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Elemental Echoes
2.5 D SideScroller Coop Puzzle-Adventure | Unreal Engine 5 | Team of 7 | Gameplay & Systems Programmer

Project Overview

Elemental Echoes is a cooperative puzzle-adventure game developed in Unreal Engine, where players control two lost souls, Toast and Tremor, on a journey through a mysterious forest cemetery. Gifted with the elemental powers of Fire and Earth, the pair must work together to overcome environmental obstacles, solve puzzles, and navigate the world by combining their unique abilities.

 

The project was designed around local cooperative gameplay, encouraging communication and teamwork through character-specific mechanics and environmental interactions.

Roles Played:

Lead Gameplay Programmer

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As the sole Gameplay Programmer on the project, I was responsible for designing and implementing the core gameplay systems that powered both player characters and the cooperative experience. I worked closely with artists, animators, designers, and UI developers to ensure gameplay systems integrated seamlessly with the rest of the project.

Key Contributions for ​Gameplay Programming

Character Abilities & Gameplay Mechanics
 

  • Designed and implemented all player abilities for both Toast and Tremor

  • Developed character-specific interactions based on Fire and Earth elemental powers

  • Created gameplay systems that encouraged cooperation and puzzle-solving

  • Implemented environmental interactions and hazard mechanics
     

Local Cooperative Gameplay
 

  • Developed the infrastructure required to support local co-op gameplay

  • Created systems to manage multiple playable characters simultaneously

  • Implemented shared gameplay interactions and puzzle mechanics

  • Designed character interactions that required teamwork to progress
     

Animation & Gameplay Integration
 

  • Created two custom Animation Blueprints from scratch

  • Integrated gameplay systems with character animations

  • Worked closely with the animation team to support character movement and abilities

  • Ensured gameplay responsiveness through animation-driven interactions


Technical Implementation
 

  • Established collision presets and gameplay interaction systems

  • Assisted with visual effects integration and implementation

  • Integrated art assets and gameplay functionality

  • Assisted with UI debugging and system integration
     

Team Collaboration
 

  • Managed the project's GitHub repository and branching workflow

  • Coordinated closely with artists and designers to support feature implementation

  • Facilitated communication between technical and art departments

  • Assisted in identifying and resolving integration issues throughout development

Technical Highlights
 

Unreal Engine
 

  • Blueprint Gameplay Programming

  • Local Cooperative Systems

  • Animation Blueprints

  • Collision and Interaction Systems

  • Environmental Gameplay Mechanics

  • Puzzle Design Implementation

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Development Tools

  • GitHub Version Control

  • Branch Management

  • Team-Based Development Workflow

  • Cross-Discipline Collaboration



Technical Challenges

Local Cooperative Gameplay
Supporting two playable characters with unique abilities presented a challenge in maintaining clean and reusable gameplay architecture. To address this, I developed a parent-child class structure that centralized common functionality while allowing character-specific mechanics to be implemented independently. Blueprint Interfaces were used to establish communication between gameplay systems, environmental interactions, and puzzle mechanics without creating unnecessary dependencies. This reduced code and blueprint duplication, improved maintainability, and provided a flexible foundation for implementing cooperative gameplay features throughout the project.

Character-Specific Mechanics
Each character possessed unique elemental abilities that needed to feel distinct while remaining interconnected. Gameplay systems were designed to ensure that players regularly relied on both characters' strengths to progress through puzzles and environmental challenges.

Animation Integration
Custom Animation Blueprints were developed to support gameplay mechanics and character-specific actions, requiring close collaboration with the animation team to ensure smooth integration between gameplay and visual presentation.

Dynamic Camera Manager

I implemented a dynamic camera management system to support local cooperative gameplay and environmental interactions. The system uses context-driven logic to adjust camera framing, zoom, and positioning based on player states and level design requirements. This allowed seamless transitions between exploration, combat, and puzzle scenarios while ensuring both characters remain visible and readable at all times. The architecture was designed to be modular and extensible, enabling new camera behaviors to be integrated without altering core systems.

Scalable Puzzle Interaction System
I developed a fully scalable puzzle interaction system designed to support level design flexibility. The system allows designers to assign any combination of interactable objects—such as levers, buttons, and pressure plates—to control gates and environmental triggers without requiring additional programming. Each interaction object communicates through a unified interface, enabling them to be freely combined in any configuration while maintaining consistent functionality across all puzzle setups.

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