My Roles
Project Manager
Lead Designer
Lead Programmer (C#)
Developed in
Unity Engine
Duration
Platform
4 Months
PC
Release
Student Project
December 2024
Intro
Flashes of Madness is a Horror puzzle experience set inside an asylum in the 1940s. Where the core mechanic was the flashlight — a tool that could not only reveal the environment, but also make objects disappear and be revealed
The challenge was to:
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Create immersive horror atmosphere with light as both a tool and a threat.
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Ensure puzzles remained engaging and consistent in a tense environment.
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Provide players with clear objectives while maintaining mystery and dread.,
Design Approach
Narrative & Setting
Narrative and Setting are really important for horror games to incite curiosity on the player.
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Cotton Asylum: Inspired by mid-20th-century psychiatric institutions, notorious for cruel and experimental treatments.
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Lore Delivery: Environmental storytelling (records, collectibles, hallucinations) revealed the truth about both the asylum and the patient’s trauma.
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Psychological Ambiguity: Events left unclear whether they were real or hallucinations, tying into the theme of unreliable perception.
Core Loop
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Enter Room – The player explores the asylum wing.
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Solve Puzzle – Uses flashlight abilities to manipulate objects.
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Reward – Collects a key as proof of progress.
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Return to Hub – Unlocks one of the asylum’s main locks.
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Repeat – Continue until all locks are removed and the asylum exit is revealed.
This repeatable structure gave the game consistency, ensuring players always understood the relationship between puzzles, keys, and progress.
Flashlight Mechanics
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Reveal Hidden Objects – Light exposed elements not visible otherwise.
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Erase Objects – Shining the light too long could remove obstacles.
Puzzle Integration – Every challenge required creative use of flashlight states.
The flashlight was designed as a multi-purpose verb to keep puzzles fresh without bloating the control scheme.
Iteration and Feedback
The Problem
Playtesting showed that many players felt confused about their ultimate goal, leading to frustration despite enjoying the puzzle mechanics.
The Solution
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Key & Lock System: Introduced visible locks at the hub exit, signaling the need to collect keys. This gave players a tangible measure of progress.
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Tutorial Segment: A short introduction at the start taught flashlight mechanics and goal structure in a safe environment.
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Consistent Loop: Repeated the “enter room → solve puzzle → collect key → unlock hub” pattern to reinforce clarity.
The Result
Players reported a stronger sense of direction and satisfaction, with the lock system providing both narrative symbolism and gameplay structure.
Skills Applied
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System Design: Structured a clear puzzle → reward → hub loop to maintain progression clarity.
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Technical Design:
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Implemented flashlight mechanics using lights and shaders in Unity.
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Created objects with dual states (hidden/revealed, present/erased).
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Level Design: Built escalating puzzle complexity tied to flashlight interactions.
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Narrative Design: Wove historical asylum practices (lobotomies, steam cabinets, shock therapy) into lore and horror setpieces.
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User Testing & Iteration: Analyzed playtest confusion and solved it with tutorials and progression cues.
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Atmosphere & Horror Design: Balanced puzzles with tension through scare factors, light control, and environmental storytelling.
Outcome
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Delivered a horror puzzle prototype with a unique flashlight-driven mechanic.
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Achieved a balance of atmospheric storytelling and mechanical clarity.
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Demonstrated ability to blend technical systems (lighting/shaders) with narrative immersion.
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Reinforced design through feedback-driven iteration, ensuring player goals were always understandable.