For my Specialization, I chose to embrace my long history with Action and Fighting Games. Working on a small, independent slice of gameplay made for action titles.
A parrying mechanic.
Upon activation, the player will quickly swap through three different states.
Gray - Represents the "Normal" state, where the player can activate their parry, and can take damage normally.
Light Blue - Is the first state of invincibility that occurs. It has a much shorter duration than the following parry state, but rewards the player accordingly with a quicker recovery.
Dark Blue - Still successfully parries an enemy attack, and has a shorter recovery than if no attack was parried whatsoever, but doesnt instantly allow the player to act again, as the Light Blue parry timing does.
Green - Is the state of recovery after perorming a parry. During this state, the player cannot attempt another parry or any other action, and is left vulnerable to enemy attacks.
I created a simple challenge-mode, where several enemy projectiles approach the player from all sides. Perfectly timed parries gives the player a comfortable window to time their next button press, while normal parries shorten that window considerably. Mistime one parry and you're almost guaranteed to be hit by the following projectile aswell.