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Project Outpost Emergence

Role: Solo Developer

Duration: Ongoing

Genre: Action-Adventure

Engine:

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About:

Project Outpost Emergence is an on-and-off weekend project that I've been working on, aimed at delivering a demo that balances storytelling and gameplay. I am primarily developing it using Unreal Engine and C++.

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The project focuses on my learning to create advanced enemy AI, aiming to develop a dynamic outpost environment that players must infiltrate and escape from. To achieve this, I'm utilizing Unreal's SmartObject, Gameplay Behaviors, and State Trees. Inspired by games such as Far Cry (2004) and The Last of Us Part II, my goal is to provide a demo that showcases non-linear, open-ended gameplay for the player to explore. 

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I embarked on this project to challenge myself as a technical designer, while also showcasing my learning experience through long-term development in Unreal Engine. I am managing everything from player mechanics to AI programming and mission design from start to finish.

 

*I will continuously document my progress, breakdowns, and design or technical decisions on this page. Enjoy!

Highlights:

  • Developed a base third-person shooter controller in C++, expanded features and abilities using Blueprints.

Learn More About.....

Limitations

To ensure the project is developed with a clean workflow and goal in mind, I set limitations to prevent it from falling into unintended full-scale development, as I only want to showcase a technical playable demo. The limitations included:

  • Only one enemy class.

  • Players can only equip and stow one weapon. Melee from behind only.

  • The gameplay environment is open to traverse but limited within boundaries.

  • Each system (whether narrative or combat, blueprints or C++) MUST have solutions or default logic when interacting together.​

Enemy AI

The design principles I wanted to focus on for enemies in an outpost setting were sharp awareness and intelligent searching. I drew inspiration from my experiences playing Far Cry 1 and The Last of Us Part 2, where the AI persistently engages in search behaviors without backing down. The enemies continuously search the area until they locate the player. This design choice creates intense situations that compel players to retreat or constantly seek cover, hoping that the enemies' search time will eventually come to an end.

 

To match that type of design, I first laid out a visual design tree for the type of actions that Hunters can perform before diving into the game engine.

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AI Behavior Design (Subject to Change)

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