Ball Chompers

Inspiration

Our game, Ball Chompers, is inspired by the classic party game Hungry Hungry Hippos. We wanted to recreate the frantic energy and competitive fun of trying to collect the most balls — but in a 3D, multiplayer environment where players actively participate and strategize.

What it does

Ball Chompers is a short, fast-paced multiplayer game where players join color-coded hippo teams. The goal is simple: collect and feed as many balls as possible into your team's hippo mouth before time runs out. After 20 seconds, the hippos close their mouths, and the team with the most balls wins the round.

How we built it

Players start on a top platform with a sign explaining the rules: choose a team color and get ready. Around the area, there are leaderboard panels and ad boards to keep players engaged while waiting for the next round.

Once the round has at least two players, a countdown begins. Players then drop into the arena and the action starts. They can run, jump, grab, and throw balls into their team’s hippo mouth—or even steal balls from opponents! Communication and strategy are encouraged for team success.

At the end of the round, scores are displayed, and players are respawned to the top platform to prepare for the next game. Winning players earn score points, which can be used to unlock cosmetic rewards like a virtual hippo shirt.

Challenges we ran into

We discovered the opportunity to build this game late in the process, which meant we were under time pressure from the start. Importing assets and textures into the editor was a challenge, especially while learning the interface. The biggest hurdle was understanding how the editor was meant to function—there is limited documentation, and its cross-platform nature introduced a learning curve.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Even though the game isn’t fully functional yet, we’re proud that we built a strong proof-of-concept. It demonstrates the core mechanics and gameplay loop, and with some additional refinement, it can become a polished multiplayer experience.

What we learned

We learned a lot about working within a new editor and platform. Getting comfortable with how the editor implements the observer pattern and understanding what API 2 offers was both challenging and rewarding. This experience strengthened our coding and game development skills, particularly in debugging, UI design, and multiplayer mechanics.

What's next for Ball Chompers

The next step is to polish the game mechanics, improve the UI, and complete the multiplayer functionality. We also want to expand the reward system, maybe with unlockable items or achievements, and refine the aesthetics to make the game more visually appealing. With better asset management and time, Ball Chompers can grow into a vibrant and addictive party game.