Pod Brnem

Project Overview

Pod Brnem is a simulation game reminiscent of Papers, Please, but set in the gritty environment of an underground Brno bar. Created over a single weekend for the Brno Game Jam 2024, the game is fully playable in the browser.

Our team’s hard work paid off, as the game ranked 3rd place overall, winning us several prizes at the event.

Gameplay & Core Mechanics

Players take on the role of a bouncer tasked with verifying the identities and credentials of guests trying to enter the club. To make each playthrough unique, the game relies heavily on dynamically generated content and logical deduction:

• Procedural Face Generation: Instead of static images, NPC faces are constructed modularly. The core gameplay loop revolves around comparing the physical face of the NPC standing in front of you with the photo on their ID card.
• Dynamic Identity Deduction: The system was programmed so that facial features on an ID card might differ slightly from the actual person (e.g., a different haircut or facial hair). The player must carefully deduce whether a feature could naturally change over time to determine if the ID is real or stolen.
• Complex Rule Engine: Beyond just matching faces, I implemented a robust, modular validation engine. Players must check document control sums, validity dates, age limits, birth numbers, and even specific university affiliations on student (ISIC) cards.

Technical Architecture

Under the hood, the game was built using advanced Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) principles to ensure scalability within the short game jam timeframe:

• Event-Driven Systems: Conversations and gameplay states are managed through an event-driven architecture, decoupling the UI from the core logic and allowing for randomized, varied guest encounters.
• Data vs. Presentation: Game data (like ID cards and NPC stats) is strictly separated from its visual representation in the UI, utilizing ScriptableObjects to manage states efficiently.
• State-Driven UI: The dialogue interface utilizes structured animator controllers, providing smooth, state-driven entrance and idle animations that enhance the narrative pacing.

Audio & Atmosphere

In addition to programming these core mechanics, I also served as the game’s composer. During the 48-hour jam, I composed the music and produced localized, thematic soundscapes (such as the main menu theme and the ambient background tracks) to perfectly capture the eerie, underground vibe of the Brno club scene.

Team & Roles

While game jam development is inherently collaborative and we all tackled various challenges together, we divided our primary responsibilities to work efficiently within the 48-hour limit:

• Vladimír Žbánek: Programming (Dialogue System, Gameplay)
• Martin Horak: Programming (UI)
• Vojtěch Brůža: Programming (Generative Faces, Rules Matching), Music Composition
• dwe: Art, Programming (Visuals)