An expedition, one decision at a time
Beneath the Pines
A 2D expedition strategy game about planning a route, managing limited resources, and adapting to the trail.
In DevelopmentTry Deadfall, a playable standalone prototype developed from this expedition’s traversal mechanics.
Gameplay overview
Plan ahead. Adapt to the trail.
Inspired by real backpacking and backcountry experiences across Ontario, Beneath the Pines asks you to make decisions throughout an expedition.
Travel through branching routes while managing daylight, stamina, equipment, weather, food, water, and changing trail conditions.
Screenshot gallery
A closer look at the expedition
More expedition screenshots
Temporary placeholder — additional gameplay screenshots will be added here.
Featured prototype
Beneath the Pines: Deadfall
A standalone playable, top-down puzzle prototype developed from Beneath the Pines.
Deadfall explores fallen-tree traversal, branch cutting, route choices, and resource management. Find a way through while managing the time and stamina spent clearing the trail.
Development
Designing and building the expedition
I am responsible for the game's design, programming, system architecture, UI implementation, testing, and ongoing development.
Engineering
Systems currently implemented
World Generation
Seeded expedition generation with persistent encounter state so locations remain consistent throughout a run.
Encounter System
Multi-step encounters with player decisions, equipment checks, consequences, and persistent world changes.
Player Systems
Equipment, weather, objectives, resources, route traversal, journal information, and expedition state.
Grid Puzzles
Interactive traversal puzzles with path validation, removable obstacles, equipment interactions, and persistent environmental changes.
Testing
Core puzzle logic is separated from presentation and tested using repeatable scenarios including blocked paths and obstacle removal.
Architecture
Data-driven Unity architecture using ScriptableObjects alongside separate runtime state and gameplay systems.
Technology
Built with
Currently in development
The current focus is integrating interactive traversal puzzles into the main expedition encounter system and connecting player decisions to daylight, stamina, equipment, and persistent world state.