When I founded WDR Studios with my colleagues, the goal was simple: make the kind of games that we’d want to play. I wanted to apply the lessons I’d learned from years of managing a successful YouTube channel to the medium of video games, drawing inspiration from some of my favourite titles to create a fresh horror experience that puts gameplay first. 

Terrible Lizards is a 3D first-person platformer, but we also use the term “parkour” to describe the game’s emphasis on movement through physical spaces. You could also call it an action/horror dinosaur game, in that you’re running for your life from dinosaurs. That balance between fear and fun is central to the game’s design philosophy.

As with any platformer, we knew we had to place an emphasis on enjoyable, engaging movement. Terrible Lizards is a fun game to be inside of, with controls and mechanics that are satisfying to use: runs, jumps, sliding, wall running, bounces, as well as grabbing ledges and leaping from ledge to ledge. There’s also a bunch of different tools that you can use to manipulate each level and environment. Overall, the game has a very tight feel to its control scheme, promoting intuitive movement with precise timing.

When we decided to utilize a first-person perspective, we made sure to create movement that felt distinct from other parkour games, instead building platforming mechanics based on the movement styles of popular first-person action shooters. There’s a balance between floatiness and a strong sense of control, and finding that perfect balance became our “secret sauce” for achieving a satisfying gameplay feel.

Source link