Research

1. Research
Sumiah Rose

2. The Last of Us
The last of us is an action-adventure survival horror video game. It was developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony
Computer Entertainment. It was released for PlayStation 3 on 14th June 2013.
The aim of the game is to smuggle a teenage girl
across a post-apocalyptic America. Players can use
firearms and are also able to improvise weapons to
defend against hostile humans and cannibalistic
creatures. There is also an online feature where up
to eight players can engage in cooperative and
competitive gameplay.
I looked at a Gameplay of this video to help me understand the game in more depth. The first part of the game has very
limited play and is more focused on explaining the story to the players for them to get emotionally attached to the game
and to actually want to play it. This game has a particular key moment in which the players feel as though they ‘have’ to
keep playing to help with the injustice that has been served. This is something I will keep in mind when creating my own
game.
When watching the gameplay, the player kept commentating on how realistic the game felt when playing. The whole
architecture, movement of the character and the general surrounding area were so realistic and life-like. I think for a game
such as this, that that is needed for the character to become fully immersed in the game. He was saying how he genuinely
felt scared, this is quite an effect to have on a player, as they are fully capable of making any decisions for their character.

3. Prince of Persia
Prince of Persia is a video game franchise created by Jordan
Mechner and currently developed and published by Ubisoft.
The game is built up around a series of action adventure style tasks
focused on the ‘Persian Prince’.
The production of this game was seen as a major leap in the quality
of animation seen in computer games. Jordan Mechner used a
technique called Rotoscoping, in which he watched his brother
running and jumping in white clothes. This was to ensure that the
movements used in the game looked realistic and believable.
The audience is drawn to this game as although it looks repetitive,
its puzzles and death traps along the game manage to intrigue and
interest the audience
The overall look of this game is very simple. It is just a basic maze
used which the character is then moved through, throughout the
duration of the game. This allows the game to be simple but appear
complicated through its constant changing scenery.
The colours used in the background are also fairly muted. I think
this is so the characters and props are able to stand out.
The characters and props used in this game tend to be on the
brighter, more comfortable side. For example the main character,
the prince is in bright white clothing allowing him to stand out
against the darker backgrounds.

4. Braid
Braid is a platform and puzzle video game developed
by Number None. The game was originally released in
August 2008 for the Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service.
The basic story plot to the game is that the main character
Tim, has to rescue a princess from a monster. To succeed in
the game the player must find and assemble jigsaw
puzzle pieces.
Text appears throughout the game to give a more in depth
understanding to the character of Tim.
The games artwork took over a year to complete. Once the overall look was completed, it was time to start
creating the different levels/worlds used in the game. The artists decided on artwork that wouldn’t distract from the
game, I think this is a very good point as detailed backgrounds on a simple game like this can easily distract from
the main focus of the game. I managed to get an example of what different styles of art are used to create the
different worlds and the atmospheres they wanted those worlds to have.
Time and Forgiveness - the first world the player encounters, was drawn to create a feel of exploration and
forgiveness.
Time and Decision - use a mix of "luxurious domestic objects (nice furniture and fabrics) with rugged outdoor
objects (swampy water, rotting piers and nautical rope)" to create an intentionally "incongruous" look to convey
aspects of alternate realities.
One thing that was also mentioned that I believe will be helpful when it comes to creating my own game, is the
fact that the creators decided on blurring out the background elements to make them appear out of focus, while
keeping the the foreground elements sharply in focus and clear to the player. Particle effects were applied to both
background and foreground elements to add apparent motion to them, such as the waving of grass blades or the
movement of clouds.

5. Far Cry
Far Cry is a franchise of first-person
shooter video games, all of which have
been published by Ubisoft. The first
game, Far Cry, was developed
by Crytek to premiere
their CryEngine software, and released in
March 2004.
The Far Cry games, due to the history of their development, do not have any significant
shared narrative elements, but instead share a theme of placing the player in a
wilderness environment where they must help fight against the people that control the
region as well as surviving against wild animals that roam the open spaces. The Far
Cry games feature a single-player campaign with later sequels offering co-operative
campaign support. The games also offer competitive multiplayer options.
This games use of colour/props/characters are extremely realistic. Having this aspect
of realism helps to draw the audience in and really make them feel as though they are
part of the game in real life.
I know I definitely will not be able to create anything this realistic as I do not have the
technology/skill or time to do so. However I can still look at these games to see how
they use colour to make the game more realistic. Using the aspects I like from this
game will hopefully help to make my game more realistic.

6. Research Analysis
• What common features do the researched products have?
• For the four games that I researched I chose two that were similar in look to
how mine will be, with the pixel effect. I also chose two that were more on
the realistic animated side. I decided to do this instead of simply focusing
on one style of game, so I will gain knowledge from both sides making my
game better developed. I also chose games with a similar story lines to the
one that I am interested in creating myself.
• What aspects of the research will you include within your on work?
• I will be mainly looking at the pixel games for this, as they are the most
similar to what I am going to be creating. I will definitely be taking on board
the idea of making the background blurred so the foreground looks more
real and up-close. I will also be taking on how the characters are more
colourful and draw more attention than the background. I think this will
help the characters stand out more and therefore will help the audience
know where they need to direct their attention.

7. Interviews

8. Interview 1
• Explain why you would or wouldn't want the game to be multiplayer?
The game would be better with a multiplayer mode because it adds an element of competition to the
game so you aren’t just competing against yourself.
• Would you prefer to be able to customize your character or have a default one
put in place and why?
I would prefer to have customization as it makes the game more to your liking. On the other hand,
adding customization could over complicate a simple game and potentially confuse the user.
• Would you prefer to play a game with a storyline or one without and why?
I think an extra game mode like a story mode would be a good addition to any game because it means
that the game has variation. A story mode is also good because players can have a break from
multiplayer so that they don’t get bored of the same mode.

9. Interview 1
• Observation:
My audience would prefer to have the option to play multiplayer so there's more competition
and interaction. They would also like for their character to be customizable so that the game
would be more immersive, however they think that having this option could make an otherwise
simple game too complicated. They also think that having a story mode would be more
interesting to the game.
• What this says about my audience:
This tells me that my audience prefers games that are fully immersive and one that they can also use
communicate and play with players.
• How will your product appeal to this audience:
My product will appeal to this audience be having the option to play multiplayer but also having
a single player option as well. I'm not to sure yet on whether there will be any character
customizing as I don’t know how complicated my game will actually be and like the interviewee
said it could make a simple game too complicated. I think I will also try and add a story mode
element to my game as it would make it more interesting to play.

10. Interview 2
• Explain why you would or wouldn't want the game to be multiplayer?
Depending on the platform that the game is designed to be played on, a multiplayer option might not
be appropriate. Splitting the screen or sharing a keyboard might disrupt the player’s full attention that
might be needed to continue the game/level.
• Do you prefer playing games with feedback interface and if so, why and what
types of feedback interface do you prefer (Sound, Movement or Light)?
Having feedback interfaces help to immerse players in the game. It can give a reaction to notify the
player being hurt and it can be very useful in certain types of games, especially in first person view
perspectives.
• Would you prefer to play a game with a storyline or one without?
I think that the game would have to have some storyline even if it is incredibly simple or complicated. If
there isn’t one at all, then the game might become boring and the player might be confused as to what
they are doing and why.

11. Interview 2
• Observation:
My audience seems to think that having a multiplayer mode might not be such a good idea, depending
on which platform the game was built to be played on. This is something I hadn’t actually thought about
regarding my game but will take into account when creating my game. Having feedback interface is of
interest to my audience as it helps to immerse the character into the game. They also suggest that
having a storyline is crucial even if your game is simple or complicated. This is due to the fact that the
audience may get bored and tiresome of playing a game with no context.
• What this says about my audience:
This tells me my audience prefers a game that is fully immersive with as little side distractions as
possible. They prefer for the game to seem as realistic as possible with feedback interface. They also like
a storyline to follow so they don’t get bored of the game.
• How will your product appeal to this audience:
My product will appeal to this audience by deciding, based on the platform its built on, if a multiplayer
option would be beneficial. Feedback interface would also be something to consider, although i
wouldn't’t actually be able to create it in production, I can add in the details that if this was to be
created feedback interface would appear in certain places.

12. Interview 3
• Explain why you would or wouldn't want the game to be multiplayer?
I think it would be better if the game was multiplayer, as it would add more options for the player to
play the game.
• Do you prefer playing games with feedback interface and if so, why and what
types of feedback interface do you prefer (Sound, Movement or Light)?
I prefer playing with feedback interface as I think it makes the game better. I prefer playing with
movement feedback interface as its helpful to know how to control your character.
• Would you prefer to play a game with a storyline or one without?
I would prefer to play a game with a storyline as it makes the game longer lasting as you don’t want to
rush through the game as you may miss something. Also a good story makes the game more enjoyable.

13. Interview 3
• Observation:
This audience would prefer for the game to be multiplayer as they believe it
would improve the quality of the game. They also prefer to play with
Feedback Interface, in particular movement as they say it helps to sense the
characters movements. A storyline would make the audience less likely to
rush through the game and to actually stay and play the game to its full
potential
• What this says about my audience:
This audience prefers to get as much as much as they can out of a game.
Meaning they prefer a good quality product with depth and lots of playing
options.
• How will your product appeal to this audience:
My product will appeal to this audience by creating a good quality product,
one that involves the option of both multiplayer and feedback interface. This
game would also have to have a good storyline to keep the player from
skipping through all the levels to try and finish the game.

14. Bibliography

15. Bibliography
1. Interviewees, Nicholls, A. (2018) Target Audience Interviews (conducted
on 5th Mar 2018)
2. Interviewees, Harris, B. (2018) Target Audience Interviews (conducted on
5th Mar 2018)
3. Interviewees, Hardwick, F. (2018) Target Audience Interviews (conducted
on 5th Mar 2018)