Building Alliances Moodboards [WEEK 2]
These are some moodboards for each of the briefs we looked at. In the end we decided upon the Greening of the Sahara as the mechanics and creative possibilities for this topic seemed the most interesting.
Microplastics -
- Maybe the main player character could be something similar to the creature in carrion, leaving trails of mycelium behind. Main enemies would be creepy mutated cells and such. Maybe the game has a plot twist and we find out that in the process of killing the mutated cells and stuff we're actually harming the host, sort of illustrates the point of the huge impact microplastics have had on the earth and how we don't really understand the ramifications it has on life as we know it/ if we will ever be able to undo the damage.
- Playstyle would be either a side scroller or a top down fighter game with each level of the game being a different area of the body affected by microplastics. There would also be some obstacles you would have to avoid or simple block push puzzles to solve [like you have to push something onto a button to open a door] or maybe like a maze you have to traverse through while fighting enemies. Perhaps you play as that plastic eating fungus and your goal is to eradicate all the plastics in the host.
- Weapon ideas maybe there are certain tools you get from killing enemies that let you spread your plastic eating spores further? Like guns made of meat or throwable bombs that can be used to cause greater damage to enemies or attack enemies from afar. instead of weapons you get new mutations yourself? maybe there are also different potion type pick ups that give you resistance to acid attacks from enemies or perhaps let you become invisible to enemies for a little while? this would be the alternative to armour.
Submerged Nottingham -
- Peaceful exploratory game, a lot of ambience. the game is mostly about exploration and finding out what happened, maybe a few enemies you might encounter but the main focus is on the sunken city.
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- Play as either a diver or some research ship, if we went with the divers perspective i imagine the mechanics to be similar to that of Subnautica[2014] or Abzû[2016] where you are actively swimming in the place. we could still do this in a 2D or mix of 2D and 3D. As this is set in Nottingham a lot of the places you will explore are real landmarks that are in Nottingham, places such as the council building, train station, Victoria centre, theatre royal and maybe even confetti. All have been reclaimed by nature, coral reefs and other seascapes. Little evidence other than buildings and a few sites give any indication humans ever lived here.
The greening of the Sahara-
- The actual playstyle of the game would be similar to the Outer Wilds[2016] in the sense that its very story and exploration based with maybe some simple puzzles. The main mechanic/aim of the game is to photograph animals in their habitat and the newly developing environment. The story starts out in a newly developed settlement, solar punk vibes? perhaps some themes of Afrofuturism? Middle of the story is set in the new Sahara, safari, the vibrant environment is slowly unfolding. In the ending you are fully immersed in the jungle and have to traverse the new and somewhat alien environment with the unknown all around. Colours everywhere except for the animals.
I have also put together a Pinterest board for ideas relating to this project which the team can contribute to.
https://pin.it/5rj49X0NT
I think it would be really cool to make a very stylistic game perhaps with a variety of artstyles to give it a mixed media feel. The very textural and somewhat muted in colour biological sketches against the quite colourful but simplistic style of the jungle could be quite interesting and lend to that feeling of discovering something new and somewhat alien. The sketches ties into the theme of exploration and discovery and i think as well the abundance of patterns somewhat gives a nod towards African batik art.
Anon, No Date. Batik art [Wax and dye on fabric]Batik at National Gallery, Harare Province
^ https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/189854940516413075/UI suggestions and mechanics -
We discussed in our groups what perspective our game might be in, we haven't fully decided yet but here are some points that were brought up:
-First person : Gives more focus on the environment and story as it puts the player in the shoes of the character. Could give more of a feeling of tension as you have a more limited view, things can move in your peripherals. Also not having a visible main character doesnt limit the representation in a way, the main character can be imagined differently by every person who plays it and is not limited to a rigid design. Perhaps the glimpses of the character you do see keeps that ambiguity, face and overall body is covered by clothes so they can be interpreted however the player likes.
-Third person: Gives a bigger view of the environment but does have more of a focus on the character. Detaches them from the story so we almost watch the plot unfold as an onlooker not as a main character. Third person also has another accessibility advantage to some degree, the camera being pulled back a bit might make it easier to both navigate and reduce motion sickness in those that might suffer from it. If we do decide to go with quite a bright and highly patterned style this might be a good idea to make sure people don't get too overwhelmed.
Mechanics:
-Taking photos, this is the main focus of the game. The character is compiling these images as a part of a research journal on the process and purpose of the Greening of the Sahara. The player must gather photos of new fauna, flora, and equipment/processes used in the project.
- perhaps as you explore there are locations or interactable objects that will allow you to access dialogue. NPCs, Objects. Interactable options give you information on the world and include an educational aspect of what the greening of the Sahara project is.
-Maybe some simple puzzle or platformer mechanics?
Here is a mind map i made of some themes to consider when planning to make our game, it covers both the positive and negative impacts on what greening the Sahara may bring. I have also included some ideas for themes we could include in the game too, As we are most likely to make a very stylized game it is probably good to look into some art styles that we could look into adding into our game to make it more visually interesting so i will probably make some case studies on artists to potentially take inspiration from.
Bibliography:
Videogames -
Mobius Digital, 2016. Outer Wilds[online],PC.
Available at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/753640/Outer_Wilds/ [Accessed
4 October 2024].
Unknown Worlds Entertainment, 2014. Subnautica[online],PC.
Available at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/264710/Subnautica/ [Accessed
4 October 2024].
Giant Squid, 2016. Abzû[online],PC.
Available at: https://store.steampowered.com/app/384190/ABZU/ [Accessed
4 October 2024].
Artwork-
Anon, No Date. Batik art [Wax and dye on fabric]Batik at National Gallery, Harare Province
Lidberg, M., 2014. Glass Animals [Pencil on paper]. People of Print[online]. Available via: https://www.peopleofprint.com/illustration-2/micah-lidberg-glass-animals/ [Accessed 4 October 2024].
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