15. Overview of Future Technology

Facebook is currently the largest and most popular social networking site currently, according to techcrunch “in the solar system of social media, Facebook is the Sun — the gravitational centre around which everything social revolves” (TechCrunch 2012). However, this could change in the future. 

Facebook's home page screen (Facebook, 2012)

Consumers are now adopting smaller, more specialised start up social networks. Smartphone and computer apps such as Pinterest, Instagram, Thumb and Foodspotting are creating social networks for smaller, niche topics. This could mean that a small social network could be developed for people who are conscious about world issues and the environment, or people who like reading the news. This would mean that the game could be features on a site like this and appeal to more people.

Foodspotting Social Network (Foodspotting, 2012)

Pinterest Logo (Pinterest, 2012)

Another future innovation would be Google’s ‘Project Glass’.  Their glasses present a way to produce ‘augmented reality’ and are very easily tied into social networking, such as by displaying chats between your friends and you, and enabling you to share photos as you go about your day. (The Guardian, 2012)

Google's Project Glass (Google, 2012)

This could be a very good opportunity for the game because it could run on these glasses through a connected social network. This would mean that the player could look at objects through the game, and play through some real life scenarios. It could also suggest ways of reducing their carbon emissions as they go about day to day activities.

14. Marketing

This game will be very easy to market to an audience who are conscious about the environment and climate change. With the topic being so popular currently, it is getting a large amount of media attention and so hopefully this will help to market the game itself.

A current report on climate change on the BBC News website (BBC 2012)

A perfect way to market this game would be to use ‘sustainable marketing’, because this ties in with the theme of the game. This means using recycled materials wherever possible, and using alternative energy resources during production of the final product. (Sustainable Marketing, 2012)

This game would also be a good game to play in schools, to teach children about climate change. A separate stand-alone game could be made so that it can be used in schools without them having to use a social network.

Students in a school using computers – they could be playing the game (Telegraph 2010)

The game could also be marketed using grants or features from different companies and charities which focus on climate change. Charities such as ‘Stop Climate Chaos Coalition’ and ‘Friends of the Earth’ might be very interested in the idea of a game promoting climate change education, and so they may feature it on their websites, or recommend it to their members. They may even sponsor the game to have their logos put onto it, and to claim some of the profits of the game as donations to their causes. (SCCC 2012) (Friends of the Earth 2012)

One of the biggest ways of marketing this game would be on the social networking site that it is hosted on. The game will have access to its player’s list of friends, and it can send out invitations to play through this. It can also be promoted by asking if the player wants to ‘share’ their achievements with their social networking friends, with a link to the game so that more people will play. A final way of marketing this game would be the option to earn in game rewards by recruiting friends. The player will have the option to invite their friends to the game. The more of their friends who join the game, the more rewards the player will get.

(Stop Climate Change Coalition, 2012)

(Friends of the Earth, 2012)

How ‘Castleville’ by Zynga markets via social networking (Facebook 2012)

The game’s release could be timed to coincide with a major climate change event. The United Nations hold a Climate Change conference every year, with a different country hosting it every year. The game could be released alongside the conference, so that the game will complement the media stories about the event. Last year the conference discussed ways of limiting carbon emissions, and agreed that the strategy was going to be finalised and released in 2015 - for it to be taken into effect by 2020 (The Guardian, 2011). If the game is released alongside the carbon emissions plan, it can help people to understand why we need this plan, and it will teach them how to reduce their own carbon emissions.

There are other significant days in the year where the game can be released, such as; Climate Week (12^th to 18^th March), Earth Day (22^nd April), World Environment Day (5^th June), World Oceans Day (8^th June) and Global Wind Day (15^th June). All of these days can be used to draw attention to the game, because the game contains enough relevant content to link to all these days. 

Climate Change Conference Logo (United Nations, 2012)

World Environment Day Logo (United Nations, 2012)

13. Unique Selling Points and Exciting Game Play Features

I had to change the Unique Selling Points and Game Play Features Section to a more concise, bullet pointed version. It was pointed out in a feedback session that this section should not be wordy, and it should be more straight to the point - so I changed it accordingly.

·         Advertising climate change

·         It is a trending topic in the media currently

·         Raises money for charities

·         Will appeal to people’s good ethics

·         Unique art style

·         Fully customisable main area will let people tailor their game

·         The first game to integrate News and RSS feeds, letting the player respond to current events as they happen

·         The game will have regular updates to keep it relevant

Artwork from the game

(old version)


 This game will advertise climate change and natural disasters. It is a really popular topic in the media currently, and climate change has the potential to affect everyone in the world at some point.

The idea of raising money for charities that help out with the aftermath of natural disasters, such as the Red Cross, will appeal to people and the ethical concept may persuade more people to play a game that they might not have considered playing before.

Combining this idea with a unique art style and a fully customisable main area will greatly appeal to the public who use games on social networks. the customisable aspect of the game lets them create themselves within the game, in their own special area - which will be different from anybody else's in the game.

This game is the first game to integrate news feeds and RSS feeds into a game, which then lets the players directly respond to current events and it lets them feel like they are taking part in the cause, rather than just watching from a distance.

12. Game Mechanics

In the laboratory:

1. The player must use the laboratory machines to conduct experiments. This will unlock new machinery and options for solving natural disaster problems.

2. The player will use the digital world map (purchasable from the supplier store) to move between the different levels of the game.

3. The player can use the supplier store to purchase upgrades for the in game items in order to improve the game experience and progress through the game.

Using the Laboratory to experiment

Using the Digital World Map to navigate

The Natural Disaster Levels:

4. During the natural disaster levels, the player will be able to interact with the surrounding objects to produce a positive outcome.

5. The player will be able to interact with people in these levels and use a multiple choice option to persuade them to help stop climate change.

6. There will be certain collectibles that will help the player to complete challenges once the entire collection is complete. They can use social networks for this and ask their friends to gift certain items to them to help complete these collections.

Multiple Choice Menu

11. Settings and Scenarios

The game is set in the player's laboratory which will be in a cell shaded, 2D Isometric style. The laboratory will be fully customisable using a special supplier that the player will have access to, and they can spend their in game money on new machinery, different coloured machinery, coloured floor tiles and wall paint, and several themed decorations. This will also encourage players to buy in game money using real money, because they will be able to have access to better and more efficient items.

Screenshot of the player's Laboratory

Using the digital world map screen, the player will be able to select which location to go to and will be instantly transported there.

World Map Screen

The different scenes within the world will be a different style from the laboratory to differentiate between the different locations. They will consist of a static scene that the player can walk around within a limited space. They can click on different objects and features to pull up interactivity options and information. There will also be people in these levels that the player can talk to and try and convince them to change to a non carbon based energy source. Eg: a school on a tropical island could have a solar panel to provide electricity, because it is in a very sunny place. 

A Disaster Scene where the player can visit and interact with the objects there

10. Non Player Characters

Name: Maximilian Gove

Role: Antagonist

Description: An adult male in a sharp suit, who looks rather suspicious. He has slicked back hair and a sly attitude; he is used to getting his own way and doing what he wants. He is a government official who is making a lot of money by accepting bribes from companies who are polluting more than they should be. Because of the new climate change plans proposed by the protagonist, Max is very upset that he can’t take any more bribes… And in turn the companies are very upset that they cannot get away with as much as they had before (which is very bad for business).

Max will try and thwart the attempts of the protagonist at every step of the way because it is in his best interests to get the protagonist’s operation shut down.

Name: (group) The United Nations

Role: International Peace and Security

Description: The United Nations was formed after the Second World War and there are currently 51 countries represented by it. In their charter they state that they are committed to "maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights." (United Nations, 2012)
Within this game they will be responsible for humanitarian efforts in the aftermath of natural disasters, and they will meet and discuss upcoming threats so that the player can act and respond to them.

Name: Country Residents

Role: Supporting Characters

Description: At each location, there will be people who need the help of the main character. They will have appropriate looks and nationalities to fit in with their home country (for example, the player will talk to a Japanese person if they are investigating the Japanese earthquake in Japan). 


These characters will want advice from the main character so that they can help make the world a better place and stop the natural disasters from happening. They also need advice about how climate change is affecting the world, and the direct consequences their actions are causing when they ignore the issue.

9. Main Character

The main character is the player. They play as a scientist whose speciality is climate change and the ecosystem.

The player will give their main character a nickname, or they can choose to use their name from their social networking profile. 

Name: Male Scientist/ or Female Scientist

Role: Main protagonist

Personality: Hopefully the player will project their own personality onto the protagonist as they play, but the default personality is that of a helpful person who cares about other people, and they want to use their skills and knowledge for the good of the world.

Every character will be a human adult wearing a lab coat. 
There will be several different customisation options to choose from.

The ability to customise their character is intended to make people associate more with the game. If they can play as themselves in the game, they will have a higher emotional stake in how well or often they play the game. The social networking capabilities also allow players to compete with their friends.

Customisation Options

Here are some examples of my initial development work to decide on the customisation options for the main character:

  

8. Story Description

I have elaborated much more on the Story Description. The game needed a better explanation so that people could understand how it works. Making changes myself and responding to feedback helped me to expand it and make it more coherent.

You are a scientist, at the top of your field. You have been researching climate change for many years now and you know something is going to go terribly wrong…

You sit and watch in horror as a Tsunami destroys parts of Thailand in 2004, and then the earthquakes in Japan and Turkey in 2011 – not to mention the increasing number of tornadoes and storms in America which are killing hundreds of people on a yearly basis (Reuters, 2011)

As you watch the weather get worse and worse every year, you realise that something has to be done about it. An emergency meeting is needed with the UN in order to stop the climate change right now – or else increasing numbers of people are going to die every year because of the terrible storms and earthquakes that are happening.

The UN do seem just as concerned as you are about it, and because you are one of the leading scientists in climate change, they ask you and other people (the other people being your friends playing the same game on the social networking site) to put together some theories to prevent the disasters from occurring. These theories are put together back at the laboratory using the sophisticated machinery which is there. A multiple choice system will allow you to select a correct theory, which you can then share with your friends on a social network to help them out; otherwise you and your friends can gift clues to each other every day that you play.

You journey back to the laboratory with a worried expression, and begin to analyse the situation. You need to travel to the areas that are about to be affected and gather research to try and stop the disasters, or at least to try and mitigate the damage.

Whilst travelling you realise that many people living in the affected areas have developed bad habits which are damaging to the eco system, and most people are incredibly uneducated in the subject of climate change. You must work with them to come up with a plausible answer to the problem, such as building coastal defences, or reinforcing people’s homes to withstand storms, or at the very least providing a safe place where people can shelter. You could also suggest to people that installing renewable energy sources will help the climate in the long run, such as getting solar panels on the roof of their house, or by installing a wind turbine. This will reduce the world’s reliance on carbon based energy.

After each task you return to your laboratory satisfied that you have done a good job, but knowing full well that the job isn’t over yet…

Game Screenshot One - Natural Disaster

Game Screenshot Two - Locations on Map

Game Screenshot Three - Part of the Customisable Laboratory

(Changed paragraph after feedback) The UN do seem just as concerned as you are about it, and because you are one of the leading scientists in climate change, they ask you and other people (the other people being your friends playing the same game on the social networking site) to put together some theories to prevent the disasters from occurring. 


(More feedback - What happens to these ideas? - Addressed in the new version of the Story Description.

(old version)

The story will focus around a scientist who is at the top of his field. He is a specialist on climate change and he has been called upon to help the governments of the world stop disastrous climate change.

 - Use the laboratory to innovate new technology and solutions to climate change.

- Go out on field trips to places that are currently experiencing natural disasters.

- Advise the authorities on what to do

- The game will respond to current day issues and troubles.

7. Look and Feel

This is a quick painting of the look and feel of the game, because it is about climate change the colours reflect bad weather, such as dark red, orange, yellow, black, grey and purple.

This is a possible background image, people associate lots of clouds with bad weather and the colours of these can be changed depending on what sort of weather it is.

The first of my initial posters for my game, this shows the first image and the 'chalky' text that looks quite effective.

Second image - with chalky effect text.

These images show the initial look and feel of my game, it will also have to look ‘professional’. I want to tie it into News channels and feeds, so I think it will have to look slightly similar to the news channels so that people will associate with it. I also want the game to represent new technology, so the look will also be smooth and sleek (almost inspired by some products designed by Jonathan Ive, because many people associate this style with innovation and new technology (Pragmatic Marketing, 2012)).

A screen shot from BBC news, showing the scrolling news feed like I intend to have in the game (BBC, 2007)

Another screen shot, this time from Sky news, to show another example of news text overlaid on a video (Sky News, 2011)

The two images above show the scrolling news feed that I want to have in the game. It will be overlaid at the bottom of the screen, like in the examples, but it will most likely resemble the BBC News 24 version, rather than the Sky 24 version because I like the more 'robust' look it has. However, the one from Sky is rather unobtrusive at the bottom of the screen and it might be less distracting to the player if I use one like this.

An example of an Oil style landscape painting, illustrating how my game could look in the disaster scenes (China Oil Painting Gallery, 2010) 

Another landscape oil painting, I think this one is too 'smooth' for the effect that I want though, because I want to illustrate bad weather and stormy skies (deshow.net, 2012)

A screenshot from the popular Facebook game, Mafia Wars. This illustrates how  people can collect money and have energy to do certain tasks (on the bar at the top) (Zynga, 2010)

A Female Scientist conducting an experiment, wearing a lab coat. (Micheljung, 2012)

An image taken from the Japanese news whilst the tsunami disaster was ongoing (ABC, 2011)

A whirlpool forming during the Japanese tsunami and earthquake (National Geographic, 2012)

Kilauea in Hawaii, an active volcano which has been in constant eruption since 1983 (ZME Science, 2011)

Emergency Services dealing with the aftermath of the 2011 earthquake in Turkey (UCN, 2011)

These images illustrate the devastating impact the natural disasters have, and I want this game to make people realise that it can happen to anybody, and it is everybody's concern - not just governments. It is also great how people get together and help each other out in these awful circumstances, and it just illustrates how good the human spirit is. The aim of this game is to give a message to people who play it, but also be fun to play at the same time.

6. Broad Game Description

The new Broad Game Description is vastly improved from the initial draft that I produced (see below for the old version). The new one describes what my game is about more effectively.

The game begins with a scientific laboratory, where the player will be based. There are many high-tech machines and computers which will be useful throughout the game.

This laboratory will act as the main hub, and join all the different sections of the game together. The player will be able to access different options and help menus from this hub, and use it to solve the problems posed as the game progresses.

The game screen will be overlaid with information which will look like a live news feed (see Look and Feel for examples) and it will display current climate news in the media using an RSS feed (RSS Tutorial, 2012). If there is no current media relevant, the game will use information from previous climate events, such as the Japanese Earthquake and the Tsunami in Thailand, until new news becomes available. The game is a live game, so everyone will play the same thing as it is happening, and the game will be kept updated to be relevant to the current media.

Natural disasters which will be covered include; floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, heat waves, landslides and tsunamis.

Illustrations to show natural disasters: Left to right - tsunami, tornado, typhoon, volcanic eruption and earthquake.

The player will receive these reports and choose to act upon them. When they want to help out and do something about it, the game will take them to the area where the disaster is going to happen so that they can take a look. Because the game is a point and click game, they can click on certain things around the area to find out more information, and collect objects that they think might be useful. When they are finished here, they can travel back to the laboratory and use this information and the objects to decide what to do.

The player will have several different options to select from; clicking the correct one first will reward more points towards the game. If they get it right and avert the disaster they will earn an award which they can share with their friends on social networking sites.

Image shows how the player can click on objects to find out more information

News feed overlay, telling the player live and relevant information

The laboratory will also be customisable. The player will earn money for every successfully completed challenge, which they can spend to buy upgraded machinery and decorations for their laboratory. More of this in game money can be bought by the player with real money too, with a suggestion that some of it be donated to charity.

The main aim of this game is to provide a fun way to raise awareness about climate change, and it will do this by telling a story about the consequences of climate change. At the end of each level, the events will be summarised and the player will be told how many lives have been saved or lost, and how much damage was caused or averted. 

Another screenshot of a disaster in progress

This is how the game would look on a social networking site

(old version)

The climate is changing and people are worrying about the future. There are typhoons everywhere and floods are devastating coastal areas. The player is in control of a scientist who is trying to develop new technology in order to stop this climate change and to stabilise the world’s weather patterns before more chaos happens.

This is an interactive story, where the player’s choices will directly influence the outcome. Their decisions could save, or destroy the world. It will operate like a point and click game, and will include interesting and engaging information.

Replay-ability: There are lots of outcomes to consider, and so people can restart the game and have a completely different experience than their last play through.

Live updates: As subjects trend in the media, the game can have updates and expansions to keep people interested, for example; another topic the game could cover are the increase in earthquakes around the world (This year there was Japan, New Zealand and Turkey)