3. research

1. Research
Jay Birkin

2. Existing Product(The Witness)
This product is similar to my idea in the fact that it is the same genre, solving puzzles. The
colours are very bright and colourful, the palette is quiet a wide variety and It is like this
too make the game more relaxing because if you are playing this you will want to not be
stressed, green is the colour of nature. It symbolizes growth, harmony, freshness, and
fertility, green has strong emotional correspondence with safety. Puzzles in The Witness
are hard, but they’re always fair and solvable. This game is more freeing than most puzzle
adventures, you’re allowed and even encouraged to walk away from a problem you don’t
feel equipped to solve or cant solve. labyrinths quickly become more sophisticated, adding
new rules and constraints to the basic maze-like structure. Every tree, every rock, feels like
it has been placed with a purpose for part of the game. The game is all on one island
which means the map is of decent size but it isn’t limitless because if it was like that
people would just get bored of continuously walking. There is no narration for this game
and there doesn’t really need to be because you have to figure out everything yourself
which is the whole point of the game, there is also no music and this is very calm and
relaxing which helps when solving puzzles because you don’t need distractions however
some people may prefer this. The only sound that appears is your footsteps and this just
makes the game seem more realistic. This game is not pixelated it is a 1st person 3D game
with some exaggeration and it is like this too get people to see beautiful scenery as well as
solving puzzles. With all of the different areas of scenery you never get bored doing
similar things on this game. In this game there is no other characters and there is nothing
wrong with that, they wouldn’t really be necessary towards the game. The audience will
want to buy this game because it is a slow-pacing, taking your time game which you can
take all the time in the world to play and keep coming back to it, you don’t see any games
like this, it is very unique and one of a kind. One trick that the game uses on you is it
makes you strive further, this is because you really want to know what the puzzle unlocks
next so you try with all of your power to solve the puzzle even if it takes you way longer
than expected.

3. Existing Product(City Skylines)
I have included this type of game because I was unsure about the idea of
game that I wanted to make and carry forward. The colour scheme for this
game is of brighter colours, green is the colour of nature. It symbolizes
growth, harmony, freshness, and fertility, green has strong emotional
correspondence with safety and blue which is often associated with depth
and stability which are key factors of a working city. You can zoom in and can
see individual humans walking through the streets, going to work or school,
engaging in leisure activities, or returning home. They drive cars, take trains,
and even walk dogs. Up close, buildings are colourful and detailed, right
down to small animations like rooftop fans spinning. A slider in the options
menu gives you control over the amount of depth-of-field blur applied to
distant buildings when zoomed in. Cities Skylines is about the simple joy of
building. The location starts off as flat green land which you can change in
anyway you want to make rivers , train tracks and buildings. The angle of the
game camera is a air shot looking down so you can see your city however
you can zoom in and out if necessary. When buildings are destroyed or set
on fire it is very realistic with smoke and rubble even sirens appear. You can
hear all the sounds of your city when you zoom in closer to them which is a
good effect so whilst you are building further zoomed out you are not
distracted by noise. This game runs a day and night cycle so you have the
challenge of making your city work by day but also by night which is a harder
time to make money. The audience will want to buy this game because It’s
really impressive and often beautiful. Getting in and creating something is
easy. Don’t expect exciting scenarios or random events, but do expect to be
impressed by the scale and many moving parts of this city-builder.

4. Existing Product(Limbo)
The game Limbo With no text, no dialogue, and no explanation, somehow
manages to communicate circumstance and causality to the player more simply
than most games. This black-and-white 2D puzzle plat-former is one of the best
games you'll play on any platform. The color palette is bland and simple but it is
so effective, dragging you into play more and more. The story of the game is You
control a young boy who wakes up in a forest with no indication of who you are,
how you got there, or where you're going. You set out to explore this bizarre
environment but soon find it to be a dangerous place, at which point your
objective becomes clear; you need to escape. The enemies in this game are
simple in life real creatures which can scare people which adds effect on to the
game to make it like child nightmares. The sound design in the game is
absolutely amazing. Many puzzles actually require you to listen carefully for
sound effects that will then give you clues in order to get past them. While there
isn't much of a soundtrack in the traditional sense, the ambient noises really
portray a sense of dread in the player and make it feel more moody like it should
be. The background is all in black, black is associated with power, elegance,
formality, death, evil, and mystery which is what the game supports and it is in
the form of forests and industrial backgrounds, this adds to the ambience that
the game already creates with it being dark and disturbing. The game is 2D due
to the fact that you can only move side to side and up and down, these types of
games are simple but really work because the audience like a bit of difference.
The audience will want to buy this too solve puzzles because there are not many
like it however a major difference with this than other puzzle games is that you
can die in it, this makes it more interesting and makes you take the game more
seriously.

5. Existing Product(The Escapists)
The escapist is a 2D game which goal is too escape from prison. The camera
angle is on an above air view and this helps the viewer to see the prison a little
more clearly, so you can understand your goals. This game runs on a day/night
cycle which is more realistic and more helpful for the games purpose. The
colour schemes for the game are on the darker side of the spectrum and this is
because it is supposed to make the place seem more dull, creating a more
realistic feeling for the audience. It takes a long series of days to gather and
assemble the bits that you need for an escape, and it’s easy to lose all the
important ones with just the slightest mistake. You can only save at the start of
each in-game day, and while there’s no death, being taken out by a random
prisoner deciding they don’t like you, or a guard screwing up your plan at the
last second, can make for an excruciating time-out and loss of hard-earned
progress, making the game very repetitive which is a downfall for the audience.
It has 16-bit style graphics, cheery prison brawls, random pop-culture quoting,
and the ability to name all the characters after friends, family, co-workers,
teachers, or whatever which makes it that little better. With this game you have
an inventory so you can find certain objects which can help you in the long run
with your overall goal/objective. The font is pixelated and has a stroke effect
and this just relates to the style of the game. The audience will want to buy this
game because although it is repetitive it can go numerous different ways and
you can try almost anyway to escape, plus this game is one of kind there are no
other prison escape games. With this game you don't have little objectives just
one major objective overall. The map is quiet small and confined but this adds
effect on to the game due to the point that it is like this too make it feel like you
cant escape.

6. Research Analysis
• What common features do the researched
products have?
– Most of the games involve some aspect of escaping a certain place but everything else about these
games are completely different. One is 1st person, another a side scroller and one above air view. I
prefer 1st person or side scrollers. There colours also vary from black in one to all green in another.
The only difference is the city builder and this was included due to the fact that I wanted a different
genre of game because I hadn't yet decided what I wanted to create.
• What aspects of the research will you include
within your on work?
– In my game I am going to make it a 1st person just like the witness but it is going to be darker colours
just like the game limbo. It is going to be a puzzle type game where you have to complete mental and
physical puzzles. But you also have choices that you can make to choose a certain path. I will not
include any enemies in my game just like other puzzles because they mostly seem irrelevant.

7. Interviews

8. Interview 1
– What is your favourite genre of game, why?
– My favourite game genre is puzzle games as they are often very immersive and they keep your
brain active 24/7 so you don’t get bored.
– What type of puzzles in puzzle games do you prefer, why?
– I prefer puzzles where you find something (example a locked door) and you have to find a key
to unlock the door and on the way you have avoid obstacles etc.
– When playing a puzzle game do you feel relaxed or not? if not what could help this?
– I do often feel relaxed unless I can’t get past a puzzle and, get angry, but other than that I feel
calm and relaxed.
– Do you prefer a game to be dark or colourful, why?
– I prefer for a game to be dark as it often looks nicer and is easier to look at for a prolonged
period of time rather than something extremely colour full that’s bright etc.
– How many hours would you spend playing a puzzle game?
– If it’s a story driven game I will usually play it through till the end (which usually tends to be
anywhere between 2-5 hours) but I often wont play a game for longer than an hour at one
time.

9. Interview 1
• Observation: This person really prefer puzzles where you find
something (example a locked door) and you have to find a key to unlock
the door and on the way you have avoid obstacles etc. and they play
games between 2-5 hours.
• What this says about my audience: This says that my
audience often plays and likes puzzle games and prefers to play them dark.
• How will your product appeal to this
audience: To make this appeal to the audience I am going to make it
darker colours and I am going to include psychical puzzles and it will not
be repetitive to be boring

10. Interview 2
– What is your favourite genre of game, why?
– Rpg because I feel they’re more fun.
– What type of puzzles in puzzle games do you prefer, why?
– Match making puzzles because they’re simple but a little difficult at the same time.
– When playing a puzzle game do you feel relaxed or not? if not what could help this?
– I feel pretty relaxed.
– Do you prefer a game to be dark or colourful’ why?
– Colourful because dark is too boring.
– How many hours would you spend playing a puzzle game?
– It depends how intriguing the game is.

11. Interview 2
• Observation:This person prefers RPG’s over other game genres but
their favourite puzzles are matchmakers. They also prefer colourful games
instead.
• What this says about my audience:This tells me that
this person will not be very interested in a dark/mystery puzzle game.
• How will your product appeal to this
audience: My product will appeal by making some matchmakers but
have the colours on them really bright but everything else about my idea I
am keeping the same.

12. Bibliography

13. Bibliography
1. Thekla Inc.(2016) The Witness
2. Colossal Order.(2015) City Skylines
3. Playdead.(2010) Limbo
4. Mouldy Toof Studios.(2014) The Escapists
5. Hothead Games & Number None, Inc.(2008) BRAID
6. Schoettner, S . (2018) Target Audience Interviews (conducted on 28th
November)
7. Harrison, India-Rain. (2018) Target Audience Interviews (conducted on
28th November)