Perry's Powered Power-Ups (PPPU)
- caderboden
- Jul 20, 2025
- 6 min read
Updated: Feb 2
Engine: Godot Engine
Genre: Puzzle
Project: Game Jam, Collaborative
Job: Level Designer
Description
Perry's Powered Power-Ups is a puzzle game in which the player uses cables to solve puzzles that unlock abilities and advance the game. This game was created as a submission to the 2025 Kenny Jam, where we were restricted to only using assets found on Kenny. The time we had to create this game was from July 18, 9:00 am to July 20, 9:00 am. This was my first time using Godot, which made it a fairly hard hurdle to overcome, given the amount of time available.
Walkthrough/Video
Pillars
The player will be able to connect items that will activate abilities for future levels
The game should relate heavily to the idea of Plugs and electricity
Puzzles using plugs will lead to the game's progression
Development Process
Mechanics
Outlets & Plugs
The most basic mechanic is the outlet system. By pressing space near one of the brown boxes with a symbol on it they can start having a cable follow them. With the cable in hand, they must connect it to the outlet, which will activate the ability that corresponds to the symbol on the brown box. The different Plugs are listed below:
Jump
This ability allows the player to jump across one block. This means the player can jump across walls that are only one space long, or they can jump over small pits. However, the player cannot jump over barriers and is unable to carry the plug over pits in the ground.
Dash
The dash ability allows the player to carry the plug over gaps in the level such as pits in the ground. It is vital in order to solve certain puzzles.
Shoot
The shoot ability allows the player to shoot targets that are often causing barriers to stay up which block the players way.
Level Design
Level 1
The first level is to introduce the use of the jump mechanic to the player. as well as the connecting of the plug and outlet. To communicate to the player of the use of the jump I used the gray metal boxes to show what would open upon the connection of the plug.,
Once the completion of the connection each of the gray boxes open, allowing the player to jump over each cord and reach the end. While that was the intent of the level, when playtesting I was often asked what the objective was and the player was unable to fully grasp it in the beginning of the game.
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Level 2
For this level, the objective was to use the level to to understand the use of dashing, The barricade in the beginning was to force the player to connect the dash plug before continuing with the level.
As the level was playtest, the ability was fairly understood. The biggest issue was that when crossing the gap in the group, the animation looked the same as jumping over walls and other part. However, the best part was the ability was well understood.
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Level 3
Introducing the player to the use of shooting was the purpose of this level. While they where able to pass over the crevice, the player is unable to progress unless they destroy the targets that are locking the barricade in place.
I discovered that the playthrough of the previous levels were a great help to an understanding of this level as well as many of the others after this level. As the players understood this, it took no time to pass this level.
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Level 4
This is the first level I start to mix all the different abilities together for the player to utilize.
The 3 puzzles would be used the following ways by the following ways.
Jump: The player connects the two then use the ability to jump to get over the wire.
Shoot: The player will attach the wire in order to use the shooting ability to hit the targets to destroy the barricade and gain access to the dash ability.
Dash: You connect it to be able to carry the cable to the next area.
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Level 5
I began to increase the difficulty of the levels though the separation of the level into 3 distinct places. The player would have to use each ability to get to each part of the level.
I was informed this was the most the most interesting of the 6 levels that were made. I believe it was well enjoyed due to the placement of the cables mattering to if the player was able to complete the level. How they had to make sure there were not gaps of 2 spaces that they could jump over each spot.
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Level 6
As it was almost time to submit the project I believe this level lacked the most creativity and thought of all 6. With the limitation, I needed a level that still mixed the 3 abilities and decided to simply go with a maze.
While I feel the level incorporated each ability in a special way, I believe if given slightly more time it could have been improved event further.
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Reflection
PPPU (Perry’s Powered Power Ups) is a fun game that my brother and I created for the 2025 Kenney Jam. The theme for the jam was "Power," which we interpreted both as classic power-ups and as powered electric cords that would activate gameplay elements.
One of the things I’m most proud of is how well we executed the game's aesthetics and integrated the abilities into both the system and the level design. Since we were limited to using assets exclusively from the Kenney website (excluding audio), we had to be creative with what was available. The top-down view, along with a variety of colored containers, helped create the impression of a factory setting. It also gave a great aesthetic to the game that helped it pop out more to the player.
The power cords added an interesting gameplay twist. They presented both challenges and opportunities: the dash ability allowed players to carry plugs across gaps, the jump ability granted access to single-tile gaps, and the shooting ability let players hit distant targets. These unique mechanics enabled us to create puzzle-like levels that required thoughtful planning and made each stage feel fresh.
While I’m happy with the final result, there are a few areas where I think we could have done better. The biggest issue was the lack of in-game instruction for controls. While there was a tutorial to understand the abilities, there was no real visual guide, new players unfamiliar with the game’s controls might have had trouble getting started. Although I included the controls in the game’s description, I realized that many players won’t check there first. This was a common issue in several other jam entries as well.
Another challenge was my limited experience with Godot. This was my first time using the engine, and although my brother helped guide me through a lot of the programming, I found it difficult at times. I believe the game could have been even stronger with a deeper understanding of the engine.
Overall, I’m proud of what we accomplished. The jam taught me valuable lessons about scope, time management, and the importance of clear communication with players. It was a great experience, and I’m excited to keep improving and aim even higher in future game jams.
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Problems and What I Learned
Problem | What I Learned |
We didn't have a controls or description of what the player's objective is within the game. | This problem helped me understand the importance of these two points. That without these two many of those who playtested. had to ask me what the purpose is and what the controls were. |
It was my first time using Godot | As it was my first time using Godot I had to learn the engine at the same time as building a game. While this cause the game to be difficult to make, it was great to experience to learn a engine outside the big ones like unreal. |
There were only 2 of us working on the project | As there were only 2 of us, it was hard to make everything as only 1 of us new how to program well in the engine. While I was able to help here and there with the coding, It put some pressure on both of us. |
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