Anthony Cloudy
Software Development
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Creating a Competitive Multiplayer Open-Arena 2D Twin-Stick Shooter
After a long period of personal player’s stats and equipment are locked in
Guildhall, I wanted to pull together a powered-up machine in three randomly-
development and growth at SMU
everything I’d learned from the
programming track and demonstrate
what I could do. I began work on AllStar,
a competitive local multiplayer, open-
arena, 2D twin-stick shooter built from
the ground up in my custom C++/
OpenGL engine. I created this game to
demonstrate my holistic understanding
chosen contests, including but not limited
to, a battle royale, a race, or a coin-
grabbing challenge. Because the contests
are chosen randomly, the player has no
idea what kind of minigames they’re going
to compete in, adding to the frantic and
fast-paced nature of the game.
of video game programming, including Developing AllStar over the past six
shaders and graphics programming, all a software developer, but also as an
gameplay systems, engine coding,
while emphasizing polish.
AllStar pits players against one another in
an arms race to build the most powerful
ship within a set time. Players explore an
open arena and destroy cargo crates and
enemies to earn upgrades to their ships,
enabling them to go faster, tank more
damage, or shoot more powerfully. The
player can hunt others in this game mode
to steal opponent’s resources, and all
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once time is up. The player then must use
SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT
months not only helped me to grow as
individual. The game tied together much
of what I’ve learned through the program
and challenged me to write better code
and engine systems to keep development
on schedule. This thesis also helped
me better understand my strengths and
weaknesses and find a healthier balance
between my work and life. The game
stands as a prototype, not a product, and
I hope to continue development and bring
it to market in the near future.