I Lost My Keys...In Space!!!
I Lost My Keys...In Space!!! is a Global Game Jam 2021 project created in 48 hours. A comedic exploratory scavenger hunt, the player is an astronaut adrift in space and running out of oxygen. Unfortunately, the player has lost the keys to their ship and must navigate a cloud of dangerous space debris in order to find them.
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The player can collect useful bits of space trash in order to replenish some of their oxygen, or have better ways to navigate, and survive long enough to find their keys.
I wanted to create a cute character design in order to fit the game's comedic aesthetic. I focused on round, circular shapes and cartoonish lines and colors to also increase the appeal.
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We settled on a character design with wide, panicked eyes. Although the situation of being lost in space running out of oxygen is horrifying on paper, this exaggerated expression brings the design back into a more comedic realm. It's similar to when Wile E. Coyote looks at the camera with shock and panic before falling down a cliff.
The props here are space themed. We took reference from various facts and stories about space exploration or fictional stories containing space exploration for inspiration. There are solar sails, duct tape inspired by the tale of Apollo 13 and what saved them, but also fire extinguishers inspired by the film "Wall-E". The only exception to this is with the party popper power up, which was added for the comedic value. Players will find it fun to zoom around with a little birthday horn noise.
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As for the spaceship, it was designed to look cartoonish to fit with the rest of the game's aesthetic. Within the game, there's a small visual detail of a little tether that's been cut, which is part of why the astronaut is loose in space.