From the start, I wanted to create a top-down adventure game with a twist, and after contemplating various mechanics, I settled on the magnet mechanic of Magnetic. The mechanic I chose to base the game around had to be simple enough for my first large-scale game in Unity. While I had thought of a game based on magnets early on, the initial concept of using magnets as a pseudo-grappling hook seemed like a programming nightmare. I later settled on implementing magnets centered around using magnets as the player's method of attack by pushing or pulling enemies into pits. This concept twists the standard conventions of combat by replacing direct means of attack with manipulating enemies with magnets. Instead of larger health bars, enemies' difficulty could vary through various resistance levels to magnets.

A core inspiration to the game flow of Magnetic was certain rooms in Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past (pictured below), where the player is supposed to knock the enemies into bottomless pits. Link to the Past, these challenges are infrequent and still allow traditional attack methods to defeat the enemies. Still, I believed I could flesh out this underutilized interaction into a whole game under the mechanic of Magnets.

Magnetic was initially meant to be a traditional top-down adventure game, but the final product is a blend of a top-down adventure with a top-down shooter. The game is neither exploration-focused like Zelda nor high-scored based like many arcade shooters. The game structure Magnetic unintentionally mirrors the most is Luigi's Mansion 3 with its linear action and level-based structure.

My level design philosophy for Magnetic is centered around introducing a unique mechanic for each level. Some mechanics include metal blocks, plant enemies, bumpers, spinners, conveyor belts, ice floors, portals, and more. As the game progresses, I would twist and combine the mechanics in interesting ways resulting in creative obstacles for the player to overcome.

Magnetic's concept of using magnets for pushing and pulling enemies or objects has immense potential. I hope to revisit this game concept in the future and implement more game ideas.