Shaping the player experience of a cozy underwater puzzle adventure about a burned-out artist
UX Designer · Softblock Studios · In development, coming to Steam 2026
DRENCHED follows Brie, a burned-out artist who becomes a mystical fish and drowns into her own imaginary underwater world. Players move between two mirrored spaces: underwater as the fish, blowing bubbles to gather lost art pieces, and on the surface as a child, splashing through puddles. Across three levels, the game explores the joy and struggle of making art, told through cozy visuals and music rather than words.
My main focus was UX design: shaping the player experience and the interface players move through. I expanded on that in a few directions. I conducted usability testing to find where players got stuck, ran QA testing to catch issues before they shipped, and supported early game design decisions as the mechanics and levels took shape.
Players control two characters across mirrored worlds: a fish underwater who blows bubbles to collect submerged art, and a child on the surface who splashes through puddles. The worlds reflect one another, so an action in one space changes the other. Designing an interface that keeps players oriented across both perspectives, and teaches the switch without words, is the core UX challenge.
The questions this design has to answer
The main focus of the experience was whether players connected with the characters and understood how the two worlds interact with each other. Because so much of Drenched is taught without words, that connection and understanding have to come through comprehension and orientation, not explanation. These are the areas the design and playtesting are built around.
A look at the current build
Screens from the current build, pulled from the Steam store page. Click any image to view it larger.
Where the project stands
Drenched is in active development with Softblock Studios, targeting a 2026 Steam release. This page is a living preview.