FORM
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FORM: a dark machine with tall hinged arms, one firing a pink laser into a gold disc
Role Lead Game Designer
Studio Charm Games
Period Jun 2015 – July 2017
Team 3 at the start, 5–6 at launch
Released June 2017
Platform PC VR

FORM

Surreal VR narrative puzzle experience

As the only designer on the project, I was responsible for figuring out most things. I scripted the game almost entirely using Playmaker, a visual scripting tool for Unity.
  • 1Designer on the project: me
  • 3People on the team at the start
  • 5–6People by the time we launched

01What I owned

  • Sole designer on the project
  • Prototyped and implemented all system mechanics and puzzles using Playmaker visual scripting
  • Designed surreal, 'alien' puzzles that still gave off UX cues players could understand
  • Balanced intrinsic motivation of experiencing a surreal world with layering complication of puzzle mechanics
  • Made many, many different puzzle concepts and ideas before the final set

02The game

FORM was created by the talented folks at Charm Games and was our first released foray into VR. There were only 3 of us to start which expanded into 5-6 people by the time we launched the game. As the only designer on the project, I was responsible for figuring out most things. I scripted the game almost entirely using Playmaker, a visual scripting tool for Unity.

The core of the game is interactions, simple puzzles and surreal spectacle. It was designed to take you on a journey that could only be presented in VR.

A sci-fi laboratory desk with glowing screens, a coffee mug and a small machine under a glass dome
A laboratory scene from the game.

03Alien puzzles

Designing puzzles that were surreal and 'alien' but also gave off UX cues in order for players to understand was a great design challenge. Many of the design conventions that I expected to work fell flat in VR and I had to relearn a lot of my expectations.

Linking glowing nodes by hand.

I balanced the intrinsic motivation of experiencing a surreal world with the layering complication of puzzle mechanics, always keeping the player's emotional journey first.

Puzzle balance Intrinsic motivation of experiencing a surreal world Puzzle mechanics layering complication Always keeping the player's emotional journey first. Puzzle balance Intrinsic motivation of experiencing a surreal world Puzzle mechanics layering complication Always keeping the player's emotional journey first.
Puzzle balance, with the player's emotional journey as the pivot.
A floating puzzle board of hexagons lit in red, with geometric shapes in glowing frames around it
One of the puzzles in the final game.
Gold and silver rings turning around a central mechanism marked with geometric symbols
A ring puzzle.
Glowing points connected by blue lines like a constellation, above dark pillars
A constellation puzzle.
An early version of FORM, with completely different puzzles and interactions. Though we knew the tone we wanted, I made many, many different puzzle concepts and ideas.

04Mood and feel

What I am particularly proud of us accomplishing is the mood and feel of the game. The sound design was as equally important as the lighting design to draw players into this strange experience.

Lit pillars and a white light strip lead down a dark corridor toward a nested diamond shape
Lighting in a corridor scene
A white diamond outline glows against orange light and dark silhouetted structures
Surreal spectacle.
Launch trailer showing final interactions and puzzles

05Reception

FORM launched on Steam on June 1, 2017.

“Every puzzle is an alien relic that demands your curiosity and experimentation.”

The game went on to win Best VR Experience and Best VR Sound Design at the Cinequest Film & VR Festival 2018, after my time at Charm Games ended in July 2017. It was also a finalist for IGN's Best VR Experience and the Unity Awards' Best 3D Visuals.

06What I learned

Many of the design conventions that I expected to work fell flat in VR, and I had to relearn a lot of my expectations. FORM and Proximity both taught me a lot about how quickly you can get to the truth of whether something is actually fun when you're working fast and hands-on.

Skills Applied

Puzzle Design VR Interaction Visual Scripting Playmaker Prototyping UX Design