One Shelf at a Time - A First-Person Unreal Engine Game      

      While working at your local library, you must load up your book cart and push it around to shelve every newly returned book at its proper location! You can also interact with patrons and listen to their requests, which may reveal some interesting backstories. Shoot for a speedy completion time and a new high score as you immerse yourself in the hijinks of the library!                    

Purpose:

        I’m making this game to tell my story of the time I worked at my local library and how much I enjoyed the simple, repetitive task of shelving books all day. I also wanted to challenge myself by learning how to turn this experience into something fitting for a game, which is why I’m planning to add time and score mechanics that will encourage the player to strategize and optimize their playthroughs. The worldbuilding of a game is also very important to me, so there will be a few NPCs around the library that will provide some exposition to those who choose to talk to them, which should feel rewarding.

Core Gameplay:

Main Objective – Shelving Books

      The main objective of the game will revolve around the book cart that the player uses to transport books around the library. When the player approaches an open bookshelf while holding the cart, they will enter a mode where they can drag-and-drop books onto the shelf. There will be six empty bookshelves scattered around that will need to be filled to finish the game, each corresponding to a different genre of book that will be identified by signage within the library and the color of the books.

Secondary Objective – Helping Patrons

      The secondary objective of the game revolves around the NPCs and their requests for the player, which will take the form of simple “fetch quest” style tasks. Completion of NPC requests will increase the player’s customer service score.

      To have the best score overall, the player must shelve books in an organized and timely manner along with satisfying the needs of the library patrons.

Controls:

        WASD – Move left/right/forward/backwards.

        Mouse – Move camera.

        Left Click – Grab book cart.

        E - Talk to NPC.

        IN SHELVING MODE:

        Mouse – Move books between cart and shelf.

        WASD – Leave shelving mode.

Level Design:

        The library will consist of two floors, with three empty shelves on each floor. There will also be two NPCs on each floor for a total of four NPCs in the whole game. The two floors will be connected by a large stairway in the center of the library, but the book carts cannot go up or down the stairs, so if the player is holding a cart, they must use the elevators.

Sound Design:

        The game’s audio will be largely ambient to fit the library environment, featuring sounds of the book cart moving, footsteps, whispering, and books shuffling around. There may be a non-distracting background music track to provide a happy, relaxed tone to the game.