Role in Project

Catan is a decades strong tabletop game about resource management and trading. This latest console edition was created by Dovetail Games with aid provided by Rattle Can Games.

My contributions centred around the unlock system. Different dice, avatars, and player icon frames can be unlocked in game and through store content such as preorder bonuses. I implemented this feature locking functionality along with console specific account checks for certain feature unlocks.

In connection to this system, I also added an in-game catalogue of item unlocks. This would show different item bundles, which bundles are owned, an inspection view of the bundle contents, and a purchase button where appropriate. This purchase would go through the consoles store API.

I also provided more general support to ease workloads for other staff. This primarily included bug hunting and researching console APIs for needed functionality. Through this I became an in-house information source at Rattle Can Games on sections of code written outside the studio that I had researched through my fixing and code integrating.

Official Site

More information about the game and places to purchase it can be found their official website.

Experience Gained

Console Development

Xbox and PlayStation development kits were used extensively in this project, and I became familiar with the tools. A lot of freedom was given in how to test code, so many of the features were explored for this purpose. This included deploying test builds whose console would output back to a connected PC, using on console debug outputs, and parsing through returned log files.

In researching for store integration and various account and networking related features, I also became familiar with the consoles API and it’s usage within the Unity game engine.

Cross Studio Development

Due to the separation in teams between Rattle Can Games and it’s partners on this project, proper management and communication were vital. This covered everything from the structure of the git repository to communication on feature specifications. To prevent development hiccups great detail was given on how to properly handle various elements of the arrangement, and in keeping the process moving collaborating through it.

Project Details

Role: Programmer

Group Size: Rattle Can Games staff + collaborating staff of connected studios

Game Engine: Unity

Code Language: C#

Project Purpose: Professional