Influencer - work in progress

Objectives

• Emotional Design: To craft a gameplay experience that explores the process of alienation, specifically eliciting feelings of fear, grief, and helplessness(in current prototype) through storytelling and game design.
• Player Journey: To meticulously plan the gameplay timeline, level design, and pacing to guide the player’s emotional journey and encourage them to reflect on their own feelings.

My responsibilities

Level design, System design, and Programming

Design process

The design of this game followed a deliberate, emotion-first process to create a compelling player experience.

1. Story and Scoping
2. Game Mechanics
3. Levels

1. Story and Scoping

Guided by an emotional design framework, mentored by Alex , I created a cohesive narrative and emotional progression. This approach treated emotions as core design objectives, allowing me to align narrative and level design choices to guide players from a cozy, tutorial-like garden through diverse cultures, and ultimately to a state of alienation.

2. Game Mechanics

• Core Loop: The primary gameplay loop centers on the player character, an influencer, who captures photos of their companion, Miu. The quality and content of these photos directly influence their in-game reputation and currency.
• Player-Companion System: Miu is not just a pet; she is a core gameplay element. Players build a bond with her throughout the game through various interactions, which is essential for progression.
• NPC System: The world’s local inhabitants serve as a key narrative and mechanical element. Their behavior provides a contrast between acceptance and hostility, reinforcing the game’s central theme of alienation.

  

3. Levels

Our prototype demonstrates the core emotional journey of the game by transitioning the player across two key levels.

• Grandma’s Place: Designed as a safe, introductory level, this space is built to evoke a strong sense of warmth and security. It serves as a low-stress environment for players to explore core mechanics, interact with their companion Miu, and grow comfortable before the narrative shifts.
• Apple Market: This level is a dramatic tonal shift. While the player’s objective is a simple task—buying an apple for their pet—the experience is designed to trigger feelings of uneasiness and fear. The level introduces the theme of alienation as NPCs reject the player and their stares, follows, and actions reflect a growing sense of hostility.

a. Iterations

The design of the current map followed a multi-stage process, beginning with real-world references from the Helsinki Market Square. These references were used to develop initial concept art, which then informed the layout planning done with pen and paper. The final gray-box was built within Unreal Engine.

b. Gray-box Design Intent

The level’s gray-box was crafted to convey a sense of a rigid, rule-bound public space. To achieve this, several key design considerations were implemented:

• Level interactions: The final gray-box was built around three primary levels of player interaction, with specific objectives for each.

• High ceilings and cathedral-like structures were used to create a sense of scale and formality, giving the space an imposing presence.

• Visual Rigidity: The level’s rigidity was reinforced through the use of straight, sharp-edged shapes and a uniform texture across all shops and structures, creating a homogeneous and inflexible environment.

Tools used

• Unreal, C++
• Pen and paper

Our small Team

Its me, Veera , Adas , and our mentor, Alex .

The project is still in its early stages, and we’re aiming to have it ready soon. We hope to test it with you around that time! Please let us know if you’re interested😊










FIN.