Essence Creation

You don't solve the puzzle. You build something that can.

Essence Creation is a first-person puzzle game set in a sci-fi research facility. You play as an Engineer of Life — collect essences, open a creation interface, design a creature with specific attributes, and send it to do what you physically cannot.

Big enough to hold down a pressure plate. Fast enough to get launched across a fire pit. Intelligent enough to hack a terminal. Kind enough that a frightened scientist behind armored glass will actually trust it.

The game has two layers: physical form and moral character. Most puzzles ask for both.

Created for CDGC Speedgame: Hardmode 2026 Game Jam — Theme: CREATION Also developed as a presentation build for Farclip.ai

Puzzle chamber layouts were spatially analyzed using Farclip — an AI tool that evaluates navigation complexity, sightlines, encounter flow, and pacing directly inside the engine. Level design was iterated based on that spatial feedback rather than pure manual playtesting.

Two builds are included in the archive

/Lumen — full dynamic global illumination, recommended for the best visual experience /NoLumen — significantly better performance, recommended for low-end hardware

If your machine struggles with the Lumen build, switch to NoLumen — the gameplay is identical.

Controls

LMB — move active creature to clicked location J — command active creature to jump E — interact with objects (some interactions require both you and your creature to be near the object) 1 / 2 — switch active creature slot Tab — restart the current level

Creation Matrix Create — spawn a creature with your selected attributes Deconstruct — break the nearest creature back into essences
Q - Open matrix menu