Download Game Concept

Game Concept:
Drive – Another job is not necessarily meant to be a traditional game, rather a game that
accompanies the movie’s website. The game makes use of a fairly simplistic mechanic of driving
past obstacles but the unique nature of the movie. The game is about driving away from the
scene of the crime with the criminals in the car. The player has to drive as safely as precisely as
possible to avoid leading the police to their location, but at the same time the player has to get
to a certain spot on the map within the time limit otherwise the mission fails. Breaking the
speed limit, hitting obstacles and/or driving on the wrong side of the road increases the
criminal awareness meter and when it is full, you are caught.
Setting:
Drive – Another job it is set in a fairly mundane Los Angeles, America in modern times. The game
itself takes place on the streets, in the third person view of the driver’s car.
Look and Feel:
The look and feel is rooted in games like the Grand Theft Auto series however the art direction
is derived directly from the movie drive. The game captures the essence of Los Angeles while
managing to mix it with the fairly somber and nonchalant tone that the movie takes on.
Key Gameplay Aspects:
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Driving through the streets of L.A
Racing against time
Still conforming to conventions such as speed limits and not hitting pedestrians
Screen Layout HUD:
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On the top right of the screen there will be a mini-map of the current zone you are in You will be able to see your proximity to the drop point (end of the level) here.
At the top left of the screen there will be a placeholder for the usable upgrades
Under that there will be a timer indicating how much time you have to get to the drop
point
Under that there will be a meter showing the law enforcement’s awareness of you.
Under that, there will be a section indicating how much damage has been done to your
car
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On the mobile platform there will be a pause button under that.
Game Rules:
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The driver has a limited time to get to the goal
Hitting obstacles will damage your car, fill up the damage meter and fill up the
awareness meter
Driving through spotlights will fill up the awareness meter
Going over the speed limit past a certain point and/or driving on the wrong side of the
road will fill up the awareness bar
Filling up the awareness bar completely will activate track mode in which the
authorities will catch you in a matter of seconds. In that time you have to find a safe spot
or you are caught and it is game over.
Sustaining too much damage will result in game over.
Stopping at a safe spot for at least three second will bring the awareness meter down
but can use up valuable time.
Completing a level will reward you with money depending on how quickly the level was
completed.
After completing a level the awareness meter resets, but the damage persists.
In between levels you are given the option to purchase parts for various consumable
and upgrades include:
- Repairs
- Transmission fluid (maximum speed increase by x% for y seconds)
- Radio silence (lowers the awareness meter)
- Safe spot pulse (allows the player to view their proximity to the nearest safe spot)
- Second wind (extends your time limit by x%)
- Smooth driver (Permanent increases the maximum speed attainable before the
awareness meter goes up)
- Extension (permanent upgrade that increases the duration of the duration based
upgrades e.g the value of y goes up)
- Charges (A permanent upgrade that allows multiple instances of an upgrade to be
purchased for example three second wind upgrades can be purchased. A practical
application of this upgrade would be a player using it to grant themselves 5 seconds, or
using it three times to grant themselves 15 seconds)
Three of these upgrades will be usable per level
The X increases and costs more each level
Game Progress:
The player progresses through the game by completing the jobs. After each job the player has
the option to use the money earned to purchase upgrades for their car. As
the player gets through more levels, more upgrades become available;
however the game gets harder to accompany that. The most notable
evidence of the game’s difficulty increase is the time limit getting
progressively shorter; however there will be other elements such as
congested roads, forcing the player to drive on the other side, as well as
more pedestrians and road works that the player will have to negotiate
around in order to get to the goal.
Game Modes: due to the nature of the game there will only be a single
player mode.
Controls:
Keyboard:
 Left arrow key/A - steer left
 Double tap the left arrow key/A to turn into a left road
 Right arrow key/D - steer right
 Double tap the right arrow key/D to turn into a right road
 Up key/W - accelerate
 Down key/S - decelerate
 Space – enter safe spot (or leave safe spot)
 1 – use first consumable upgrade
 2 – use second consumable upgrade
 3 – use third consumable upgrade
 P – Pauses the game
Mobile platform with touch screen (windows phone 7, iPod touch, iPhone, compatible android
platform):
There will be a virtual joystick to the bottom left of the screen that facilitates movement:
 Tilt the screen left and right to steer left and right
 Drag joystick to the left – turn into a left road
 Drag joystick to the right – turn into a right road
 Drag joystick up – Accelerate
 Drag joystick down – Decelerate
Upgrades will be accessed by simply tapping the corresponding icon at the top left of the screen
Pausing the game can be achieved by tapping the pause icon
Environments:
The levels will be fundamentally similar as the entire
game takes place in Los Angeles however there will be
aesthetic variations. It will mainly be split between:
 L.A suburbs – congested housing areas, street
gangs
 High rises – High streets, lots of cars and risk of
collision
 Construction sites
Characters:
The game takes place in the third person, with the
player in control of the car, to that end there are no
character focuses.
Cut Scenes:
There will be no full cut scenes, again due to the game’s small nature and lack of a required
story. The only real cinematic moments in the game will be the criminals getting into the
driver’s car at the start of the level, the criminals getting out of the car at the end of the level, the
driver getting stopped by law enforcement if the awareness meter goes too high and the car
breaking down if it has sustained too much damage.
Other Game Elements: none.
Menu System:
The game is fairly simple so there will not be many menus, there will simply be a level to play
the game, and an option to view the instructions, as well as view the general options which will
include sound settings.
Game Flow:
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After the game loads the player will be taken to the main menu.
From there the player can start the game.
While the game is going, it can be paused.
In the pause menu the player will have the option to toggle the sound or adjust the
volume, as well as check on important stats without being distracted from the rest of the
game.
If the player loses, they will have the option to publish their score and achieved level
through various social networks
If the player completes the level they are taken to the upgrade screen where they can
purchase various upgrades, publish their score or proceed to the next level
Sound:
There will be sound effects for
 The car accelerating
 The car decelerating
 The car swerving round corners
 Police sirens
 Ambient crowds
 Screams if pedestrians are hit
 Passenger context sensitive commentary (for example a passenger could scream
“Are you crazy!?” if the driver runs someone over
 The car if it collides with an object
 Smoking engine
Music:
There will be music on the menu screen that resembles the opening track found on the movie
and on their website.
While the level is being played the second track on the website will be played in the background.
Ambience:
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As the level plays out there will be the constant hum of the car being driven.
During the upgrade screen there will be various ambient sounds that resemble a car
being modified – lot of metallic clanks.
Sound Effects:
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Acceleration of the car
Swerves when turning a corner at high speed
Sirens when in track mode, as well as sirens that increase in volume as law enforcement
closes in
There will be sounds to denote the level of damage the car has received such as the
sound of smoke rising out of the car or jerky steering whenever the car moves from left
to right
Monetization:
The game will be free on the movie’s website as it serves as a component to the movie’s
marketing, however there will be a version available for download on the iPhone app store,
Windows Phone 7 market place and android market place for 69p
Social Elements: At the end of each level, win or lose the player will have the option to
submit their score and achieved level to various social networks such as Facebook, twitter and
Google plus.
Downloadable Content and Sequels: due to the tie in nature with the movie there will
be no sequels or DLC packs unless the movie itself plans to expand, which is unlikely. The
iPhone version however will come with downloadable skins for the car as well as options to buy
certain upgrades with real money instead of in game money.
Walk through:
Once the game has finished loading it opens with splash images giving credit to the publishers
and the developers. From that point on the player
witnesses the title screen with the option to play the
game, view the instructions or see the high scores. Once
the player has viewed the instructions page they start
the game. The game loads with the view of the car and a
short animation of the robbers running into the car,
then a countdown at the center of the screen counting
down from three till zero. When the timer hits zero, the
game starts and the timer on the left of the screen starts
counting down from 5 minutes. The player begins the
drive.
The player is too far away from the goal to see their exact location so the
mini-map simply shows a red shaded area to the top right, indicating that
the player has to gravitate towards the right roads. The player sticks to the
right and double taps D to turn into the right road. The mini-map’s red
shaded area gravitates towards the top of the map indicating that the
player needs to continue straight on in order to get to the goal. A barricade
approaches and the player decides to drive straight through it, both
damaging the car and raising the awareness meter but the
player presses on. A few seconds later the mini-map actually shows a red dot on
the map as opposed to a red shaded area, pinpointing the exact location of the
end of the level. The player drives up to it and completes level one with 30
seconds to spare. A mini animation plays of the robbers getting out of the car.
The player is taken to the level up screen where they can broadcast their
progress. The player clicks on the tweet button and then a pop up opens requiring the user to
log in. Afterwards the message, “I have achieved level 2 with $300 on Drive – Another job! Try
and beat my score! http://(game’sURLhere)”
The player then uses the earned money to purchase repairs for the car, a single upgrade that
boosts the maximum speed as well as an upgrade that reveals the location of the nearest safe
spot and then progresses onto level two.
The second level beings in a similar manner to level one, except in a visibly different part of Los
Angeles. The player begins their drive and notices that this time, the goal is somewhere on the
left of the screen, and the player responds by driving on the left side of the road (wrong side of
the road in America) which significantly boosts the awareness meter. The player double taps A
and turns into a left road, but stays on the left side and deals a head on collision with a
pedestrian, significantly raising the damage meter of the car, as well as filling up the awareness
meter. The player enters track mode and the authorities are in hot pursuit.
The player presses 1 to activate their maximum speed boost and blazes ahead then presses 2 to
find the nearest safe spot and using the upgrade locates a safe spot off to the right and double
taps D as soon as turning becomes available, but unfortunately suffers a head on collision with a
car and fills up the damage meter, ending the level. At that point the player is presented with a
menu allowing them to broadcast how far they got and gives them the option to start again.