Embedded Files
I scripted the behavior of these assets including all the movement of the power crystal
Summary
Summary
The Elven power crystal and the socket were used extensively throughout Dragon Age - mainly in Arlathan forest and other Elven locations. They were intended to be used in puzzles, and to encourage exploration. Sockets were generally connected to content gates like doors and bridges where the power crystals had to be found and plugged in in order to progress to other sections of the map. They could also be initialized in a broken or unpowered state to introduce further layers of complexity to the puzzles. As carriable objects, the power crystals had many edge cases to account for.
These assets were, by far, the most interesting and challenging objects I owned. As you will see below, they had multiple overlapping states that all had to be coordinated. They also needed to function properly with the beam generator which was owned by another designer. The beam generator had a ballista style setup, where the player could get on it and aim the beam at a socket or crystal.
Power Crystal States
Power Crystal States
State Descriptions
Enabled (Default): Player can interact with and pick up the crystal
Disabled: Player is unable to interact with the crystal. Often this state is combined with Bellara's Tinker ability which would enable the crystal once used
Charged: Crystal is bright blue and floats slowly up and down
Uncharged: Crystal is dim and does not have any idle movement
Carried: When interacted with, they follow behind the player
Can be dropped or placed in a socket
Paired with a Socket: Flaps on the bottom of the crystal open and the crystal is positioned above a socket
More
An unpowered crystal can be powered by directing a generator beam at it or by placing it on a socket powered by a beam
An unpaired power crystal can be hit by the player to reset it to its default location
It will start to flash when hit and then eventually pops out of existence and back to the location it was originally found in
Power Crystals can only be moved so far from where they originated. When the limit to their range is reached, they start to flash. If the range is exceeded, they pop back to their default position
Power crystals revert to their original position when the game is loaded, unless they've been placed in a socket
If a crystal's default position was to be paired with a socket but the player takes it off, a load will place the crystal right next to the socket
The movement of the power crystal while being carried and while transitioning to being paired with a socket was scripted by myself
The crystal is scripted to only be droppable on solid ground and will float back to solid ground if dropped elsewhere
The crystal also tries not to clip with geometry and will rotate around the player to avoid this
The player cannot jump while carrying a power crystal
Socket States
Socket States
State Descriptions
Empty (Enabled): Player can interact with the socket if they are carrying a power crystal to place it on top
Disabled: A power crystal cannot be paired with the socket. This state tends to be combined with Bellara's Tinker ability which when used, enables the socket
FullCharged: The socket is paired with a power crystal that is powered
FullDepleted: The socket is paired with a depleted power crystal
BeamCharged: The socket is being charged by a beam generator
Locked: Some sockets have a ring around them that raises up, when powered, to lock the power crystal in place
More
A beam generator can be directed at a socket to power it without a battery having been placed on it
The socket had an outline and vfx applied if the player was using a beam generator. This was in order to highlight sockets in the vibrant, and distracting, Arlathan setting
There was optional logic that could be toggled on by the level designers that delayed intractability on a recently placed battery until whatever it was connected to was done extending or opening
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