Subversion

One major concern that I kept in mind throughout development was the nature of the game. The task was to create a game based upon a children's book and promote the IP/Brand. Throughout the semester I learned many new theories and models but one thing that really stuck in my head, and a word that I use constantly throughout this blog is subversion. The idea being that to create something that defies expectations and what is deemed normal. This is what I wanted to pursue. But I wanted to make clear throughout the process that no matter how much I wanted to subvert the experience I most importantly had to promote the IP of Miss Rosie Red.

The easy way of doing this is through aesthetics, use assets from the wire-frames of the book. And to a certain extent I chose to do this to help with the creation of certain assets, they were edited in Photoshop of course to a more unique design. But I wanted to put more depth into the game than just aesthetic appreciation. How did I want to achieve this? By the inclusion of the three main levels, each of these has a darker atmosphere (screen darkens, less upbeat music etc.) than the mini games (more lighthearted). These main levels act as a tutorial and a story as such, starring an older (sketched) Rosie Red. They tell a simple narrative (something I toned down after feedback), of Rosie Red and how she is able to reach her goal through fleeing or conquering her fears through the help of different costumes, in the end she becomes invincible when she simply becomes herself.

The sketched aesthetics and mannequin models for both Rosie and the tracking enemy are also meant to have meaning (essentially the enemy is a mirror image of herself). I wanted to create a deeper world than what is simply on the surface, by creating these subtle pieces of the narrative and world scattered throughout the game in the chests and writing. But I wanted to avoid allowing it to seem like I am equivocating. This is backed up by the feedback I received, as bluntly telling the player this (meanings behind enemies, why I chose Rosie Reds design to be so dark etc.) would only be perceived as waffling without mentioning the reasoning behind why. The subtle nature in which I wanted to explore the world allowed me to include easter eggs/links to the source material throughout the game (the friend bonuses and costume portraits are very basic examples of this).