SHIFTLINGS

Details

Shiftlings is a puzzle-platformer developed by Rock Pocket Games. In 2018, it was ported to the Nintendo Switched and rebranded Shiftlings Enhanced Edition.

During the original game’s development, I was brought on as a junior designer to assist with level design, QA testing and overall polish.

When Shiftlings was ported to the Nintendo Switch in 2018, I designed a number of quality of life features and went through the game’s 55 stages to improve their design and balance the game based on feedback from the original.

Publishers: Sierra Entertainment

Developer: Rock Pocket Games

Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360, PS3, Nintendo Switch, Wii U

Role: Junior Designer (Shiftlings), Lead Designer (Shiftlings Enhanced Edition)

Duration: Oct 2014 - Mar 2015 (Shiftlings), Oct 2017 - Feb 2018 (Shiftlings Enhanced Edition)

Team Size: 15+ In-House

Tools: Unity

Shiftlings

• Worked with other Designers to create additional levels with an appropriate level of difficulty based on progression. These designs were first done on paper and then implemented in Unity using proprietary Visual Scripting tools.

• Worked with QA to playtest the game, remove blockers, fix gameplay discrepencies, and add additional polish during Beta.

Shiftlings Enhanced Edition

• During the re-release, I revisited the original game’s 55 levels and modified/tweaked gameplay balance. These ranged from moving around puzzles and enemies, to completely redesigning certain parts of a level.

• Designed and pitched multiple quality of life changes, such as additional control schemes and an easier way to track level progression.