my first year of studying the Game Design university programme at FAMU Prague.
The Making Of
I had a blast working on this game! The Devourer is not your typical first-person shooter boss. Yes, he is covered with nasty laser-shooting pimples, but he sees himself as a refined intellectual with an impeccable sense of grammar, and the last true guardian of proper speech. To portray his personality, I implemented a system of collectable quotes that trigger the Devourer's whimsical and often sarcastic commentary, allowing the player to glimpse into the depths of his twisted mind.
To craft a brief yet engaging exposition that would immediately immerse the player into the story of Devourer, I wrote a casual conversation between two friends. As the conversation unfolds, some letters from the sender's messages begin to disappear, eventually rendering her speechless and transporting the player into the game's world.
After being imprisoned by the Devourer, the players discover that they have been punished for their misuse of the English language. They must navigate through a post-apocalyptic world, battling attacking emojis and confronting two bosses to survive. Upon defeating each emoji, a set of letters is dropped and added to the player's inventory.
Each letter in the alphabet functions as an environmental puzzle, which can be solved by playing a simple Hangman game. For example, completing the word LIFT will raise the barricade and reveal the letter A, allowing the player to continue.
When the player reaches the end of the alphabet, they face the mighty prisoner.
This is my most favourite part of the final conversation:
Concept Arts
Done by the one and only AOKU.
