Explore an exciting world through the safety of your fishbowl. Visit strange new friends and unlock other powers to help you on your travels.

With a brand new set of wheels, the little fish can now walk on land! Use the WASD keys or Space Bar to move and jump.

Use your magic aura to attract nearby objects or push dangerous obstacles away.

After noticing how large the ocean is from his home in the coral reef, a little fish swims over to his mother, the Goddess of the Sea, and asks, “What is out there?”. She replies, “The world is your oyster waiting to be explored.” Through her wisdom and love, the Goddess of the Sea created a machine in which the fish can travel the world. “This is your home. You can come back to visit whenever you want. I’ll be waiting here, for now, go out and discover what the world has to offer.”

I am currently studying for my Masters of Arts in Game Development at the Academy of Arts in San Francisco. For the final project of the first semester, I was assigned to design gameplay mechanics and create a game.

I grew up playing platformers like Rayman, Gex, Sonic, and Mario and wanted to make a game where you can move through obstacles and collect items. Even though Out of Water is a very simple and small game, I have been able to appreciate more than ever how video games are made. I have also noticed how difficult and complex they are, requiring game designers such as myself to wear many hats to complete development.

I had an amazing childhood filled with video games. I owned a PlayStation and enjoyed Rayman for its outstanding art direction and Gex for its fun and witty humor. I played Sonic on Sega Genesis when I visited my cousins in San Francisco and Mario on the Super Nintendo when I traveled to visit my cousins in El Salvador.

I created a character who can release an aura from his body. This aura can do all sorts of things like pull objects (coins) in, or push heavy or dangerous objects (enemies) away. This aura can also be a shield to protect you from obstacles such as fire or sharp objects. 

The aura can change colors depending on the power that is selected. Auras have a certain range but can grow when the player collects enough of an item (caviar) to upgrade. Finally, auras can only be used for a limited amount of time before losing their effect. Once depleted of energy, there is a short delay before being able to use it again.

During development, I noticed something interesting. Just as writer’s block, I had focused primarily on building an exciting mechanic before brainstorming and conceptualizing what or who the character would be. A colleague reminded me not to forget about conceptualizing and helped me by developing art assets for the game. This not only created a unique character but also helped me further build a world and the mechanics of the game. 

The following are concept art developed for the video game Out of Water. (Thank you, Sam!)