Hitesh KS
Detective Dotson @Masala Games
About the game:
Embark on an unforgettable adventure set in the vibrant heart of modern-day India!
In Detective Dotson, you explore cozy alleys, bustling markets, and colorful festivals as you solve intricate mysteries.
Each case challenges you to piece together clues on an evidence board while meeting a diverse cast of lively, relatable characters.
Experience exhilarating Bollywood dance-offs, joyful weddings, food festivals, and heartfelt moments across a dynamic world brimming with India's spirit and charm!
Dotson Game Trailer
My Contributions
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Mission Design & Quest Design
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Narrative Design
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Gameplay Systems Design
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Character Design & NPC Systems
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World & Level Design
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Development Testing & QA
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Prologue Movie Script Writing
Core Contributions:
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Mission Design & Quest Design
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Designed interconnected case missions linked through the evidence board system.
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Developed exploration and clue discovery flows to build logical, satisfying case-solving experiences.
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Narrative Design
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Created interlinked narrative arcs between cases to form a cohesive detective storyline.
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Collaborated closely with the Game Director to maintain consistency with the Detective Dotson movie.
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Gameplay Systems Design
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Developed player interaction systems including object-based actions (throwing objects for distraction, disarming, and player expressions).
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Designed unique gameplay moments like Dog Petting, Food Stalls, Mini-games, and NPC interactions.
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Character Design & NPC Systems
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Designed NPC traits, daily routines, relationships, rivalries, and natural world interactions.
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Built NPCs that contribute to both narrative depth and open-world immersion.
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World & Level Design
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Placed Points of Interest (POIs) and structured the game world to support storytelling and gameplay discovery.
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Created living city layers through environmental storytelling, dynamic NPC populations, and hidden narrative details.
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Puzzle Design
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Integrated narrative puzzles and hidden storytelling elements tied to exploration and case-solving.
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Development Testing & QA
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Tested narrative logic, evidence board progressions, disguise gameplay, object interactions, and system flow.
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Supported multiple demo iteration cycles including gameplay balancing, logical bug fixing, and QA reports.
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Prologue Movie Script Writing
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Wrote the prologue script for Detective Dotson: The Movie, tying together the opening narrative for players and movie viewers alike.
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Localization (English to Hindi)
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Supported narrative localization to ensure consistent tone, humor, and storytelling between languages.
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Showcasing testimony collection, discovering clues, and experiencing detective exploration.
Showing interconnected cases linked together through the evidence board.
Displaying the narrative arcs of different cases and how they connect.
Consistency between the game and movie, with the same characters appearing across both mediums.
Food stall interactions, including bargaining mechanics.
Showing the Dog Petting feature and NPC reactions
NPCs following daily routines - roaming, chatting, humming songs, entering/exiting homes to simulate real life.
NPCs interacting with Dotson, asking for hints, names, or testimonies that assist case progression.
Highlighting various POIs across the city (with more to come).
Capturing vibrant city life, including weddings, festivals, and hustle-bustle of Indian streets.
Displaying a detective board puzzle where players must connect clues logically through player interactions.
Demo Iteration 1 — Recorded first round of player experience testing (Facecam + Commentary).
Demo Iteration 2 — Internal gameplay recording for QA (Facecam + Commentary, not publicly posted).
Demo Iteration 3 — Testing updated gameplay systems and world adjustments (Facecam + Commentary).
Demo Iteration 4 — Final testing gameplay session posted publicly on YouTube (Facecam + Commentary).
Story and Screenplay by Hitesh KS in movie credits
Watch Full Movie "Detective Dotson" + English Subtitles
Gameplay Footage
AWARDS
GALLERY
Reference
In case you want feedback about my work, you can contact
SHALIN SHODHAN, Director at Masala Games.
If you have any questions, you can also contact me at my email address:
Thank you!