🌙 Luminaria: A Journey Within

A cooperative pixel-art board game by ERNER Studio
"Illuminating worlds, guided by moonlight."

🎮 Introduction

Luminaria: A Journey Within is a 2D online multiplayer cooperative board game developed by ERNER Studio.
Inspired by titles like Jumanji and narrative-rich RPGs, it blends strategy, knowledge-based challenges, and emotional storytelling in a pixel-art world. Players embody fragments of a shattered soul, working together to overcome obstacles and reunite as one.

🌐 Game Modes

• 2-Player Mode: Each player begins with 4 hearts (lives).
• 3–4 Player Mode: Each player starts with 3 hearts.
• If any player loses all hearts, the entire team loses.
• If any player reaches the end of the final map, the team wins.

🎲 Gameplay Overview

⏳ Flow

• Turn-based board movement using 2 dice (2–12).
• Players land on various tile types that trigger events or challenges.
• Players progress through 3 maps: Countryside, Desert, and City.
• Between maps, players visit a Hub Island with access to Dan’s Shop.

🧭 Objectives

• Complete each map by collaborating and navigating through events.
• Strategically manage hearts, credits, and items.
• Reach the final Divine Beam to win together or lose together.

🌍 Environments

• Countryside – Lush, peaceful landscapes with gentle learning curves.
• Desert – Harsh ruins and sun-scorched paths with higher risk/reward .
• City – A moonlit metropolis filled with complexity and challenge.
• Hub – A central island between maps for shopping and regrouping.

🎭 Characters

• Playable Fragments:

  • Ren – Hope Fragment
  • Roxy – Doubt Fragment
  • Tarus – Logic Fragement
  • Mar – Passion Fragment

• NPCs:

  • Cellica – The ethereal guide and question spirit
  • Dan – The eccentric shopkeeper with items for every occasion

🧪 Player Profile System

Each player profile tracks:

• Username / ID
• Elo Rating (dynamic difficulty scaling)
• Best/Worst Question Categories

🧠 Core Mechanics

🎲 Dice & Movement

• Players roll two dice to determine movement.
• Tokens move across pixel-art paths with smooth animation.

🧩 Tile Types

• Rest Tile - A simple rest tile, nothing happens.
• Question Tiles – Answer trivia based on Elo level (correct = reward, incorrect = penalty).
• Bonus Tiles – Credits, items, or health boosts.
• Cursed Tiles – Negative effects such as losing items, hearts, or chat abilities.

🤝 Player Collaboration

• Item Sharing – Give or receive items from allies.
• Heart Donation – Transfer a life to a teammate in need.
• Question Assistance – Whisper answer suggestions when requested.

Communication:

• Text & voice chat available during gameplay (except on question tiles).
• Communication can be toggled or disabled via items/events.

🛒 Dan’s Shop & Economy

• Credits earned through questions, tiles, and performance.
• Use Credits in Dan’s Shop to purchase:
  • Healing items
  • Reroll cards
  • Buffs
  • And more...
• Inventory limit: 3 slots per player

🏁 Victory & Defeat

• Victory: Any one player reaches the final tile on the third map.
• Defeat: If any player loses all hearts, the game ends for all.

🎧 Audio & Atmosphere

• Custom soundtrack composed using FL Studio and MuseScore
• Each map has its own ambient theme (piano, jazz fusion, etc.)
• Dynamic sound effects for dice rolls, tile effects, and UI feedback.

🛠️ Game Engine & Tools

• Engine: Unity (C#)
• Multiplayer: Unity Netcode for GameObjects
• Pixel Art: Aseprite
• Music: FL Studio, MuseScore
• Version Control: Git & GitHub

👥 Developers

Developed by ERNER Studio:

• 🎨 Rayan Derradji – Game Director, Art/Audio Director, Dev
• 🎮 Houssem Sid – Lead Game Designer, Dev
• ⚙️ Nazim Azzouza – Technical Director, Dev
• 📖 Anes Hadim – Narrative Director, Dev
• 🎨 Tarek Ait Ahmed – Art/Audio Assistant, Dev
• 👾 Abdellah Zeghmar – Game Developer

📄 License

This project and all its content — including code, art, audio, and design — are the property of ERNER Studio.
It is released under a custom license:

• ✅ Free to use for personal and educational purposes
• ❌ Not allowed for redistribution, commercial use, or publishing under any other name
• 📌 See LICENSE.md for full details