SeCRETs OF THE MANSION
Explore the mansion
This project was made in 4 weeks by a team of 16.
Secrets of the Mansion A retro inspired puzzle game where players step into the role of Alex, who receives a mysterious letter from his uncle. As Alex explores the mansion, players solve puzzles and gradually uncover the secrets hidden within its walls.
This was my second school project in Unity, completed over four weeks, and it became an important learning experience in both level and puzzle design.
I contributed as one of the level designers, with responsibilities that included:
Designing the core puzzle layouts for my assigned rooms
Creating major blockouts for the overall mansion layout
Helping establish the game’s structure and flow
Implementing finished features and building the project
From the concepting phase onward, I was involved in shaping the original idea, brainstorming mechanics, and refining the vision with the team. During development, I worked closely with programmers to ensure that newly implemented features integrated smoothly into the gameplay loop.
My main focus was level design, puzzle design, and implementation. I began by sketching concepts and layouts in Miro, then moved into Unity to block out and iteratively refine the puzzles.
My work
The project began with a vote on which concept we wanted to develop. I created a paper prototype in Miro, shown below, which convinced the team to move forward with the idea. Once the direction was set, collaboration began in earnest.
I was responsible for two of the three rooms in the final game. Every layout started in Miro, where we sketched the level map and early puzzle concepts. After that, I moved into Unity and built the rooms in engine using ProBuilder. I remained hands-on in engine throughout the entire project.
We started with a game design document that acted as a living document, helping us maintain a clear picture of the project as it evolved.
I also handled all the animations, which were captured and later rigged through Mixamo. On the coding side, I created a retro-inspired camera switch system that I am particularly proud of, as it helped reinforce the game’s tone. Near the end of development, I teamed up with one of the programmers to add a PSX-style shader. It was implemented during the final days of production, and I am very proud that we managed to make it work in such a short timeframe.
This is the paper prototype i made using Miro.
Challanges
One of the biggest challenges was getting everything to come together. Since I pitched the idea, I was also tasked with keeping an eye on the overall progress and how close we were to a finished game. We added several features very late in development and even though we made them work, it created extra pressure on the team.
Our communication was another challenge. We lacked a clear task structure and many decisions ended up being made in the moment instead of through our producer. With stronger planning and clearer roles we could have avoided some of the last minute rush.
Here is some gameplay!
Level and puzzle design
For the puzzle design, I looked at classic point-and-click games from the LucasArts era. I wanted the puzzles to feel simple at first glance while still carrying a sense of nostalgia for players familiar with those games. Most of the early work was done in Miro, where I drew the rooms from a top-down view. This helped me control the flow and understand how each puzzle supported the overall layout of the mansion.
One puzzle I designed involved the key to the final room, hidden inside a small food elevator. In the first room, the player receives a subtle hint that something is unusual about the food elevators. Later, when reaching the kitchen, the player must force the elevator down to reveal the key. The goal was to guide the player without explicitly spelling everything out, rewarding them for noticing details earlier in the game.
I also wrote all the text for the clickable items. These small interactions were intended to give purpose to exploration and provide story details about the relationship between the protagonist and the mansion’s owner. Many of the items also contain small easter eggs, encouraging players to inspect the environment more closely.
The mansion setting greatly influenced my level design decisions. I wanted the rooms to feel like old luxury, with a grand staircase and a heavy, almost industrial kitchen. Each space needed its own personality while still fitting the overall tone of the mansion and supporting the puzzle flow.
This is how I concepted the puzzles
This was used for keeping a level flow
This was created to explaion our main mechanic
Reflection
When I look back at what we finished in only four weeks I am proud of the result and even more proud of the growth it pushed out of me. The game has a clear identity and with a little more time we could have refined the puzzles, the story beats, and the flow between rooms. I also see places where I could have done stronger work, but those moments taught me a lot about planning, clarity, and when to speak up.
What stands out the most is how much I enjoyed working with the team. Even with the stress and the late features we supported each other and kept moving. Secrets of the Mansion ended up teaching me as much about teamwork as it did about level and puzzle design, and the friendships I made are something I still value today.