vsaravan – The Mechanics of Magic

Coziness and Juiciness in Games: An Intersectional Comparison of World of Goo and Slime Rancher – RWP Spring 2025 Final Paper, Varsha Saravanan

June 13, 2025

Coziness and Juiciness in Games: An Intersectional Comparison of World of Goo and Slime Rancher As a non competitive game enthusiast, playing games goes…

Read, Write, Play: Starcraft 2 – Varsha

June 12, 2025

Playing StarCraft as my first real-time strategy game was an intense and overwhelming experience. I went in knowing it might be challenging, but I…

P2: Whisk(ers) – Team 23

June 7, 2025

Whisk(ers) Build* | GitHub | Demo Video CS 247G: Design for Play, Spring 2025 Team Members: Kristine Ma, Varsha Saravanan, Sarah Teaw Whisk(ers): Help…

Final Reflection – Varsha Saravanan

June 7, 2025

I have never considered myself to be a game person. I was never good at video games, and as someone who likes winning, the…

Slime Ranchers – RWP

June 1, 2025

Slime Rancher might be one of my favorite current games! When I first started playing it for RWP, I wasn’t expecting to grow so…

The Escapists – RWP

May 31, 2025

When I started playing ‘The Escapists’, I didn’t expect it to make me reflect on morality. My first thoughts on this pixelated prison escape…

Critical Play: Play Like a Feminist – Varsha

May 30, 2025

Game Name: one night, hot springs Creator: npckc, a Japanese video game developer Platform: Available on Microsoft Windows, Linux, Android, and Mac; can be…

Frog Fractions – RWP

May 30, 2025

Reading the phrase “intertextual knowledge to subvert the player’s expectations” didn’t really mean much to me, until I played Frog Fractions. Not only does…

Cookie Clicker – RWP

May 29, 2025

Cookie Clicker, my first time playing an Idle game, ended up being a pleasantly delightful experience. To be completely honest, for the first few…

Sketchnote – Plants vs. Zombies – Varsha

May 28, 2025

Critical Play – Games of Chance and Addiction

May 23, 2025

Game Name: Blackjack Creator/Origin: Originated in 18th-century French casinos; now a staple in both physical and digital gambling spaces around the world. Platform: Available…

Sketchnotes – Addiction by Design

May 21, 2025

Critical Play: Worldbuilding – Varsha

May 16, 2025

Game Name: Wizard 101 Game’s Creator: Kingsisle Entertainment Platform: Compatible with PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S. (Playtested using free…

Sketchnote: Loops and Arcs

May 15, 2025

Critical Play: Puzzles – Varsha Saravanan

May 9, 2025

Game Name: The Room Game’s Creator: Fireproof Games Platform: Compatible with Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows, Mobile App (iOS, Android) Target Audience: Individuals aged 13+…

Sketchnote: Puzzles in Games, Puzzles as Games – Varsha

May 7, 2025

Checkpoint 1: Concept Doc – Varsha, Sarah and Kristine

May 7, 2025

Synopsis + Story Our game, Whisk(ers) (name to be finalized), introduces the player as a cat, Mochi (as a default name) on Caturn, a…

Individual Concept Doc – Varsha

May 7, 2025

Mood Board (view featured image for higher resolution): Spotify Playlist: Possible Directions: Magical Cat Café: One idea I’m exploring is a cat café…

Critical Play: Mysteries & Escape Rooms – Varsha

May 2, 2025

Game Name: Tiny Room Stories: Town Mystery Game’s Creator: Vasily Povalyaev via Kiary Games Platform: Compatible with mobile app (Android and iOS), Nintendo Switch,…

Sketchnote: The Role of Architecture in Video Games – Varsha Saravanan

April 30, 2025