Shifty Scales

Introduction

Game Summary

Run a small shop with a niche service, shifting the scales between objects. Receive customer orders with various mis-sized items and parts that you must resize and arrange correctly before returning them to the customer.

Inspiration

Professor Layton: Slot Machine Gun puzzle

Player Experience

Chill puzzle game

Platform

Developed to run on the web.

Development Software

• Unity (engine)
• Aseprite & Gimp (art)
• Audacity & Waveform (Music & SFX)

Genre

Puzzle

Target Audience

Players looking for a relaxing yet engaging puzzle experience.

Concept

Gameplay Overview

In "Shifty Scales," players take on the role of a clever and somewhat shady shop owner who specializes in resizing and adjusting items for customers. Using a unique machine, the player must swap the scales of various objects, resizing them to meet the specific needs of each customer.

Game Flow

• Receiving Orders: Each level begins with a customer entering the shop and presenting a request, which typically includes mis-sized items.
• Analyzing Clues: Players must carefully examine clues provided by the customer to determine the correct size for each item.
• Swapping Scales: Using the Scale Swap Machine, players swap sizes of two items at a time.
• Arranging Items: After resizing, players may need to arrange the items into specific grids or attach them together.
• Completing the Order: Once satisfied, the player submits the order for the customer, with feedback based on accuracy.

Puzzle Complexity

• Early Levels: Simple puzzles introducing mechanics.
• Advanced Levels: More complex puzzles with multiple items and ambiguous clues.

Challenge and Replayability

Players can replay levels for perfect scores, based on accuracy and efficiency.

Theme Interpretation “Built to Scale”

The player uses a machine built to scale objects up or down to complete customer orders.

Primary Mechanics

• Clicking and dragging items into the scale swap machine.
• Resizing items into shape grids.

Secondary Mechanics

Sending and receiving orders from customers.

Art

Theme Interpretation

Scale is a key element in both the mechanics and the art. Objects are designed logically as big or small, with true size determined by context.

Design

Puzzle theme inspired by Professor Layton games, with colors ranging from browns, tans, muted maroons, and dark blues. The design features old-timey, steampunk items like horn speaker crank radios, pocket watches, and ornate cutlery.

Audio

Music

Puzzling, mysterious, steam, machines, shifty

Sound Effects

Satisfying clicks for interactions (mouse). Thematic sounds for machine effects.

Game Experience

UI

Intuitive UI focused on ease of navigation and interaction.

Controls

Mouse (click-drag)