When sitting down to work on a game project, I often turn to history for inspiration when it comes to themes. This is both born out of a love for history, in addition to the culture rich backdrop it provides for inspiration when it comes to systems. This project was created to explore the working conditions of coal mines and company towns around the turn of the century in America.

The primary focus of the game was to create a claustrophobic environment and give actions weight to make the player experience fatigue. This is primarily achieved through camera and controls.

In the game players take on the role of a person attempting to lift coal from deeper down into the mine. In addition to the back breaking labor, played have to keep up with the time pressure of meeting quota.

The original idea for the game was to have the player play with 2 mice, but as testing went on and technical challenges arose, the clunkiness of the control scheme did more to inhibit the intended experience than it did to help.

Controls are currently not listed in the game, so here is a quick overview:

Mouse X - red hand position.

Left Click - hold rope on red hand

Space - hold rope on blue hand

A - Push coal into mine cart
S - Bring coal pusher back/ extend supports

D - Retract supports

F - Sends mine cart to delivery

P - Toggle Radio