Project Nova was an online multiplayer FPS, intended to be a tie-in to the MMO Eve Online, and set in the same fictional setting.
I worked on this project while I was at Sumo Digital Nottingham. I was brought on for a fixed period as a Technical Designer, with the job of implementing a new game mode using Unreal Engine 4’s blueprint language. I also implemented a few level design tools and general gameplay blueprints that were used elsewhere in the game.
My involvement in the project started with me quickly getting up to speed on the status of the game, the overall goals and then having conversations with the Lead Designer to define the spec the new game mode. I then outlined my plans for what I was going to create using blueprints in a document - which had the dual benefit of providing some record of my intent and thinking (as I knew I’d be moving off the project eventually) and also giving the programming department a good opportunity to comment, suggest or push back on my plans before I spent any time working on anything. The question of “should this bit of functionality be a blueprint, or should we implement it in C++ instead” was more easily navigated through this process as well.
My time on the project gave me a much appreciated chance to flex my Unreal expertise on a project in production for the first time. It was also my first time coming into a project as something of a consultant.
The game was cancelled a few months before it was due to be released, and as a result is not available for purchase or playable anywhere. However, here is a video which was captured of a preview build before the project was cancelled.