The Performance

The Performance is a surreal point-and-click puzzle game that I worked on during my third year of university. The team consisted of Eli Miller (producer/sound design/programmer), Parker Soto (lead programmer), and myself (artist). Our goal was to create a game visually reminiscent of '90s educational games like the Pajama Sam series, with a surreal twist.

Play Game

The Performance: Text

The Performance: Image

A main component of the game was using a player's past experience with point-and-click games against them; tropes are turned on their head and figuring out how to play the game becomes its own puzzle.

I took visual inspiration from Pajama Sam and Undertale to create a simple, yet eerie aesthetic. The player character's large head and small frame were designed to give the character a sense of childlike naivety compared to the taller and more adult-like NPCs.

The Performance: Text

The Performance: Pro Gallery

One of the twists in the game is that the player is trapped on a theater stage (hence the game's title). This explains each level's strangely large and open floor plan. Each room has been simplified to only contain what is needed for the puzzle.

The Performance: Text

The Performance: Pro Gallery

I enjoyed my time working on The Performance. Being the sole artist in a small team gave me full creative control over the character designs and environmental art.

That being said, I made sure to consistently check in with the rest of my team to ensure that my designs were cohesive with the other elements in the game. The result was a unique game that we were all proud to have worked on together.

The Performance: Text

The Performance

A main component of the game was using a player's past experience with point-and-click games against them; tropes are turned on their head and figuring out how to play the game becomes its own puzzle.

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I took visual inspiration from Pajama Sam and Undertale to create a simple, yet eerie aesthetic. The player character's large head and small frame were designed to give the character a sense of childlike naivety compared to the taller and more adult-like NPCs.

One of the twists in the game is that the player is trapped on a theater stage (hence the game's title). This explains each level's strangely large and open floor plan. Each room has been simplified to only contain what is needed for the puzzle.

I enjoyed my time working on The Performance. Being the sole artist in a small team gave me full creative control over the character designs and environmental art.

That being said, I made sure to consistently check in with the rest of my team to ensure that my designs were cohesive with the other elements in the game. The result was a unique game that we were all proud to have worked on together.