From Tabletop to
Playable Prototype.
A COOPERATIVE GAME OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TERROR
Original game design. Human creative invention and direction. AI-assisted implementation
The Decisions Behind the Experience
My Design Decisions
I designed Bye Candlelight around cooperation, sacrifice, and mounting tension. For the digital adaptation, I directed how the tabletop rules would become interactive choices—what players needed to see, when they needed to act, and how the game should communicate consequences.
I supplied the card designs and guided the visual presentation, sound cues, and interface. Decisions such as distinguishing the altar candles from the background and highlighting available actions helped make the experience clearer while preserving its horror atmosphere.
Through playtesting, I checked the implementation against my intended rules, identified errors, and directed corrections. The dice-matching system was one example: players could use their rolled dice in any order, but had to clear the tumblers in sequence. I used that feedback to refine both the implementation and the instructions players see.
AI Assistance
I used ChatGPT to help translate my game design and rules into a playable browser prototype, coverting the card interactions, dice matching, resource tracking, and turn progression into executable code. It also supported interface development, and the integration of artwork and sound. The process involved ongoing creative direction and revision.
I dictated requirements, tested the results, and used player feedback to execute required code changes. ChatGPT helped implement those revisions and create automated checks for game behavior.
Using AI allowed me to explore a digital adaptation of my tabletop design and iterate on it through
hands-on playtesting. The prototype demonstrates how AI can be used as a tool for creative direction, game play communication, and critical evaluation with AI-assisted assistance.
Bye Candlelight
a Horror Game by Kevin Harris
The darkness doesn't want you dead. It only needs you to make the wrong choice.
Don't ask if you can survive, ask what you are willing to sacrifice to survive.
copyright 2026
