29^th August 2016

Playing Guns

Playing Guns is a top down based war game, but with a childlike twist.
Paying homage to the classic style of imaginative game that children play, Playing Guns encourages the player to communicate with their inner child in a Lord of the Flies-esk game.

Set in a small town park, the player will be given tasks by their commanding officer, an older boy named Todd, who will direct them into battle with the kids from the other end of the park.
The player will use their imagination when it comes to the weapons they use, for instance: the player will use branches as guns, pine cones as grenades, and grass as camouflage.
The player will be given a series of tasks that will ultimately lead to a final conflict with the children from the other side of the park.

Target Audience:
Those who want to relive the glory days of childhood entertainment.

Platform:
PC, Console, could also be adapted for a different experience in VR

Image reference:

http://ahkong.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/hands-of-war-3-04.jpg

27^th August 2016

Sonder

It's Sunday morning and your owner has decided to take you for a walk. Little do they know, you will go on a far greater journey.

Sonder is a story based exploration game where you play as a small dog, going for a walk. The player will simply wander the surrounding areas of a town in a first person POV. As they interact with certain objects such as: rocks, pieces of trash, people etc. they will see flashes of the life of the object.
The player will learn about the journey through time of everything around it.

With no clear end or objective for the game, Sonder serves as a peaceful escape to a not too distant reality styled game. The player will have free motive to do whatever they want in the game.

The primary motive for Sonder is to essentially engage the player in the understanding of the word 'Sonder'. Each passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own.

Platform:
VR, Console, PC

Target Audience:
Players who are interested in a new and intriguing gaming experience.

Image reference:
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/AkoML0_FiV4/maxresdefault.jpg

23rd August 2016

Focus

Based on the classic style of a simple platformer game, Focus takes the genre into a new direction.

The game will start out with a basic level, where the player simply picks up a key to unlock the door and will progress to the next stage. Serving as a tutorial stage, this will teach the player the core mechanics and controls of the game.

In the next level however, there will be a distracting element that will make the level progression a lot more difficult, and will require the player to put a lot of effort in their focus on both the location of the player on the screen, and the level's overall layout.

As the game progresses, both the complexity of the level and the severity of the distraction element will become more difficult.

Distractions:

The distractions will come in many different forms. Some of these will include: Strobe lighting vision, rotation screen, inverted controls, the level being filled with 90% harmless explosions, input delays for the player, and the 30 versions of the level being shown on the screen with only one being the actual level.

Each level will have a unique distraction, or a combination of distractions that work well together.

The distractions aspect will provide the primary difficulty for the game, making the player quickly figure out both what the distraction is and how to overcome it.

Platform:

Console and PC

Target Audience:

Aimed at fans of the platformer genre, and those who like unique puzzle solving games

Image reference:

(ANDREA_J_RUBINO, 2015)https://drewjewel.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/mockup3short.png

22^nd August 2016
Bareknuckle Tattoo and Piercing

'Welcome to Bareknuckle. Now I would show you the ropes and get you all settled in, but I haven't had a coffee and I need to give my rat a shower.
So I'll leave you to it… Have fun! – Mouse'

It's you first day at Bareknuckle. It seems your boss Mouse has left you in charge of the store. You'll be required to perform the piercings for the day with only the guidance of an instruction manual.

Gameplay:
The player will be required to perform a set of different piercings on clients. The player's score will be based on how accurate the piercing is, the quality and speed of the work, and the player ensuring to be performing safe piercing practise. The player will have to use precision with each task in order to gain more points and provide a better piercing for the customer.
As the player gets better at the game, their popularity will increase. This will mean that they are given more frequent customers and more difficult piercing projects.
For reference to the different types of piercings, the player will only receive a book containing the correct method for how to perform each piercing, and what tools to use.

Platform:
VR (Vive)

Target Audience:
Tattoo and piercing culture enthusiasts, and those who enjoy a difficult VR experience.

Image reference:
http://www.adrenalinevancity.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Getting-a-Piercing-2-400x266.jpg

20^th August 2016

You can skip X and Z

'You can skip X and Z, but you get bonus points if you use them'. This is the recurring quote from nearly every alphabetical based word game. It's time X and Z fight back.

You can skip X and Z is a progressive word based fighting game where the player will fight their way through the alphabet in order to get revenge for the years of being purposely skipped in word games.

The player will play as both X and Z. They will have to fight through a ladder of the alphabet using only items that relate to their corresponding letter.
X, hailing from Chinese Xizang province has access to items like his sturdy battle xylophone, his X-ray vision, and his might similar to that of Xerxes the Great.
Z, one of the finest combatants of Zambia seals victory with her Zipper of hatred, her Zippo lighter, and her immense arsenal of Zirconium at her disposal.

The player will have to fight against increasingly difficult Letters in their home battlefield. The enemy letters will be using weapons that also correspond with their alphabetical heritage.

Platform:
PC, Console

Target Audience:
People who enjoy a humorous fighting game, and those who want revenge for all those years where X and Z have been underappreciated.

Image reference:
http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/TFF.png

18^th August 2016

Appetite

Appetite is a game where the player must throw food into a monster's mouth in order to satisfy his seemingly never ending hunger.

The player will be given a conveyor belt of food and the player will have to throw select items of food into the monster's mouth. The monster will react poorly if you throw the wrong food into his mouth, or if you fail to throw enough food.
As the game progresses there will be the introduction of more monsters with different appetites, therefore making the player have to balance each monster's hunger without sacrificing any of them.
If the player upsets a monster three times within each level, the monster will get upset and destroy the city the player lives in. This will mean that the player will have to start the level over again.
The game will have very simplistic controls, only flicking the items off of the conveyor belt into the monster's mouth.

Target Audience:
Mobile gamers who want a unique but simple gaming experience that will gradually become more difficult.

Platform:
Mobile

Image reference:
(Allmark, 2012)http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ekG8-NF5kmQ/UAvIn0VD_mI/AAAAAAAAELM/QVkrNEnsjcY/s1600/photo+3-1.PNG

17^th August 2016

Rock Pool

It's 4000 BC. You and your friends are just hanging on a nice flat surface in your cave, when all of a sudden some Neanderthal of a person comes along and pushes you with a stick.
Needless to say, you soar towards your friend who bounces off the wall and falls down a dark abyss

"Hey that was pretty cool, do it again!"

Rock pool is a classic game of Pool, but almost too classic.
You play as a rock named Cue in the early stages of Pool being developed as a game. You goal is to move into your friends and knock them into the dark pits that lay around your small cave.
Because you are not a perfectly round object, you will have to guide yourself along the board as you move in unexpected and erratic ways. Your goal is to sink all of the balls before the timer runs out, or else the players of the game will throw you away thinking you are a bad rock for the game.
The game will become gradually more difficult, as you will have less time to complete the game on each level, more rocks to sink, and certain objects and animals on the board blocking the way.
Losing on round will require the player to start the entire game again, as there is a vast abundance of rocks in 4000 BC.

Platforms:
PC, Console, Handheld

Target Audience:
14-22

Image reference:
(8ballSS, 2014)http://www.billiardsmovies.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Fred-Flintstone.png

16th August 2016

Harmless hero

It's 2042. You have just been drafted to fight on the front lines of World War 3. There's just one thing that the recruiter didn't happen to notice on your psychological exam.

That you are a die hard pacifist.

Gameplay:

In harmless hero, your goal is to survive the war, and end the conflict by the most peaceful means possible.

Viewed from a 2d perspective, the player will have to navigate the battlefield and restore peace to the soldiers.

The player will have various methods that they can use to bring peace to the battlefield. These will include: an electric accordion, a puppy cannon, and a cotton candy machine.

The game will continue throughout increasingly difficult levels until the player has finally ended world war 3.

Target Audience:

Players who want a passive, fun game

Platforms:

Mobile

Image reference:

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tgSovKmR1wM/VVmFiXgFUGI/AAAAAAAAAw0/kfuppi2o_Z4/s1600/VH_Screenshot_Tank_143280.jpg

11th August 2016

Stock Boy

It's time to start another day of work, the warehouse awaits.

Oh, also a monkey entered the building at night and had a bit of fun.

Gameplay:

The game starts out with the player entering a storage warehouse at the beginning of his shift, only to find that everything in the building has been moved around.

The player will have to task of moving all the stock in the storage warehouse to its respective locations before the shift is over. This will require the player to work with speed in a race against the clock manner, and be able to perform the day's work efficiently.

The player will have a few pieces of equipment at their expense. These will include: A forklift, A slingshot, and a jetpack.

On the first level, the amount of stock to be moved in the shift will be rather minimal. But as the game progresses, the difficulty of each stage will increase. In the later levels, there will also be the inclusion of events that will make the stage more interesting and difficult. These will include, a flamingo stampede, a tornado, and a free donut truck attracting hordes of freeloaders.

Target audience:

14-22

Image reference:

(RockstNort, n.d.)http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/gtawiki/images/5/5a/WarehouseInterior2-GTAO-SS1.png/revision/latest?cb=20160711151621

11^th August 2016

Task Roulette

Task roulette is task management system for people who have a large workload, but struggle to find which tasks to do and how to prioritise.

The player will be prompted to enter tasks that they will need to complete within a certain timeframe. These will be categorised in terms of importance and task type.
They will also be asked to give a description of the task and to enter due dates/times for each task.
Task Roulette will periodically throughout the day suggest that the user spins to wheel to be given a task, or the user can spin as much or as little as they want.

Each time the player spins the wheel, Task Roulette will give the user a task to complete or work on. The user will also have to option to disable the phone in order to improve productivity.

Platforms:
Mobile

Target Audience:
Professionals and students who struggle to prioritise workloads, or those who wish to improve day to day productivity

Image reference:
http://www.luckymobilecasinos.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/roulette_game.jpg

10^th August 2016

Chasing Nathan

So word has it that Nathan Morris, the lead singer of the Pop Punk band 'Bleak Tonight' is in town. It is your responsibility as a true Bleak Tonight fan to search for him, fulfil your childhood dream, and get a prime Instagram photo with him.

Gameplay:
The player must roam through the streets of Auckland city in search of Nathan. The only information they will be given is his last know location. As they arrive at the location, they will be given a clue as to where they could be. The player will be given no indicators as to the actual whereabouts of Nathan, so they will have to decipher a map to find his most probable location.
E.g. "I heard him saying that he really wants a Taco" – This will suggest that the player should look at the nearby Mexican restaurants.
The player will use WASD/Analog sticks to control their player.
The player will only ever find Nathan at his destination, meaning that there will be no travel time between his previous destination and his next. This is to avoid the player going too far ahead of Nathan.

Platform:
PC/Console/Handheld console.

Target Audience:
Players who do not have a lot of time for long story driven games. Fans of faster paced short bursts of gaming.

Image reference:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=4477046489035&set=t.1376176015&type=3&theater

9th August 2016

Thetis

Thetis Lake is the prime summer destination for residents of British Columbia. The air is warm, the sky is clear, and the latest tunes are cranking.

As you go to take your first plunge into the cool water, you see a small disturbance in the water off in the distance.

“Must have been a bird or something".

You leap off a ledge to find yourself a second later immersed in the murky green water.

Whilst making your way to the surface, you notice a small shape moving at the bottom. You manage to barely make it out to be a hand, flowing with the currents and next to it, a peering set of eyes.

Thetis is a horror/mystery game set in 1950's British Columbia. The game follows the tale of the Thetis Lake Monster, a fish-like humanoid that lurks in the depths of the lake.

Gameplay:

Viewed in a first person POV, the player have to wander around the lake in search of their missing friend after they disappeared while swimming in the lake.

The game provides a constant aspect of tension and fear for the player as they progress through the game. While exploring the lake, the player will discover clues and build onto stories of missing persons that have occurred around the lake. This will add to the story building aspect of the game and will tie into the overall explanation and whereabouts of the missing friend.

Platforms:

PC, Console

Target Audience:

Fans of 50's-60's Sci-fi stories will get a real kick out of playing Thetis, as it combines the artistic style of that generation of film with the tension of a immersive horror experience

Image reference:

(Australopithecusman, 2012)

http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/cryptidz/images/9/96/Gilm.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20120405020600

8th August 2016

Procrastination

Your finals are coming up, you need to get groceries, the house is in desperate need of a tidy, and you've been wearing the same socks for four days. Time for you to knuckle down and get some stuff done.

“Not on my watch!" exclaims Netflix

Procrastination is a level based top down game where you must delay your assignments and exams as much as possible, ensuring to only barely pass.

Gameplay.

In Procrastination, the player will have to navigate their house and find ways to procrastinate in order to delay their projects and satisfy their evil/lazy alter ego. These can include things such as: Television, YouTube, Netflix, Playing with animals, vacuuming the curtains, and many other mindless timer wasting tasks.

As the player successfully procrastinates, they will build their time wasting meter. The player's goal is to have their procrastination meter as high as possible before the predetermined time limit runs out.

After completing a time wasting activity, the activity will become unavailable. This will mean that the player must become creative with how they approach their procrastination.

As the game progresses, the levels will become increasingly difficult. The difficulty will arise through how abstract the procrastination methods become. E.g. In level 1, the player will have access to video games, and a TV. And in level 9, the player won't have these resources but rather a plethora of napkins and a cup of mustard. This will mean that the player will have to become more creative with their approach to procrastination.

At the end of each stage, the player will be graded on their efforts and score. This will range from D- to S+

Platforms:

PC, Mobile, Console.

Target Audience:

Students and lazy folk alike. Procrastination is a very relatable game which can, ironically become a form of procrastination in itself.

Image reference:

(Art style, camera view)

(Edwards, 16) http://games.highdefdigest.com/31681/punch_club_pc.html

5^th August 2016

Bukowski's Coffee shop

It's your first day at Bukowski's coffee shop. You have been appointed the head barista for the day.

It is your responsibility to serve the hordes of customers and hipsters wanting to use the free Wi-Fi for the day.

Gameplay:
Played through a VR headset, the player must go through the process of making coffee and serving food to the customers. This will include grinding and making coffee, frothing milk, taking food out of the display cabinet, and cleaning up any mess and dishes that the player has made along the way.
The difficulty of the game comes from the player becoming overwhelmed by the increasing number of orders as the shift progresses.
The player will have to complete each order within a certain timeframe. For every successful order, the player will be awarded points that will add to their end of shift total. Each time the player fails an order, they will be deducted points. If the player fails 5 orders in the shift, the shift ends and the player will receive their total points.

Platform:
VR (HTC Vive)

Target audience:
People are interested in immersive gaming experiences, and those who enjoy a nice cup of java.

Image reference:
(Fairburn, 2016)http://simonfairbairn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Barista-Title-Screen.png

4^th August 2016

Spelling Adventure

Spelling adventure is an educational game aimed at young school children who are developing their spelling skills. The primary goal for the game is to develop the player's spelling skills in a fun, alternative way than traditional learning.

Spelling adventure starts off with an archaeologist exploring an ancient Aztec temple. As he enters, he discovers that in order to traverse the temple, he must solve spelling problems that are written on the wall.
These puzzles will teach the player about the basics of spelling and encourage learning in a fun and alternative manner. The problems will be based on the spelling skill level of the player, and will gradually increase as the game progresses.
The most important aspect of Spelling Adventure is that the game does not punish the player for any mistakes. Instead the player will be given a few more tries before being shown the correct way to spell each word. The player will also be shown methods for remembering how to spell certain words they have had difficulty with.
This aspect will encourage the player to learn in an effective and fun manner, rather than punish and discourage them.

Platform:
PC – This is the most common within the classroom, and can potentially become a learning resource for schools.

Target Audience:
Children learning to spell while at primary school.

Image reference:
(http://imgsrv.worldstart.com/store/images/jumpstart-4thgrade-ss1.jpg, n.d.)

3^rd August 2016

Screaming Esports fan

It's the night of the Generic Moba Championships. Your favourite team; The Eastern Atlantic Manatees is playing.
You must hype the crowd up, and get them screaming in support of the Manatees in order to give the team enough motivation to win the competition.

Gameplay:
Based on a mobile platform, the game will only consist of three controls. The player will tap the screen in an incrementing tempo to build the hype meter. When the hype meter is full, the player will have to tap and drag icons on the screen in time with the music to start a chant. Finally, the player will have to spam tap the screen in order to get their crowd screaming.

Hyping the team and crowd up will score the player points.
The player will have to try gain more points than the opposition team's fans in order to hype the team up enough to win.

Progression:
The game will start off with the qualifying matches, where the opposition crowd is relatively easy. The chant minigame will be a rather simple pattern and the overall hype will be a lot easier to gain.
However as the game progresses, the complexity of these aspects will increase drastically, all leading up to the final match against West Seoulkyo Telecom, where the fans are nearly deafeningly supportive and near impossible to beat.

Platforms:
Mobile

Target Audience:
Esport fans. This game is based off the comedy that occurs in the broadcasts of Esport competitions, therefore not a lot of other people would understand the humour that comes with the game.

Image reference:
(McWhertor, 2013) http://www.polygon.com/2013/10/16/4839342/riot-games-league-of-legends-esports-dustin-beck-interview

2^nd August 2016

Mosh Pit Lifeguard.

Overview:
Mosh Pit Lifeguard is a mobile based game where the player will have to monitor the crowd at a rock concert, and make sure no one gets hurt.

Gameplay:
Controlled simply by tapping and dragging the phone screen, the main difficulty in the game will come from micro-managing the crowd in order for the player to not get overwhelmed while trying to pass each level.
Viewed from a side on angle of the show, the player will have to watch the crowd, and look for signs that an audience member could get injured, without hindering the overall enjoyment for the crowd.

The player will need to ensure that no one drowns (gets trampled in the pit). This will be indicated through exclamation marks and hazard symbols above the spot where they have gone under.
In order to save the audience member, the player will have to flick a life ring over to them, thus pulling them to safety.

The player will also have to watch out for people diving in the shallow end (Stage diving in an empty part of the crowd). Represented only through the crowd parting ways, the player will have to cast a net in order to catch the audience member.

Represented through a cloud of dust, the player will also have to watch out for shark attacks (People purposely trying to hurt others). In this situation, the player will have to tap the screen repetitively in the cloud in order to break up a conflict and kick the shark out.

As the game progresses, the concert's intensity will increase. This will increase each level's difficulty and make the overall micromanaging of the concert more complicated. The player will have to make use of a whistle that will disturb people stage diving for a second, and a hose that will cool off conflicts in the crowd briefly. Using these added time delays will cause the concert enjoyment meter to go down, so the player will have to use this aspect wisely.

Platforms:
Mobile

Target Audience:
16-24 Males.

31^st July 2016

Towel whip simulator 2016 – The definitive edition

Remember those times when you are in the kitchen with a friend, and they wage a whipping war on you. Arming yourself with the nearest tea towel you attempt to defend yourself, but you haven't had anywhere near the amount of practice that he has. So your defences crumble and you succumb to despair in the form of the wet end of a dish cloth.
Well no more!

Gameplay:
Played on a mobile device, the player must simply practise their whipping technique using the phone's motion sensor.
The player will have to hold their phone in one of their hands and swing it forwards as if they were whipping someone with a towel, at the end of the swing, the player will have to flick the phone while keeping a fluid motion.
The player will gain more points the better the technique of the whip is, and will receive a rating based on the amount of pain the whip will cause.

Points are based off; the speed of the cast, the timing of the crack at the end, and the power of the whip. These points will also multiply with each other, in order to reward the player with excellent execution all three aspects of the whip.

In order to help the player to improve, the game will suggest how to improve their whipping technique. The player's best scores will be uploaded to a leader board to help the player keep track of their progress

Platform:
Mobile, Vive

Target audience:
Males aged 14-24

Image reference:
http://bakerboysdist.com/content/posts/tws-awards-2011-10.jpg (Boys, 2011)

28^th July 2016

Sewer Retreat

Set in a gritty cyberpunk styled future, Sewer Retreat is located in the densely overpopulated city of Neo-Osaka, where crime, drugs, and violence wreak havoc within the city.
You play as Nora Cobalt, a former drug runner for the gang known as 'The Napalm Street Families'.
Following a bad drug deal with the 'Newside Runners', a rival gang located a couple blocks from Napalm Street, Nora is forced to escape the city and find refuge on the other side of the Benson river.
Knowing that she has no chance to traverse the streets of Neo-Osaka without being captured, Nora must flee through the sewer line that runs throughout the city.

Gameplay:
Sewer Retreat is a 2.5D side scrolling platformer where the player navigate each stage to progress through the game.
While in the sewer, the player must use puzzle-solving skills in order to find a way to open each room's door. This will primarily involve the use of steam valves, where the player can release the valves to trigger numerous situations.
The steam element in the sewers is crucial for level navigation as it has very significant qualities. One of the most important qualities for steam in Sewer Retreat is how the pressure of the steam will make objects such as crates and pallets rise and fall. This helps the player navigate the level by being able to create a pathway for Nora to walk through.

As the player progresses through each stage, the difficulty of the game increases. The complexity of the puzzles increase gradually as the player's puzzle solving skills and overall grasp of the game's mechanics becomes stronger.

Platforms:
PC, Console, handheld

Image reference:

https://madewith.unity.com/sites/default/files/game/image/screenshot404.jpg
(ltd., 2016)

27^th July 2016

Inner fear

Inner fear is a psychological horror/puzzle game that caters to the player's deepest fears, and acts as a psychological examination of the player. The game analyses the player's reactions and decisions throughout the game, and flows into different paths.
The motive for the game is to provide the player with a truly terrifying experience.

The game starts out with a short psychological test. Here the game will learn about the player, figuring out what makes them afraid and uncomfortable. With this information, the game will be able to start the player in a certain scenario that can cater to the player's fear.

Gameplay:

The player will spawn in a room with one door. They must find the key to unlock the door and escape to the next room.
As the game progresses, the complexity of the rooms will increase. There will be a certain puzzle system that the player will have to solve in order to access the key.
The room will also be hosting an aspect of something the certain player fears. This is recognised through the psychological test, and throughout the game

The player will have to complete the puzzle in order to progress, they will also have to deal with the presence of fear.

For instance: I, (Connor) have Mottephobia, a fear of moths. The game would recognise this through the psychological test at the start and incorporate this aspect within the game, very slowly increasing the intensity.

As the player progresses through each stage of the game, the puzzles will become increasingly difficult. The intensity of the fear aspect will also scale, but this will increase depending on the player's reaction

The game will analyse the player's physical reaction to the fear aspect and decide how much to increase the intensity. This is to ensure the player does not suffer while playing the game, but rather to improve the overall experience with the game.

Inner fear does not end though. The only way to complete the game is to essentially overcome your fear and be able to complete the levels without any distraction.

Platform/Hardware:

Inner fear is an immersive experience. An ideal starting platform would be something along the lines of the HTC Vive. However, the player will also have a noise cancelling headset, and they will be hooked up to a heartrate monitor.

The audio for the game will further increase the immersion within Inner Fear, and is an essential aspect for the player to be able to truly experience the game properly

The heartrate monitor is used to analyse the player's reactions to their personal fear within the game, and will dictate how intense the next level should be.

Image reference:
http://wpuploads.appadvice.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/IMG_4542-642x481.jpeg
(Gil, 2013)