Title:

 Rocket Punch Robo Rumble 

Concept statement: 

Two rocket powered robots duel with various projectiles in this game of well-placed shots and skillful aerial dodging. 

 Genres:  

• 2D – The game will be 2D as I am more experienced in 2D game development. The concept could also be developed in 3D but 2D should still allow for enough freedom of movement and aiming for a high skill ceiling. 

• Multiplayer – The game will allow for 2 players to verse each other as the robots.  

• Single player – A player may verse an AI opponent. 

• Fighting game – While far from a traditional fighting game, I think this label fits. The player(s) will be confined to an arena in which<span class="NormalTextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <they="" will<="" span=""> fight, The UI will be similar to a standard 2D fighting game and the existence of rock-paper-scissors like mechanics encouraging prediction and counter play.</span> 

• Twin-stick shooter – While the game will not use joysticks it will be 2D and have independent movement and aiming. 

Concept creation process: 

<span class="NormalTextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <the="" game’s="" concept="" was="" inspired="" by="" mecha="" anime="" in="" general="" but="" more="" specifically="" mazinger="" z,="" getter="" robo="" and="" gurren="" laggan.="" the="" <="" span="">The game’s concept was inspired by mecha anime in general but more specifically Mazinger Z, Getter Robo and Gurren Laggan. Initial thoughts for the game were to make a tactics RPG with mecha units similar to Super Robots Wars. This idea was changed as it was advised that an RPG would be difficult to make in the timeframe provided. Instead, <span class="NormalTextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <instead,<="" span="">the game concept was developed around one of Mazinger Z’s signature attacks the Rocket Punch. This attack has the mecha’s hand detach and shoot off as a projectile us</span>ing rocket power </span>(TvTropes, n.d.).  

<span class="NormalTextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <this="" <="" span="">This led to the idea of having a competitive game where the players would play as mechas who attacked each other using rocket punches. As the game would be 2D it was decided that players would require a strong capability for vertical and horizontal movement so players could effectively dodge incoming attacks. With this in mind the game’s concept started taking form as a mecha themed mashup between a fighting game and a bullet hell. </span> 

Games that influenced this game’s concept includes Super Robot Wars 30, Lethal League, Divekick, Broforce and Terraria. Super Robot Wars 30 was an influence for its mecha setting and by featuring the Mazinger Z and Rocket Punch. Lethal League and Divekick are both influences as they are non-standard 2D fighting games that take unique approaches to the genre. Broforce is an influence for its tile-based visuals and block shaped mech design. Lastly Terraria is an influence for its possible late game 2D aerial movement used to dodge attacks. 

Of the anime that have influenced this game Mazinger Z influence has already been stated. For the others Getter Robo was influential for its Getter 3 mecha design and Gurren Laggan was influential for its drill-based attacks. 

Target audience: 

<span class="TextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <the="" target="" audience="" for="" rocket="" punch="" robo="" rumble="" is="" a="" combination="" of="" fighting="" game="" fans="" and="" mecha="" fans.<="" span=""></span>

<span class="NormalTextRun SCXW140896527 BCX0" <the="" target="" audience="" for="" rocket="" punch="" robo="" rumble="" is="" a="" combination="" of="" fighting="" game="" fans="" and="" mecha="" fans.<="" span=""></span>

The target audience for Rocket Punch Robo Rumble is a combination of fighting game fans and mecha fans. 

Fighting games have a large potential audience with games from larger franchises being able to sell millions of units. One such example is Street Fighter 6 which has sold over 4 million units since its release in June 2023 (Yin-Poole, 2024). While Rocket Punch Robo Rumble is a less conventional fighting game than Street Fighter it would still appeal to players with the same competitive nature that is brought out by such games. It will do this through skill based competitive gameplay. 

<span class="TextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <the="" game="" should="" have="" a="" high="" skill="" ceiling="" through="" the="" challenges="" of="" movement,="" aiming,="" dashes="" and="" projectile="" types.="" it="" also="" still="" be="" beginner="" friendly="" enough="" so="" that="" newcomers="" can="" learn="" to="" play="" quickly. <="" span="">The game should have a high skill ceiling through the challenges of movement, aiming, dashes and projectile types. It should also still be beginner friendly enough so that newcomers can learn to play quickly. </span>

Mecha games in comparison to fighting games is a more niche genre. However, mecha games do have their fans as can be seen with the release of Armored Core VI that sold over 3 million units (Barder, 2024). This game will appeal to mecha fans <span class="NormalTextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <through="" the="" use="" of<="" span="">as it has a mecha player character and through the use of iconic mecha attacks such as rocket punches and drill attacks.</span> 

Game treatment: 

Rocket Punch Robo Rumble has many compelling features to enjoy. 

Intense skillful gameplay – The game will layer multiple mechanics to engage the player(s) in its gameplay.  

Tactical use of multiple arm-based weapons – The game will feature 3 different arm-based weapons for the player(s) to swap between. These are rocket punch, drill-bit launch and plasma ball. Each weapon will have a unique flight path and weapon damage. They will also each have a timed cool down to stop the player(s) from spamming the same weapon and encourage the player(s) to swap between weapons. 

<span class="NormalTextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <the="" weapons="" will="" also="" have="" rock-paper-scissors="" like="" mechanics="" for="" when="" they="" collide="" with="" each="" other.="" certain="" projectiles="" destroy="" other="" projectiles.="" this="" would="" occur="" <="" span="">The weapons will also have rock-paper-scissors like mechanics for when they collide with each other. Certain projectiles will destroy other projectiles. This would occur mid-flight as well as when the weapon is still attached to the player(s) arm. This would allow the weapons to be used defensively as well as offensively. The planned outcomes would be like this:</span> 

Rocket punch > Plasma ball

Plasma ball > Drill bit launch

Drill bit launch > Rocket punch 

Fly and boast around the arena – The player(s) will be piloting jet powered mecha and will be able move around the arena both vertically and horizontally. This will allow the players to move dodge incoming enemy fire. The player(s) will also have a boast available for when they need to escape from tight spots. The boast will have a significant cooldown to encourage tactical usage. 

Play with friends or against AI – The game will allow for player(s) to verse each other locally using the same keyboard.  

<span class="NormalTextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <the="" game="" will="" also="" feature="" the="" <="" span="">The game will also feature an option to play against an AI opponent. This AI will move the enemy around the map, attempt to dodge the player’s attacks and fire back at the player with predictive aiming. </span> 

Sound effects and AI music – The game will feature various sound effects for the different movement and the different attacks of the game. The game will also feature AI music during the battles. 

Art and visuals – The game will feature game visuals in a similar style to the game Broforce. The art will not be <span class="NormalTextRun SCXW112291802 BCX0" <the="" art="" will="" not="" be="" <="" span="">as detailed but will have a cartoon like aesthetic. </span> 

Concept Art:

A rough mock-up of 2 players versing each other. Not reflective of actual planned art but illustrates planned UI and gameplay. 

On the left is an image of Getter-3 from Getter Robo and on the right is an Armored Mook from Broforce (Ishikawa & Nagai, n.d.; Free Lives Pty Ltd, n.d.). The design of the player(s) of Rocket Punch Robo Rumble will be like a combination of these <span class="NormalTextRun SCXW40520133 BCX0" <these<="" span="">two designs.</span> 

This<span class="NormalTextRun SCXW49029646 BCX0" <this="" image="" is="" from="" <="" span=""></span> image is from Broforce (Free Lives Pty Ltd & Kupetsky, 2023). While not identical to the planned appearance for Rocket Punch Robo Rumble the look of the background and the look of the rockets in the evokes what the game would ideally look like.

This image is from HARDCORE MECHA (RocketPunch Games, n.d.). It shows 2D gameplay of a mecha floating in the air while shooting at an enemy. Its gameplay looks very similar to what Rocket Punch Robo Rumble is attempting to achieve.

References

Barder, O. (2024, July 26). “Armored Core VI” Sales Have Reached 3 Million. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/olliebarder/2024/07/26/armored-core-vi-sales-have-r...

Free Lives Pty Ltd. (n.d.). Armored Mook image [Online]. In broforce.fandom.com

Free Lives Pty Ltd, & Kupetsky, N. (2023). Image of Broforce gameplay. [Online]. In steamdeckhq.com

Ishikawa, K., & Nagai, G. (n.d.). Getter-3 image [Online]. In getterrobo.fandom.com

RocketPunch Games. (n.d.). Image of gameplay from HARDCORE MECHA [Online]. In store.steampowered.com

TvTropes. (n.d.). Rocket Punch. Tv Tropes. Retrieved September 11, 2024, from https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RocketPunch

Yin-Poole, W. (2024, September 6). Street Fighter 6 Now on 4 Million Sales, Matching Mortal Kombat 1 - IGN. IGN; IGN. https://www.ign.com/articles/street-fighter-6-now-on-4-million-sales-matching-mo...