The Original Proposal

This is the original proposal that I submitted for the project. The title listed here is "Bloodlines". Pretty much, my topic has stayed the same. The creation of a visual novel/adventure game hybrid. What has changed has been the timeline. My alpha testing should have been done by January according to my proposed schedule. Now i'm trying to be ready for my alpha testing by August. On top of that, I have to start writing the 6000 word report. This should be interesting.

One thing that concerns me, is that I had intended to make a commercially viable project. That is difficult because other than a few exceptions, visual novels (VN), though popular in Japan and east Asia, are not especially marketable in America (I need to research the viability in the UK and Europe). There are some exceptions of narrative heavy video games, but the visual novel form seems to be a niche phenomenon. I've found hundreds of English fan translations of Japanese VN, but very few original English VN. I'll eventually have to describe and define a visual novel, and differentiate it from the western perception (dating simulation games or choose your own adventure clones). As I start doing my research this week, I'll post more on that subject.

ciao,

K


The Proposal
1. Student/Group:

05039514 Kayneisha Williams

2. Provisional Project Title:

Bloodlines: Exploring Immersive Non-linear Narrative
Game Design


3. Topic/ area of research:

The topic of my research is immersive story-telling in
games. This will be achieved through the creation of a
Flash-based interactive game environment based on a
short mystery story called “Bloodlines”.

My intent is to do research by design, focusing on
interactivity and game/multimedia narratology,
especially non-linear storytelling, and techniques of
successfully imparting drama and emotion into games.
As a part of this research I will also touch the areas
of usability and accessibility, character creation and
development, as well as game design theory and Flash
game development. The target audience includes women
and men aged 18 – 37 who have an affinity for
fantasy/horror/mystery stories, and computer gaming.


4. Aims of Project:

The aims of this project is to create an immersive
gaming experience that successfully lends to the
suspension of disbelief in the players, and creates an
emotional connection with them as well. Through
benchmarking and critical analysis of game design
theory and practice, I will create a prototype for a
visually stunning Adventure Game/Interactive Narrative
hybrid. My ultimate goal is to create something that
is commercially viable and has appeal with both the
hardcore gamer, and the neophyte.

5. Literature review and product research:

The closest model to what I will try to achieve is
developer Aaron Griffiths’ RPG Storyteller (RPGS),
which is hosted at Eduforge (2005), an open source
project host. Storyteller is a Macromedia Flash game
engine used to deliver a role-playing game based
story. On of the demos offered is a text based RPG
with a few visual elements. It’s similarity is based
mostly on the design of the engine. RPG The player
navigates the story by making choices, and the
outcomes duffer based on the choices made. The
difference between “Bloodlines” and RPGS is the nature
of the story. Choice affects the outcome. This is
similar to the gaming scenario presented in Indigo
Prophecy (2005). Every time that you play the game,
make a different choice, the game is changed based on
that decision. “Bloodlines” is intended to be an
experience. The story will remain the same, but the
experience will vary based on which elements the
player/reader chooses to explore.

6. Technologies employed and Resources:

The technology that will be employed for this project
will naturally vary depending on its purpose. In
terms of hardware, I will utilize both Mac and PC
computers. The uses that I will have for them, and
their availability to me for the duration of the
project make them interchangeable. I will also use
the following hardware: A scanner, a Wacom Graphire3
Tablet, a digital camera, and a digital video camera,
all of which I own or have ready access to.
Additionally, I may need to use an MP3 audio recorder.

My software requirements range from word processing to
3D imaging software. I will be using Microsoft Word
2003 (PC) and 2004 (Mac) for word processing, along
with Notebook and Text edit for creating ASCII text
files. For project management/workflow I will be
using Microsoft Project and Entourage. My design
software will include the following painting and
illustration software: Adobe Photoshop, Painter
Classic, Adobe Fireworks, Illustrator, CorelDraw,
Macromedia Freehand. I have access to all of this
software and will interchange them depending on which
aspect of illustration/image creation that I wish to
use. In some aspects some of this software is
interchangeable, but having the freedom to choose the
variety of effects and tools appeals to me in spite of
this.

I will use Macromedia Shockwave (Director), and Adobe
Flash to create the interactivity and some animation
for this multimedia project. I have had over five
years working with Flash, but my experience with
Director is extremely limited. I will have to engage
in self-directed study with Director and its Lingo
programming language over the 2007 summer.

There will also be some 3D assets and animation that
will be created using Blender and Maya. These assets
will be either imported as 3D objects into Director,
or imported as video clips and still images into
Flash. Any animation to be used as imported movie
clips will be edited in Premiere, which I will learn
through self-directed study, summer 2007. For any
voiceovers or sound editing, Adobe Audition or
Audacity will be used.

My research and evaluation tools/resources will
include paper surveys (to be given to 5 game testers),
spreadsheets to quantify data, the library at London
Metropolitan University, as well as the library’s
online collection.

There are eleven months to completion of the project.
Time must be a balanced resource. There will be
periods of class work, and employment that have to be
taken into account, as well as periods of no
commitment. I will give myself a required working
schedule of twenty hours a week, no matter the
circumstance, to be divided based on whatever other
time constraints affect my days and evenings.

My additional resources include tutorials with
instructors, and interviews with industry
professionals (as available). I will also need 5
testers for this project. I anticipate creating a
small network of my fellow graduate students, in which
we help each other test our projects and give each
other feedback on our Evaluation Reports and
Dissertations.

7. Project plan

Preproduction:
The initial research and project note taking commenced
in March 2007 and the research will continue through
March 2008. The basic Flash framework will be
completed 1 June 2007, as its development is an
ongoing, integral part of my final project for
Responsive Environments.

Production:
Content Adaptation of the “Bloodlines” short story
began April 2007, and will continue through July.
June 2007 will be devoted to configuring and
finalizing the framework/game engine. Asset creation
began in May of this year. It will continue through
August 2007. Authoring will take place between June
and November 2007. Tutorials will be scheduled
between September 2007 and March 2008. It is my
intention to arrange interviews with game developers
and writers during the summer and fall of 2007. Alpha
Testing will commence January 2008, after the
Christmas holiday, followed by revision. Surveys will
be provided to my game testers. Alpha Testing should
be completed by early February. February 2008 will be
a revision period, followed by Beta testing in during
the first week of March, and then revision .

Post Production:
Between March and May 2008, the Evaluation Report will
be written and finalized. The project will be
submitted by the end of term deadline, late May, 2008.

8. If group work, outline of group members
contribution

9.Methodology for evaluation

Evaluation will be apart of the Alpha and Beta testing
in January and March. The methodology for evaluation
will include usability surveys for the testers, as
well as their responses to follow-up questions, so
that I can get a personalized response. I also would
like to get the project evaluated by a random sampling
of university students and the public (10-20).
As this project is designated research by design, the
extensive notes (journal) that I will maintain on the
projects development and process will serve as
evaluative data.



10. Bibliography
Works Consulted
Atari. (2005) Indigo Prophecy. [online]
http://www.atari.com/indigo/ [Accessed: 28/04/2007]
Berger, A. (2002) Video games : a popular culture
phenomenon. London, Transaction
Capcom. (2005) Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
http://www.capcom.com/phoenixwright/ [Accessed:
28/04/2007]
Castronova, E. (2006) Synthetic worlds : the business
and culture of online games. Chicago, University of
Chicago Press
David, M. (2002)- Building Great Flash MX games.
Chichester, Wiley
Eduforge: Innovation For Education. (2005) Flash Based
RPG Game Engine [online] Available from:
https://eduforge.org/projects/gameflashobjs/
[Accessed: 28/04/2007]
England,E, and Finney, A. (2002) Managing multimedia
: project management for Web and convergent media.
Bk.2, Technical issues. 3rd ed., Harlow,
Addison-Wesley
England,E, and Finney, A. (2002) Managing multimedia
: project management for Web and convergent media.
Bk.1, People and processes 3rd ed, Harlow :
Addison-Wesley
Griffin, H. (2001) The animator's guide to 2d
computer animation. Oxford : Focal Press
HotelDusk (2007) HotelDusk Room 215
http://www.hoteldusk.com/[Accessed: 28/04/2007]
Jackson, R. (1981) Fantasy : the literature of
subversion. London, Methuen
Krawczyk, M. and Novak, J. (2006) Game development
essentials: game story and character development.
[CD-ROM] Clifton Park, NY, Thompson Delmar Learning
Kuperberg, M. (2002) A guide to computer animation:
for TV, games, multimedia web. Oxford, Focal Press
Onega, S. and García Landa, J.A. (1996) Narratology:
an introduction. London, Longman
Pedersen, R.E. (2003) Game design foundations.
[CD-ROM] Lancaster, Gazelle
Pedersen, R.E. (2003) Game design foundations.
Lancaster, Gazelle
Rhodes, G. (2006) Macromedia Flash professional 8
game developmen.t Boston, Mass., Charles River Media
Rhodes, G. (2006) Macromedia Flash professional 8
game. development [CD-ROM] / Glen Rhodes, Boston, Mass
: Charles River Media
Salen, K. and Zimmerman, E. eds. (2006)The game
design reader : a rules of play anthology. Cambridge,
Mass., MIT Press
Wardrip-Fruin, N. and Harrigan, P. eds. (2004)
First person : new media as story, performance, and
game Cambridge, Mass.; London : MIT Press
Wiedemann, J. (2002) Digital beauties : 2D & 3D
computer generated digital models, virtual idols and
characters. London, Taschen


To Be Consulted
Adams, E. (2003) 'In the beginning was the word'.
Gamasutra.com, [online]. Available from:
http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20010615/luban_01.shtml
. [
Baggaley, S. T. (2002) 'Show and tell: Applying
screenwriting techniques to computer games'. In
Laramée, F. D. (Ed.) Game design perspectives.
Hingham, Mass.: Charles River Media.
Cage, D. (2006) 'Postmortem: Indigo prophecy”.
Gamasutra.com, [online]. Available from:
http://gamasutra.com/features/20061004/chandler_01.shtml
.
Chandler, R. (2006) 'Screen/play: Technical narrative
design '. Gamasutra.com, [online]. Available from:
http://gamasutra.com/features/20061004/chandler_01.shtml
.
Crawford, C. (2003) 'Interactive storytelling'. In
Wolf, M. J. P. & Perron, B. (Eds.) The video game
theory reader. New York ; London: Routledge.
Felluga, D. 'An introduction to narratology'.[online].
Available from:
http://www.cla.purdue.edu/academic/engl/theory/narratology/modules/introduction.html.

Frasca, G. (1999) 'Ludology meets narratology:
Similitude and differences between (video)games and
narrative.' Ludology.org, [online]. Available from:
http://www.ludology.org/articles/ludology.htm .
Graham Nelson (July 2001). “A short history of
interactive fiction”. The Inform Designer's Manual.
[online]. Available from:
http://www.inform-fiction.org/manual/html/s46.html
Jenkins, H. (2006) 'Game design as narrative
architecture'. In Salen, K. & Zimmerman, E. (Eds.) The
game design reader : A rules of play anthology.
Cambridge, Mass. ; London: MIT.
Juul, J. (2005) 'Games telling stories?' Game Studies,
[online]. Available from:
http://www.gamestudies.org/0101/juul-gts/ .
Laurel, B. (1993) Computers as theatre. Reading, Mass.
; Wokingham: Addison-Wesley Pub. Co.
Luban, P. & Meziane, J. (2001 ) 'Turning a linear
story into a game: The missing link between fiction
and interactive entertainment'. Gamasutra.com,
[online]. Available from:
http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20010615/luban_01.shtml
.
Mateas, M. & Stern, A. (2006) 'Interaction and
narrative'. In Salen, K. & Zimmerman, E. (Eds.) The
game design reader : A rules of play anthology.
Cambridge, Mass. ; London: MIT.
Murray, J. (1998) Hamlet on the holodeck : The future
of narrative in cyberspace. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT
Press.
Neitzel, B. (2005) 'Narrativity in computer games'. In
Raessens, J. & Goldstein, J. H. (Eds.) Handbook of
computer game studies. Cambridge, Mass. ; London: MIT
Press.
Noyle, J. (2006, April 26) 'Techniques of written
storytelling applied to game design'. Gamasutra.com,
[online]. Available from:
http://gamasutra.com/features/20061004/chandler_01.shtml
.
Raessens, J. & Goldstein, J. H. (2005) Handbook of
computer game studies. Cambridge, Mass. ; London: MIT
Press.
Rawlings, T. (2006) 'Narrative and interactivity'.
Game research, [online]. Available from:
http://game-research.com/?page_id=65 .
The Brass Lantern. “The adventure game website,
history on interactive fiction”. [online]. Available
from: http://brasslantern.org/community/history/

The Proposal
1. Student/Group:
05039514 Kayneisha Willians
2. Provisional Project Title
The Vault: Exploring the Heroine and Non-linear
Narrative Game Design
3. Topic/ area of research
An Interactive Mystery Story-Game
Areas of research:
• Gender Inclusive Game Design
o The Heroine in Video Games
o The female gamer
• Game Design Theory
o Flash Game Development
o Immersive Game Experiences
o Usability and Accessibility
o Alternatives to zero-sum game models
o Adventure and Role Playing Games
o Character Creation
o Research by Design
• Interactive Narratives
o Narratology and Ludology
o Non-linear Storytelling
o The Hero and Heroine Archetypes and Iconography
o Game Story Development
The target audience includes women and men aged 18 –
37
4. Aims of Project
• Create a gender inclusive interactive story-game
prototype that is challenging to play and experience
• An immersive gaming experience that successfully
lends to the suspension of disbelief in the players by
bringing the game outside of the screen
• Target a largely untapped market
• Create a commercially viable project
Through benchmarking and critical analysis of game
design theory and practice, I will create a hybrid RPG
or Adventure Game (as yet to be
determined)/Interactive Narrative that is inclusive of
both male and female players in terms of the
usability, character and story design.
5. Literature review and product research (this
paragraph must be at least 1,000/1,500 words)
The Literature Review is currently ongoing. See
Bibliography for list of works being consulted.

6. Technologies employed and Resources
* - current skills/tools available
!! - further skills/tools acquisition needed (when and
if and how)
Hardware requirements:
• Mac/PC*
• Scanner*
• Wacom Tablet*
• Digital Camera*
• Digital Video Camera*
• MP3 audio Recorder !!
• Phidgets *
Software requirements:
• Word processors
o Microsoft Word*
o Text Edit*
• Database
o Microsoft Access*
• Spreadsheets
o Microsoft Excel*
• Project Management/Workflow
o Microsoft Project/Entourage*
• Design software:
o Paint and image editing
• Adobe Photoshop*
• Painter Classic*
• Fireworks*
• Adobe Illustrator*
• CorelDraw! *
• Macromedia Free Hand*
• Macromedia Fireworks*
o Animation/Interaction
• Macromedia Shockwave (Director)
• Macromedia Flash*
o 3d Assets and Animation
• Maya*
• Movie editing (To be determined & Self-Taught Summer
2007) !!
o Adobe Premiere
o Adobe After Effects
o Adobe Final Cut Studio
• Sound editing (To be determined & Self-Taught Summer
2007) !!
o SoundEdit
o SoundForge
research and evaluation tools and resources
• Paper Surveys
• Spreadsheet to quantify data
Time
• 11 Months to completion
Other Resources:
• Tutorials !!
• interviews!!
• Self-directed Study!!

7. Project plan (In Development)
Research: March 2007 – March 2008 (Initial Framework
completed 1 May 2007)
Project Notes: March 2007 – March 2008
Content Adaptation: April – May 2007
Framework/Game Engine Design – June 2007
Asset Origination: May – June 2007
Integration: June – November 2007
Tutorials: September 2007 – March 2008
Interviews: Summer/Fall 2007
Alpha Testing: January 2008
Surveys: March 2008
Beta Testing: March 2008
Submission: May 2008
8. If group work, outline of group members
contribution
9.Methodology for evaluation
Usability surveys for game testers
Comments on game evaluation
Questionnaires from a random sampling of university
students and the public (50-100)
• Show the surveyed a trailer for the game outlining
gameplay and instructions, plot and design.
• Ask individuals to rate interest in the game
(Quantitative research)
• Follow up with questions to get personalized
responses
Negotiate within class groups, for 5-6 project alpha
and beta testers. If possible, if interest comes
about from the interest evaluative questionnaires,
invite members of the surveyed to have a chance to
beta test the game as well.
Alpha Testing – January
Beta Testing – March
10. Bibliography
Armitt, Lucie “Fantasy, Phantasy and the Realm of the
Uncanny” Chapter 2 in Theorizing the Fantastic.
London: Arnold Press, ©1995. 39-63. 21 April 2002
<http://ebbs.english.vt. edu/cf/locked/index.html>
Armitt, Lucie. “Structuralism, Genre and the beyond.”
Ch. 1 Theorizing The Fantastic. London; Arnold press.
©1995.17-38. 21 April 2002
<http://ebbs.english.vt.edu/cf/locked/ index.html>
Auden, W.H. Secondary Worlds ©1968.
Berger, Arthur Asa, 1933-Video games : a popular
culture phenomenon New Brunswick, N.J ; London :
Transaction, c2002
Castronova, Edward, Synthetic worlds : the business
and culture of online games / Edward Castronova Pbk.
ed Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 2006
David, Matthew, 1971- Building Great Flash MX games /
David Matthew New York : Hungry Minds ; Chichester :
Wiley, 2002
Dictionary Entry “Fantasy”. World Book Multimedia
Encyclopedia © 2001 World Book, Inc.
England, Elaine, and Andy Finney, Managing multimedia
: project management for Web and convergent media.
Bk.2, Technical issues 3rd ed., Harlow :
Addison-Wesley, 2002
England, Elaine, and Andy Finney,Managing multimedia :
project management for Web and convergent media. Bk.1,
People and processes 3rd ed, Harlow : Addison-Wesley,
2002
First person : new media as story, performance, and
game / edited by Noah Wardrip-Fruin and Pat Harrigan ;
designed by Michael Crumpton Cambridge, Mass.; London
: MIT Press, 2004
Graner Ray, Sheri Gender inclusive game design :
expanding the market / Sheri Graner Ray Hingham,
Mass. : Charles River Media, c2004
Griffin, Hedley, The animator's guide to 2d computer
animation / Hedley Griffin Oxford : Focal Press, 2001
Hume, Kathryn. Chapter 1 in Fantasy and Mimesis:
Responses to Reality in Western Literature. NY:
Methuen Press, 1984. 5-28. 21 April 2002
<http://ebbs.english.vt.edu/cf/locked/index.html>
Jackson, Rosemary Fantasy : the literature of
subversion / Rosemary Jackson London : Methuen, 1981
Jackson, Rosemary. “The Fantastic as a Mode” Chapter 2
in Fantasy: The Literature of Subversion. NY: Methuen
Press, ©1981. 13-60. 21 April 2002
<http://ebbs.english.vt.edu/cf / locked/index.html>
Kafai, Yasmin Bettina, Minds in play : computer game
designs as a context for children's learning / Yasmin
Bettina Kafai Erlbaum, 1995
Krawczyk, Marianne Game development essentials
[CD-ROM] : game story and character development /
Marianne Krawczyk, Jeannie Novak Clifton Park, NY :
Thompson Delmar Learning, 2006
Kuperberg, Marcia A guide to computer animation : for
TV, games, multimedia web / Marcia Kuperberg. Oxford :
Focal Press, 2002
Lewis, C.S. The Problem of Pain © 1996 C.S. Lewis Pte.
Ltd.
Martinez, Michael. “A long time ago, in a Middle-earth
far, far away...” © March 3, 2001. 21 April 2002
<http://www.suite101.com/article. cfm/tolkien/62031>
Narratology : an introduction / edited by Susana Onega
and José Angel García Landa London : Longman, 1996
Pedersen, Roger E. Game design foundations / Roger E.
Pederson, Plano, Tex. : Wordware ; Lancaster :
Gazelle, 2003
Pedersen, Roger E. Game design foundations [CD-ROM]
Plano, Tex. : Wordware ; Lancaster : Gazelle, 2003
Rabkin, Eric S. “Fantastic Worlds: Myths, Tales, and
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27-39. 21 April 2002
<http://ebbs.english.vt.edu/cf/locked/index.html>
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development Boston, Mass : Charles River Media, 2007
[i.e. 2006]
The game design reader : a rules of play anthology /
[edited by] Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman Cambridge,
Mass. : MIT Press, 2006
Tolkien, J.R.R. The Tolkien Reader, “On
Fairy-Stories.” ©1947. 21 April 2002
<http://ebbs.english.vt.edu/cf/locked/index.html>
Wiedemann, Julius, Digital beauties : 2D & 3D
computer generated digital models, virtual idols and
characters / Julius Wiedemann Köln ; London : Taschen, 2002