Synopsis

Samantha No More is a 3D Atmospheric puzzle game. You play as Jeremy, as he navigates through an old abandoned house trying to uncover what has happened to his friend Samantha.

Project Overview

Engine: Unity 2020.1.10f1

Genre: First Person, Puzzle, Atmospheric, Horror

Release: 27th June 2022.

Timeline: 6 Weeks (16/05/2022 - 27/05/2022)

Roles: Design, Programming (C#)

Team Size: 1

Samantha No More was created within 6 weeks. I was given a brief that I had to follow and created a game around that. The brief is outlined here:

Brief:

Atmospheric 3D game.
Must be first person viewpoint.
Can be short.
Must include main characters, a pair of adventurous high school kids named Mathilda and Jeremy who are searching for their missing friend Samantha in a deserted building.

My Contributions to “Samantha No More'“

Aside from the art assets, I was solely responsible for all aspects of the project.

This included, but is not limited to;

Puzzle design
Level design
Programming C#
Narrative development based on the client’s brief.

Developed over six weeks, Samantha No More was a valuable learning experience that pushed me to rapidly improve my skills in Unity and C#. The project evolved significantly through multiple iterations, driven by feedback from playtests and client input.

Although the experience is relatively short, I’m proud of what I achieved. As my first true solo development project, it challenged me to write, debug, and implement scripts while designing the entire gameplay experience from the ground up. Despite the tight timeframe, I successfully delivered a fully playable experience by the deadline.

Level Design

Environment Scope & Iteration

The experience initially began as a large, abandoned hotel.

However during the original block-out stage and following feedback from the stakeholders, I recognised the need to scale down due to time constraints. I ended up refocusing and changing the setting to a smaller house. This allowed me to prioritise puzzle design over size, this ended up resulting in a tighter, more engaging experience.

This shift also led to a rewrite of the story and dialogue to suit the new environment—ultimately improving the level’s pacing and narrative cohesion.

As a nod to the original concept, I included a hidden Easter egg that lets players access the remnants of the hotel. But you will have to play the game and find the means for yourself.

Gameplay

This experience is structured as a single, large-scale environmental puzzle. The player’s objective is to locate Samantha’s phone, hidden in the garage. True to her character, Samantha has created a complex series of clues for her friends to solve.

Players can press F to call the phone and listen for its ringtone, which plays directionally from its static location—encouraging players to wear headphones for a more immersive experience.

To unlock the garage, players must solve a puzzle involving haunted portraits and numbered switches. Each portrait has a set of bloody handprints above it. When the player is near, the character Jeremy prompts Mathilda, who gives cryptic hints like, “Number 4 comes after number 3” or “Number 5 is third in the sequence.” Players must interpret and memorize this sequence to activate the switches correctly.

Progression is blocked by a locked door, which requires a key hidden in the bathroom. Currently, this clue is discoverable only by interacting with the toilet lid—something I would improve with better player guidance given more time.

After unlocking the hallway to the garage, players find the third switch and a breaker box. Pulling the switches in the correct order and pressing the "Test" button grants access to the garage, where one final key is required.

Once the last key is found, players enter the final room and retrieve Samantha’s phone—marking the end of the experience.