Vainglory

Updated: Sep 22, 2022

Here are some of the heroes that I have worked on:

SAMUEL

Samuel was the first Vainglory hero I worked on, the character concept already existed, and I had to create a dual wand wielding dark mage
I focused on showcasing the dual wand aspect of his concept, his first ability Malice & Verdict
This ability allowed Samuel to shot two different projectiles at a target location (with a delay between shots). Also, Samuel was able to reposition before the second projectile was shot.
This ability was new and unique; it allowed for exciting counterplay as opposing players could interrupt or dodge the second projectiles.
I was quickly given a crash course into Super Evil Megacorp's proprietary engine and was then left to implement my design. With my engineering background, I was quickly able to navigate my way around their code base and create a unique gameplay mechanic

Flicker was the second hero I worked on and was given more freedom with his concept
I decided to go with a Stealth type hero. Prior to Flicker, only two stealth existed; however, both used "Combat Stealth" to remove pressure from themselves and to eventually reengage.
Flicker, on the other hand, used "Preparation Stealth," which players had to preemptive use before combat
It lasted longer, which allowed Flicker players to collect information from enemy heroes
Flicker and his teammates could then capitalize on this information and eliminate enemy heroes out of position
Flicker was not great in a one-versus-one situation, his ability to scout lead to more team plays and has reshaped the flow of any game he is present in

Grumpjaw was an exciting development. I had more runway to help with his initial concept; he initially started more gorilla-like. I worked closely with the Art Director to make him a quadrupedal and asked for his giant pincers, so create a unique look that fits with his kit.
He ultimately uses his pincer to grab and consume his targets, creating a new crowd control archetype.
As for his other abilities, I ran into some technical issue with the timing of his dash attack Grumpjaw has an ability that allowed him to dash towards a location; then if the player uses that ability again, he would stop and attack in the area in front of him. Due to latency issue, I had to solve timing and animation issues with the art team.

Reza had a troubled development cycle, there was a hard pivot from the Art team with his initial concept which lead to a redesign mid way through
During that time, I had to scrap his first design and collaborated with other designers in order to hit a tight deadline
I collected feedback from out play tests and was able to create a totally new set of skills that layered well on top of each other
Reza was well received by the community, his abilities allowed players to easily play him but required more effort and proper ability usage to master