Team:
Delali, Esteban, Katherine, Natasha, Yousif, Zoe
Directions:
We want to move towards a psychological thriller choice game aiming to make a commentary on how giving up yourself for someone else can drive you towards insanity. It follows our main character, who gave up her life for her life with her husband, when she finds out he’s cheated. From there, the plot grows peculiar, and in her feelings of shock and betrayal, she ordered an AI partner who causes her life to spin upside down, where she can finally pursue her dreams… to the extreme. We hope to evoke challenge and discovery kinds of fun.
The game will be 2D, and an exploratory game taking place in the house of the protagonist. Main interactions will consist of numerical puzzles, dialogue, quests to find objects to advance to other places in the house, and choices for the protagonist to make in order to proceed the story in different directions.
Emotions We Wish to Envoke:
- Curiosity
- Unease
- Sorrow
Individual Moodboard Links / Mechanics of Magic Posts:
Yousif: https://mechanicsofmagic.com/2022/04/29/individual-concept-brainstorming/
Delali: https://mechanicsofmagic.com/2022/04/30/mood-board-and-playlist-2/
Natasha: https://mechanicsofmagic.com/2022/04/30/checkpoint-1-natashas-individual-concept-doc/
Katherine: https://mechanicsofmagic.com/2022/04/27/p2-moodboard-playlist-and-directions/
Esteban: https://mechanicsofmagic.com/2022/04/30/moodboard-playlist-and-3-directions/
Zoe: https://mechanicsofmagic.com/2022/04/27/mood-board-and-playlist/
Spotify Playlists:
- Yousif’s playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7ls22VggdEYhVNeIFMXAUW?si=d9376f137b11407c
- Zoe’s playlist: on mechanics post
- Delali’s playlist https://open.spotify.com/playlist/79Id273mucaNsdg9bJm1YG?si=D6ligm8XT_iLlwu7pcLCiw
- Natasha’s playlist https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1suYa0O5oW3lAvphyAuews?si=a3382e92f3bc43d9
- Esteban’s playlist: on mechanics post
- Katherine’s playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4qd9NXnnFf1bmKon90huzZ?si=L_nVcy0fTVimiGGYADMEYQ
We wanted to wait until we have a gameplay draft for a “game playlist” since we can’t point our finger at what songs to play for what scene yet, however, we planned out all our scenes so we’ll be integrating them soon!
Synopsis:
You are a married woman for 30 years, alone in your room, watching t.v, when suddenly you hear a text message go off. Your phone died a while ago and you couldn’t find your charger so this catches your attention. You look at the phone, and your heart drops – your husband has been cheating on you. As though it were on cue, an Ad for creating the ideal partner takes over your t.v screen – a fully customizable partner who helps you achieve your goals. Things begin to get weird once the partner arrives…
LINK TO SCENES AND SCRIPT:https://docs.google.com/document/d/15sG_b9zV7hlIuKEKUqT21u0rFvW2GyfxH_yu3wexiCY/edit?usp=sharing
Theme: A strong narrative focus set on a romantic horror theme.
Setting:
You are alone in your house after you have just ordered a “virtual mate.” The house has been completely automated where your virtual partner has control over everything for ease of use. The game encompasses the entirety of the house, around every room in the building. Each room provides different puzzles and clues. There is a first floor, second floor, and a basement, taking place in the evening with dim lighting at all times.
Gameplay:
- First-person
- Exploratory → pick up things → papers, letters, trash, in order to reveal plot
- Companion → cat? (Non-verbal communication?)
- Communication solely through significant other – can you trust them?
- Choose your own path mechanics (e.g., escape or kill?) → leads to different endings
- A timer mechanic to finish tasks to spark urgency
Key challenges for design:
- How can we come up with engaging puzzles that still fit into the narrative?
- How can we integrate dialogue in a manner that maintains the player engaged in the game (unlike the game we played in section where dialogue took us out of the experience)?
- How can players feel connected with the characters they are playing?
- How are we able to blend enough horror elements into game while still making the story deep and communicate a larger, underlying message of not losing yourself for the pursuit of someone else?
Key challenges for tech:
- How can we implement horror in a 2D format that doesn’t rely on jump-scares, majority of horror games we’ve played have been 3D
- How can we code 2D puzzles that are creative and bring something new?
- How can we synchronize our code and ensure we can all have creative control?
- What timelines should we set for playtesting? When should we be able to test what?
Key challenges for art:
- How can we make our characters look like they belong inside this world?
- How can we create the magic circle through our artwork?
- What little details in the setting need to be communicated through visual imagery?
- How can we use common household elements in our art to create an intimate environment and how do we communicate that through art?
Who is this for?
This game is for teenagers who have played romantic horror games before or are looking to get into them. They love a mysterious plot that takes many twists and turns and they enjoy a narrative-driven game. The point of playing this game is to learn the story and to understand what happens next. This player loves to immerse themselves into a new world through games and navigating a game as though reading a book. They also enjoy solving puzzles and escape-style games. A good story is very important for this player, and they often pursue a discovery and challenge type of fun.
