duckwing | My Site 1

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Role: Game Designer / Developer
Tools: Unity, C#

Game Overview

Mooli Love Duckwing is a 2D platformer puzzle game where players control a water-dwelling creature named Mooli, who must retrieve duck wings on land and return to water within a strict time limit.

As the sole designer, I created the core concept and implemented progressive game systems that reflect time-based stress, spatial logic, and moment-to-moment decision making.

Core Mechanic Design

Introduced a dual-time pressure system: 20-second survival limit + enemy-triggered chase timers.
Designed unique utility elements like Time Refresh Water, Teleporting Pipes, and Bounce Traps to expand gameplay within fixed constraints.

Level Design

Created 10 levels, each introducing one new feature to
build player mastery: e.g., map rotation, teleport puzzles, enemy chases, and night mode.
Emphasized teachable moments, visual guidance, and intentional misdirection to test comprehension and reaction.

Design Process

Overview

Mooli Love Duckwing started as a small prototype for a time-limited 2D platformer. I wanted to design a game where players feel constant pressure from a countdown, yet still enjoy creative and exploratory level design. The core mechanic came from this simple question:
“What if you could only survive on land for 20 seconds?”

Concept & Inspiration

My early inspirations included:

Doodle Jump – single-input vertical jumping gave me ideas for bounce-focused movement.

Super Mario – its obstacle-based progression helped me shape level flow.

Celeste / Hollow Knight – taught me about responsive physics and player skill expression.

Real-life sports – like shuttle runs and return swimming, gave me the idea of time-limited, back-and-forth movement.

I imagined a fish-like creature (Mooli) who has to leave water, grab a duck wing, and return within 20 seconds. This survival constraint became the backbone of all gameplay.

Early Prototype

The first version had:

5 tutorial levels

2 obstacles (spikes & saws)

1 moving platform

A single goal: eat the duck wing and return safely.

Players were introduced to mechanics one by one, with a slow difficulty ramp. I paid attention to:

Death reasons (e.g., time ran out, hit a trap)

Path choices and shortcuts

Clarity of feedback when failing

Expanding Mechanics

To push beyond the prototype, I designed new features to increase variety and depth:

Time Refresh Water
→ Extends the 20-second survival window and makes longer levels possible.
Bouncetraps
→ Adds vertical mobility and allows precision jump challenges.
Teleport Pipes + Switches
→ Adds spatial puzzles. Some pipes only work after hitting a button.
Platform & Map Rotation
→ Requires players to re-interpret geometry and adapt mid-run.
Enemy AI: The Parrot
→ Adds a second countdown mechanic. If the parrot escapes, you fail.
Night Mode
→ Limits vision to increase tension and memory-based movement.

All of these are introduced level by level in a “one feature at a time” design structure, inspired by Nintendo-style level pacing.

Level Design Process

For each level, I followed this loop:

Introduce a new mechanic in a safe space
Test the player’s understanding in a low-stakes puzzle
Challenge them in a high-risk setup
Combine the new mechanic with old ones

Example:

Level 6 introduces a pipe puzzle that looks solvable but requires using a switch.
Level 7 teaches switch logic, then subverts it by changing what the button controls.
Level 10 combines everything (parrot, dark mode, pipes, and alternate paths) in a final “exam level.”