First Person Shooter
A fast-paced, wave-based FPS emphasizing survival under pressure, AI combatants, and diverse bullet mechanics.
Project Overview
This group-based FPS project tasks the player with surviving waves of enemies and reaching 6,000 points to win. If the player loses all health, the game resets to the main menu.
As a Combat Designer and AI Developer, I led the design and implementation of enemy behaviors, contributed to the tuning of player weapons and combat pacing, and helped shape the game’s tutorial and core arena levels. The game was built collaboratively in Unreal Engine using Blueprint scripting and Behavior Trees.
My Responsibilities
- Designed and scripted two enemy types with unique behaviors (melee and turret AI).
- Implemented bullet variants with distinct travel speeds and damage profiles.
- Created and balanced combat systems including health, scoring, and damage feedback.
- Developed a sandbox-style tutorial level for testing weapons and onboarding players.
- Worked with teammates to design the main combat arena layout.
- Iterated based on playtesting feedback, adjusting pacing, difficulty, and AI performance.
Combat Design
Moment-to-Moment Combat: Quick reaction FPS gameplay where players must stay mobile and manage enemy waves.
AI Variety: Close-range “runner” enemies and ranged turrets created layered threats.
Weapon Dynamics: Multiple bullet types encouraged situational play and created room for difficulty scaling.
Scoring System: Reinforced kill-based progression and pressure to optimize engagement.
AI Enemy Types
Detects player using sight radius.
Navigates to player and triggers knife attack animation on contact.
Easily dispatched after a few shots.
Keeps the player moving.
Establishes short-range tension and pressure.
Serves as the baseline enemy for wave buildup.
Built with Behavior Trees and blackboard state tracking.
Integrated collision-tied animation and attack triggers.
Floating Turrets
Detects player within targeting radius.
Fires from a stationary, floating position.
Takes more hits than melee enemies.
Zone control and positional challenge.
Mix with melee units for multi-directional threat.
Forces players to prioritize threat assessment.
Weapon and Bullet Types
Designed several bullet types with unique speeds and damage output.
Weapon feedback systems reinforced impact (VFX, sound, and hit responses).
Bullet tuning enabled increased enemy density and kept gameplay engaging.
Created space for player choice—e.g., faster bullets for crowd control, heavier shots for turrets.
Tutorial Zone
Open environment for testing all weapon types and bullet variants.
Infinite respawn dummy for shooting practice.
Main Area
Town square setting with minimal cover for high-pressure engagements.
Waves of enemies escalate over time to maintain tension.
I placed pickups and collectibles in fringe areas to draw players beyond the central space and ensure full level use.
What went wrong:
The “Floating Turrets” had issues when mounted to static objects. The turrets targeted themselves or failed to fire. The solution was to switch to floating AI. It simplified placement and improved targeting consistency.
What went right:
Bullet variants became the heart of the experience. Early tuning revealed that differences in travel speed and damage significantly influenced combat pacing, allowing us to increase enemy density without overwhelming the player. This also introduced tactical flexibility that enhanced the game’s replayability.
Tools and Skills Used
Unreal Engine (Blueprints, Behavior Trees, blackboard AI logic)
Combat system design (AI logic, player feedback, tuning)