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Technical Game Designer
Kenechukwu Umelo

FPS Playground Demo
Area of Focus: Gameplay Systems Design
Engine/Tools: Unreal Engine 5
Time of Development: 3 Weeks
Goals:
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Getting comfortable with Unreal Engine 5 and Blueprints.
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Execute best practices for visual scripting backend game systems.
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Gain knowledge on FPS mechanics.
Inspiration:
Inspired by the Headquarters hub from Call of Duty: WWII (2017), I designed a "playground park" sandbox featuring minigames and collectibles that let players earn tokens to upgrade their weapons or physical features.
The video showcases a YouTuber who briefly discusses the activity sections of the headquarters. I used the information here as a reference while designing the minigames and the playground level.
4:17 - 4:53
Player Controller:
I implemented the player controller using the default FPS template in Unreal Engine 5. In addition to regular movement and locomotion, I added mechanics such as ADS, sprinting, recoil, reloading, and more.
Minigames and Progression:
I originally opted to create AI bots for users to compete against, but given the limited time and scope I set for myself (especially since this is my first Unreal project), I reverted to using minigames instead.
I aimed to create a fun "Chuck E. Cheese"-like vibe with each game, testing players to go beyond to earn more 'tokens', the better they perform.
I designed a Base Activity Blueprint Class to set up the basics each minigame requires, including the number of tokens required to play.
With the modular parameters set up, I added token checks to the base class to either check for tokens or give them to the player when interacting with a minigame. Once that was finished, the blueprint was ready to be derived to create minigames.

When users press a button, the token system checks the amount of tokens that player has accquired before it starts.
When a minigame ends, token amount rewarded from conditions are distributed to the player.
With this system, I created 4 minigames for players to play in the sandbox, from a simple one like Target Practice to something more complex, such as Protect The Terf.
Target Practice
Advanced Target Practice
Dummy Target Practice
Protect The Turf
Upgrade Station:
As previously mentioned, I implemented a token system that allows users to collect tokens either scattered around the level or during minigames. To reward players, I designed and scripted a modular upgrade station framework in Unreal Engine using a base BP_UpgradeStation class.
The upgrades available were:
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Reload Center - instant reloads
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Ammo Increase - increase ammo capacity by 20
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Fast Reload - increased reload animation speed.
I designed this system to encourage repeat visits through collectible token exchanges and to support scalability for future upgrades, such as new weapons, movement boosts, and unlockable minigames.
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