Play and De-Stress
Experience Creating the Game
I used Flow Labs to create this game. I wanted to create a game that resonated with people and would allow them to completely engage in the experience. So I created a game style similar to Mario because that is an experience that many people have loved for years and is familiar with. I learned that when creating the game, it was very empowering to create an entire world and determine people’s experience of the game. The cognitive load for this experience should be low since the objective of the game is simple – reach the end by collecting as many coins as possible and avoid the spikes. It was also incredibly humbling that after I created the game I struggled to beat the game!
Behind the Scenes of Game Design!
Games in Narrative Proposal
Title: Lose yourself in games!
Concept Overview: This game is meant to be a place in which people can become fully engaged in it and disconnect from life stressor’s if even for a moment in time. Playing the game is very similar to playing Mario, which is familiar and easy for people to engage with. This familiarity allows people to easisly engage with the game.
Statement of Need: I think this game is necessary because many people are stressed out and have high amounts of anxiety in regards to the pandemic. This provides a healthy outlet for people to take a break from the mental stressors of their daily life. This gaming experience is beneficial for their mental health.
Concept Description: The game allows the user to control the player either by running back and forth or jumping up and down. The player collects coins and loses health points if the player hits the spikes that’s on the ground. If the player hits the spikes 5 times then it’s game over!
Target audience: The audience is anyone who’d like a break from their daily lives.
Learning Goals:
- Players will devise a strategy to successfully collect all of the coins
- Players will learn to avoid the spikes
- Viewers will learn a new activity to alleviate their mental and emotion stress
Learning Theories:
- Flow Theory (Csikszentmihalyi, 1975): The notion that you become extremely involved in an activity, in this case the game that you lose sense of time, self, consciousness, etc. Being this engaged helps people remember as much about the game and the information learned in it.
References
Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. 1975. Play and intrinsic rewards. Humanistic Psych. 15 41–63.
Woven Stories 