Ideas Development
Shape People Game Idea
This idea was a very simple one, as my main focus for this project was character design due to my Unit 12 topic. So, to implement that into my final game, I decided to take an extreme for the character designs, and apply shape theory and colour theory in a very literal sense, having characters entirely made out of the shapes associated with the character types, as well as using colours to represent personality. The main character would start out being a very distorted mess of shapes, and would restore their body across the course of the game by progressing through different monochrome areas (these monochrome areas would be monochrome solely to really emphasise the character designs, as they'd stand out more), recovering pieces of their existence scattered around. To find these pieces, the player would have to talk to the people around, and they'd give the player clues on where they could find each piece. When talking, a visual-novel esque UI would appear, putting the character you were talking to front and centre, accompanied by a text box of their lines. This was how I intended on really centralising the idea around character design. In the end, I wasn't 100% keen on the idea. I thought it would be a bit boring and limited, so I kept drafting ideas in my drawing pad.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
-Simple character designs that stay true to the theories, allowing me to keep relevant to my Unit 12
-Very Basic Gameplay, so easy to create, saving time on production
-Assets would be easy to create due to simplistic designs
Weaknesses
-Whilst the character designs would be vibrant, the rest of the world would be boring, so interactivity and sound design would be important, and sound design is one of my weaker spots.
-Can't really develop the idea much further than it already is.
-There is a major lack of inspiration and interest for this project to start with, so I doubt it would get far
Opportunities
-Gives me a chance to apply character design theories to an extreme, especially the part I was least confident with, writing, as the character designs wouldn't require a whole lot of effort, meaning more effort could go into other aspects of the character design.
-Can focus more on learning other aspects of creating my game, due to the character designs taking less time, such as sound design and interactivity.
Threats
-Requires Sound design to create a more desirable product, and I am very weak in sound design
-Could be overly basic, and end up boring
-Concept is very simple, and I could lose motivation due to lack of interest in the project, causing me to fall behind in work
The Folk Laws of Fright 2!: The Sequel FMP Idea
The Folk Laws of Fright 2 was my second idea that I had for an FMP game, which would be the sequel to my year 1 FMP, The Folk Laws of Fright. I really enjoyed looking into the folklore of the characters that I incorporated into the first game, then creating character designs for each of them. I wanted to do the same thing with this game, as well as redesign old characters found in the original, remaking them so that they were the same in essence, but also fit more in line with character design theories, such as shape and colour theory, as well as just polishing the designs in general. This was quite an ambitious project, wanting to effectively be a 3D sequel to the first game in the form of a first person action platformer. I also wanted to have the game have less of a focus on the horror aspect, so I thought it'd be best to make it some form of satirical horror maybe(?), as then it would have an excuse to have more cartoony characters, as my art style has often been described as very cartoony. The game would be very similar at its core to the first game, having the player progress through levels based around different folklore, having the player fight off monsters from different folklore that would be associated with the area in one form or another. However, I think it might be best if I add a bit more diversity in this game in one way or another perhaps. Overall, I think this was a very solid idea, as it has a lot of inspiration and passion that can be put into it. However, the biggest flaw of this idea is that I will have to check with Connor if I can go ahead with it if I choose it, as if I reuse ideas from last year, even if it is in the form of redesigned characters, I could lose a large amount of marks for the project, meaning a lot my work would be for naught.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
-Lots of Passion and Inspiration behind this project would mean I should be able to take it decently far and get a lot of work done for it.
-Something that is very in my comfort zone, whilst still being challenging and allows me to apply my knowledge of the subject matters.
-Research into enemies and such would be easier, as I would be more interested in the subject matter.
Weaknesses
-Modelling would take a long time due to complex character designs, and I'm not very good with modelling.
-It's a very ambitious project, maybe overly ambitious.
-Could get overwhelmed with work if there is so much as a single mishap along the way.
Opportunities
-Would be a challenge and major test of my abilities that I've learned over my time on the course.
-Allows me to put to use all visual aspects of character designs I have researched for my Unit 12.
-I'd be able to create a fun experience for both my users and me, and hopefully something I can be proud of.
Threats
-I already have a very solid idea for the game, so researching throughout the project for inspirations might be slightly difficult.
-Might not be able to advance with the project.
-I would not be able to reuse any scripts from previous projects, as if I want to incorporate the mechanics I want, I will have to follow tutorials based around one player controller, as I am not good at coding.
Quinn the Apparition Hunter: Visual Novel game idea
Quinn the Apparition Hunter was the final and what I wanted to be the chosen idea for this project when I went into it. I wanted to create a visual novel game, as I figured that would be one of the best ways to go about incorporating character design into a game, as in a visual novel, the character designs are always front and centre, as aside from a textbox and some user interface options, those are usually all that is featured on screen. It would also give me an excuse to create a lot of art for the game. However, as excited as I was for this idea, I came to realise more and more flaws as I added more to the page. I realised that I have zero experience with creating visual novels in unity, or any game engine for that matter, I have no idea how to write a proper story involving multiple characters, and creating that story would take a lot of writing, which is one area that I struggle with, especially when I have to think hard about what I am writing. However, apparitions is an area I am interested in, so there is the potential for repurposing the idea later down the line, or maybe remaking the foundation of the idea for this FMP! Overall, I think it's a good idea, but I don't know how confident I'd be moving into a project that I have absolutely zero experience in, so my motivation could get crushed, which is exactly what I don't need for my year 2 FMP!
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
-I am interested in apparitions, so motivation to look into apparitions and inspirations for said apparitions could be done efficiently due to interest in the area.
-I would have a lot of fun creating the assets for this project, as it is 99%, if not 100% art.
Weaknesses
-I have zero Experience in creating visual novels in any form of game engine.
-I am not good at thinking hard about writing, so creating a story would be a large task, which would lead to a poorly finished product, as I have zero experience in the field as well.
-Visual novels are quite boring, and I would lack ideas to put on my mechanics areas on my GDD.
Opportunities
-Plenty of Opportunity to apply shape, colour, and writing theories for character design.
-It's a massive opportunity to create lots of art and potentially experiment a bit with my style.
-It's an opportunity to try and create some music for the backing tracks of the game (Maybe? I don't know how confident I am in creating music, so I may just use royalty free if I do go ahead with this idea.)
Threats
-Lack of knowledge could very easily crush any and all motivation I have for this project very easily, leaving me unable to do work for a while at a time.
-My lack of experience and confidence in writing stories
-Lack of mechanics could cause cuts in the interactivity aspect of the game, giving less opportunity for marks.
Summary + Conclusion
After consulting it with Connor multiple times (just to be sure), I decided to go with The Folk Laws of Fright 2! However, it's not going to be the same as I intended on it being, as if I were to even use the redesigns of the characters last year, it would deduct marks for an unoriginal idea or something along those lines, so instead, I'll have the game focus entirely on new folklore, aside from only 1 returning character for story purposes, as I have a very concrete idea for a story that I would like to follow. The game will still follow its original premise of being a (hopefully) 3D sequel to my year 1 FMP. I think this is a good decision, as it allows me to work with something I am passionate about, meaning I can put a lot of work into this project without (hopefully) feeling burnt out at any point. I am happy with this outcome and decision.
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