About this project
Maze Roller is a virtual reality marble maze game designed for the Oculus Rift & Samsung GearVR. The game will feature a variety of different game modes including classic board tilt, marble control, vertical mazes and many more detailed in the Game Modes section below.
The game will also include a balance of smaller casual levels for faster paced gameplay along with larger, more complex levels for those seeing a greater challenge.
Scattered throughout the levels are a variety of traps, roaming monsters and obstacles to avoid including holes, spring boards on both floors and walls, trap doors, moving floors, timed gates, airlocks, icy paths and many more.
An assortment of various themes with unique environments, traps and challenges associated with them are planned for the full version. Currently planned themes include fire, ice, fantasy and space. Each theme contains a collection of approximately 10+ levels with over 40+ levels currently planned for the full game. Levels are unlocked through completion of the previous level in the collection. We plan to release concept artwork for the above mentioned themes throughout the Kickstarter campaign.
The game will also include an entire gallery worth of hidden unlockable items. As these items are unlocked through challenges, discovery and merit, they will appear in your own private gallery to explore and admire.
Explore The Manor from the first-person perspective of our mascot, Morgan. This environment is our interactive main menu system featuring level selection, game options and a gallery to showcase unlocked rewards.
Level Selection
Level collections or "themes" are separated into individual rooms with a quick navigation option to teleport the player to the desired room from anywhere in the Manor.
Level selection is made by simply looking at the desired level painting and pressing the action button. Game mode type and earned medal are displayed in the lower corners of the level painting.
The Gallery
The Manor features a museum like wing to showcase player unlockable artwork and trophies. This room will also showcase many of the Kickstarter rewards.
Kickstarter Secret Room
A hidden room will be added to the Manor that contains access the 5 Kickstarter bonus levels and a surprise unlockable item. Details on accessing the Kickstarter room will be provided at launch.
As an added bonus, Kickstarter backers who unlock this reward for Oculus DK2 will also be able to access this room and any other backer rewards if they purchase the GearVR version when it releases.
Rolling Marble
Take direct control over the marble and navigate through the complex mazes and dangerous traps.
Board Tilt
Inspired by the classic wooden labyrinth games. Take control over the tilt and pitch of the board as you navigate around holes and other traps.
FPM (First Person Marble)
Yeah, we know. This isn't really "First Person", it's more of an over the shoulder "Third-Person" but marbles don't have shoulders. This game mode brings you down to the board with a giant marble reminiscent of the iconic boulder scene from [TRADEMARKED MOVIE ARCHAEOLOGIST].
Pinwheel
Rotate a vertical maze as gravity does what it does best to navigate the marble through a honeycomb maze to the finish line.
Swivel Chair
Navigate the marble from a fixed position in the center of the maze by utilizing the 360 degree tracking of the DK2 and GearVR.
Box
Defy physics by negotiating the maze along the floors, walls and ceiling.
Snakes & Ladders
Attempt to navigate to the lowest tier of a multi-tiered level featuring an assortment of tubes that either lead you towards your destination (Ladders) or bring you back to a previous area (Snakes).
Platforms
Initial support will be limited to Windows 7/8. However, we will expand this scope to include Linux and OSX based on the level of interest expressed by the community.
Engine
The current release of the demo has been developed using the Unreal Engine 4.7
Virtual Reality
Maze Roller has been designed from the ground up with virtual reality in mind. The current demo uses the Oculus SDK 0.4.4 with full support for the Oculus Rift DK2. All menus feature a "look-to-select" navigation using the HMD head tracking.
NOTE: Although this game supports non-VR gameplay, the development focus for the 2D support is currently minimal as this game has been intentionally designed for VR. Additional support and improvements will be added to the non-VR mode at a later time.
Due to the current limitations of the Oculus Home pay store, we have no current method to distributing the GearVR release as a backer reward. This functionality will likely not be added until after our release based on feedback from Oculus.
All backers who receive in-game rewards for the PC version will be provided unlock details to access these same backer rewards on the GearVR release.
The following images are an early WIP of the GearVR edition of Maze Roller:
The bulk of our budget is being allocated towards the purchase of commercial licenses for the tools we have been utilizing to develop the free demo.
Here's the financial breakdown:
$3,675 - 3DS Max 2015 Perpetual License
Justification: Although we appreciate what Blender has done for the indie devs and artist, we've found this to be the a major bottle neck in our asset creation pipeline. Our experience is with 3DS Max and we are fully confident it's the right tool for the job.
$500 - Music & Artwork.
Justification: We are working closely with a local musician and a local artist to bring all new content to the game. This amount will be put towards the tools and payments for their creative contribution.
$475 - Kickstarter Fees / Payment Processing
Justification: This amount is reserved for the 5% fee charged by Kickstarter in addition to the 3-5% payment processing fees.
$250 - A second GearVR & Gamepad.
Justification: Development speed for the mobile platform can be expedited with an additional GearVR headset and gamepad for my co-creator.
$100 - Steam Greenlight submission fee.
Justification: We feel Maze Roller will make a welcome addition to the fantastic collection of VR titles currently available on Steam. Additionally, we have plans to bring this game to the Valve/HTC Vive with a whole new set of gameplay options to take full advantage of the new controls.
- Pledge $1 or more
╔═════════╣ THANK YOU ╠═════════╗
Want to express you support but hold off on purchasing the game? What better way than to donate a dollar to the cause!
Estimated delivery: Aug 2015 - Pledge $5 or more
╔══════╣ The Game ╠══════╗
Get a copy of the full game when it releases for Oculus DK2 for Windows 7/8 with access to the exclusive Kickstarter secret room containing five additional levels.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2015 - Pledge $8 or more
╔════════╣ Early Access ╠════════╗
Get an early copy of the full DK2 game for Windows 7/8 with access to the exclusive Kickstarter secret room containing five additional levels.
Early access will begin following the completion of the first two new level collections followed by additional content updates as the remaining level collections become available.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2015 - Pledge $15 or more
╔══════╣ NAME IN CREDITS ╠══════╗
Get all of the rewards from the Early Access tier and the added bonus of being immortalized forever with your name in the credits.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2015 - Pledge $25 or more
╔══════╣ NAME IN GALLERY ╠══════╗
Why limit your fame to the in-game credits that everyone spams their Escape key to skip when you can show that you supported your game by being a part of the top Kickstarter backer's list displayed for all to see in the gallery wing of Morgan the Meerkat's Manor.
This reward includes all of the perks of the NAME IN CREDITS tier.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2015 - Pledge $35 or more
╔══════╣ BRONZE TROPHY ╠══════╗
What better way to begin filling the shelves of your trophy case than buying one for it?
Backers at this level will receive an exclusive bronze Kickstarter trophy in-game along with their name in bronze on the the top Kickstarter backer's list displayed for all to see in the gallery wing of Morgan the Meerkat's Manor.
This reward includes all of the perks of the NAME IN CREDITS tier.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2015 - Pledge $45 or more
╔══════╣ SILVER TROPHY ╠══════╗
What better way to begin filling the shelves of your trophy case than buying one for it?
Backers at this level will receive an exclusive silver Kickstarter trophy in-game along with their name in silver on the the top Kickstarter backer's list displayed for all to see in the gallery wing of Morgan the Meerkat's Manor.
This reward includes all of the perks of the NAME IN CREDITS tier.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2015 - Pledge $50 or more
╔══════╣ GOLD TROPHY ╠══════╗
What better way to begin filling the shelves of your trophy case than buying one for it?
Backers at this level will receive an exclusive gold Kickstarter trophy in-game along with their name in gold on the the top Kickstarter backer's list displayed for all to see in the gallery wing of Morgan the Meerkat's Manor.
This reward includes all of the perks of the NAME IN CREDITS tier.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2015 - Pledge $100 or more
╔══╣ CUSTOM GALLERY PAINTING ╠══╗
The collectibles gallery is the museum-like wing of Morgan the Meerkat's Manor, the main menu level. This room showcases all of the unlocked trophies, collectibles and artwork. Backers of this reward will have a custom made painting included in the game as an unlockable for all the players to enjoy. This will be a meerkat themed oil-painting that incorporates the backer's likeness.
We're open to suggestions provided they are appropriate for all ages. We encourage you to have fun and be creative with it. Some possibilities include:
- Family portrait as your human self with Morgan the Meerkat
- Meerkat faceswap (for the camera shy backers)
- Human in a meerkat costume (Don't worry, we will add the costume in digitally but if you REALLY want to rent a real costume for this, don't let us stop you)This reward also includes all of the perks of the GOLD TROPHY package.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2015 - Pledge $500 or more
╔══════╣ LEVEL DONOR ╠══════╗
The grandest of tributes for the elitist of the elite and the rare few that Morgan MacArthur III considers a peer. We will dedicate an entire level in the game to your existence.
Level Donors will be able to select from a variety of maze types, sizes, styles, traps and room decor to ensure their own personal touch will become a permanent part of this game. Have a creative idea for a new trap or theme? We'll do our best to get it integrated into your level.
As with the CUSTOM GALLERY PAINTING reward, a custom meerkat themed painting will be created and showcased not only in the gallery but also in the level dedicated to them with their name displayed below the painting identifying them as the donor of that level.
We will work with the backers of this reward to ensure this artwork fits with the planned art style of the game.
This reward also includes all of the perks of the CUSTOM GALLERY PAINTING package.
Estimated delivery: Jun 2015
Risks and challenges
The biggest challenge we are currently facing is porting this game to the GearVR platform with as much of the original content as possible without degradation to performance. The Oculus Mobile SDK implementation in Unreal Engine is currently in its infancy with an assortment of issues to still be addressed.
With that being said, we have so far been successful in achieving a solid 60FPS with our current mobile optimized levels while still maintaining a majority of the beautiful visuals we've worked so hard to create.
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Funding period
- (30 days)