Viktoriia
Nadhrebelna
I design games telling stories capable to make people care about. Blend system thinking with narrative instruments to create experiences that are remembered.
Mechanics that matter.
Truth Tails
An educational puzzle game about misinformation, set in Felinsburg—a city of animals where the social network "Meowitter" shapes reality.
Concept &
Premise
Why misinformation? Why cats? The jam theme was Ctrl+Alt+Disinfo—a prompt that pushed us toward the social media space. We wanted the setting to feel familiar yet slightly absurd, so players notice parallels with real-world platforms without being preached to.
A satirical anthropomorphic city with its own Twitter clone, "Meowitter", gave us that distance. The protagonist, Kio, is relatable because his situation is painfully ordinary: caught in a viral lie, powerless—until he decides to fight back.
Design
Systems
My focus was defining the core loop early: the fundamental action the player repeats. We landed on:
This loop mirrors real media literacy habits, making the educational layer feel earned rather than imposed.
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Fact-checkingPlayers cross-reference posts against clues, building the habit of source verification through gameplay.
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Trust MeterA reputation system that rewards careful decisions and punishes snap judgments.
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UI as WorldThe game's UI is the game world. I designed the Meowitter interface to feel immediately legible, yet increasingly manipulative as the story escalates.
The Outcome
Built over three months by a team of five. For me, it was the first project where I took full ownership of game mechanics design, UI systems, and Unity implementation simultaneously—delivering a ranked, grant-winning result.
Experience
Narrative Designer
RE:FRAGMENTALead story planning: plot development, character arc design, and thematic integration for cohesive, engaging narratives.
Intern Game Designer
KillaFactoryDeveloped detailed technical tasks for design teams. Conducted game market research, analyzing trends and competitor strategies.