Dont Waste It

Dont waste it is a 2d pixel-art puzzle platformer built solo in unity 6, starring a small robot navigating a factory in search of a way out to escape.

The game is built around a single core constraint a limited jump budget, that turns every movement decision into a resource management choice, layered on top of traditional platforming and light environmental puzzle-solving.

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Details:

Tools used

Github, pixabay, audiomas, asprite, itch.io, C#, Photopea, canva.

Project type: 2D PC game

Game genre: Puzzle platformer game

Game engine: Unity 6.3

Time frame: 4-5 Months

Core Mechanics — Combat

  • Ground + mid-air melee attack

  • Patrol-and-shoot enemy AI, instant-kill hazards

  • 3-heart health system with i-frames

  • Running out of jumps costs a heart instead of failing the level

Metrics

  • 1 core movement constraint system

  • 8 distinct level mechanics

  • 3 enemy types / 1 hazard types

  • 34 levels across 3 worlds (with individual leaderboards)

  • Full account system: sign-up, sign-in

Core mechaincs

Core Mechanics — Progression

  • Linear level unlock, 34 levels total

  • Jump pickups as the only "currency," extend budget mid-level

  • Per-level leaderboards as a secondary, skill-based progression track

Gallery

Lessons Learned

  • One clear constraint (jump budget) made every other design call easier to evaluate

  • Wordless visual feedback > numeric UI for communicating state

  • Reusable systems (camera, audio, transitions) paid off heavily later

  • Bug fixing often meant researching known SDK issues, not just debugging own code

  • Gained real depth in UGS, async/await C#, shader writing, systematic debugging

Challenges encountered

  • Camera zoom silently overridden by Pixel Perfect Camera removed component, manual pixel-snap

  • Camera-parented particles looked fake ("snow globe") → fixed via Simulation Space World, not Local

  • Leaderboard "not initialized" error → traced to a known Unity SDK race-condition bug, fixed init pattern

  • Footstep SFX rapid-firing on jump → fixed via dedicated jump-triggered suppression timer

Final Reflection

  • Most proud of: jump-budget system holding together as the spine of the whole design of the game

  • Biggest challenge: account/leaderboard system (auth timing + SDK bugs + data-source mismatches)

  • Biggest success: shipped a full 34-level game solo with working accounts + leaderboards

  • Biggest takeaway: designer discipline = tracing bugs to root cause, not just "fun ideas"

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