AMELIA CAIRD
Bait & Tackle
August 2023 - Present
Project
Catch exotic fish and fight comical sea-monsters as you chase after The One That Got Away in this fishing-centric boss rush!
My Role
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Designed and implemented levels that effectively teach mechanics and introduce narrative
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Worked closely with artists to create an efficient art asset pipeline
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Utilized social media and graphic design skills to amass a following of 80 users across Instagram and X
Level Design
Planning
My main focus in throughout this project was to effectively onboard the player, teaching controls and establishing the narrative.
To design an effective tutorial level, I began by compiling a comprehensive list of all game mechanics and evaluating the importance of teaching each one. I categorized them into three groups:
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Mechanics that required direct, written instruction
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Mechanics the player would naturally encounter through level design
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Mechanics that could be left for the player to discover organically
This framework helped me structure a clear learning progression within the level. The sequence begins with introducing fishing, followed by traversal mechanics using grappling, and ends with an introduction to combat.
Implementation
Throughout the implementation process, I collaborated closely with our lead boss designer to ensure the level layout complemented the tutorial boss, Mini Minnow, and worked alongside our artists to establish an efficient and effective art asset pipeline.
Marketing
As marketing lead, I create content for our Instagram and X accounts @BadBassGames and keep up community engagement in our Discord server.
September 2024, our team grew from six members, to ten. Within Bait & Tackle, newspapers are used to give the player information and further the narrative. This post is one of ten that were created to give our audience more information about each individual team member, while simultaneously tying in the game aesthetic.
This post features the entire Bait & Tackle team at the conclusion of the Magic Makers program alongside a whiteboard displaying our company name, “Bad Bass Games”. This was our first post showing the faces of the creators behind Bait & Tackle, and meant a lot to us as a team.
By maintaining good relationships with other game studios we have been given the opportunity to advertise through their accounts. This post, created by @RITMAGIC, highlighted the Bait & Tackle trailer for International Artists Day.