Let’s Gold: Slot Machine
Limpopo Company
Year: June 2021 – August 2021
Let’s Gold: Overview
During my early years in game development, I signed a contract with Limpopo to join their team as a junior game developer for 3 months, during which my employers supervised me on probation. At the end of the contract, the company chose not to hire me, prompting me to pursue freelance projects instead. I collaborated with three others to develop a let’s-gold slot machine game, code-named Fantastic Four. The game features both an RPG (role-playing game) and a slot machine. It is a 3-D Android and iOS mobile game that users can download from their respective stores.
Let’s Gold: Experience Working
At first, I was tasked with a simple job, like doing animation. Gradually, I progressed to creating another game called Slot Machine, with the reference game of Coin Master from the Google Play Store. The slot machine is a reward game. It randomises to give certain rewards to the player, like items, gold, characters, and clothes. I only completed the concept of the slot machine. Another collaborator finished the implementation of the final slot machine. I contributed to pressing the button of the slot machine and randomising the reward.
Learning From Collaboration
One thing I learned is how to use integer numbers. This increases the chance of getting a certain reward for the player, like an item potion in the game. This makes the game not exactly like gambling or a casino because the randomisation increases to create a threshold between the value of either gold, items, character, or clothes. Before I begin scripting the randomisation, we actually discuss how I will implement it. Because of my work on the front end, the back end also needs to explain the coding techniques before I continue working on the reward system.
Continue Working on Improvement of Slot Machine
I also learned to press, hold and release the slot button to play the slot machine. When you have the point, you can just continue playing until you release the slot button after pressing the slot button. The last task I need to do is dragging, resizing, and opening buttons for slot machines. The drag size must match other smartphone screen sizes. The dragging position must also not exceed a certain value threshold. So, closing and opening the slot machine is done by pressing this button. This all happens by scripting the user interface(UI) for the button slot machines while the newcomer is entering the workforce.
Let’s Gold: Example Main Menu
I laid out the UI for the main menu of the game with different versions using Unity version control and also working with another newcomer in collaboration. We are actually working on the same layout for the profile and most of the user interface, like coins, energy, inventory and so on. I also added the user interface window to those buttons, and whenever the player clicks them, the windows will show up. For Puro and Belly, I use the 3-D model to show them using another camera and present them with the main camera using a display texture outside the current view
Let’s Gold: Example Slot Machine Button
This is an example of the slot machine opening button for Let’s Gold. This button can be dragged around the screen. It has a limited position on the screen. This feature is copied from the platform shopee.com, according to my employer, who wanted it to have a similar function. I had to download the app on a mobile phone and test that out before copying the functionality.
Let’s Gold: Example Slot Machine
This is an example of the slot machine for Let’s Gold. There is a spin button, info, close, energy bar, and bonus energy. Info tab shows the slot machine reward type and its use. The spin button can be held, clicked, and released to make the reels spin to show the current reward. The energy bar will be reduced after every spin at the time. That energy will auto-replenish every minute; buying at the market will replenish automatically. Closing the slot machine panel will bring back the menu scene in the game
Conclusion: Working With Let’s Gold
In conclusion, I have learned many different things, like improvements in looping, conditions, Unity Engine user interface, Unity Editor, animation and back-end service related to the reward system. I also learned to work at other places of office where I met and got to know certain other employees. Though those is really a short employment, but i get numerous benefits, like the game project and experience working at another company rather than my own.
I drafted this article from my own perspective and used AI to polish the language.
Concept art (created with generative AI, touched up manually).
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