Circle 0

A game of beautiful messes and inevitable destruction

Circle0 was nominated for the Nuovo Award at IGF 2019!

Brief Introduction

Circle0 is a unique game designed to break and crash as part of its core experience. It revels in beautiful messes and catastrophes, where every interaction leads to the game’s inevitable destruction. In a world where games are often celebrated for tight controls and systemic elegance, Circle0 rebels against stability, comprehensibility, and coherence. Yet, with a dizzying array of items and potential interactions, it rewards curiosity with unpredictable and delightful chaos.

There is nothing in this game that can harm you. If you jump off the level, a new one will be created just for you. Every item and NPC in the game has a monetary cost associated with it. Money can be gained through finding it on the ground, completing fetch quests, or defeating NPCs. Items in the world might cause mushrooms to sprout, set things on fire, explode, summon meteors, or transform static objects into NPCs.

My Role in the Team

Circle0 was developed by a team of 6 students at NYU Game Center. We came from diverse disciplines including writing, photography, programming, art, and fine arts.

As the lead programmer on the team, I contributed in the following ways:

  • Implemented character controls and a complex 3D UI/UX system featuring interactive windows embedded in 3D space, with immersive 2D text elements anchored to 3D coordinates, creating a deeply engaging spatial interface experience.
  • Managed version control (Git), resolved conflicts, and fixed bugs after merging.
  • Contributed to design documents and participated in the iterative design process to refine gameplay mechanics.

You can download and play it at itch.io.

Visual Showcase

Additional gameplay clips highlighting the game's unique mechanics and visual style.
More gameplay visuals from Circle0 showcasing chaotic and dynamic interactions.
Further visuals from Circle0 capturing the game's unique destructive style.