It's Raining Cats and Dogs!

Final cover design
Rendering of final product
Rendering of some game pieces
Table attachment for easy storage
A prototype of the game pieces

Inspiration

We had three main inspirations for this project which included the iconic Tetris Tumble, the Giant Pyramid Puzzle and SUSPEND.

Our first inspiration, Tetris which is a two-player game which resulted in where pieces are stacked together in an unstable 2D base, and the goal is to not topple the blocks. We wanted to create a game that is simple to manufacture, easy to store, and most importantly, it’s easy to play with at work. We also wanted players to choose if they wanted some alone time and solve this puzzle by themself or if they wanted to compete in a friendly competition with their colleague. “It's Raining Cats and Dogs” allows players to take a break during work while still exercising their brain trying to fit the pieces together and not topple the base.

Secondly, the Giant Pyramid Puzzle is a single player game which inspired us as the pieces are more organic and stacked in a 3D manner. The overall goal is to create a certain shape in a pyramidal form.

Lastly, SUSPEND, a multiplayer game was our last inspiration and essentially how it works is that there are thin, unwielded pieces that stack together and the overall goal is to balance all the pieces without having them tumble.

What it does

Our game increases productivity in offices by curing employees of their boredom.

How it works: The main objective of this game is to stack as many of your pieces on top of the base, without the cats and dogs falling over and making it rain. Included is a half-spherical base, 12 dog pieces, 12 cat pieces, and a droplet shaped case to store everything.

Rules:

1 Player - Try to balance the cats and dogs together on the main base without the base tilting and all the cats and dogs falling down. Try not to make it rain cats and dogs! If playing alone, the player can also just get rid of the spherical base and try to stack the pieces as high as they can on the table.

2 Players - One player gets all the cats, and one player gets all the dogs. The players take turns to place their pieces onto the base. If the base falls over while a player is adding their piece or falls over right after they added their piece, that player loses.

How we built it

We started off sketching ideas and coming up with our factors and constraints, leading us to our rough sketches of ideas that best met the criteria. After finalizing our designs with detailed plans, we started the 3D modeling process. Using Autodesk Inventor, we created the parts necessary to create our game. Once we finalized the 3D modeling, we converted our ipt files into stl files for 3D printing. Most of our parts were 3D printed as a prototype, although bringing this product to the market would use different materials. Our teardrop shaped storage box would ideally be made in tin, however, our prototype exists in cardboard form.

Challenges we ran into

Our first big hurdle was developing an idea. Once we decided on an idea, we needed to create a plan that was feasible within our time constraints and the resources available to us. While we knew that we wanted cats and dogs in our design, we had to decide on how best to create those shapes considering 3D printability and uniqueness. After completing the modeling of our parts in Inventor, we had to print the game pieces. During this process, we ran into many issues involving the print constraints needing to be under four hours each. Some parts were too large to be printed in one session, so we had to problem solve by splitting the prints into multiple parts. For our storage box, we quickly realized it would not be practical to print it, so we had to switch gears and create a mock-up out of cardboard. The most challenging part of the project was the assembly of the design and creating renderings. Attending the workshops helped us gain some insight as to how we could create nice animations and images of our design. Even with the materials and modifying the existing libraries in Inventor, the renderings did not completely match our visions. The ideal product would have more detail and colour, however, we were not able to add it to our current renderings from Inventor.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We felt accomplished by overcoming the 3D printing constraints given to us and working together to establish solutions to our challenges. We also were very happy with how the cat and dog puzzle pieces turned out and fit well together. We are proud of how well we managed our time and collaborated to divide the work. During this project, we built friendships and got to meet new people.

What we learned

Throughout this process, we expanded on our knowledge in CAD through workshops and practice. We also learned to think critically and in a timely manner, allowing us more time to work on the project. With the pitching workshop, we gained insight on how to produce an effective presentation and showcase it to a panel of judges to leave a lasting effect. These valuable skills will be something we carry forward and apply to our future adventures!

What's next for It's Raining Cats and Dogs!

Moving forward with this project, we would like to improve on the graphical design of our cat and dog pieces with better visuals. With more time, we would like to improve and expand on the models we currently have by making their shapes more realistic and creating an expansion pack with other animals. With these pieces, more players would be able to join in on the fun! Other variations of the game could also be created to allow for more versatility in the game and a better value to the customer. With these variations, we hope that this product would function as intended to reduce stress in the workplace environment and boost company morale.