Force Field: Gameplay

Supercharged GamePlay.
The basic gameplay involves the player propelling herself through the electromagnetic environment in a spaceship that has adopted the properties of a charged particle. The player moves through space as her ship is bounced around by reactions with other charged particles. She affects her movement by placing charged particles in the environment to propel herself.

On the PC, the player uses the mouse to control view, and moves in part by changing her net charge as she moves past fixed sources of charge and magnetic field embedded in the scene. The player can also shoot charges that are attracted to other moving "friends" and "enemies" in the scene saving them or destroying them if they connect. The left button fires positive charges; the right negative charges. On the console the game uses controls similar to Halo. The left joystick controls the view. The right joystick controls the direction the particle will be fired. This targeting system is relational to the player, so that left always shoots the particle to the player’s left (as opposed to along a fixed x, y, or z axis. Pressing the right trigger will emit a positive charge; the left trigger emits a negative one. How far the object goes away (which axis that is depends on the player’s view).

Winning & Losing
A player wins when she has completed all levels of the game and saved the Fizzgigs from the evil professor. More specifically, levels are ‘won’ when obstacles have been surmounted by spatial navigation, world interaction, or object acquisition; goal locations will be clearly marked, and in-game reminders will point the player toward her eventual goal state. The game ends when the player runs out of energy. A Player’s energy will be monitored via the Life Meter.

Characters.
Characterization in SuperCharged! plays off the stereotypical disdain that often exists between student and science teacher. The Player is heroic, intrepid, masterful, the Fizzgigs brave yet dependent, and the Professor purely evil. Friendships develop in the game between the player and the Fizzgigs, especially Zap and Zap’s family, and so does the player’s desire to protect their world from ruin.

The Player. A typical student thrown into an atypical situation, the player rises to the challenge with ingenuity and poise. When we meet her in the hallway she is tall, dark haired and confident. She is about 18, and relatively fearless. She puts on the glasses without thinking first. She lives for adventure. In the game world the player also demonstrates competitiveness and kindness toward the creatures she has been chosen to save. The player’s voice is assured and strong. There is one weakness, which becomes important in later levels of the game. The player becomes blind when she sees too many Fizzgigs die, and she becomes deaf when she hears too many scream. The player must work to avoid those situations.

Zap. Zap is quite a cute little creature, though his numerous children are even cuter. Zap becomes central to the game as he acts as the player’s mentor. Zap’s large family often counts on the player for protection. Differentiated by a shock of red hair, these familial Fizzgigs drive the narrative through the gameplay.

The Professor. The sinister Professor is the epitome of evil. How else to describe a teacher of physics! Driven by a lust for power and control, the Professor will do anything to take control of the spectacular world of visible EM phenomena. Lanky with hooded eyes and a long beard the Professor haunts each successive level seeking to destroy the player’s craft and enslave Zap forever.

Enemies and Monsters. The professor has an entire cadre of enemies and monsters at his disposal. These are mostly taken from the E&M textbook, and include canonical examples such as magnets, handkerchiefs, etc.