Game Dev under Pressure: Building a Procedural Hack & Slash from Scratch

Software engineering is not just my profession; it’s my creative outlet. One of my proudest and most intense technical challenges was participating in a Game Jam, where I had just a couple of weeks to design, program, and deliver a fully playable 3D video game.

The result? A fast-paced, 3rd-person Hack n' Slash where you play as a raccoon fighting its way through a city. But beyond the fun concept, the underlying architecture required solid system design and algorithm implementation under a strict deadline:

• Procedural Generation: I implemented algorithms to procedurally generate trash and obstacles throughout the city, ensuring that the environment felt dynamic and unpredictable every time the code ran.
• Complex State Management: I built an expandable Skill Tree system. This required designing scalable data structures to track player progress, experience points, and real-time ability unlocks without breaking the game loop.
• Game Loop & Mechanics: I developed unlockable city zones and integrated a custom recycling mini-game, forcing me to handle different game states, UI transitions, and physics interactions seamlessly.
• Agile Delivery: Having only two weeks meant ruthlessly prioritizing features. I had to scope the project correctly, write clean and maintainable C# / Object-Oriented code, and deliver a bug-free Minimum Viable Product (MVP) on time.

Building this game pushed my problem-solving skills to the limit. It taught me how to manage technical debt under pressure and how to write efficient logic for real-time applications. It’s this same builder mindset and focus on delivery that I bring to every backend and full-stack project I work on!