Cinder Ridge
Designing Intuitive Crew Control
Role:
Designer/Developer
Team:
3 Engineers, 1 Designer, 1 Concept Artist
Platform:
Game for PC and Console
Designing crew control that feels like leadership and teamwork, not micromanagement
Cinder Ridge is a game about forestry in the future, where players lead a small crew to restore and maintain a forest.
Players plant trees, clear brush, build trails, and manage the health of the forest ecosystem.
To emphasize themes around teamwork and leadership, we wanted the player character to both manage and participate in the work being done - all through an intuitive controller interface.
Through iterative testing, the design coalesced around a basic insight: the metaphor of "directing the crew" should support player goals, not get in the way.
Players cared about what gets done, not who does it
Players need to switch seamlessly between precise action and efficient large-scale work
Crew behavior must be intuitive and predictable
The final system seamlessly blends direct control with strategic delegation, letting players fluidly shift from hands-on work to team coordination.
Prototyping
Walking Single-File
To capture the feeling of hiking and climbing in the mountains, we wanted the game to feature rugged terrain that could be traversed with some light platforming.
Single-file movement worked because it leveraged familiar real-world behavior—people naturally form lines when navigating challenging terrain together.
Dialogue-Based Delegation
This interface modeled English sentences: "Ask [person] to [perform action] at [location]."
Although this interface was intuitive and had an immediate appeal, testing showed that character selection added too much friction.
Players cared more about what gets done than who does it.
Coordinated Movement
In this prototype, players could group crew members together, and then instruct them to line up to “sweep” an area, moving in unison to scare wildlife out of the brush.
The “line-up” mode had obvious utility and immediate appeal, but the indirect control scheme was awkward when performing coordinated movements.
Players wanted to participate directly in the action, especially while coordinating with their crew.
Seamless Switching Between Precise and Mass Selection
For complex tasks like building infrastructure, I explored a system where crew members attempt to copy the player’s actions on nearby targets.
This was a great compromise that allowed the player character to participate directly in the work while making it useful to “scale up” with more crew.
Smart, contextual target selection and a seamless control for mass editing made eliminated the tedium of big jobs while helping the crew feel lively.
Action Selection:
Who Does What?
Equipment-Based Action Selection
Equipment provided an intuitive metaphor for filtering actions and targets - each tool works on specific objects in the environment, limiting user error. The initial implementation let different crew members hold different tools, with players tabbing through available tools using the bumpers.
Testing revealed friction in two areas:
Assigning different equipment to different crew members added complexity without benefit—players rarely wanted to multitask in this way
Tabbing through tools became cumbersome as more tools were added
Equipment defines who can do what
Players choose tools, not characters
The entire crew shares one active tool at a time
Tool selection should be instant, not iterative
Inventory Management—First Pass
The initial inventory system had three “in pack” slots and one “in hand” slot per character. All item types (tools, consumables, collectables) lived either in this tightly constrained inventory, in storage chests, or placed on the ground.
The design assumed that limited per-character inventory would make recruiting additional crew feel meaningful - more people meant more carrying capacity.
However, this meant players spent too much time managing their inventory, trying to find tools dropped on the ground, or equipping individual tools on individual characters. All of that got in the way of the work players really wanted to be doing.
Equipment management should support player goals, without creating meaningless logistical friction
Streamlined Equipment Managment
To address these friction points, we reconsidered equipment's role in the game.
Equipment defines a character's role and abilities—it's fundamentally different from consumables or collectibles.
This insight led to separating tools from other items and implementing a more conventional equipment system that treats tools as a distinct category.
"In hand" becomes a property rather than a separate slot, removing the friction of swapping items in and out of the inventory
Equipment remains in the global pool even when equipped, just tagged with a current owner - making transfers between characters seamless
Streamlined Selection: One Tool At A Time
Holding R2/RT reveals a radial menu where tools can be selected with a flick of the right stick.
A small inspector windows show which characters will equip the selected tool.
Players can see which crew members will use the selected tool before confirming
One selection automatically coordinates the entire crew - no need to equip individuals one at a time or tab through multiple items
Separate Inventory for Consumables & Collectibles
With tools moved to their own dedicated system, the general inventory can focus on its actual purpose: managing collectibles and consumables like seeds and cones.
The new interface provides a conventional grid layout with item details on hover/selection, making it easy to identify and use resources during work.
Separating tools from general inventory created space for both systems to serve their distinct purposes without compromise
Selection and Placement:
Who does what, where?
First Pass: Direct Character Control, Indirect Placement
In my initial implementation, the player controlled their character's position directly, with the character always facing forward in the direction it moved. Selection and placement were handled through a spherical trigger volume positioned in front of the character.
The character-focused interface I’d developed was actually an indirect and cumbersome way to specify where an action should be performed.
Testing showed that direct control of the character’s position wasn’t relevant to the strategic decisions players wanted to make—what really mattered was precise selection and placement.
Direct Cursor Control for Precise Placement
I switched to a system where the player uses the left stick to directly control a cursor's position, with their character following closely behind.
This allowed much more precise placement and selection by removing the indirection of character positioning, while preserving the sense of embodied movement through the world.
Players think in terms of 'where should this action happen,' not 'where should my character move'—the interface should match that mental model
Complex Planning with Precise, Cursor-Based Drawing
Players can draw construction plans and work areas directly in the world—outlining where a fence should go, or defining a field boundary to be cleared. A modifier button enables on-the-fly snapping for precision, with the first placement aligning to cardinal directions and subsequent additions snapping relative to existing structures.
This allows players to communicate complex intentions that crew members understand as coordinated tasks. Players sketch the intent and delegate the execution to their crew.
Plans bridge player intent and NPC execution—players define what should be done and where, so crew can handle the execution
Feedback and Rotation Control for Placement
Orientation is mapped to camera control; the item faces the camera and rotates as players orbit around, enabling direct and intuitive rotational control.
Leverage existing camera controls for object rotation—no additional input needed
Crew Coordination:
First Pass—Organizing Coordination and Selection by Formation
I implemented a menu that organized crew coordination behavior and selection modes into three 'formations.'
The formation categories felt arbitrary rather than meaningful to players' actual decision-making process.
Players had to break out of the game world to access formation options that didn't align with how they conceptualized their crew's work.
Players were more concerned with whether they needed precision control or wanted to coordinate their crew on larger tasks.
Solo and Together Modes
I reworked existing features into a more streamlined interface. Players use a dedicated toggle to switch between “Together” and “Solo” modes.
A single button toggle and a simplified conceptual model eliminate menu friction—players shift between the coordination modes they care about instantly
Solo Mode: Queuing Up Tasks With Precise Control
In Solo mode, each button press assigns the next available crew member to the selected target. If the crew is busy and the player character has the active tool equipped, the player character performs the action themselves.
This allows rapid task delegation without animation lock-up—players can queue multiple precise assignments in quick succession, then continue with other work while the crew executes.
Sequential assignment enables both precision and efficiency—players make exact selections without getting locked into individual action animations
Together Mode: Smart Multi-Selection
In Together mode, the entire crew acts simultaneously on similar targets near the player's selection. Rather than queuing individual tasks, one selection triggers coordinated action across multiple targets.
This enables efficient large-scale work—clearing a stand of trees, planting a row of saplings—without sacrificing the crew coordination that makes teamwork feel meaningful.
Smart multi-selection scales up work automatically while maintaining the feeling of coordinated teamwork
Contextual Coordinated Movement
While working together, certain tools automatically trigger coordinated movement modes.
With the brush cutter or watering can equipped, the crew lines up and sweeps areas in formation, working as a coordinated unit.
These behaviors activate contextually based on the active tool, eliminating the need for separate mode switches or manual formation commands.
Coordinated movement happens automatically when the tool demands it—no additional mode management required
Supporting Mode Clarity Through Camera and UI
Players had difficulty tracking crew state and understanding which mode they were in. Dynamic camera framing and streamlined UI provide clear visual feedback:
Closeup
The camera pulls in tight to frame the player character and the first crew member in line.
Letterboxing creates a clear visual distinction between the two modes, as well as a more cinematic composition.
Wide Shot
The camera pulls back and frames all crew members holding the active tool.
Centering the Crew
In both cases, the camera is centered at the midpoint of all relevant crew members, rather than just the player character. This:
Creates more dynamic / cinematic visual compositions
Emphsizes the feeling of working together.
Makes crew member’s facial expressions and state more readable.
Progression Through Scheduling and Delegation
An early idea for player progression was that players could gradually recruit additional crew members with expertise in different areas.
However, testing revealed diminishing returns beyond about 8 crew members—there are only so many objects and work areas within range of the player, so controlling additional characters doesn’t add as much benefit.
The challenge was to create a progression path which:
Supported themes about leadership and teamwork
Improved the player's operational capacity in meaningful ways
Maintained the feeling of collaborative work and embodied participation
Burnout Provides Incentives to Rest
Characters get burnt out if they go too long without a rest day. A weekly calendar interface allows players to manage their crew’s schedules.
Recruiting additional crew then allows players to spread the work out among more people, balancing work related goals with the wellbeing of the crew.
Recruiting a larger team becomes valuable even beyond 8 active members—players can rotate crew to prevent burnout, making larger rosters meaningful for long-term progression.
Assignments Reduce Tedium and Shift Focus to Big-Picture Strategy
Assignments allow players to delegate complex tasks to groups of characters, freeing them up to consider big-picture strategy.
This provided detailed control while eliminating repetitive micromanagement, but produced tension between scaling up and staying connected to the work.
Schedule Recurring Work With a Map Interface
A map-based interface expanded on the existing project planning tools, letting players schedule recurring work at specific sites as needed.
Players can make strategic decisions at a high level—this patch needs to be watered twice a week—leaving execution up to NPCs
These systems did provide compelling ways to manage the crew at a higher level, but diminished the importance and immersive feeling of direct collaboration.
Participation Rewards
The player character provides buffs to NPCs and builds stronger relationships through direct collaboration, creating meaningful reasons to sometimes join scheduled work.
This approach lets players focus on high-level decisionmaking while making direct participation a meaningful choice rather than a hard requirement.
Building a Trail Section
Building a trail section showcases the complete system in action—a multi-day task that requires precise selection, coordinated teamwork, and strategic planning.
Blazing a Trail
The player needs to clear a path for a new trail through dense forest. Shrubs, trees and fallen logs crowd the intended path - the kind of multi-step task that requires both precision control and collaborative teamwork.
Tree Clearing: Solo to Coordinated Work
The player starts alone but quickly gathers her crew when the job proves too big. In solo mode, each press of A sends the next available crew member to fell a selected tree, letting her maintain precision while scaling up the work.
Processing Fallen Log: Contextual Axe Actions
The same axe tool automatically removes branches when targeting the log, then cuts it into smaller sections. The system recognizes the context and provides the right action.
Moving Log Sections: Coordinated Movement
Log pieces are too heavy for one person. Multiple crew members automatically coordinate to lift and carry each section together.
The player controls the entire crew’s movements directly, and places the log carefully off to the side of the work area.
Planning and Scheduling
The player sketches the trail route directly in the world, then schedules tomorrow's brush clearing work before heading home.
Joining the Work
The next morning, the player chooses to work alongside her crew as they build the planned trail.
Result
After two in-game days, a major trail section is complete. The player seamlessly shifted between hands-on work and strategic coordination as the situation demanded.
Conclusion
The final system transforms crew management from a series of explicit decisions into contextual, fluid interactions.
Where the original prototype required players to think "Ask [Character] to perform [Action] at [Target]" - creating decision fatigue around character selection - the equipment-based system lets players think more naturally: "I need to clear these trees" or "This log needs to be moved."
Cognitive load is reduced significantly. Players spend less mental energy on crew assignment logistics, and instead focus on the work itself.
The instant toggle between solo and coordinated modes eliminates the friction of the old formations menu, letting players adapt to changing situations without breaking their workflow.
Most importantly, the system delivers on the core design goal of leadership that feels collaborative rather than managerial. Players naturally shift between working alongside their crew and providing strategic direction, supporting the game's themes around teamwork and leadership through the mechanics themselves.