🎮 Polar Pairs

Polar Pairs is a vertical-scrolling puzzle platformer where two adorable animal characters—a polar bear and a penguin—must work together to escape an icy labyrinth. Designed for mobile devices using the CUGL (Cornell University Game Library) framework, the game challenges players to master character-specific mechanics and navigate treacherous terrain through clever cooperation.

---

🧩 Gameplay Overview

• Control two characters with distinct abilities:
  • Polar Bear: Can break certain blocks and push heavy objects.
  • Penguin: Can slide across ice and fit into small spaces.
• Solve puzzles using dual-character coordination.
• Navigate through modular, procedurally loaded levels with vertical scrolling.
• Reach the goal by switching between characters and leveraging their unique movement types.

---

🔧 Features

• 🧠 Asymmetric Puzzles – designed around character-specific mechanics.
• 🌨️ Modular Level Loading – loads visible level chunks dynamically as the camera scrolls.
• 📱 Mobile-Ready UX – optimized UI and touch controls for mobile platforms.
• 🎨 Hand-Crafted Level Design – built from .txt files with visual tile mapping.
• 📸 Smooth Camera Tracking – follows active character with consistent bottom offset for visibility.

---

🛠️ Tech Stack

• C++ with CUGL (Cornell University Game Library)
• Scene graph for rendering and UI layout
• .txt level parsing with LevelData and grid-to-node translation
• Custom timeline and animation handling for interactions (e.g., bounce feedback)

---

🚀 Getting Started

Prerequisites

• CUGL engine set up for mobile deployment
• CMake, Android NDK, or Apple (Best in Apple and Android)
• Git LFS (for asset management, if needed)

Build Instructions

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/yourusername/polar-pairs.git

2. Build using Apple, Android Studio or CMake folders within build folder.
3. Run on mobile device or emulator.

---

🧪 Testing and Debugging

•    Modular level testing using mock .txt files
•    Debug toggle overlays for collision tiles
•    Event-based logging for character actions and tile interactions

---

📁 File Structure

/assets             # Textures, sounds, fonts
/src
  ├── PolarPairsApp.cpp      # Game entry point
  ├── PolarPairsController   # Game logic and scene handling
  ├── PlaygroundRenderer     # Renders tile grid and characters
  └── LevelData              # Loads and interprets .txt levels

---

👥 Team

• Ignacio Estrada – Lead UX & Game Design, Project Management

---

✨ Acknowledgments

• Built as part of the Cornell University Game Design capstone.
• Special thanks to the course staff and the CUGL development team.

---