Crop Circle Games

Project Wells

Unreal Engine

Project Wells is an immersive sci-fi adventure from Crop Circle Games, blending dynamic traversal, engaging combat, and a richly interactive world. Set in the VTAR space, players wield a powerful glove that seamlessly connects them to their environment, enhancing movement and interaction. With a fresh new IP, a unique alien aesthetic, and deep gameplay mechanics, Project Wells is shaping up to be a standout experience that captivates players and industry veterans alike.

Project Wells is a sci-fi adventure that seamlessly blends fluid traversal, strategic combat, and deep world interaction. Players step into the VTAR space, a mysterious and immersive alien world, where they wield a powerful glove that enhances movement and shapes their environment. Whether leaping across vast landscapes, engaging in intense encounters, or uncovering hidden secrets, every action feels connected and meaningful. With its unique mechanics and fresh approach to exploration, Project Wells delivers a thrilling and dynamic gameplay experience unlike anything before.

As the Senior Engine Programmer, I led the migration of Project Wells from Unreal Engine 5.1 to 5.4, ensuring a smooth transition while unlocking new engine capabilities. This upgrade enhanced rendering performance, improved stability, and provided access to advanced Unreal Engine features such as Nanite and Lumen refinements. I also identified and resolved compatibility issues, ensuring all game systems, tools, and assets functioned seamlessly in the new engine version.

I designed and implemented a dynamic AI system that intelligently adapts based on player proximity and camera visibility, significantly improving both gameplay performance and immersion. This system dynamically adjusted AI behavior and resource consumption using the following techniques:

• Performance-Aware AI States: AI would lower its update frequency when out of sight or far from the player, conserving CPU cycles.
• Contextual Processing: AI would enter a paused state when completely out of range, freeing up system resources without breaking gameplay continuity.
• Seamless Reactivation: AI would smoothly transition back into full processing when players re-engaged, ensuring responsiveness without unnecessary overhead.

This system greatly reduced processing strain, allowing for more AI entities to exist in the game world while maintaining high performance across multiple platforms.

I developed a frame-stripping tool that automatically removed redundant or empty frames from animations, leading to:

• Reduced memory footprint for animation-heavy characters and creatures.
• Faster load times due to optimized asset sizes.
• Smoother animation playback with less performance overhead.

By implementing this system, I significantly improved animation efficiency across Project Wells, particularly in complex environments featuring multiple animated entities.

Leveraging my deep knowledge of Unreal Engine's core systems, I contributed to multiple areas of Project Wells' development, including:

• Rendering Enhancements: Optimized lighting and material setups to improve visual fidelity while maintaining performance.
• Physics Integration: Ensured realistic physics interactions, particularly in traversal mechanics and environmental interactions.
• Network Optimization: Implemented efficient replication techniques for smooth multiplayer experiences without unnecessary bandwidth usage.

These optimizations helped create an immersive game world that feels responsive, visually stunning, and performs well across different hardware configurations.

As a senior member of the team, I played a crucial role in fostering collaboration and mentoring junior programmers. My contributions included:

• Providing technical guidance on Unreal Engine best practices, performance optimization, and AI development.
• Collaborating closely with artists, designers, and producers to align technical solutions with creative goals.
• Driving Agile development through sprint planning, iterative development cycles, and efficient debugging processes.

By ensuring a strong cross-disciplinary workflow, I helped the team meet development milestones while maintaining a high standard of quality for Project Wells.