Daddy rarely changed diapers. To make light of the situation, I made a game. The goal?? To see how long a player could actually dodge diapers.
I created a cast of characters including a floor bot, a dad, an alien, and a cat. The idea was to show that any and everyone would run away from this job (except for a super nurturing mom of course!)
Players in Diaper Dash
For sound, I loved the original game's soundtrack (more about this later). I specifically felt the lyrics matched the baby theme, even though they're talking about bees. One line reads, “they will attack anything that moves, anything that makes noise, smells, they don't care what they sting, they will [destroy] anything." The bass, upbeat tempo, and musical ride also beautifully adds to the gaming adventure. If you haven’t gotten that far in Diaper Dash, the musical climax starts around the two-minute mark.
Intentional effects I included was an annoyingly loud alarm at the beginning, followed by a baby’s innocent and delightful laughter at random moments in the game. There are also screams of horror from each character — which I adjusted the pitch to give more depth and hopefully make you chuckle. And finally fart noises, which I recorded and made by doing raspberries with my mouth.
Sound editor for fart noises in Diaper Dash
When the game starts, poop-filled diapers of varying sizes fall from the sky. The player’s only recourse is to move from side to side in an attempt to avoid them. The fart noises serve as audio cues before the digital farts appear. They’re green clouds of fog that the player must avoid. The obstacles strategically alternate close to the player to test their priorities. First they have to guess which side the fart is coming from, then they have to choose their ultimate fate.
Falling diapers, coins, and farts in Diaper Dash
Oh…and there’s money. Gold coins fall from above and during the challenge there are many opportunities where the player has to decide between dodging a diaper or chasing money. The catch is the money doesn’t disappear, it collects at the bottom of the screen until the player picks it up. While you may think this is some clever design that symbolizes money will always be there. It’s actually a coding error. I have no idea how to make the coins exit the game. But I do feel like it accurately depicts the choice to focus on children, or material things.
Uncollected coins at bottom of Diaper Dash game
To make the player feel even more horrified by the idea of touching a dirty diaper, I added a screen shake and flash of whiteness every time a player gets hit. These effects hope to mimic the player’s life flashing before their eyes.
The game was released in October and is my version of a thriller. No fictional violence, just pure chaos and real-life messiness that may be horrifying to others.
Upon completion I LOVED the game, but my family’s reactions were not as excited as mine. In fact, I think they think the game is gross. Instead of smiling and laughing (like me), they were disgusted.
But for years I changed diapers and wiped butts, so I’m proud to bring this experience to the gaming world.
Things I still want to add include a splat of poop on the game over screen. As well as power ups like a potty or diaper pail that maybe slow down the obstacles or make the player invisible. A progress tracker would also be nice, so that the game is completion-based vs score-based. Meaning right now you can play infinitely, but I kind of want players to feel like they’ve accomplished something - like they potty-trained a virtual child. And I want multi-colored confetti to fall at the end once the milestone/game is achieved/won.
Notes in Scratch code
These ideas require that I learn new skills — so it may take some time for me to update the game with these new features.
On the theme of learning, now I’ll describe how I actually made the game. It’s a remix!! Scratch encourages collaboration, creativity, and the love of coding through giving Scratchers the ability to remix projects. This means taking an existing project and making it your own. As a 30-something year old with no coding experience but an idea I wanted to bring to life, this feature is super helpful. So when I came across a futuristic-looking game with 3D rocks, I knew it was the perfect template for my diaper idea. (Thank you so much Reimagine!!!) You can try both games below.
Diaper Dash by Me (DommiesBlessed)
Speed (original game) by Reimagine
P.S. The original game isn't mobile-friendly, so you'll have to play it on a desktop, or laptop. Good luck!
P.P.S. As an ex-cloth diaperer, I'm fully aware that a sea of disposable diapers has a devastating impact on our environment. If you're interested, check out the company Terracycle. They believe in the idea of getting rid of waste and actually convert dirty diapers into pellets that can be used for new furniture (like park benches)
That's it for now!
