Overview: Stare of the Abyss is a mobile maze-escape game set in an abstract, Nier: Automata-inspired minimalist world. Players navigate stark, isolated environments while managing a physics-based chain mechanic and solving cryptic pillar puzzles under the gaze of unseen observers.
Genre: Atmospheric Maze Escape & Physics Puzzler
Role: Game Designer (Solo Developer)
Engine: Unity 3D
Platform: Mobile (iOS / Android)
Key Design Achievements
Physics & Core Systems Design: Successfully married free-form maze pathfinding with a highly restrictive, physics-based chain mechanic to create deliberate, tense gameplay.
Minimalist Level Design: Leveraged negative space and abstract visual cues to build a cold, isolated atmosphere without relying on heavy art assets.
Mobile-First UX/UI: Designed intuitive touch-controls and spatial puzzles specifically for mobile.
Technical Design & Optimization: Utilized a strong technical background to bridge the gap between design vision and execution, profiling and optimizing physics systems and graphics to maintain a locked frame rate on mobile devices.
Atmospheric Audio Curation: Curated and integrated an environmental soundscape and music score from open libraries, strategically mapping audio cues to heighten the game's sense of isolation.
Environmental Storytelling: Translated a bleak, psychological narrative into gameplay mechanics, using self-contained puzzles to reinforce the theme of a clinical maze trial.
Stare of the Abyss Design.pdf