METAMORPHOSIS
Summary
Some stories deserve to be told, for me this was one of them.
I set out to create a short experience with the focus on designing a narrative illustrating mental health and the technical systems needed for it. Level Designing spaces that characterize and embody the emotions within the narrative was also a major focus.
This project is heavily inspired by games like Mouthwashing & Omori
Specification
- Developed over 5 weeks half time
- Unreal Engine 5.6
- Asset Details
- Stylized Dynamic Sky & Weather
- Lush Stylized Environment Set
- Bench from Story Framework
Goals
- Design a narrative experience portraying mental health
- Create technical systems to handle scenes & dialogue.
Walkthrough
Pre-Production
“How can I utilize the video game medium in the narrative?”
As the medium opens up the door for agency, my goal was to incorporate that heavily into the narrative. By Level Designing spaces that portray the character’s emotional journey, said agency can be utilized further immerse the player by having them actively control the character and their decisions within those spaces.
I also wanted to incorporate Symbolism into the experience as it’s something I find very fascinating the utilized correctly.
Initial Ideas & Drafts
After gathering inspiration and planning the scope of my project, I sat down and started drafting up a narrative. I ran into a problem of creating stories that I didn’t think could be realized in a faithful way within the scope of the project.
In this instance, I had to “Kill My Darlings” and try something different.
Working From Visuals
With the rough idea of the narrative in mind, I gathered visual references that I thought reflected the emotions I wanted my scenes to portray.
The narrative then ended up developing very naturally as a result.
Establishing Narrative
“KI”
Clear Character Traits
“Can I create distinct characters within minutes?”
To solve this, I mainly used body language, vocabulary & dialogue. I wanted the narrative to portray this distinction clearly, even though the characters already had unique colors.
My goal was to allow the characters to be recognized by their lines alone.
Mark is swinging his legs to further imply that he’s a child
In medias res & liminal spaces
Creating Intrigue
“How do I hook the player into the experience?”
I utilized In medias res and cryptic dialogue within the opening scene in order to create tension and curiosity right from the beginning.
This in combination with the non-linear progression & liminal spaces really helped me solidify that intrigue.
Rewarding Player Agency
“How do immerse & involve the player more?”
I wanted to reward & encourage the player for exploring the various spaces by letting them find notes & objects that give further context to the story.
Example of a note that can be found within the game
Developing Knowledge
“SHO”
Character Interactions
I wanted to showcase the relationships & roles between the characters in certain scenes.
In the forest, the player helps Mark through his fear by holding his hand, characterizing them as more of a care-giver within their relationship.
More Information, More Quesitons
With every bit of information, I wanted more questions, theories and interpretations to emerge. I always wanted the player to ask themselves:
“Do I really know where the narrative is headed?”
Delivering The Twist
“TEN”
Subverting Expectations
To deliver a surprising detour before the reveal, every area before the finale is dark & cramped, delibirately making the player assume that the “goal” they’re heading for is even darker. This is then subverted by the colorful and open ocean.
Solidifying Reveal
After the final conversation you then play as the other Mark, standing up from the bench and stepping onto the train.
This puts for further emphasis on the fact that you’re ready to move on, as you’re actively controlling the decision.
Denouement
“KETSU”
Moving On
The train finally leaving the station represents the player making the choice to move on.
Utilizing Symbolism
Technical Systems
Breakdown & Functionality
Infinitely Moving Train
The terrain around the train is made up of 2 large meshes that seamlessly loop with the use of timelines. From the perspective of the camera, it creates the illusion that the train itself is moving, when it is actually standing completely still.
With this solution, I did not have to create a large train path as it would be time inefficient and would cause problems, such as if the player waited for too long during dialogue.
Handling Data
To handle all dialogue data In a manageable and scalable way I used data tables & enumerators.
This allowed for an easy way to connect dialogue lines with unique camera shots & events handled by event dispatchers.
Scene System
The System consists of a camera and multiple arrows, with the arrows acting as world locations that the camera can relocate to.
Dialogue Lines within the Data Table can then connect to these locations, making the camera update accordingly on each line. My goal was to make this system as scalable and managable as possible.
System being used & blueprint setup
Item System
I designed a modular item system that uses information specified in a data table and sends it to the UI “widget“.
This system was also designed to be very manageable and save time.
Iterative Process
Finding What Works
Iteration 1
The initial idea let the player freely walk inside the train as it was travelling. This however created a problem where the player was able to see the terrain around them looping.
Iteration 2
To save time, I experimented with using a template as the base of my project. However I quickly noticed that modifying the existing systems took more time than if I had just created them myself.
Iteration 3
Going back to the project, I started iterating on managable self-made systems that fit my needs. I also decided to lock the camera angle within the train, solving the previous problem.
Closing Thoughts
Storytelling has always been a passion of mine and this project proved to me that I’m capable of turning my dreams into a reality.
This project taught me a lot about the process that goes into designing and adapting a narrative, and how to best portray emotions through scenes by using symbolism, spaces, dialogue & composition.
If I had more time I would’ve liked to iterate more on the level design as I feel it could’ve been more representative if I put more time to it.
This is a project I’m nothing but proud of and I want to work on many more just like it in the future.
There isn’t a story that doesn’t deserve to be told.
Thank you for reading!