Michael Slape
Game (Systems) Designer
Links
Engine: Unity
Programming Tools: MS Visual Studio
Shader Tools: Shader Graph, VFX Graph, Shuriken Particle System
Sound Design Tools: AIVA
Language: C#
Role: Designer & Programmer
Team size: 1
Development Time: 8.5 months
Genres: Mental Health, Atmospheric, Story-driven, Adventure
​
Synopsis:
"The Light Within" is my dissertation piece completed for my MA Game Development (Design) course with Kingston University. The focus is on how video games can be designed to alleviate symptoms of mental health illnesses, specifically depression and anxiety, as well as educating people on techniques for supporting sufferers.
​
Dissertation Components:
-
Design Focus:
-
Game Design [Mental Health / Human Psychology / Shape & Colour Association]
-
Level Design
-
Technical Art / Design
-
Sound Design
-
-
In-Game Objective:
-
Reunite the main character's conscious mind with their unconscious mind so that they can start the path to recovering from their clinical severe depression and anxiety.
-
-
Project Objective:
-
Investigate how video games could be designed to impart real-world coping techniques for those who are either suffering from or know of someone suffering from mental health illnesses.
-
Design Breakdown:
Game Design
The core principles of the designs focus on ways to gamify real-world coping mechanisms so that players who either know someone suffering from, or are suffering themselves from, a mental health illness can make use of what they do in the game and apply it to real scenarios.
​
Since mental illness is a massive topic, depression and anxiety were chosen as the illnesses to focus in on since these are the most prevalent ones globally. Within these, symptoms that are considered to be more "common" were then examined to see what coping techniques could be converted into in-game mechanics.
​
Final designs made use of 3 types of gamified techniques:
-
Gamified Psychological / Psychiatric Therapies
-
Supporting others who struggle to support themselves
-
Supporting yourself by adapting to problems
​​
In addition, players are provided with a degree of personalisation options prior to the main game starting. This currently exists as a kind of personality quiz in which answers to shape and colour associations alter the appearance of NPCs and their 'soul orbs'. Soul orbs are a reflection of that NPC's most prevalent emotional state, which is based off of the Kubler-Ross 5 Stage of Grief model.
​
More details can be found within the GDD under the "Links" section.
Level Design
The game contains 2 scenes - one for the opening quiz segment and one for the main game. The quiz segment is designed to evoke sensations that the main character is falling asleep, which helps lead into the main game that takes place in a dream world.
​
With the opening quiz scene, this makes use of several effects to sell the notion that the main character is falling asleep:
​
-
A vignette on the camera to create an eye-like shape
-
White particles around the vignette edge for sleep dust
-
Dark colours which are synonymous with the night (dark blue, black)
-
The playable character's eyes are closed, with starry particles emitting from them as they hover gently
​
Additionally, the antagonist slowly becomes visible in the background throughout this segment - enough to represent how mental illness is always present even when we might be having good days.
Level Design Quiz Scene
Once the questions have been answered, the transition into the main game begins. The initial landscape is introduced via a cutscene and consists of 4 main areas:
-
Enchanted woods
-
The coastal path
-
The farmstead
-
The swamp
Due to time constraints, these areas were shrunk into more condensed versions of what they would have been in the original scope. Below is a clip showing these areas in the game and a top-down view of the entire explorable region.
Main Level Showcase
Technical Design / Technical Art
To really nail the dreamy aesthetics that I wanted this project to have, a lot of time was spent investigating various shader effects and deciding on the style the world would be presented in. Going for a stylized look afforded more options when it came to creativity and what 3D assets I could utilize while also creating a kid-friendly surface that masks the more serious undertones present in the game.
​
A variety of effects were created where it was deemed suitable to do so. The visual effects elements created are the:
-
Colour restoration
-
Soul orbs
-
Player transformation mask
-
Antagonist effects
-
Custom skybox
-
Hand-drawn effects for the player and NPCs
-
Fireplace and chimney smoke
-
Post-processing effects
​
Other effects were provided by third-parties via the Unity Asset Store. Details of how these were created can be found in the GDD. You can view some of these effects in the following clip:
VFX Shots
Sound Design
For improving the evocative moments throughout the prototype, custom music was composed with the help of AIVA. Tracks were created to convey various dream-like tones using major keys on instruments typically associated with falling asleep - grand pianos, harps, and various string instruments. The villain's theme uses the minor key with a slower BPM than most of the other tracks to set a mysterious and menacing atmosphere.
​
In order of appearance, the tracks are:​
In-game, the Lullaby Track is intended to be evocative of drifting off to sleep. The opening cutscene then makes use of the Welcome to the Dream World track, with a higher BPM and uplifting tones to set the stage for the adventure.
The Dream World then acts as the main theme for the area, continuing this adventurous sensation with whimsical moments to enhance the fantastical dreamy landscape being explored.
This track is automatically replaced by The Villain Appears once the antagonist arrives in the game. This track uses slower, darker, minor key notes to create an unsettling and mysterious tone while the antagonist remains in the area. Upon making the antagonist flee, the track returns to the main theme as additional confirmation for players that things are back to normal.​