Let's get started: Building a Prototype!

Prototyping is all about seeing whether an idea has legs, and whether YOU can get it running. As Bee Kind is a mobile game, I set up Unity remote on a tablet, which enables me to use the tablet’s input to control the game. It also meant I started producing tester builds quite early on, as there’s no way to guarantee that it will run on mobile without testing it!

The first mechanic I wanted to nail down was the bee’s movement system, as this was going to be the core mechanic and the backbone of the game. In the very first prototype, the bee moved in the x and y axis instead of the x and z, and the camera was fully side on. I used, and am still using, Unity’s raycast system to decide where the bee moves to.

Prototyping is not only a chance for you to prove a concept is possible, but it’s also a good time to find out whether a mechanic or function works, and if not, try something else! I felt this this early version of the game didn’t feel game-y enough, and I decided to refocus the game onto more explorative game play.

I also felt that the initial version of the game didn’t focus enough on encouraging players to help bees in their own lives. So early on in the prototyping phase I made the decision to add the planting mechanic. I feel the mechanic is lots of fun, but also makes people feel as if there is hope and they can make a difference! In the initial prototype there were 3 flowers available, but in the end we went with four, and each flower represents a different season.

Initially, there was a limit to the amount of pollen that the bee could hold, and players had to make regular trips back to the hive. However, I felt this quickly became repetitive and didn’t add to the story or the intentions behind the game.

Experimentation and hard working during prototyping meant that I quickly had a foundation of mechanics to build the game upon. It also meant I had something to show my team so they could get started on all their collaborations.

Once the prototype was finished it was time to start white boxing! For me, this stage meant a lot of level design and a LOT of placeholder art. It was also the stage when I started collaborating with my writer to draft the commentary and develop a start to end story for our little bee. Learn more about that stage of development in the next blog post!