Fantasy Cats

Turn-Based Tactical Dungeon Crawling with a Purr-sonal Twist

Core Statement

Fantasy Cats is a turn-based dungeon crawler featuring upgradable cat characters in strategic combat scenarios. Designed to reward tactical decision-making over randomness, the game emphasizes player choice and progression from start to boss battle.

Who this game is for

  • Fans of tactical turn-based combat (Monsters Den, Darkest Dungeon)

  • Players who enjoy RPG mechanics and progression systems

  • Cat lovers seeking a whimsical yet challenging experience

Design intent

What I set out to Create

Fantasy Cats was designed to showcase my ability to craft engaging, tactical combat systems that reward player planning. From selecting your team of cats to choosing upgrades, every choice impacts your road to the boss fight.

Combat Design Goals

Strategic Depth: Players must think tactically about team composition and ability use.

Minimized RNG: Victory relies on player choices, not luck, with only rewards being randomized.

Progression: Each win offers meaningful upgrades, allowing players to tailor their strategy.

Additive Design

Started with a basic prototype focusing solely on the combat loop. Early builds included only four characters and limited abilities to establish a solid foundation.

Gradually expanded the game by adding enemy AI, additional abilities, randomized rewards, and progression mechanics to enrich the experience.

My Design Process:

Iterative playtesting

Conducted playtesting in an academic environment to gather rapid feedback.

Refined enemy AI to make encounters dynamic and challenging without becoming overwhelming.

Balanced abilities and rewards to ensure unique playstyles for each cat character.

Features

and

Progression

Early Prototype with all combat only being seen in Unity Console

Current Features:

  • Six playable characters with unique abilities

  • Diverse enemy types, including a final boss

  • Tactical turn-based combat focusing on player choice

  • Randomized rewards after victories

Current Version showing all available characters, Art made with Midjourney AI

Future Updates:

  • Improved UX for targeting/actions

  • Enhanced ability visuals for better player feedback

  • Expanded enemy roster and player upgrades

Reflection and Impact

  • Designed a scalable combat system with a clear progression loop.

  • Learned to balance accessibility with challenge through iterative testing.

  • Developed a deeper understanding of how to reward player choice in tactical combat.

*Art assets created with MidJourney (Generative AI) for prototyping purposes.