Summary
Protagonist is a puzzle-based RPG which takes place in the world of a disused, glitch-ridden video game. Focused on charm and humor, the game is light-hearted and takes a comical approach to exploring the wild, broken-state game in which the characters reside.
Screenshots
Gameplay
There are four main routes through the game, dependent on the player’s initial actions and how they interact with the world around them. Each route provides a deviant story and puzzles that play into the preferred style of the user (ex. Looking for stat boosts in the initial map unlocks a route that powers up the user faster and plays more towards the impulsive, cut-to-the-chase style story. Whereas stalling and completing every optional puzzle unlocks a more lore-driven route that rewards ingenuity and development.)
The main puzzle/combat system encourages player creativity with a spell system based off stringing together letters into words to form magical attacks. This mechanic appears frequently, although tweaked slightly dependent on the scenario to create new puzzles and challenges while providing the player with a familiar set of tools.
Development Information
Protagonist was developed between Fall 2016 - Fall 2018 by members of the UW-Madison Game Design & Development Club. The team consisted of over 40 members for concept and design, with about 5-10 consistent members per school semester. The project and pitch was led by Savannah Mann through her freshmen to junior years in college.
Developers
- Savannah Mann - Concept & Design, Code, Pixel Art & Animations, Map Design, Dialouge, Story Progression, Character Speech, UI Element Design, Team Management, Music, Puzzle Design, etc.
- Evans Chen - Lead Coder and Engine Developer, Advising, Dialog Parsing & Additional Tool Design
- Mary Xu - Pixel Art & Animations
- Evan Newquist - Puzzle Design, Mechanic Design
- Kaitlyn Brayer - Character Lineart & Design, Background Lineart Design
- Richard Wang - Item Descriptions, Story Development
Special Thanks To:
- Rose Klien - Intro Cutscene Dialogue, Character Design, Mechanic Design
- Lyn Worzalla - Mechanic Design
- Cindy Prentice - Character Design
- Adikan Weiring - Gameplay Advisor
- Faelan Shrader - Initial Concept, Trimuram Font Concept
- Amy Nyugen - Music, Greek Mythology Consultant
And the many other members who have come and gone from the club. Thank you all for your design contributions, and if you wish to be accreditted to the project on this page, please contact Savannah Mann.
Software:
- [DEMO] Engine: GameMaker (GameMaker Script)
- [PORTED] Engine: Unity (C#)
- Art (Pixel Animation): Piskel (Pixel Art Editor, Browser-based, Free)
- Art (Pixel Static Images): MediBang Pro (Free)
- Art (Lineart): Photoshop
- Music (MIDI): MuseScore2
- Music (Audio Engineeriing): Protools 8
- Music (8-Bit): GSXCC