This document provides an overview of the proposed Vinyl video game. The game would involve riding behind a needle on a record as it plays music from the player's library. Movement around obstacles on the record would manipulate the music through effects like filtering, remixing, and key changes. Controls would involve adjusting the needle's speed to affect pitch and catching air to lift the needle. Visuals and audio parsing/detection would synchronize to the music. Various gameplay mechanics, audio manipulations, and options are outlined.

1. Design Document

2. Vinyl Design Document 2
Contents
Design Overview ...........................................................................................................................................4
Summary...................................................................................................................................................4
Thesis ........................................................................................................................................................4
Razor .........................................................................................................................................................4
Slogan........................................................................................................................................................4
Technology....................................................................................................................................................4
Engine........................................................................................................................................................4
Platforms...................................................................................................................................................4
Gameplay......................................................................................................................................................4
Movement.................................................................................................................................................4
Momentum...........................................................................................................................................4
Attachment to Needle ..........................................................................................................................4
Mechanics.................................................................................................................................................5
Speed/Pitch...........................................................................................................................................5
Balls.......................................................................................................................................................5
Particle Walls.........................................................................................................................................5
Rails.......................................................................................................................................................5
Lasers ....................................................................................................................................................5
Scratch Rewind......................................................................................................................................5
Catching Air...........................................................................................................................................5
Air Can - ANTIQUATED..........................................................................................................................5
Skipping the Groove/Track – ANTIQUATED..........................................................................................6
Audio.............................................................................................................................................................6
Player’s Music Library ...............................................................................................................................6
Parsing.......................................................................................................................................................6
Frequency Detection.............................................................................................................................6
Beat Detection ......................................................................................................................................6
Visual Rendering ...................................................................................................................................6
Filtering .....................................................................................................................................................6
Low-Pass................................................................................................................................................6
Mid-Pass................................................................................................................................................6
High-Pass...............................................................................................................................................6

3. Vinyl Design Document 3
Distortion ..............................................................................................................................................6
Delay .....................................................................................................................................................6
Remixing....................................................................................................................................................6
Key Change................................................................................................................................................7
Harmonics.................................................................................................................................................7
Visuals ...........................................................................................................................................................7
Avatar........................................................................................................................................................7
Boards ...................................................................................................................................................7
Line Attached to Needle .......................................................................................................................7
Needle.......................................................................................................................................................7
Record.......................................................................................................................................................7
Generation............................................................................................................................................7
Movement.............................................................................................................................................7
Pulsing to beat ..........................................................................................................................................7
Themed User Interface .............................................................................................................................7
Score - ANTIQUATED.............................................................................................................................7
Speed - ANTIQUATED............................................................................................................................7
Animatic....................................................................................................................................................8
Entry......................................................................................................................................................8
Exit.........................................................................................................................................................8
Stereoscopic 3D - ANTIQUATED................................................................................................................8
Controls.........................................................................................................................................................8
Keyboard...................................................................................................................................................8
Mouse .......................................................................................................................................................9
Controller..................................................................................................................................................9
Mobile.......................................................................................................................................................9
On-screen virtual...................................................................................................................................9
Gyroscopic.............................................................................................................................................9
Options........................................................................................................................................................10
Travelling Mode ......................................................................................................................................10
User Interface Theme .............................................................................................................................10

4. Vinyl Design Document 4
Design Overview
Summary
Vinyl is a forced-movement audio manipulation game where the player is riding behind the needle, like
a wake-boarder. As the player collides with items in the game, the audio will be manipulated using
filters, remixing, key changes, etc. The player can adjust the speed of the song by pulling the needle
faster or slower, affecting the pitch of the song. By catching air when exiting the groove of the record,
the song needle will lift and the audio will stop playing for the duration of catching air.
Thesis
Can audio manipulation be an immersive video game experience?
Razor
Vinyl is raw audio manipulation combined with snowboarding half-pipe traversal wrapped in an
electronic visual aesthetic.
Slogan
Sense the Sound. Ride the Groove.
Technology
Engine
Unity 3D or CryENGINE 3 for visual rendering and input handling.
FMOD for audio manipulation.
Physics created in-house.
Platforms
PC as the lead platform. Mobile port.
Gameplay
Movement
The player controls both speed and direction of the avatar.
Momentum
The avatar moves with a sense of momentum, like a snowboarder or skateboarder. The player can
increase and decrease speed by holding forward or back, and will increase speed when re-entering the
half-pipe from Catching Air. The player will move left and right in the half-pipe, losing momentum as
they traverse the sides of the pipe due to friction.
Attachment to Needle
The avatar is attached to a needle with something like an elastic band. Within the radius of the circle
created by the length of the elastic band, the player will not affect the playback speed. Once the
boundary of the circle is reached, the player will decrease or increase the playback speed by moving
slower or faster, respectively.

5. Vinyl Design Document 5
Mechanics
Speed/Pitch
The Speed/Pitch of the song will be affected as described in the Attachment to Needle section.
Generally, as the player increases speed the playback of the song is sped up and as the player decreases
speed the song is played slower.
Balls
Previously Static Balls that moved the player left or right and sped the player up or slowed the player
down.
Now, the Balls are obstacles that affect the sound of the song by adding Filters. The Filters don’t
necessarily make the song sound better or worse, they simply add an effect.
The size of the Ball denotes the length of the audio filter.
Particle Walls
Particle Walls are obstacles that affect the sound of the song by adding Filters. The Filters don’t
necessarily make the song sound better or worse, they simply add an effect.
The size of the Particle Wall denotes the length of the audio filter.
Rails
Rails are obstacles that the player can grind on. While grinding the Rails, the song is Remixed. Rails are
randomly generated on the edge of the half-pipe.
Lasers
Lasers are randomly generated obstacles within the half-pipe. They cannot be crossed and can only be
avoided.
Scratch Rewind
The Scratch Rewind mechanic is a player initiated mechanic that rewinds the song and the player’s
position for X seconds. During this time, the song is played backwards with some added effects.
Previously, this would rewind the player’s Score, allowing the player to correct mistakes made during
gameplay.
Catching Air
The player will be able to Catch Air to leave the pipe by riding up the side of the pipe with enough
Momentum to leave the pipe. During this time, the song will decrease in volume. This is connected to
the Attachment to Needle mechanic.
Air Can - ANTIQUATED
The Air Can mechanic is a power-up that allows for the player to clear all obstacles in her path by
activating the Air Can power-up. The Air Can is only usable when the player plays optimally for X
amount of time. This mechanic and the Scratch Rewind mechanic use the same power-up meter, which
fills up when the player plays optimally, but the Scratch Rewind uses 1/3 less of the power-up meter
than this mechanic.

6. Vinyl Design Document 6
Skipping the Groove/Track – ANTIQUATED
Skipping the Groove/Track is a mechanic that allows for the player to jump in to a different section of
the groove, by Catching Air and pressing a button. This new section can be either forward or behind the
current position of the player, so either Catching Air left or right respectively.
Audio
Player’s Music Library
The player will supply her own music library which will serve as the basis for many audio effects,
including Filtering, Remixing, Key Change, and Harmonics. This will also be used to Generate the Record
that the player plays on.
Parsing
Frequency Detection
We will detect the frequency of the song for various audio effects.
Beat Detection
We will detect the beat of the song for various audio effects.
Visual Rendering
We will use the Parsing data to render a visual output of the audio for various audio effects.
Filtering
Low-Pass
Filters out the lows of a song (and cuts the Mids and Highs of a song). Sounds like the music is being
played through a wall.
Mid-Pass
Filters out the mids of a song (and cuts the Lows and Highs of a song). Various Mid-Pass filters can be
used to filter out different ranges of the frequency of the music.
High-Pass
Filters out the highs of a song (and cuts the Lows and Mids of a song).
Distortion
Distorts the music.
Delay
Delays the music playback. Creates a sort of echo effect.
Remixing
When the player grinds a Rail, the music will be Remixed. This consists of taking X second(s) of the song
and looping it at a few times. The player will either be placed at the point in the song where she would
be after the duration of the Remix, or at the point where the song was looped.

7. Vinyl Design Document 7
Key Change
Not attached to a game mechanic. Possibly connected to the Filters of the Particle Walls and Balls. Will
changet the key of the song, like from a major to minor ley.
Harmonics
Not attached to a game mechanic. Consists of lower and raising octaves, perfect fifths, major third,
minor third, etc.
Visuals
Avatar
The Avatar will be riding a Board and be Attached to a Needle.
Boards
The Avatar will have an interchangeable board that reflects different types of extreme sports, i.e.
snowboard, surfboard, skateboard, wakeboard.
Line Attached to Needle
There will be a line attached to the needle that denotes the radius around the needle where the player
will not affect the speed of the song’s playback.
Needle
The needle playing the record will be visible on screen and the avatar will be connected to it by an
elastic line.
Record
The grooves of a record will act as the play-space for the player’s avatar.
Generation
The record mesh will be generated using the parsed audio, and will reflect the intensity and movement
of the raw audio.
Movement
The groove of the record will move up/down and left/right depending on the waveform of the raw
audio. The groove will not rotate.
Pulsing to beat
Obstacles on the screen will pulse to the Beat of the song.
Themed User Interface
The User Interface will be themed to match certain aesthetics.
Score - ANTIQUATED
The score will be displayed on the screen, either in numerical format or some other method.
Speed - ANTIQUATED
The player’s current speed will be displayed either in numerical format or through the use of color.

8. Vinyl Design Document 8
Animatic
Entry
The player will be dropped into the groove of the record from the actuating needle-arm of a record
player. The avatar will “drop-in” like a snowboarder or skateboarder, from the needle itself.
Exit
The player will be picked up out of the groove when the actuating needle-arm is removed from the
groove.
Stereoscopic 3D - ANTIQUATED
The game will be presented in stereoscopic 3D. As the player optimally traverses the obstacles of the
song, the game’s 3D depth of field will increase, and decrease as the player plays less than optimally.
Controls
Keyboard

9. Vinyl Design Document 9
Mouse
Controller
Mobile
On-screen virtual
Virtual D-Pad and buttons to move the avatar.
Gyroscopic
Rotate the smartphone left and right to move the avatar left and right. Rotate the smartphone forward
and back to increase and decrease speed, respectively. Press the screen to grind if near a Rail, to Rewind
otherwise.

10. Vinyl Design Document 10
Options
Travelling Mode
Travelling Mode has no score and no penalties. The player is allowed to play around without
punishment.
User Interface Theme
The theme of the UI is interchangeable, allowing the player to select different UI’s themed to different
music genres.