Head in the Clouds

IMPORTANT: Fullscreening the web build breaks the game! Download the game for the best experience.

2023

Description

Head in the Clouds is a short game about an author delivering copies of his latest novel to his fellow villagers. As the player glides between floating islands, they come to realize that nobody actually wants to read the book. The protagonist, however, has his “head in the clouds” and believes everyone will love it.

This game is meant to comment on how artists pour their hearts into their work but often don't feel their efforts reciprocated by consumers.

Reception

Head in the Clouds received a 1st mark (94/100) with a 100/100 mark in the Production Quality category for its ironic dialogue, adaptive sound design, and atmosphere. It was also shortlisted for the Best Project award at the 2023 Interactive Media Showcase.

Development

This was a 2nd year university project developed in Unity. I aimed to create a calm, airy project with gliding, floating islands, windmills, and a breezy, dynamic soundtrack. The game draws influence from Journey, Supraland, and the Legend of Zelda franchise (namely Skyward Sword's Skyloft and Breath of the Wild's Rito Village).

As the project had to be playable in under five minutes for a university submission, many of my ideas were cut short. Further development could see new challenges like the item puzzles in Heat of the Moment.

Unfortunately, I had to scrap the pretty lighting shown in most screenshots thanks to some annoying grading computers, but you can still download the nice lighting build below. Just be aware it has been abandoned and the cheaper lighting build is the final version.