Introduction

Groundshel is the protagonist of an indie game that I am working on. She is a chimera that contains two sets of DNA — one is from a groundhog and the other one is from me. She is not only a great housekeeper but also an adventurer. In order to save her lover and defend her homeland, she packed fruits and decided to start a difficult journey.

This game is still in development. A formal announcement will be made on a gaming platform when it is ready to be released.

Design

The screaming groundhog footage from several years ago became a popular meme on the internet. People were amused by the small animal’s cuteness. However, the act of screaming by a groundhog is actually a signal to warn its family members that danger is around their colony. In that footage, the threat is from human activities.

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Since 2019, a YouTube channel called “Chunk the Groundhog” has presented a peaceful coexistence between groundhogs and people. It also allows us to observe this species’ behaviors without intruding into their habitat. Inspired by Chunk, I made a GIF on the Groundhog Day of 2021.

And afterward, I started developing the concept of this game. I designed a groundhog-like role and the “enemies” that she will meet in different scenes. I also wrote scripts for the entire story and drafted each scene.

When the main mechanics has been designed, I created the beta version game in Unity and coded it with C#. I also designed Groundshel’s home based on the structure of groundhogs’ burrows in the real world.

NFT Art

Some of the interesting moments that I recorded when making the game were also minted as NFT artworks with the UniArts Network.