STRATEGY

AR Pirate

Tools & Workflow

AR Framework: Unity’s AR Foundation + XR Interaction Toolkit for gesture recognition.
Art Pipeline: Low-poly ship models (Blender) + stylized water shaders (Amplify Shader Editor).
QA: Tested on iOS (ARKit) and Android (ARCore) devices to ensure cross-platform functionality.

Challenges & Solutions

Motion Sickness: Avoided artificial movement; all navigation tied to physical phone tilting/walking.
AR Occlusion: Used depth masking to make ships appear “behind” real-world objects (e.g., cups on a table).

Next Steps

Add multiplayer AR duels (2 players face off on the same surface).
Introduce weather effects (storms reduce visibility, requiring closer combat).
Expand ship customization (unlockable sails, cannons via achievements).

This AR pirate adventure merges tactical survival with immersive tech, turning any space into a thrilling naval battlefield.

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Game Overview: "AR Pirates: Last Captain Standing"

Battle for survival on the high seas—blended into your world.

Setting

You are the last surviving captain of a rebel crew, hunted by a ruthless colonial warship. Stranded on the open ocean, you must defend your damaged vessel while outmaneuvering the enemy. Using AR, the game transforms your real-world environment into a dynamic battlefield, where ships clash on your tabletop, floor, or desk.

Core Mechanics

AR Environment:
- Surface Tracking: Unity’s AR Foundation scans and anchors ships, ocean, and UI to real-world surfaces (tables, floors).
- Phone Movement Integration: Tilt/rotate your phone to steer your ship, adjust cannons, or sprint across the deck.
Ship Management:
- Repair System:
  - Hull Damage: Physically walk to the cabin (via phone movement) to grab wooden planks, then tap damaged areas to repair.
  - Mast Fixing: Shake the phone vigorously to “reattach” sails (mimicking manual labor).
- Health Bar: A floating AR UI displays ship integrity; let it drop to zero, and your vessel sinks.
Combat:
- Cannon Aiming: The enemy ship sways with virtual waves. Time your screen tap to fire when the crosshairs align.
- Dynamic Difficulty: Missed shots make the enemy smarter—they zigzag or return fire faster.
Resource Constraints:
- Limited planks and cannonballs force strategic prioritization (repair vs. attack).

Development Cycle

Built in Unity with AR Foundation (ARKit/ARCore), the project prioritized mobile optimization and intuitive AR interactions.
Phase 1: AR Prototyping
- AR Setup: Configured plane detection, image anchors, and environmental lighting to blend ships into real-world surfaces.
- Performance Testing: Reduced polygon counts and used GPU instancing to maintain 60 FPS on mobile.
Phase 2: Ship & Interaction Systems
- Ship Physics:
  - Boat Sway: Simulated wave motion with sine curves synced to a virtual “ocean” shader.
  - Phone Steering: Mapped gyroscope data to ship rotation (lean phone left/right to turn).
- Repair Mechanics:
  - Object Tracking: Used AR raycasting to detect taps on damaged hull sections.
  - Plank Collection: Walk in real space (phone movement) to trigger cabin door animations.
Phase 3: Combat & AI
- Cannon System:
  - Tap-to-Fire: Screen taps trigger cannonballs with parabolic trajectories.
  - Enemy AI: Scripted patrol patterns with adaptive dodging (e.g., evasive maneuvers after 3 missed shots).
- Damage Feedback:
  - AR Effects: Smoke particles and splintering wood animations anchored to the ship model.
Phase 4: UI/UX Polish
- Diegetic UI:
  - Health bar rendered as a burning flag on the mast.
  - Ammo counters displayed on barrel lids (only visible when near cannons).
- Haptic Feedback: Vibrations signal critical damage or successful hits.
Phase 5: Playtesting & Iteration
- Key Fixes:
  - Adjusted AR anchor stability to prevent ships “drifting” on uneven surfaces.
  - Simplified plank collection (auto-loot after reaching the cabin).
  - Added a slow-mo effect during cannon firing to improve aim timing.