Eighty-nine rooms: Mutant Storm
A case study of Mutant Storm Reloaded (PomPom Games, 2005), a twin-stick shooter cut into 89 timed rooms: the room loop and the run loop, the score multiplier and belts as difficulty earned by performance, Adventure and Tally modes, interest curves at every scale, teach-test-twist sequencing, enemy roles, mini-bosses and difficulty dials, readable visual design and audio identity, and a comparison with Geometry Wars. In the practical your group designs a five-room sequence that introduces a new enemy.
Slides: use the arrow keys or swipe; press F for full screen and Esc for an overview.
- Analyse how rooms, timers, multipliers and belts shape a run of an arcade game.
- Plan a sequence of rooms with an intensity curve and a teach, test, twist structure.
- Compose waves from enemy roles and difficulty dials so each room asks one clear question.
- Use colour, contrast and sound so a busy screen stays readable.
Watch a few minutes of Mutant Storm Reloaded and Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved gameplay and note one difference in pacing. Finish your five-room plan and enemy card.
Activity files
Key reading
Schell, J. (2008) The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses. Burlington, MA: Morgan Kaufmann (interest curves).
Adams, E. (2014) Fundamentals of Game Design. 3rd edn. Berkeley, CA: New Riders (level design).
Brown, M. (2015) 'Super Mario 3D World's 4 step level design', Game Maker's Toolkit [YouTube].
GDnD wiki: Interest Curves. Link
GDnD wiki: Level Design. Link