---
title: "A Long Way Down (Demo)"
description: "A short, atmospheric linear adventure created for my FdA Games and Interactive Design degree."
date: 2023-05-11
featured: true
image: { url: "alwd-img1.jpg", alt: "A Long Way Down Intro Showcase" }
tags: ["unreal engine", "blender", "inkscape"]
categories: ["education"]
extraAuthors: [{ name: "Sam Griffiths", url: "https://samgriffiths.dev" }]
---

import alongwaydown_demo_walkthrough from "alongwaydown-demo-walkthrough.webm";

A Long Way Down is a short, atmospheric linear adventure created alongside my friend [Sam](https://samgriffiths.dev) as a project for our FdA Games and Interactive Design degree. My role was art direction including the lighting, level design, and majority of asset creation for the project. It is the follow up project to our previous work: [Nightmare](#nightmare), and was made to be an evolutionary improvement of it. Currently the [demo](https://samandtroy.itch.io/alongwaydown) is available to download and play on Itch.io.

<video preload="metadata" controls>
  <source src={alongwaydown_demo_walkthrough} type="video/webm" />
</video>

_Demo walkthrough_

![A Long Way Down Intro Showcase](alwd-img1.jpg)

_Intro_

![A Long Way Down Forest Showcase](alwd-img2.avif)

_Forest_

![A Long Way Down Tree Bridge Showcase](alwd-img3.avif)

_Tree bridge_

![A Long Way Down Swamp Showcase](alwd-img4.avif)

_Swamp_

![A Long Way Down Final Climb](alwd-img5.avif)

_Final climb_

![A Long Way Down Cliff Jump](alwd-img6.avif)

_Cliff jump_

![Alternate night lighting idea](alwd-alternate-night-lighting.avif)

_Alternate night lighting idea_

![Old colour grade on forest section](alwd-early-forest.avif)

_Old colour grade on forest section_

![Early environment stage](alwd-early-environment-stage.avif)

_Early environment stage_

![Initial style experiments](alwd-style-experiment.avif)

_Initial style experiments_

## Nightmare

import nightmare from "nightmare.webm";

This is the environment I created in collaboration with Sam Griffiths for our Unit 8 - Developing a Creative Media Production Project - Final Major Project which concluded 2021-04-21. I was in charge of the art side of the project including asset production, composition, and lighting although we both helped one another out when necessary with blueprints etc. Additionally, I created this short cinematic in Unreal Engine's cinematic level sequencer by keyframing the transform values and focus distance of a camera.

<video preload="metadata" muted controls>
  <source src={nightmare} type="video/webm" />
</video>

_Environment cinematic_

![Frame 0600](troy-lusty-nightmare.avif)

_Frame 0600_

![Frame 1182](troy-lusty-nightmare-frame-1182.avif)

_Frame 1182_

![Frame 1700](troy-lusty-nightmare-frame-1700.avif)

_Frame 1700_