Nicholas J Pritchard
Game Designer
Video games have been a core part of my life since an early age, both as a hobby and as a way of connecting with friends. With a Masters Degree in Game Design, as well as a BSC in Film and TV production, I have several years in both industries under my belt. This has helped me to strengthen my Game and Narrative Design skills enabling me to connect cinematic storytelling with a structured gameplay experience. Below you can find a portfolio highlighting some of my work in game development, with projects ranging from hyper-casual mobile games to narrative driven horror experiences.
Role: Game Designer / Narrative Designer / Prototyping
Genre: Various
Team: Kuato Studios
Engine: Unity
Platform: Android / IOS / Console / PC
Status: R&D
Description: Over the past year Kuato Studios entered into a heavy R&D phase, targetting a variety of different areas within the gaming industry, from development of a Steam-esque educational platform, to party games and IP based projects. Expanding our creative horizons was no easy task, and for months we devoted ourselves to concept ideation, pitch design and white-boxing. Utilising my experience coding within Unity I was able to take on a specialist role in developing prototypes for each of these concepts alongside the design process. During this time speed was the name of the game, and being able to turn out fully-fledged working prototypes under tight time constraints proved invaluable to the development process, allowing us to quickly iterate on design, and see the effects of those iterations in action.
Role: Game Designer / Level Designer / Narrative Designer
Genre: Educational / Action / Adventure / RPG
Team: Kuato Studios
Engine: Unity
Platform: Android / iOS
Website: https://kuatostudios.com/marvel-hero-tales/
Status: Released
Synopsis: The citizens of New York need your help. There’s chaos in the city after Green Goblin hatches his plan to release his villainous cronies from jail. You’re going to need to use your wit, might and super-powers to investigate mysterious happenings throughout the city. Build super-charged sentences to take down the lawbreakers, save the day, and rid New York of crime.
Role: Game Designer / Level Designer
Genre: Educational / Adventure / Mini-Game
Team: Kuato Studios
Engine: Unity
Platform: Android / iOS
Website: https://kuatostudios.com/disney-story-realms/
Status: Released
Synopsis: Experience the magic of Disney in the official Disney Story Realms app and explore enchanting worlds we all know and love! With adventures from the worlds of Frozen, Toy Story 4, The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, and more, you can take your place in iconic fairy tales and create your very own Disney experience.
Role: Game Designer / Level Designer / Narrative Designer / Programmer
Genre: Endless Runner / Platformer
Team Size: 1
Engine: Unity
Platform: PC / Android / IOS
Website: Coming Soon
Status: Nearing Completion
Choreo: Go Loco! Is an adaptation of my early platforming prototype, redesigned and improved to become a hyper-casual endless runner. The key feature, a developmental music system, allows players to collect followers that dynamically add instruments to the score, progressing the soundtrack from a single guitar all the way to a full band. These also now doubles as a health system, meaning the score fades in and out based on player performance.
Role: Narrative Designer / Game Designer / Cinematic Designer
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Genre: Puzzle / Geo-Game
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Team Size: 10
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Engine: Unity
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Platform: IOS / Android
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Website: https://www.cluedupp.com/
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Witchcraft and Wizardry is geo-location based Detective game for mobile platforms that utilises a combination of puzzles, virtual node based witnesses, and devious clues to allow players to solve a burgeoning mystery in their own home town! Themed around a fantastic land of dark prophecies and brilliant sorcery, Witchcraft and Wizardry sees players take on the role of an investigator trying to stop the summoning of an apocalyptic fire elemental, grilling the local magical community for leads and information to find the culprit, and stop their heinous plan.
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Status: Complete
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Narrative / Gameplay Trailer
Prototype vs 1 month later development video
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Role: Game Designer / Narrative Designer / Audio Designer / Programmer
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Genre: First-Person Horror / Narrative Driven Horror
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Team Size: 12
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Engine: Unity
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Platform: PC
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Website: https://captive-minds.itch.io/captive-audience
Captive Audience is a first person narrative driven thriller, set in the confines of an illegal reality TV Show. With a focus on environmental interaction and progressive narrative through game-play, Captive Audience aims to provide an immersive experience where every object is interact-able, and helps to reveal more of the engaging story that unfolds through fully voice acted dialogue.
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Synopsis:
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5 years ago Matt attempted to free his wife from the Compendium Estates, an illegal reality TV producer using death-row inmates as stars for lawless programming.
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He failed, and has since been the star of his own show "Captive Audience", now entering it's fifth season. With his hope of escape or finding his wife dwindling, Matt has accepted his life and awaits his end, his evening conversations with Stacy, another shows star the only thing keeping him sane.
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Now a mysterious agent appears to help Matt escape the maze of the Compendium Estates, and break free of The Hosts deadly grip. By day he must act as the star of his own show, and at night risk his life for freedom, and to find his wife.
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Status: Complete
Post-Development: After the prototype was created, I undertook additional development as sole developer. The difference between the prototype and my reworked version is visible in the Prototype vs 1 Month later video above. This rework included a full revamp of the games Decor and lighting, additional rooms being created as well as all events that occur during the night-time sections being crafted from scratch. Drones were also added to provide the game with a sense of threat.
It Will Find You
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Role: Game Design / Narrative Design / World Designer / Audio Design / Programmer
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Genre: First-Person Horror / Narrative Driven Horror
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Team Size: 1
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Engine: Unity
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Platform: PC
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Website: https://gamejolt.com/games/it-will-find-you/438659
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It Will Find You is a first person narrative driven horror experience, utilising a reactive narrative system that alters the stories flow based on player actions. With a focus on environmental interaction and progressive narrative through game-play, It Will Find You aims to provide an immersive experience where the world evolves in tandem with the players decisions, and a dark, twisting narrative is slowly revealed through fully voice acted dialogue. Developed as my Master's Thesis, all aspects of game development, including programming, scripting, assembly and design were
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Synopsis:
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As her marriage dissolves from the trauma of a tragic accident, Julia returns to her family home seeking a respite from the onslaughts of her life.
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Arriving amidst a terrible storm, Julia quickly realises she is not alone, as a horrific entity stalks the once beautiful woodlands surrounding her family estate. Under the deafening roar of the raging storm, Julia will have to fight for survival against the creature, while plagued by horrific visions that make her question her own reality.
With the climax, the curtain will be drawn back revealing a shocking conclusion that turns the game upon its head, in a shocking conclusion, you won't see coming.
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Status: Completed
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Role: Game Designer / Narrative Designer / Audio Designer / Programmer
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Genre: Platformer / Rhythm Game
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Team Size: 2
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Engine: Unity
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Platform: PC
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Website: https://gamejolt.com/games/Loco/297630
Choreo is a 2D Platformer set in a vibrant world with a Lovecraftian foundation. We've drawn inspiration from early Disney cartoons, Aztec and Mayan culture and the Cthulu Mythos to create a world that has a colourful and bright surface, with dark and twisted roots.
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Synopsis:
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Centuries ago, five beings rose up to overthrow a tyrannical Elder Being and seal its evil away where it could no longer influence the world around it.
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As civilisation developed under the Fives rule, the world slowly forgot about the threat of the entity, and the last remnants of its empire have turned to dust.
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Now, a group of cultists succeed in awakening this darkness from its slumber, drawing it back into the world in a new form.
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It's gleaming smile belies its dark intentions, and the entity sets out towards the Fives stronghold, determined to reclaim its empire, and make the world that forgot its rule tremble.
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Status: Prototype Complete
Requiem for a Puppet
Role: Game Designer / Narrative Designer / Audio Designer / Programmer
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Genre: Platformer / Rhythm Game
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Team Size: 1
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Engine: Unity
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Platform: PC
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Website: https://megasloth.itch.io/requiem-for-a-puppet
Requiem for a Puppet is a Rhythm based platformer utilising a dynamic BPM system that influences all aspects of the game, from combat and movement to Enemy AI and Environmental elements.
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Synopsis:
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Cold, alone, the Puppet awakens in the darkness of an abandoned theatre, with no memory of who it was, or is. Guided by the radiant light of a spirit with unknown intentions, the Puppet is drawn into a shambolic performance of sleeping beauty, where the cast are clueless, and the dragons deadly.
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Using the eerie music that echoes through the theatre as it's guide, the Puppet must make it's way towards the performances climax, and discover the true nature of it's existence.
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Status: Prototype Complete
RELIC
Role: Narrative Designer / Audio Designer / Programmer
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Genre: First-Person Shooter
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Team Size: 6
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Engine: Unreal Engine 4
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Platform: PC
An FPS with a narrative core, RELIC was developed as part of the MA in Games Design by a small team at Teesside University to illustrate mission design combined with a strong underlying narrative.
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Synopsis:
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RELIC is a metroidvania style first person action adventure for the PC platform. The game takes inspiration from the metroid prime game series.
Set in deep space, a fearsome race of cyborgs known as the Brakan expand their reach over the known universe, conquering worlds in a desperate search for ancient Relics that hold the key to a universal secret. Guided by a mysterious species known as the Eurakav, the Brakan are ruthless, merciless and eternally loyal to their Hive-Mind.
After the discovery of a fragmented Relic, Alpha-32, an elite Brakan Scout, is freed from the grips of the hive by a fragmented renegade AI (Rel-la) that lay dormant within the ancient artefact for millennia.
Guided by his new conscience, and driven by a desire to right the wrongs he committed as a member of the Brakan, Alpha-32 sets out to find the Relics before the Eurakav can, and restore Rel-la's shattered memory.
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Status: Complete