Premise
One sentence
In the Silicon Story, a first-term Stanford student wants to get through a demanding term and build a future they’re proud of, but can’t simply work hard and wait, because every week technology offers a tempting shortcut, and each one quietly trades away learning, wellbeing or relationships.
Full Paragraph (Snowflake)
In Week 2, the student has an essay due tomorrow, a part-time job at Coupa Café, and a dream of becoming a science content creator with their dog, Pixel. How they handle that essay, writing it themselves, leaning on AI, or filming a video instead, sends them down one of three very different roads: a quiet midnight battle with their phone, an email from Professor Jessica asking them to explain an essay they didn’t write, or sudden fame and a brand deal.
By midterm week, most students face fresh temptations: Cheating by using notes & tips hidden on a smartwatch, or an AI that claims to predict the exam questions. Students whose earlier use of AI was caught now faces something different: a summons to the Academic Integrity Board, where attending isn’t optional but how they answer for what they did is.
On the last Saturday before finals they get one free day, and every option on it pulls them towards a different future. At the end of the term they choose that future: a job interview at TechNova that tests what they actually learned, a lottery ticket, full-time youtube streaming, or a startup pitch. Nine endings show that shortcuts have consequences, but the uncommon path isn’t always the losing one. Because the player might end up winning the lottery 😄.
Theme
Own my every decision. Every scene remembers how the player felt about their last choice, and the ending reflects their own journey back to them.
Player Experience Goal
Players should feel the real pull of each shortcut, without being able to spot the “right” answer, and leave thinking about how they use technology themselves.
Map of the space
The story stays close to the student’s everyday life: almost every scene happens on campus, and only the final choices pull them out into the wider world.
Key plot points
The dorm room is where the biggest temptations happen, alone at night, while public spaces like the library, the exam hall and the Integrity Board are where those choices get tested. Online is a space of its own, and it only opens up for players who follow video creation path.
- Dorm room, Week 2. The essay is due tomorrow. The student writes it, uses AI, or films a video with Pixel.
- Online, Week 5. Pixel’s video goes viral and a brand offers a deal (only if the video worked).
- Dorm room, Week 5. The midnight scroll the night before the ENGR 101 midterm.
- Professor Jessica’s office, Week 5. Office hours about an essay the student didn’t write (only if they copied with AI).
- Library or dorm room, Week 7. Preparing for the Design 101 midterm, with friends or alone.
- Exam hall, Week 7. The midterm, and the temptation of notes on a smartwatch.
- Integrity Board room, Week 7. The hearing (only if the student was caught).
- Week 10, the last Saturday. Practice exams in the dorm, a shift at Coupa Café, the hackathon, or Half Moon Bay.
- After finals, the Crossroads. A job interview at TechNova, a lottery ticket from the corner store, a pitch at the accelerator, or streaming online.
Project plan
The game is playable in Twine and has had two playtests, but it’s still a work in progress. The remaining nine days run two more rounds of playtesting, each followed by revisions based on what players show me.
Rounds 1 and 2 are the playtests I’ve already done: the paper prototype in class, then a second playtester’s feedback. which I did on Tuesday 20th October. I’ll be having more playtest rounds, after which I’ll go agregate problems more than one person ran into, and fix. In my immediate next round of playtest, I mainly want to see whether players understand why each option is there, and whether the moments that look back on their earlier choices actually make them feel something. My final playtest would be to checking my fixes, ideally with one person who played before and one who hasn’t.
I’m trying not to add any new branches. If something isn’t working, I’ll fix it through the writing instead.
Oct 21 – 23: Premise, map, revised game and in-class playtest
Oct 23 – 24: External playtest 2
Oct 24 – 25: Revise based on external playtest 2
Oct 26 – 27: External playtest 3
Oct 28 – 29: Final revisions
Oct 30: Final submission
Potential Challenges
The biggest risk is scope: My branching tree is already complex with about 60 passages, making it difficult for me to fit new ideas into the story.
Branching scope: One new scene means new outcomes, new emotional callbacks and new ending reflections. My plan is to freeze the tree after this current version of the game, so later changes go into wording, not new branches.
Balance: Hidden scores make some endings rare; The two playtests I have done had players choosing almost similar paths. Maybe because we are all Stanford students and may have similar ethics. My plan is to carry out more playtests and see if this continues to be the case.
Feelings: Players may read the game as a lecture against AI and feel judged.
Finding playtesters: Feedback so far comes from two classmates. My plan is to diversify a little bit.
