There were a few things that i really love in this interactive website : style of graphics, choice of colours and the simple animations through scrolling. It aims to raise awareness about water saving through the portraying of everyday life which is relatable and informative in the sense that some people may not even know about this facts. I also appreciate the fact that they make the interface easy to use and simple to understand. I feel that this has a lot of potential if narratives was weaved  more into it .

Link : http://everylastdrop.co.uk

 

Side-note:

This is also a possible style that i would really want to try/work on and i think it may be possible with adobe muse? However, i also wanted to add more interactions than just scrolling which i think isn’t really possible with muse..

This was a interactive narrative that was created by a collaboration between ING Direct and Unicef with the aim to raise money. This is a game where it requires you to pair your handphones with your browser. Whenever your phone is flipped, the story of the girl changes between a positive path and another that is negative which is also suggestive of what one’s donation can do.

I personally like how the narrative is like a a literal flip from leading a positive life and to that that is negative. Since the user is the one who initiates the flip, i feel that it emphasises the point of “what one’s donation can do” more. 

Link: http://unahistoriaquedalavuelta.com/en/

 

Side-note:

This concept also sort of reminds me of dual realities which i find to be an interesting topic that i could develop.

This online game is interesting in the sense that it draws it’s narratives from a real-life event – the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti on 12th January 2010. The earthquake killed more than 200,000 people, 1.5 million were displaced, and over 300,000 destroyed buildings in the 7.0 magnitude quake. I like how this game utilises the combination of interactive story where the player can play a part in the rebuilding of Haiti, as well as a platform that raises awareness – issues like famine, homelessness & poverty – to the players about the situation through journalism. I also like how it can also be immersive with the help of the environmental audios. 

Link: http://apps.rue89.com/haiti/en/

 

Side-note:

A possible way to raise awareness while getting some freedom to choose which is a component that i would really like to try and include in my works.

Two possible brief plots:

1. Topic: Mystery, Stories, Puzzle

Inspiration: Gone home

Purpose: A collection of stories/memories that aims to be immersive that hopefully triggers player’s own emotions/memories. 

You walk around rooms that unlock to different environments and in each you can pick up objects, photos, letters, notes or diaries or talk to people that feeds you about some of their memories/stories. At the same time you can also reflect back or be reminded of your own personal ones. Some memories that you pick up are touching, some sad, some happy, some funny, some infuriating, some are even mysterious.  Audio in the background would make the game more immersive.  

note:

-could be based on a real life story or fiction or a mix. 

-could take on a fantasy/dreamy theme as well?

-Could be about discovering self(character) or about other characters. 

 

2.Topic: Mental health, Daily life

Inspiration: Life is strange

Purpose: To help one in understanding more about a person who deals with this mental issue by putting the players in their shoes  that could hopefully raise awareness regarding this issue as well. 

You have a mental disability and because of that you’re trying to escape from it while at the same time trying to live a normal life. You find yourself in your room and can look around to find out more about what type of life you’re leading. Essentially, you live a typical life where you go to school, you have friends, you do some part-time work. However, your disability sometimes gets in the way and overwhelms you, preventing you from being “normal”.  Your goal is to find out what is causing your disability and overcome it. While living your daily life routine, you meet the people in your life as well as new people. The people that you keep close or distant, your actions and how you decide to deal with issues in life may result in them either aiding you or harming you. You might also face dilemmas. You eventually find out the truth and how to deal with your mental disability.

note:

-could be based on a real life story or fiction or a mix. 

-possible adventure theme?

 

 

The first key point that jumped out at me was the term, rapid cultural calibration. It was defined to not only put yourself in the local’s mindset but also to put the local phenomena into global perspectives, both implicitly and explicitly. There are many ways to carry out rapid cultural calibration and it doesn’t necessarily have to be carried out for a long periods of time. It is also interesting how he states that the optimum time to observe a city is around the crack of dawn and the hours that follow since the start of the day tends to be more consistent and more regimented than a day’s end.

This is interesting as I personally did undergo observations for a project, both during the earlier hours and during the much later hours of a day. I did notice that at a day’s start, it was indeed much more consistent such as usual vendors busily setting up their stalls before customers come, to the elderly doing their morning exercise like “tai chi”, to the gradual increase of people from all age groups rushing to work or school as time passes.

I agree that everything in a particular environment, no matter now big or small is crucial in piecing the big picture together. Also, it is not just what we see visually that we have to take in but also to be immersed with our other senses – smell, sounds, touch, tastes. I also note how it is important to strike a balance so that one is not overstimulated. He also stated there has to be a need to find the right balance between the formal and informal data collection, and having the right mental and physical space to process it, to set apart good design research and a great design research. Personally, I find that finding the balance is difficult and it might be helpful to take a step back to first figure out and truly understanding about oneself before embarking on the research journey.

 

Question 1: To understand the people with disabilities, instead of just observing them or interviewing, would it be more helpful to literally role-play living like them in their environment?

Question 2: In the case if the locals have been living the wrong way and we decide to design something that guides them towards the right or better way, but they are adamant to change. Is this still counted as bad design and not understanding the consumers if it is to change something for the better when they do not want to but need to?

In the reading, Eric Zimmerman mentioned about how can we capitalize on the unique qualities of games in order to create new kinds of game-stories? What if dynamic play procedures were used as the very building-blocks of storytelling? It is true that in the current times, there is tremendous amount of interest in the intersection of games and stories, such as the example of game developers increasingly relying on filmic story techniques that is just turning games into another kind of cinema.

The term “game-story” can be debunked in many various ways and there is no right or wrong answers. The four terms – play, games, narrative, interactivity – are also not mutually exclusive or representative of four categories. They are in fact overlapping and intersecting the others in complex and unique ways. Hence, when we think about what “game-story” is, we have to think of this four terms together and not separately.

I really like the three parts definition of the term “narrative” by J. Hillis Miller as personally I adored narratives yet always found it hard to address it with a definition. It is also true based on his definition, many things that are not usually thought of as narrative happens to be a narrative as well. I found this interesting and insightful as I used to only think narrative was mostly just about books or stories.

Interactivity was another interesting concept that Eric Zimmerman has debunked with four modes – cognitive, functional, explicit and meta. Interactivity is not just about two people or things responding to one another. Again, these are not four distinct categories but it overlaps and occur at varying degrees. The four modes are also mostly incorporated entirely or some simultaneously.

For play he divided them into three general categories – game play, ludic activities and being playful. He also gave a definition that addresses all of these uses – Play is the free space of movement within a more rigid structure. The key takeaway was the free movement and within a rigid structure.

He mentioned games are voluntary, explicit participation with behavior constraining rules, has artificiality, embody conflict and a quantifiable outcome. This is true. Gameplay is not just restricted to on the gameplay elements but also the player’s experience in entirety. 

Task: Students will analyze the user experience of ADM building. Carefully observe and document with photos the way finding of the building (location, entrances/exits, signage, spatial organization etc.). Look at its ease of use. Observe how the design of the building affects behavior. Be thoughtful and critical about what works and doesn’t work. Be prepared to share findings in class and discuss observations.  Map a sketch of your experience above pointing out areas that are confusing and areas that are not confusing.

with Fiona / Jordyn / Valerie