*Note: Due to NDA, internal documents and specific code logic cannot be shared. This case study focuses exclusively on my foundational system design, mechanic synergies, and level blockouts.*
Take your flying factory into space, coordinate with your team, and smuggle illegal cargo under pressure.
AOA: Space Scrap Smugglers is a physics-driven, 4-player co-op asteroid mining simulator. Players pilot individual spacecraft equipped with Gravity Beams while collectively managing a massive, shared cargo carrier known as the FORGE. The core challenge is not combat, but physics-based coordination under pressure.
The Gravity Beam strictly enforces team play through mass and physics.
In early prototyping, highly skilled solo players could dominate the session, carrying cargo and steering the main ship themselves while leaving the rest of the team as mere spectators.
I documented strict physics constraints for the shared carrier (the FORGE) and the primary player tool. 1 Player holding heavy cargo = Extremely slow, unstable movement. 2+ Players attaching beams = Fast, stabilized movement.
This simple rule acts as the signature co-op mechanic. It brutally punishes lone-wolf play, forces vocal communication, and creates dramatic "wait for me!" moments under time pressure.
In the GDD, I intentionally restricted the game to a single core multipurpose tool: The Gravity Beam (G-Beam). Rather than giving players specific keys for specific locks, depth and complexity emerge from how players use this single tool to solve spatial problems together.
Players must attach multiple G-Beams to drag, swing, and throw heavy space junk toward the FORGE.
Design Goal: Make cargo extraction physics-driven and reliant on teamwork for alignment and stability.
The FORGE acts as a massive moving obstacle. Multiple players must provide directional input simultaneously to steer it.
Design Goal: If inputs are mismatched, the carrier stalls or drifts. This forces rhythm and communication to navigate.
The G-Beam isn't just for hauling loot—it can be used to pull debris aside, clear paths, or manage illegal cargo emitting detection heat.
Design Goal: Player-made puzzle solving that turns the environment into an interactive sandbox.
Forced tutorials ruin the pacing of party games. I drafted an onboarding flow built entirely on Environmental Affordances to teach players spaceship piloting naturally.
The foundational loop designed to organically teach mechanics.
To manage production scope, I created top-down level layouts using a Hub-and-Spoke topology. The Hub is 100% safe. The Spokes are linear, standalone missions. Below is my layout logic for the early graybox blockouts of the "Training Spoke."
A calm open area connected directly from the Hub portal, filled with small floating asteroids and clear visibility. There is absolutely no cargo or time pressure here.
Player Outcome: "I understand how my spaceship moves in space."Players are introduced to the large FORGE carrier. The path gradually narrows using massive asteroid walls, forcing players to ride the carrier grid and move together as a single unit.
Player Outcome: "I understand how to coordinate shared movement."The area opens up. Regular training cargo is placed clearly in view. Players must use the Gravity Beam to attach, align, and drop the cargo successfully into the carrier grid slots.
Player Outcome: "I understand the primary cargo interaction loop."Players encounter a blocked passage made of scrap and debris. They must realize that their tools can be used to pull debris aside to open the golden path forward.
Player Outcome: "I can use my tools to solve environmental puzzles."