Rush Hour Anxiety


WHAT

Rush Hour Anxiety is a 2D first-person web game that puts players in the stressful shoes of a procrastinating NYU student riding the subway.

WHY

Created for HackNYU’s 2023 Mini Hacakthon, following the theme “New York.” Won 1st in the Gaming category.

HOW

 Through user testing, research of the MTA’s style, and reflections on our own experiences, my team and I were able to develop a unique visual identity that reflects the game’s quirky gameplay and familiar environment. 

Game built with Unity 2D. 
UI/UX assets designed with Illustrator and Photoshop.
Art assetsmade with Procreate.
Poster designed with InDesign.

TASKS

UI/UX Design
Tech Artist
Art Direction

TOOLS

Illustrator
Photoshop
InDesign
Procreate
Unity (C#)

TYPE

Competition

TIME

Fall 2023
Style
Paired a graffitied, cartoon art style with MTA-inspired graphics to create a visual language reflecting the silly and familiar nature of the gameplay.

Tutorial

Credits


Art
Navigation

PROBLEM

One of the main combat moves is when you ‘look’ at an enemy, they will slowly move away. While playtesting, we realized players would stay on the main quiz screen and thus never use this combat move.

HYPOTHESIS

Something on the main screen needs to prompt players to look around. Otherwise, they become focused on the quiz and forget.

SOLUTION

Constant on-screen navigational UI to show:
  • Which screen the player is on
  • Which screen enemies are on
  • When combat is effective

RESULTS

Players look around more at the beginning of the game. But, they still remain on the quiz screen as the game gets harder.
In the future, I would like to show the combat’s effect through a health or status bar.
Top row: Player

Bottom row: Enemy & Combat

Ex. Enemy & Combat

Ex. Player Movement
Final Screens

Start Screen
Enemy
Phone Off
Looking Left
Looking Right
Looking Up

Posters
Promotional print posters made with InDesign and Illustrator. Printed and posted around the NYU campus.
Gameplay Video