🔌 Overview
When I started designing Circuit Breaker, I wanted to make something that felt connected to my everyday environment at the Mizzou Digital Media & Innovation Lab. I’ve seen students struggle with hardware setups, power cords, and equipment malfunctions—usually solving problems by trial and error. That sparked the idea (pun intended) for a game that teaches electrical safety and troubleshooting in a fun, interactive way.
Using Construct 3, I took that idea and turned it into a short 2D side-scrolling experience. The player takes on the role of a lab technician trying to restore power to a malfunctioning media space, fixing hazards while learning to think logically and safely.
🛠️ The Design Process
I began by sketching a level map (shown below) that outlined hazards, collectibles, and circuit nodes. Each area represents a real-life scenario—faulty outlets, tripped breakers, and miswired equipment. I wanted each puzzle to model actual cause-and-effect sequences: if you try to fix something before cutting the power, it backfires.
Circuit Breaker started as a paper prototype. From there, I recreated the layout in Construct 3 using placeholder art and a simple collision system to test how players moved and interacted. Even though it was my first time using Construct 3, I found the engine intuitive, especially the event-based scripting system that visually maps logic instead of writing long lines of code.
Figure 1. Early schematic showing the “hazard–fix–exit” flow for Level 1–2.
This iterative design process helped me see how gameplay, visuals, and sound come together. It wasn’t just about creating a playable level—it was about understanding how a game can teach.
⚙️ From Idea to Implementation
Balancing the educational side with the gameplay was my biggest challenge. I didn’t want the player to feel like they were just “reading a safety manual with extra steps.” By making every decision a small puzzle—“Do I turn off the breaker first, or fix the cable?”—I embedded learning directly into the gameplay instead of presenting it as text-based instruction.
This also aligned well with Kapp’s (2012) ideas on Procedural and Conceptual Knowledge, where players act on information instead of memorizing it. Similarly, Gee’s (2003) “Probing Principle” emphasizes learning through experimentation—testing ideas, failing safely, and improving based on feedback. Every spark, flicker, and success animation in Circuit Breaker was designed to reinforce that concept.
🔋 Core Loop and Feedback
The core loop of Circuit Breaker—Observe → Decide → Act → Reward → Progress—became the heart of the learning experience. When players fix a hazard correctly, lights come back on, the background hum returns, and their Safety Meter increases. If they choose the wrong action, they get a light puff of smoke or a humorous comment from the A.I. assistant, S.A.F.E.
Instead of waiting until the end of a level to evaluate progress, this feedback happens immediately. As Kapp (2012) notes, effective learning games use embedded assessment, not post-level quizzes. This design choice helps players internalize both the correct process and why it matters.
🧩 Looking Forward
As I continue developing the prototype, I want to expand the environmental storytelling—adding posters, tooltips, and short dialogue snippets from S.A.F.E. to make the lab feel more alive. My long-term vision is to evolve Circuit Breaker into a short, classroom-ready module where players can apply safety procedures virtually before handling real equipment.
I’m also planning to explore accessibility options like high-contrast modes, larger text, and sound-based hazard cues for players who may rely more on auditory or visual feedback. Construct 3’s event-driven system makes these additions realistic and scalable.
💡 Final Reflection
This project taught me that designing educational games is about much more than mechanics or art—it’s about designing systems that teach through play. Every decision a player makes in Circuit Breaker mirrors the real-world logic of troubleshooting. Gee’s (2003) “Regime of Competence” principle was a guiding force here—each level increases in difficulty just enough to challenge players without overwhelming them.
If I had more time, I’d experiment with dialogue trees, a free-play sandbox mode, and expanded narrative layers for replayability. But even as a prototype, Circuit Breaker captures the essence of what I wanted: a short, meaningful, and fun experience that helps players think safely and critically.
You can explore my earlier posts that document the design journey here:
Gamestorming & Narrative Learning | Goals, Rules, & Mechanics | Core Loop & Feedback
🔗 Prototype Link
You can play the current Circuit Breaker prototype here:
👉 [Circuit Breaker by Darthnihilious]
📚 References
Boller, S., & Kapp, K. M. (2017). Play to learn: Everything you need to know about designing effective learning games. ATD Press.
Gee, J. P. (2003). What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. Palgrave Macmillan.
Kapp, K. M. (2012). The gamification of learning and instruction: Game-based methods and strategies for training and education. Pfeiffer.
