JOSH
BRADLEY

technical
game
designer

About Me

Hey! I'm Josh (he/him), a technical designer for video games based in Burnley, Lancashire.

In 2022, I graduated from Lancaster University achieving a Distinction in MSci (Hons) Computer Science and I'm seeking my first professional role in the gaming industry as an entry level Gameplay Programmer.

I'm passionate about design, particularly the various disciplines that encompass game design, and through my education I've developed a strong technical skill set that allows me to bring my design ideas into reality.

I'm in my element when I bridge the worlds of system design and implementation!

Hey! I’m Josh (he/him), a technical designer for video games based in Burnley, Lancashire.
In 2022, I graduated from Lancaster University achieving a Distinction in MSci Hons Computer Science and I’m seeking my first professional role in the gaming industry as an entry level Gameplay Programmer.

I’m passionate about design, particularly the various disciplines that encompass game design, and through my education I’ve developed a strong technical skill set that allows me to bring my design ideas into reality.

I’m in my element when I bridge the worlds of system design and implementation!
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Portfolio

Pac-Man Recreation, 2023. (C++)

Overview

  • Recreation of Pac-Man (1980) by Namco.
  • Eat all the dots while avoiding ghosts. Make ghosts vulnerable to temporarily go from hunted, to hunter.
  • Development time: 8 weeks.
  • Made with Visual Studio, SDL2 and GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) for Windows.

Contribution

  • Built from incomplete, undocumented and poorly designed/written skeleton code.
    • The skeleton code was provided in a programming test, as part of a company’s hiring process.
    • I received explicit permission from the test provider to add this project to my portfolio.
  • Implemented the following features:
    • Asset caching system
    • Improved ghost movement
    • Pellet blinking and ghost/pac-man sprite updates
    • Tunnel teleporting from one side of the map to the other
    • Increased ghost count from one to four
    • Improved UI, including representing the number of lives with Pac-Man sprites
    • Major code refactoring for optimisation, improved structure and readability
    • Full documentation
  • Namco’s Pac-Man (1980) largely informed the game’s design.

Gameplay

  • The player’s aim is to eat all of the dots on the map to win the game, while scoring as many points as possible.
  • The player starts the game with three lives and they lose the game if all lives have been lost.
  • A life is lost if the player hits an invulnerable ghost.
  • Eat a large flashing dot to temporarily makes ghosts vulnerable.
  • Ghosts that have been hit while vulnerable immediately return to their base for revival.
  • Points are earned by eating dots and hitting vulnerable ghosts.
Pac-Man - start of game.
Pac-Man - midgame play showcasing the different ghost states.
Pac-Man - level cleared.
Pac-Man - game over.
PROJECT REPO

Particle Pinball Machine, 2022. (C#)

Overview

  • Visualises the emission of solar radiation, and particle scattering due to atmospheric interaction.
  • Development time: 6 months.
  • Made with Visual Studio, Unity and GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) for Windows and Linux.
  • Integrates Microsoft Kinect V2 interaction for gesture control.
  • Showcased publically at the Royal Society’s Summer Science Exhibition 2022.

Contribution

  • Full project development.

Gameplay

  • The player’s aim is to maximise the number of particle-Earth collisions. 
  • Achieved through optimising the following two mechanisms:
    • Swiping across the body as quickly as possible.
    • Timing the swipe so that the Sun is in its most energetic state – signified by the bar at the top of the viewport.
  • The mechanisms affect the “Rate score” and “Energy score” values.
  • The score values directly impact the scale of the particle scattering event, and as a result the number of particle-Earth collisions.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view prior to interaction.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view shortly after interaction.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view as solar energetic particle (SEP) passes cosmic bodies en-route to Earth.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view as solar energetic particle (SEP) passes space tech en-route to Earth.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view showing the cosmic ray shower growing and approaching Earth.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view after cosmic ray shower has impacted the Earth.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view prior to interaction.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view shortly after interaction.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view as solar energetic particle (SEP) passes cosmic bodies en-route to Earth.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view as solar energetic particle (SEP) passes space tech en-route to Earth.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view showing the cosmic ray shower growing and approaching Earth.
Particle Pinball Machine - game view after cosmic ray shower has impacted the Earth.
PROJECT REPO

Time Break, 2020. (Java)

Overview

  • Local PvP battle arena with large gameplay variety and fast-paced action.
  • Development time: 14 weeks.
  • Made with IntelliJ and JSFML for Linux.
  • Visual assets were created using GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program).

Contribution

  • Developed in a team of five, using Git to coordinate development.
  • Equal contribution in pre-production.
  • Full visual and UI design, artwork creation & integration (excluding environment art).
  • A significant portion of gameplay programming.

Gameplay

  • The player’s aim is to be the first competitor to win three rounds.
  • A round is won when you deplete your opponent’s health bar. Damage can be dealt via:
    • Weapon fire.
    • Item activation.
    • Environmental hazards.
  • A diverse roster of unique weapons, items, maps and characters provide large gameplay variety.
    •  More information is provided in the manual, avaible in the project repository.
Time Break - Character Selection Screen.
Time Break - game view of the map selection screen.
Time Break - game view of the marsh map.
Time Break - game view of the crystal cave map.
Time Break - game view of the ice map.
Time Break - game view of the space map.
Time Break - game view of the river map.
Time Break - game view of the lava map.
Time Break - Character Selection Screen.
Time Break - game view of the map selection screen.
Time Break - game view of the marsh map.
Time Break - game view of the crystal cave map.
Time Break - game view of the ice map.
Time Break - game view of the space map.
Time Break - game view of the river map.
Time Break - game view of the lava map.
PROJECT REPO

Missile Command Recreation, 2019. (C)

Overview

  • Recreation of Missile Command (1980) by Atari.
  • Protect civilisation from enemy missile barrages by intercepting them with counter-missiles.
  • Development time: 5 weeks.
  • Made with Code::Blocks and PDCurses for Windows.

Contribution

  • Full project development.
  • Atari’s Missile Command (1980) largely informed the design.

Gameplay

  • The player’s aim is to earn as many points as possible before the game is over.
  • Enemy missiles target missile bases (yellow) and cities (cyan) each round.
  • The player must protect bases and cities by intercepting enemy missiles with their own.
  • The game is over when all cities are destroyed.
  • Points are awarded for missile efficiency and bases/cities preserved each round.
  • An enemy missile can fragment, spawning a new missile, if it is not intercepted quickly.
Missile Command - fragmentation.
Missile Command - destruction and explosions.
Missile Command - end of round screen.
Missile Command - end of game screen.
Missile Command - fragmentation.
Missile Command - destruction and explosions.
Missile Command - end of round screen.
Missile Command - end of game screen.
PROJECT REPO

Contact

  • Burnley, Lancashire