Research Video Game

1. Research
Rebecca Edwards

2. Existing Product
What Remains of Edith Finch
What Remains of Edith Finch is a narrative based game that also involves
puzzle based exploration mechanics in order to progress the Playable
Character around the house/levels, a mechanic I hope to almost replicate in
my own game. The game appeals to its select audience due to many factors.
The lighting and music used throughout the game present a calm atmosphere
to focus the players attention more on the story being told rather than the
environment, this can also be seen by the narrative text appearing and
obstructing the players view. Additionally, there is a lack of health bars, ammo,
inventory etc., further enticing the player to focus more on the narrative than
solely the main character or fighting. The game also involves slight puzzle
solving mechanics so to learn more information surrounding the story and to
progress to different rooms of the house and repeat the process. Furthermore,
I hope to replicate this type of exploration in my own game, but add my own
original parts to it, such as certain horror aspects incorporated and possibly
also some sort of narrative added, but less explicitly than in this game.

3. Existing Product
Candy Crush
Candy Crush is predominantly a Match 3 mobile puzzle game, portrayed as a
jovial, brightly coloured and strategic in terms of the matches available to the
player in order to progress throughout the levels and the power ups certain
matches allow the player to achieve. Even though my own game won't include the
majority of the elements presented in this game, this type of game may greatly
influence my puzzle design, as seen in my second production experiment. These
puzzle levels I hope to create may greatly draw from other elements of this game,
such as (possibly) the point system used here in order to keep track of the players
score so to give the players a goal in order to pass the given puzzle. This game
appeals to its set audience as the style and design helps to extend the age range,
allowing more people to play the game. However, my own game will greatly differ
from this as it will also incorporate the exploration/narrative aspect rather than
just being a puzzle game by itself and the design of the puzzles will be in great
contrast to the happy setting of Candy Crush, as it will mainly draw from the
gothic, horror design I've selected.

4. Existing Product
Sally Face
Sally Face is another narrative based game involving 2D exploration, heavy puzzle
solving elements and whose style of characters and environment draws on many
aspects of the goth and horror genre. I hope that my game, in some ways, will vastly
resemble some of the gameplay and themes. This game appeals to its audience as the
off coloured environment and strange alternative music playing in the background
create an uneasy atmosphere. Each part of the game also utilizes its puzzles in order
to help the player progress throughout the rooms the main character is trapped
in/exploring. Furthermore, the jump scare/horror aspects helps to keep the player on
edge but then also alternates to a calm atmosphere of no health bars or ammo,
keeping the player more focused on the characters, the puzzles and the complex story
being told through their dialogue and the puzzles the player solves. I hope to replicate
a similar type of feel and gameplay throughout my own game, aside for a couple of
factors this game includes, such as cutting to artwork of the characters in order to
progress the story or certain gameplay elements that allow the player to use the
ghosts they encounter as allies in puzzle solving, whereas my own horror elements
will mostly be used as a shock element in my game and will either not interact with
the player directly or try to hinder them when completing puzzles.

5. Existing Product
PT
PT is a purely horror oriented game, which revolves around the player seemingly going
in circles in the same corridor, solving almost unknown puzzles in order to complete
the game, with a multitude of jump scares and horror elements placed throughout.
This game includes different types of jump scare elements in order to keep the
audience entertained throughout gameplay and so to avoid repeating the same
elements and risk losing the audiences interest. Additionally, the use of the lighting
throughout the game has been used to an intriguing extent, as for most of the
"normal" gameplay, the corridor where the game is set is kept in a very dim light, which
can change to more harrowing colours of red and green if the player can successfully
progress, further displaying the reality of the environment slowly breaking down
before the player, heightening the horror aspects of the game. The game also appeal to
the audience as it seems to display more than just one type of a horror aspect, such as
jump scares, as it can be seen throughout gameplay that certain aspects of the
environment change subtly, such as pictures in frames being smashed, torn up or
crossed out and far more noticeable elements such as the "creature in the sink" that
have been placed there to look horrifying to the player, but not to necessarily harm
them or convey information, which I could use for my own in game elements. However,
not only will the puzzles in my game be more straightforward and far more explicit in
the game environment, but I also want to make the horror elements more subtle and
gradually increase them as gameplay goes on, rather than just presenting one type of
atmosphere straight from the beginning of gameplay.

6. Research Analysis
Most of the products have a similar theme or incorporate ideas or motifs from others. Most of the games I
have researched do contain some sort of narrative and story in some way, even if it simply comes down to
progressing through different lands housing more of the game levels. All of the games also do have one or
more types of puzzle solving elements, ranging from more implicit techniques such as finding clues inside a
room or other type of confined space to the puzzle itself being the forefront of the whole game and therefore
being more simple in style and gameplay. For most of these games, the style does seem to be more focused on
dark, mysterious settings and may occasionally incorporate some sort of horror element, these elements in
question either helping the protagonist or hindering them throughout gameplay. The games also seem to have
allocated themselves a very distinct colour scheme, thereby making them more recognisable during trailers
and gameplay. Not only have many of these games used tropes or techniques specific to there genre or
gameplay style, but some have also incorporated original elements that have gone on to make them more
recognisable eg. The colour scheme/art style of Sally Face, the "candy" elements used in Candy Crush, the
narrative text in What Remains of Edith Finch and the convoluted puzzles of PT.
When creating my own product, I will aspire to create a similar style seen in the three darker themed games in
order to better convey either a narrative, the puzzles or the changing elements of the environment throughout
gameplay. I also intend to use lighter hearted games like Candy Crush as inspiration for specific puzzles in the
game rather than the game as a whole, as I plan to make the puzzles in the game not only more accessible than
games like PT, but also seem more familiar to the player by basing them around puzzle game styles that are
already well known and popular, such as match 3 games and card match games. Another factor I hope to
include in my game in how, in the more horror themed games, the ghost or supernatural elements have been
used to affect the audience in a certain way, whether it be a more prominent jump scare or a more daunting
effect such as writing on the walls, crying/screaming sound effects etc.

7. Bibliography

8. Bibliography
1. King (2012) Candy Crush
2. 7780"s Studio (2014) PT
3. Steve Gabry (2016) Sally Face
4. Giant Sparrow (2017) What Remains of Edith Finch