MELCHER STUDIOS
Platforms:
Mobile, VR,
and AR platforms
Engine:
Unity
Team Size:
2–5
Role:
Game Developer
Overview:
As a Game Developer at Melcher Studios, I devoted my time to designing, developing, and publishing a variety of games and interactive experiences for a range of public and private sector clients. Projects included various VR training simulations for industrial and educational use, as well as AR marketing tools for mobile platforms and the HoloLens.
My efforts were involved in many stages of the development life-cycle, from designing initial UI/UX and core game loops, to programming and implementing those ideas in order to turn them into functioning products. I was also sometimes responsible for creating art assets such as UI elements and icons, and other miscellaneous marketing materials such as videos of level flythroughs.
Some notable clients include:
Enclave Ventures
One project I worked on was a suite of interactive marketing tools for Enclave Ventures, a private real estate investment company. These interactive experiences have been developed for use on many different platforms including PC, mobile, VR, and AR platforms like the HoloLens, and I had a hand in designing and developing for each of them. Some of these experiences are currently only available for private use, but a public collection for mobile platforms can be found on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
To date, we developed these cross-platform interactive experiences for four different Enclave Ventures real estate properties, each an undertaking in its own right.
Some of the real-world properties you can virtually tour, either with a VR headset or with standard controls on PC or mobile, all of which I had a hand in designing and developing for.
Another flavor of our virtual tours instead takes advantage of AR functionality, allowing users to manipulate virtual models superimposed onto real-world space using gestures, click on hotspots to learn more about key features of the properties, and access a sales web page to accelerate the purchasing process. Developed for mobile platforms and the HoloLens (which was a very interesting learning experience!).
Saskatchewan Polytechnic
Another project I worked on is a virtual training simulation for Saskatchewan Polytechnic’s School of Nursing, which tests students’ knowledge of course material, medical treatments, and proper protocol when treating patients.
Patient attached to IV pump and ECG monitor. The player must correctly interpret the heart rhythms displayed on the monitor, and then provide the patient with the correct medical treatment.
There were two versions of the game developed, one for WebGL to played in web browsers for when students are studying at home, and another for VR (as demonstrated in the video above) for use in a classroom setting.
Nutrien
There is also a third project I designed and developed for Nutrien, a major mining company that is also the largest producer of potash in the world. It is a VR training simulation currently being used to teach new employees about specific safety protocols in the workplace environment. In the game, players must first complete tasks following proper protocol, and then complete a short quiz which further tests their knowledge on the topic.
Excavated tunnels and digger as seen in the training simulation.
In the game, the player must check for weak spots and loose material on the roof by listening to the sound of impact when tapping it with a long, metal bar. If they tap the ceiling without identifying the weak spot and then walk underneath it, the ceiling will collapse on them.
As part of our research, we toured the Nutrien-owned Lanigan mine, where we descended over 1,000 meters below the Earth’s surface.