Setup
Two teams of three spawn on opposite sides of the arena. The Power Ball appears at the center of the field.
Case study · 2022—2024
Ring City
Champions
A fast-paced 3v3 multiplayer hero shooter built around a competitive ball objective.
- Role
- Game Director · Game Design Lead · Game Engineer
- Team
- 30+ people
- Project development
- Dec 2022 — Apr 2024
- Engine
- Unity
Character illustration by Sydney Price · Character co-designed with Teri Zhang for Ring City Champions.
01 / Match premise
A 3v3 shooter built around the Power Ball.
In a futuristic coliseum, two teams of three compete to control the Power Ball and escort it into the opposing goal.
Players select Champions with distinct abilities, movement, and combat styles. A round can be won by sending the Power Ball into the opposing team’s goal or by eliminating the whole opposing team.
As project lead and game design lead, I created the original game design document, defined the game pillars and core mechanics, and worked with the team from pitch through production.
Gameplay video
See the experience in action.
Original Ring City Champions gameplay capture. The case study below describes the mechanics and design decisions shown in the capture.
02 / Core game mechanic
From setup to score.
The match is built around a contested Power Ball: secure it, create an opening, and convert that control into a point.
The original system design defines a round through four connected states.
Secure the ball
Picking it up reveals the holder’s location to the entire enemy team. If the holder is eliminated, the ball drops and becomes contestable.
Shoot or score
The holder can shoot the Power Ball forward. A ball that reaches the opposing goal awards a point and resets the arena.
Team wipe
Eliminating all three opposing players simultaneously awards a point and resets the round.
01SetupTeams spawn and the Power Ball enters the field.
02ContestSecure the Power Ball while its holder is revealed to opponents.
03CoordinateUse combat, movement, and passing to open a route.
04Score or wipeReach the goal or eliminate the opposing team, then reset.
03 / Round system
Two ways to win a point.
A match is organized into two halves, with overtime if the score is tied. Each round returns players to the same contested objective, so tactical choices reset while the score carries forward.
Goal
Send the Power Ball into the opposing team’s goal to score and reset the arena.
Team wipe
Eliminate all three opposing players simultaneously to claim the point.
Overtime
If both teams are tied after two halves, the match continues into overtime.
04 / Level design
Ring City Colosseum.
The arena uses a symmetrical layout so both teams begin with equivalent terrain and routes. Different areas support different playstyles: elevated positions create high-ground opportunities, while the objective and routes keep teams moving together.
Two goals, one contested objectiveTeams escort the Power Ball into the opposing goal and can pass it among teammates.
Team movement as a design problemThe ball carrier is revealed to opponents, giving teammates a reason to escort and opponents a reason to intercept.
Capture ZonesSix zones on each side create twelve possible objectives. One activates each round; controlling it grants a round-long bonus.
HEALTH+10% maximum health
SPEED+5% movement speed
GOALDouble the next goal
05 / Champion system
Four tactical roles.
Each Champion is defined by a weapon, ability kit, and base stats. Together, the roles support a range of team compositions.
Brawler
A close-range fighter designed to win one-on-one duels and clear space around the objective.
Defender
A tank role that creates safety for allies, blocks attacks with shields, and protects the goal.
Sniper
A long-range assassin that punishes exposed targets and forces enemy positioning.
Striker
A high-mobility role that flanks, bursts targets, and evades enemies.
Damage output / durability
LOW DAMAGE → HIGH DAMAGEHIGH DURABILITYLOW DURABILITYStrikerSniperBrawlerDefender
Damage and durability separate the role identities.
Crowd control / mobility
LOW MOBILITY → HIGH MOBILITYWEAK CONTROLSTRONG CONTROLStrikerBrawlerDefenderSniper
The second axis shows the complementary trade-offs across the roster.
06 / Character ability system
A four-part Champion kit.
Every Champion combines a unique weapon with four abilities that create distinct movement, combat, and teamwork choices.
Passive
An ability that remains active without a cooldown or resource cost.
Basic ability
The first manually activated tool, designed around information, damage, or area control.
Basic ability
A second cooldown-based option that extends a Champion’s tactical choices.
Ultimate
Built through action, damage, and scoring; powerful enough to be used only a few times per match.
07 / Champion ability design
Blizz, the Striker.
Blizz is a high-mobility Striker designed around speed, precision, and evasive combat. She is a high-skill-ceiling character: fast reflexes and mechanical mastery enable high-risk, high-reward plays.
Her signature ability, Curve Ball, bends the Power Ball along a controlled arc. It can create unexpected scoring angles, safely pass to teammates, redirect threats, and help Blizz recover the ball.
08 / Production
From pitch to production.
Pitch
I created the original design documentation and game pillars, then collaborated with two artists to pitch the game to faculty. It was selected as one of four projects from twelve pitches.
Initial production
With a team of more than twenty people, we refined the core systems. I also developed a playable multiplayer prototype independently.
Final production
I oversaw asset and gameplay development, helped onboard engineers, and collaborated with UI/UX designers as the project moved toward its final build.
09 / My contribution
Leading design across disciplines.
Game direction
Led a 30+ person team from prototype to production; defined the gameplay vision, character classes, and combat roles.
Systems & prototype
Created the initial game design documentation, core mechanics, a paper prototype, and a playable multiplayer prototype in Unity.
Level & iteration
Whiteboxed Ring City Colosseum to establish scale, flow, pathing, and combat goals; supervised iterations through team review and player feedback.
Diverse Champions representing a wide variety of playstyles and real-world communities.
Fast-paced combat designed around dynamic battlefields and immediate player decisions.
A team-based ball objective combined with a third-person character shooter, built for coordinated play.
10 / Team credits
Made by a cross-disciplinary team.
Ring City Champions was developed by a 30+ person team across game design, programming, environment art, character art, UI/UX, music, animation, and production. The poster records the team behind the Spring 2024 project.
Original Ring City Champions team poster · ENTD Spring ’24