DESIGN

Environment Design Goals

Climate change is a primary theme in this game so the visuals are incredibly important. The game begins in a world that has begun really suffering the effects of climate change.

Throughout the game the player is shown a series of scenes depicting examples how climate change is changing our planet and what we can do to prevent it. Each environment for these scenes has to provide interest, exploration and education.

At the end of the game, the win or loss outcome must also be presented visually. It should have a shocking contrast and effectively convey the two outcomes of recovery and destruction.

How the environment will change

Above is a concept showing how the environment will look at the beginning of the game. The first scene where the player is introduced to the game will present to them a world that has become suffering. The rising temperature and prolonged drought has caused a big forest fire close to Morgans home, bleaching the fields and filling the sky with smoke. In the background, factories are pumping polluting gas into the atmosphere. The house is very small and bleak which reflects that Morgans family are lower class and struggling. This scene should be further developed to provide details that further suggest their class. Throughout the story the state of the environment can be reflected using examples such as the build up of waste/litter.

If the player fails to solve enough problems, the game world will adapt to reflect how those small mistakes add up and contribute to destruction of our planet. As shown in the concept above, the skies will fill up with smog casting an amber glow over the city. Plant life will suffer and eventually the conditions just will not be survivable. Visual additions to further develop this design include the build up of waste and extreme weather. The roads will begin to crack and buildings will begin to fall apart. This is the ultimate outcome if the player loses the game.

The concept above shows how the environment will look if the player wins the game. By making the right in-game decisions and succeeding on their quest they contribute the recovery of the game world. Green life begins to thrive again as does the wildlife that inhabits it. The skies clear of smog and smoke and furthermore the destructive factories over the hills are replaced wind turbines showing how the world is making positive changes for the future.

The goal of the visual design is to tell a story of how climate change changes our environment. There should plenty of imagery that clearly presents those effects and what has caused them, though it can be supported by dialogue. The art style should be relatively simple as the main focus of the game is the narrative and interactions. Examples of scene features that would accomplish this are a burning forest, factories producing emissions, displacement and extreme weather such as drought and storms.

Art Direction

The art style for this game should have a limited colour palette for the background scenery as to not draw too much attention from the game play but still visually highlight the effects of climate change.

Here is the link to my Pinterest board presenting the art style for the game environments: www.pinterest.co.uk/kw4u19/art-style/, and part of it is shown below.

These artworks feature stunning environments that have simple compositions and colour palettes but still manage to tell a story and evoke feeling. This minimalist style would be perfect for Change our Fate.

Here is the colour palette, and the HEX values for those colours, developed for each environment. First the basic environment that the player is introduced to and has to navigate. Then the palettes for the two outcomes of the game; failure or success.

The game will use the first colour palette as a base up until the final scenes when the player fins out if they won or lost. These environments will be smoggy and show signs that life is dying The colours represent feelings or grief and sorrow, for a world that is fading away. This is why the palette is made up of dark neutral colours.

The loss palette is made up of harsh, dark colours that present feelings of chaos and danger. Black is representative of defeat which is why it is an essential colour in this palette. The reds and oranges will build up the image of a burning world. They are bright and draw attention creating a large contrast between the previous palette.

The win palette evokes feelings of freedom and positivity. The greens and blues are representative of life, growth and energy perfect for a world that is recovering. The yellow is symbolic of happiness which is how the player should feel after receiving this outcome.

Character Design

The protagonist of Change our Fate is a gender ambiguous teenager named Morgan. Morgan doesn't believe that they deserve the life they have been given and this shows through their cynical attitude. Growing up living in a very poor part of a broken city that is now falling apart, with a family who are taking care of their sick sister, Morgan is depended on to gather resources. Despite the hardships that Morgan and their family faces, struggling for money in a climate suffering climate, they are determined to take action and make their family proud.

On the left is a character concept for Morgan. They are scruffy kid. Especially since their family struggle keeping the power on and the water running. Their clothes are too small and they look generally disheveled, hence the ripping and staining of their clothes. Their skin is pale to show malnutrition and lack of exposure to the sun.

Morgan carries a backpack to carry the objective items and a pocket knife that was given to them by their father. They also wear a mask, given to them by their father, to protect against the increasingly smoggy atmosphere.

Morgan will be 25% shorter than NPC's to further present the vulnerability and age of their character which is 14.

User Interface - Minor Foci

The UI design for "Change our Fate" includes the main menu, screen mock ups and interaction icons. The UI for this game is relatively simple because the main experience is taken from the narrative and the gameplay. There is little action, or ways for the user to interact with the app, other than player movement and the decision making mechanics. More information about user interface can be found under "Minor Foci - User Interface" in GDD Development.

Loading Screen

The loading screen contains the logo for "Change our Fate" against a wasteland background. As this game will be accessed as a mobile app, a loading screen is an essential.

Main Menu

The main menu includes a brief welcome message and description of what playing the game will entail. The options include, Play, Settings and Credits which are self-explanatory as well as a 'Do more to help' option that will take the user to a page providing them with information and links to tell them how they can help with the fight against climate change.

Inventory

The objectives will always be available as shown above so the player can refer to the list and make sure they are meeting those objectives. The inventory will present the items that the player has already collected but not show their value. However the total points that they have earned from collecting those items will be presented so they have a general idea of their combined value. This acts as a clue that will assist the players in choosing/trading the items that they collect.

The UI design will be kept relatively simple as the main experience of the game comes from the narrative and the visuals. The player only three ways of interacting with the game and that is character movement by swiping their finger on the touchscreen, interaction with the environment using the action tool (Pocketknife), and clicking on the screen with their finger to choose dialogue options or find information from odd elements in different scenes.

Above is another concept for the environment with the complete user interface. It also shows how the dialogue options will appear on screen. A description for each UI element can be found on the mechanics page under "Navigation and controls". After an NPC speaks, the two or three dialogue options will be displayed beneath it and the player just needs to click on the speech bubble they wish to say. This player is allowed as much time as they need to make a decision and the NPC's speech will stay on screen so they can refer to it.

Sound

The sound in the game will add to the environment in order to immerse the player. Music or button clicking sounds are not necessary as the game explores a serious, real-life topic and the game should therefore not be overly playful. Atmospheric sounds and sounds that explaoin the textures of the environment the player interacts with would add to the experience another level or explorative interaction.

Examples

Morgan breathing inside their respirator. This would only be heard as Morgan is walking and would be subtle. At the result of a loss, this breathing could get aster and heavier to show how the atmosphere is thickening with pollution, there is less oxygen available and it is getting harder to breathe.

Morgan running through the burnt down forest, snapping twigs. The burnt material would snap under their feet.

In more open environments such as the fields surrounding Morgans home, there would be strong winds. This sound effect is a little eery and adds to the solemn tone at the beginning od the game.

When the player uses the interactive tool (Pocketknife) there will be a sound of it clicking open to be used.

Dialogue will be displayed in text on the screen to be read by the player but it would be good if the NPC's had some sound to humanise them and the player would be able to connect with them more easily.

If they are using angry or aggressive language:

They might also cough from the build up of smoke/smog. This sound could evoke empathy in the player, towards the NPC's and may sway them to make the decision to do what is best for those inhabiting the game world.