Gong De Bag
A plastic bag simulator in a 3D small open world, where you play as a sentient bag trying to do good (or bad) deeds to influence your gong de—a karma-inspired system.
Role: Director
Platform: PC | Unreal Engine 5
Genre: 3D Adventure
Team: 2 students working over 3 months
Contribution
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As the director and originator of the Gong De Bag concept, I proposed the initial idea of a whimsical “plastic bag simulator” rooted in karmic redemption. From there, I led the project’s creative vision and development across multiple disciplines:
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Designed the complete gameplay systems, player interactions, and the karma-driven core loop.
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Developed core mechanics in Unreal Engine using Blueprints, including the consume and spit item system and a dynamic inventory system for item management and progression.
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Crafted the narrative foundation—transforming the bag’s fall from sacred temple offering to cursed reincarnation—and wove it into quests, NPC interactions, and environmental storytelling.
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Produced key 2D assets, including NPC headshots, UI elements, and the 3D model of the plastic bag itself. Created both the intro and ending 2D animations, framing the story with a polished presentation.
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Oversaw the game’s artistic, narrative, and technical integration, ensuring all systems worked cohesively to deliver a playful yet meaningful player experience.
Intro animation: Procreate (by me)
Narrative Overview
Once upon a time, you were Gong De Bag—a sacred vessel that held offerings in a temple, honored as a symbol of virtue and generosity.
One fateful day, you burst apart, spilling every last offering entrusted to you. Outraged by this failure, Buddha cursed you to be reborn as a lowly flimsy plastic bag. To regain your honor, you must wander the world, performing good deeds and collecting karma.
Only by proving your worth through compassion and cleverness can you hope to reincarnate into something more noble once again.
Quest Example
In this quest, the player assists Abao in catching a rare Lightning Banana Fish that lives in the lake. As a sentient plastic bag, the player learns the game’s core water interaction mechanics through this task.
By consuming pieces of garbage, the bag becomes heavier and can sink underwater; by spitting them out, it becomes lighter and floats back to the surface. The challenge lies in mastering this buoyancy-based control—using trash strategically to submerge, surface, and time your movements to catch the fish at the perfect moment.
Successfully delivering the fish to Abao rewards the player with Gong De (karma)!