Cosmic Taxi
2D Driving and Dialogue
Summary:
Cosmic Taxi is a dialogue-focused interdimensional driving game I worked on with a small team.
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I was one of two designers on the team, and my responsibilities were level design, initial concept, character design, narrative design and dialogue. I also handled most of the art implementation, and helped with QA testing.
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This was one of the first projects I had worked on where I found that I was working to my fullest potential, and enjoying doing so. It was at the time the largest amount of time I had worked on a single game development project, and was important in proving that I could work effectively in my chosen profession. Development went smoothly and efficiently, and I am proud of the work the entire team did.
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Cosmic Taxi has the player take the wheel of the titular vehicle, driving a yellow cab through portals between various bizarre dimensions to pick up similarly-strange passengers. They must then navigate to their given destination, drifting and swerving around a variety of obstacles, and then drop off their passenger for a reward. They can use their collected cash to repair their taxi from any damage it had sustained, or to unlock new skins for it at the garage.
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The game also features dialogue between the player character, the Cabbie, and all of the possible passengers as well. There are two sets of dialogue per character: one for pickup, and one for dropoff. I was responsible for writing all of the dialogue, and ensuring that each exchange was quick and entertaining. I wrote the conversations to be humorous, to match the weird tone and style of the game and its various settings. I wrote multiple drafts of each conversation, revising them based on feedback gained from taking previous drafts to testing.
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Another challenge was designing each of the ten worlds the game takes place across, both in terms of level layout and design as well as identity and making them all feel distinct. Each of the passengers corresponded to one of the worlds as well, and I had to make them feel like they fit there while still having personality beyond just whatever their home's standard of "normal" was. In addition, many of the world had their own unique hazards or mechanics. From the bouncy eyeballs of Irixus to the fire hazards of Inferno, the team worked hard to ensure there was variety around every corner.
Reflection:
Cosmic Taxi was a very successful project for my team. We were able to create a polished experience that demonstrated each of our respective areas of expertise, and I know that I had a great time working on it. This was the first time any game project had gone as smoothly as it did for me, and it really helped to reassure me that I had a place in the industry. I was able to clearly and effectively communicate with the entire team, and learn strategies for continuing to do so in the future.
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While the game didn't spread far outside of the team's circles, it was universally praised amongst our peers. The level of polish and solid scope in particular were praised. Overall, I am very happy with this project, as not only did I have a good time creating a good product, I learned and developed a lot of skills while doing so.