Brayden Riddell
Video Game Designer
Game Description
Experience the revolutionary MMO Club Penguin reimagined in Minecraft! ClubMinePenguin was created as a passion project to breakdown the design philosophy, systems/mechanics, and community involvement that made Club Penguin so great. From building, drawing, modeling, and programming everything from scratch in Minecraft, our ongoing recreation is available to play as we continue to re-create everything the original game had.
Featured Contributions
The idea for ClubMinePenguin was conceived when I was in 7th grade while I was with my family touring colleges in New York for my older sister.
Intent
The concept of "shutterbuds" was developed bottom up, creating the game loop around the simple idea of taking photographs. Within the first sprint, I prototyped a handheld camera item with base functionality that proved the fun and feasibility of the concept.
​
I followed the iteration of the camera throughout the entirety of the project and handled all in-engine implementation. Additionally, I handled all bug fixing related to the camera.
Prototyping & Iteration
To prove functionality for the idea of taking pictures, I drafted up a systems list and a UI sketch for a proposed camera item. When it got team approval, I headed into engine to prototype a camera item the player could pick up and aim to frame their shot, adjust properties such as zoom, flash, & photo timer, and ability to snap a picture and save it to their computer. Using a placeholder camera model made by our prop artist, this was done all within the two weeks.
​
Testing feedback showed the camera handling to be pretty smooth, however there were some issues with how the final photograph turned out which I later identified and fixed.
​
As the game developed, we wanted to play into the social and self expression aspect of game design. This was already supported by the camera, but one suggestion we kept seeing through testing is that testers really wanted to take fun selfies. Because of this, I made the camera able to be flipped in the player's hands. However this created a new problem: the player's couldn't tell what was in frame. With our intended experience falling into the "Easy Fun" category of Lazzaro's 4 Keys to Fun, we wanted to eliminate any potential frustration with the core mechanic. My solution was a pop-up view port that would enable when the camera is flipped so that players can frame their picture accordingly.​​
Initial Camera UI Sketch
Initial Camera Usage QA Results
(QA results compiled by Cooper Thronson)
Initial Selfie Mode
Final Selfie Mode Implementation
Camera Actions section of the Systems & Mechanics List
Application is no longer available.
Retrospective
"shutterbuds" was a dream project where I got to thrive as a technical designer, bridging game design and programming while refining UX through game loop integration and playful game feel touches.
In our first semester, we built a playable demo and survived a competitive greenlight process. Once approved, our team doubled in size, and I was elected Lead Designer. I continued contributing technically and in user experience while mentoring new designers and shaping our design direction.
Building a multiplayer open-world experience was ambitious, especially as a student capstone on top of so many other classes and responsibilities, but we successfully scoped our ideas into a manageable, whimsical experience that stayed true to our design pillars. If I had more time, I would’ve focused on optimization. performance issues on older machines remain a post-release challenge.
Despite that, I’m incredibly proud of my role in leading and designing "shutterbuds". The collaboration, creativity, and sheer fun of working with such a talented team made the journey unforgettable.
Team Members
Team Introduction Video
"shutterbuds" Interview & Presentation