Devotion of

Escher

Summary

Devotion of Escher is a single player mystery game set in the 1900’s with a strong focus on narrative. Use a mysterious time traveling watch to meet the Eschers and participating in their annual festival. Solve puzzles, collect clues, and navigate the house to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Platform(s): PC

Players: Single Player

Work Period: 8 Months

Role(s): Lead Game Designer, Lead Programmer (Blueprint Scripting)

Tools used for role(s): Unreal Engine 5, Excel, Perforce, Jira

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Role Responsibilities

Lead Game Designer

  • Designed the notebook, the key resource in the player’s arsenal, allowing them to keep track of information and to help fulfill the player fantasy of time travel

  • Worked with the level designer to ensure a smooth flow for gameplay

  • Oversaw and advised the design process of all puzzles within the game

  • Worked with play testers to ensure that the game had a good sense of mystery and adventure and implemented the feedback that was received

Lead Game Programmer

  • Created the systems needed for the notebook, allowing information to be handled and stored

  • Created the core object system allowing text, images, and other data to be stored within them and tied that system to the notebook

  • Created the time travel system allowing the player to travel to different days to find clues and progress through the story

  • Created and implemented the notification system for new quest objectives and notebook entries

  • Oversaw and advised the implementation process of all puzzles within the game

  • Handled animations, VFXs, and dialogue trees

An open book with a list of items on the left page, including a pocket watch, a Madam's hatpin, a child's drawing, and a letter of recommendation. The right page describes a Madam's hatpin, showing an ornate needle pin with a butterfly decoration, and a brief explanation of its appearance and purpose.

The Notebook

Every great detective takes notes on their surroundings, suspects, and evidence when solving a case. In order to help push that gameplay feel, I approached this challenge with the goal of providing a tool that makes the player feel like they’re the ones gathering the information and learning about it rather than just being told what to do.

Design Objectives:

  • Create a storage system that could hold information on the various objects, characters, and documents that the player could find

  • Make sure that the notebook feels like it is a tool at the player’s disposal and not something that tells them where to go

Technical Breakdown

Screenshot of a graphic that displays an open notebook with labeled entries, tags on the left side, and notes on the right. The background is black with a blue header titled 'Notebook Entries.'
Screenshot of a digital workspace with a blue header titled 'Notebook Entries' and a diagram filled with interconnected nodes and wires. Below the diagram is a gray text box explaining the setup of a code structure for managing item data in a workflo
Screenshot of a visual scripting interface with nodes and connections, titled 'Notebook Entries,' explaining how to use event damage nodes to display item information in a player's notebook when clicked.
A digital screenshot of a node-based visual scripting or programming interface labeled "Notebook Entries." The interface contains various interconnected colored nodes on a dark grid background. Below the image, a gray box describes that it shows code
Flowchart diagram illustrating the process of sending document details to a game instance and storing them in a Notebook Document Array, with a caption explaining this functionality.
Screenshot of a digital workspace with a flowchart and a text box describing a Notebook feature for managing documents and articles in a game. The background has a blue header labeled 'Notebook Entries' and a blue footer with contact information.
Screenshot of a digital interface titled 'Notebook Entries' displaying a flowchart or node-based programming script with various colored nodes connected by lines. A gray text box at the bottom explains the code's purpose in setting documents on their
Screenshot of a visual programming interface labeled 'Notebook Entries' with nodes and connections for flipping pages, including conditions for page limits, and a note explaining the code functionality and page count adjustments.

The Grandfather Clock Minigame

An antique wooden clock with Roman numerals showing the time as 3:00, with a green textured wall and objects like a candle on a dark surface in the background.

In the final act of the game, the player must set the clock to the correct time in order to escape a room. I had the challenge of creating this minigame both mechanically and visually. I approached it with the process of creating an invisible widget that would store the minigame information, then send that information to the clock, unlockable door, and crushing ceiling.

Tech Objectives:

  • Create an integration-friendly system for adjusting the hands of the clock

  • Have the actual effects of the minigame be seen in the grandfather clock (the turning of the hands)

Technical Breakdown

Diagram of a game interface called 'Grandfather Clock Puzzle' showing nodes and connections for game mechanics, including damage event, reset, setting minute hand angle, and creating clock widget.
Screenshot of a flowchart for a Grandfather Clock Puzzle with nodes for setting minigame solutions, current rotation, and clock widget creation, with explanatory text about widget variables and purpose.
A screenshot of a game development interface showing a blueprint for a grandfather clock puzzle. The blueprint includes nodes for increasing and decreasing current hand rotation, and converting transformation angles. There are two sections with vario
Diagram of a logic flow for a grandfather clock puzzle, showing code setup for swapping hands using arrow keys, with labels for different blocks and connections on a digital interface.
Flowchart diagram titled 'Grandfather Clock Puzzle' showing nodes and connections related to a clock puzzle, with a description box about checking current hand positions in the minigame for accuracy.

Game Loops and Flow Charts

Flowchart illustrating the steps of investigating an environment, finding clues, time traveling to past and present, solving mysteries, and interrogating residents.
Flowchart diagram for creating a new notebook, analyzing inventory objects, known house residents, house rooms, and found documents, with options to search, analyze, turn pages, or exit.

Game Screenshots

A person wearing a headband and gray sweatshirt is crouching down, reaching toward a skull and two green pumpkin-shaped objects among plants in a garden.
A room with dark green wallpaper, many framed portraits hanging askew, a large portrait with a cartoonish face, and vintage furniture including a sofa, armchairs, and lamps. Two characters, one in a red dress and another with a yellow bird-like head,
A grand indoor space with a winding staircase, green plants hanging from the ceiling, and statues of mice with little hats holding telescopes. The scene is dimly lit with candelabras and sky view from above. The text 'Devotion of Escher' is in the lo
Photograph of a historical marker in a garden area with lush green plants, flowers, a brick walkway, and part of a house in the background, dated June 7th, 1900.
A character dressed as a sunflower, with a sunflower head and a tuxedo, standing in a vintage-style room with green wallpaper, wooden railings, a floral patterned carpet, and a wall-mounted lamp.
A pinball machine with a dragonfly attached to a stick, controlling the game. The game shows a mechanical pin with instructions to use the mouse to move the pin and space to turn the lock. The date "June 8th, 1900" is displayed at the top left.