2023 Game Release Recap
SMU Guildhall has welcomed the Steam release of three student-made games in the 2022-2023 academic year. These games were created as part of the SMU Guildhall Team Game Production curriculum, which emulates cross-disciplinary studio development in the same style and pace of industry standards. SeaFeud was created by Cohort 22, and Light of Alariya and Conjury Revell were created by Cohort 32 as the final Capstone releases from that cohort.
Conjury Revell
Conjury Revell is a first-person shooter with wave-based arena combat over three levels, each with their own distinct environment. Play as a rebellious dissident fighting to rid their world of magical oppression and forge a better future for their city in the clouds.
This game was developed by a 27-person student team from SMU Guildhall over the course of six months, as part of the program's capstone Team Game Project (TGP) curriculum. The game also features a fully orchestrated soundtrack created in collaboration with the music team from SMU Meadows School of the Arts, which was created over the course of three months and featured in their Emerging Sounds concert.
Diverse Magical Arsenal
Switch between 3 different spells and gravity powers to make the arenas work for you to defeat overwhelming numbers attempting to halt your rebellion. Choose between Ice, Fire, and Lightning spells with calculated precision to destroy your foes.
City in the clouds
Fight between city streets and above the clouds on airships as you assault your foes. Explore a gothic steampunk world and save the city.
Visceral frenetic combat
Shooter gameplay that keeps you on your toes. Dash, jump, and blast your way through anyone who stands in your way. Use your environment against your foes to keep them at bay while you charge up a powerful spell to eviscerate them.
Download & Play on Steam
Light of Alariya
Light of Alariya is an open-world, third-person, exploration puzzle game in which you traverse the ancient alien temples and ruins to restore the power of the stars and awaken your sleeping civilization.
Alariya was once a quiet and peaceful desert town. Soothsayers foresaw a terrible storm that would last for centuries, so all the townspeople decided to fall asleep until it passed. However, as the world decayed over time, the ancient temples that focused the power of the stars began to crumble leaving the world's goddess, Ari, with only enough power to wake up one young hero, Rumi.
With Ari's help, Rumi must realign the Constellation Crystals in each of Alariya's three Star Temples to give Ari enough power to wake everyone up. In her exploration, Rumi discovers a series of notes, memories, and murals that help her uncover the mysteries of Alariya.
Light of Alariya was developed over a 6-month production timeline from May to December 2022 by a team of 27 master's students from SMU Guildhall as part of the program's capstone Team Game Project (TGP) curriculum, along with 26 musicians and voice talent from SMU Meadows School of the Arts. Light of Alariya marks several ambitious "firsts"—it is SMU Guildhall's first open-world game, and was the first game built in Unreal Engine 5.
Features:
- Single-player, open-world exploration game
- Playtime (main story): 1-2 hours
- Playtime (full exploration): 3-4 hours
- Made in Unreal Engine 5
- Original music score
Download & Play on Steam
SeaFeud
SeaFeud is an underwater arcade racing game where players race on fish and dynamically change their “vehicle” stats by colliding and swapping with other fish on the course. While in typical racing games, players select their vehicle or customize their vehicle prior to starting the game, SeaFeud switches things up by defaulting everyone to a basic fish at the beginning of the race. Throughout the race, the player can swap to other fish, giving them a statistical edge. While on these fish, their stamina will run down before swapping back, encouraging the player to try different playstyles.
Four funky fish types:
There are four types of fish in the game, each with unique abilities and access to unique items. The default fish (Mahi Mahi) has basic turning, speed, and acceleration stats and access to the entire item pool. The Electric Eel has better speed than the default fish, better turning, and the ability to boost forward while leaving a wall of electricity behind. As a defensive fish, the eel can pick up and shoot forward bombs to impede those in front of them. The Swordfish, though having the worst acceleration, has one of the highest speeds. Riding this fish will give the players the passive ability to attack players that are within range and boost quickly ahead. As an offensive fish, swordfish can pick up and drop a whirlpool item that lingers on the course and slows anyone who runs into it. The Pufferfish gives the players a defensive ability by expanding and pushing any opposition away. It also is immune to any attacks while using this ability. Pufferfish pick up a boost item and use it to launch ahead of their enemies.
Three sunken courses:
Navigate through three beautiful underwater courses: Express-wave, Sea-nic Drive, and Night Fishtrict. These courses display a post-apocalyptic city that has been engulfed by rising sea levels. They feature decayed skyscrapers covered with algae and are populated with colorful sea life sprawling the seafloor.
Eight zany characters:
There are eight different characters that the player can choose from, all distinct with their own unique features and names, from Bruno the scuba shark to Kat the feline diver.
Download & Play on Steam