This is written on NOV 9th, 2025, after the Faculty Presentation on Nov 6th.
Current State of the Game + What we did and why we make those decisions
The game current description is:
“A relatively linear narrative in which the player communicates with other kids via a proximity based messenger that uses stickers in place of words, living and playing as a kid in town and learning about a mysterious incident that unfolds around them.”
What – What we have right now is a playable prototype with 4 connecting scenes (from house → front of school) where the player can walk to school, past Blueberry’s house where the falling incident occurred.
Why – We want a starting prototype that proves the vacation sim vibes that we are going for, where the player is a small kid in a big(but small) World. That Even when encountering a dead body, it is still a bright tropical seaside town. We also wanted the world to feel explorable, wide, and established. Which is why the player can walk around a lot before doing the main mechanic - stickers dialogue. There will eventually be more interactions that the player can do as they walk around (picking up rocks, etc.) but for now, this is the core: exploring as a child → encounter incidents → stickers talking with other kids.
What – The only interaction is that the player can initiate conversations. The characters available are Peach and Blackberry. In which they operate under 2 dialogue systems that are a little bit different. Peach has no starting dialogue, while Blackberry starts off the dialogue with a mention of Blueberry’s house.
Why – Half of this is the time constraint that we had, but the other half is proving in this prototype that the sticker dialogue is taking its form!!! That the player can be close to a character (proximity, right now by being in the camera view), initiate a conversation, and maybe get some information out of that conversation. 2 characters were enough to prove this mechanic. Plus, they are a little bit different in their behavior, which is a small AB testing of which playtesters felt was more compelling (the answer is Blackberry, although Peach has his own childlike personality with the unending “huh?”)
What – The world is 3D with 2D assets with 2 camera perspectives: ¾ top down & sidescrolling.
Why – We want a painterly style for the nature in the background, so of course 2D assets are a good choice for us, but we also want the movement that’s more that side scrolling, and the world that is wide and lively, so a 3D world! (It’s also just what we like lol) The 2 camera perspectives that we have right now are also from our artistic goal of wanting some scenes to be cinematic – camera changing for specific, intentional effect – as well as want our 2 weenies: the temple shrine on the hill and the lighthouse at the sea, to be visible in distance, looming over the character everywhere in town, hence the side scrolling camera angle decision.
Next Steps
- Lots of playtesting on the stickers dialogue system!! Our next iteration will be considering the relationship system (how close the NPC is to the player), as well as limiting the stickers library, and having players able to grab new stickers from the NPC they talk with.
- Caelan is working on the dialogue system
- Together work on fleshing out the story & key events!!!
- Jib is gonna work on secondary interaction (maybe rock collecting/offering) and primarily focus on art stuff, sketching out the key events & items.
- ART DIRECTION hehe
~Personal thoughts Section~
Our Practice
I think that we are approaching this thesis project from a very fine artist way (like this definitely not a product or anything that’s gonna be pitch for money or follow a production line timeline) where each design decision we make are towards a message, and towards putting a piece of ourselves in it each time we work on it. I’m making a concoction of my interests, beautiful horror, the questions of multiple realities in TV news, my growing-up surrounded by superstitions, my culture as a Thai person living a significant part of my life in New England, and so on. The more we work on this, the more our souls are in it, the more it reflects who we are as artists. Which I think is awesome and a very enjoyable process so far!!! Currently, I feel very strongly that this is what I want to make, and that it has to be done by me (and Caelan!)
I guess the thing to be concerned about that comes with this fine arts practice is that this is a game that also should survive without a long af artist statement, so as much as this practice is what I enjoy, I should be conscious of how to present the game & talk about it in a way that won't result in people being like “what the hell does this mean but also I guess I don't have to understand.”
What im itching to do next
ART DIRECTION! ART DIRECTION!! ART DIRECTION!!!
As much as I say this, it’s not like I haven't started on the art direction yet. I have been brainstorming together the themes and collecting references (thank you New Jeans, BTS, and TXT music videos), and have been cooking stuff up in my head. As we take a step in fleshing out the story, the stuff I’m making in my head is taking its form more and more. I’m ready to start establishing our game’s visual style and key references!!
With that I’m also a little bit anxious about the combination of Thai superstitions & the tropicalness of the seaside location with the melancholy New England & stormy vibes that we planned. Not that I don’t think it’s impossible, I just really want it to be a cohesive and believable world and not a thrown-together at the end thing. But also as long as I keep this in mind and make sure to research and think a lot, this can and will be achieved. Lots of work ahead!!