Krystal Paicos' Portfolio

Welcome to my portfolio! I've been creating art consistently ever since 5th grade, and have pursued game design since 8th. I'm currently close to getting my bachelors degree in Art & Design - Games and Playable Media at UCSC. I love to try and learn new programs and mediums for creating projects, and you'll see my range of creative output. Here you'll see my work from more recent years, as well as past projects I've worked on. All assets are created by me unless stated otherwise.

Games

Full games I've created both in group and solo settings.

Concept Work

Character, level, prop, and environment concept work.

Miscelanious

Other artwork I've created, showing my creative range.

Games

Dread Beat - solo
2018 - Current

My current solo project in development using Unity. Dread Beat is an RPG with a rythmn-based battle system, taking place in a world of monsters.

Mindscape - Solo -2022

A short point and click created in Adventure Game Studio. An interactive and sollumn gallery of my previous emotional pieces through the years.

XOXO - Solo
2018-2021

A dual Twine game and comic story featuring characters in the same universe as Dread Beat.

Rainbow Veins - Solo
2022

A very short platformer/collection game made using Game Maker. Features characters in the same universe as Dread Beat.

Sweets Frenzy! - Solo
2021

A small and short shooter based on score and replayability. Created using Javascript and HTML.

Kirby's Dream Course - Boardgame Recreation
Group - 2021

Kirby's Dream Course, Produced and published by Nintendo, reimainged in a board game format.

Concept Art

MISCELANIOUS WORKS

3D Model Work - 2022

Dread Beat

Dread Beat is my main project I'm currently working on. The idea for the game has been with me as early as 2017 for designs for characters, as well as the main draw of the game being a rhythm-based battle system. Now I'm finally bringing my idea to fruition as my senior project at UCSC.Dread Beat entails two core elements, the overworld with the characters and storyline, and the battles which rely on dodging attacks from enemies on time to the music. Below is a video mockup of the battle mechanics, which I created in 2021 along with a pitch presentation for the game.

video mock up

Development has been started in Unity as of January 2023. As of now, my main goal is to complete a full demo of the first area and battle. The overworld consists of an opening cutscene/scripted event, that leads into a short exploration section of the town and its surrounding area. Once leaving the town, the battle begins.The battle consists of dodging the enemy's scripted attacks, with the beat of the music to help timing. In the demo, the main goal is to dodge until the song is over, though in a final game, a menu system and an ability to attack may be added as well.The battle ends once the song is over, leading into an ending cinematic. More is revealed about the story and characters, but leaves the space open for a larger game to continue.

in-engine demo

Song Created by Waterflame - Jumper 2013

Hyzer is your playable character, awoken with no recollection of himself and no purpose. Stumbling upon a small town, he is now tasked with battling creatures called "husks" from the mysterious town leader, Persi. There is much to unravel about this world, what "husks" are, how they're formed, and Hyzer's own origins. All the while, there's a mysterious voice giving you advice when you fail, seemingly controlling you through the glowing orb on your chest...

Concept Art

XOXO

XOXO is a side story set in the same universe as Dread Beat, following two characters, Neehum and Seph. The comic was created in 2020, with the characters exisiting a few years before then, and the choose your own adventure game was created in 2021. The main theme behind these was a looping storyline, and control.

Read The Comic

Mindscape

Mindscape is a collection of a lot of previous artwork I created, going as far back as 8th grade. It's a point and click gallery, with each portrait containing something I made from my past. Many of them are parts of animations I've made in the past, and all of them I made in times of turmoil. This game is meant to be a look into my mind per se, showcasing a lot of memories and times in my life without direct context. There are a lot of equines because that's how I started drawing myself starting in 8th grade. Below is gameplay and one of the isolated animations from one of the portraits.

GamePlay

Audio sources in order of first appearance in game:- Original recording by me - art club 2019
- Two Time by Jack Stauber
- Something Comforting by Porter Robinson
- Hug all ur friends by Cavetown
- Pigeon by Cavetown
- "Moonbase Alpha provides a realistic simulation of life on a natural satellite" from Motdef
- Various songs from https://soundcloud.com/dshie
- Bus recording by me - 2022
- You're Not a Real Musician - Trixie Lulamoon

Animation

Kirby's Dream Course - Board Game

The Kirby's Dream Course board game is a recreation of the video game released on the SNES, which mimics a golf game.The board game features moveable raised platforms for level customization, as well as placeable enemies and obstacles. Enemies are placed on pegs, that are then removed and replaced with the star of the player's color who hit the enemy. Once all but one enemy is defeated, the last enemy's peg is removed revealing the winning hole. Gameplay is based around a pool-like style of play, where the objective is to hit your kirby to collect as many stars as possible, and make it into the hole first.