CultWalk
This project-game was conceived and developed during a 4-week seminar regarding "Innovation and Design Thinking in Mobile Apps" where we were asked to think and work as a start-up. This idea is trying to change the way we learn about cultural heritage, turning the experience into a pleasant and effortless one. I worked on designing and creating the mock-ups for this idea together with 4 other people during the seminar.
Game Concept
The concept was based on the following observation: Most of the time when visiting (physically or virtually) a museum or a historical/cultural place you are free to read (or listen to) any information out of personal interest and if lucky enough (or too interested) you might remember some of it later on. So what if we reversed this procedure to make reading that info more meaningful by using it in the first place to spot/guess the object. Instead of finding an object and then learning more about it, the opposite happens. You have to first learn about it so that you can find it! You are now motivated to read and remember. When you are trying to find something, you are constantly repeating and thinking about it until you solve it. When you find the answer to the "riddle" you are more likely to remember the initial problem you were trying to solve as well as its solution meaning that in this case you will probably remember the information that helped you find the answer and the object it connects to. You might also be interested to learn more about it.
With that in mind, we designed a hidden object type of game with 2D and 3D levels. As a player, you start to explore a specific setting with historical/cultural elements having an inventory of scrolls with small descriptions of items or places. Based on the contents of a scroll, you search the area trying to find the corresponding item that connects with it. When you discover your target, you unlock more information about it and add it to your collection of discovered items. Completing a level unlocks the next one. Sharing with friends, and contributing with content (uploading real photos of places and objects) adds to the fun and replayability!
During the seminar we realized that this game could also be used as a marketing tool from third parties (museums, chocolate or toy factories, etc) that have a story to tell. Not just for promoting products but also for strengthening their brand name by exposing their course through history.
Below are some mock-ups done during the seminar. We also implemented some basic interactions using the unity engine.
Almost all 2D assets and sounds were downloaded from sites with free content.
Game Concept
The concept was based on the following observation: Most of the time when visiting (physically or virtually) a museum or a historical/cultural place you are free to read (or listen to) any information out of personal interest and if lucky enough (or too interested) you might remember some of it later on. So what if we reversed this procedure to make reading that info more meaningful by using it in the first place to spot/guess the object. Instead of finding an object and then learning more about it, the opposite happens. You have to first learn about it so that you can find it! You are now motivated to read and remember. When you are trying to find something, you are constantly repeating and thinking about it until you solve it. When you find the answer to the "riddle" you are more likely to remember the initial problem you were trying to solve as well as its solution meaning that in this case you will probably remember the information that helped you find the answer and the object it connects to. You might also be interested to learn more about it.
With that in mind, we designed a hidden object type of game with 2D and 3D levels. As a player, you start to explore a specific setting with historical/cultural elements having an inventory of scrolls with small descriptions of items or places. Based on the contents of a scroll, you search the area trying to find the corresponding item that connects with it. When you discover your target, you unlock more information about it and add it to your collection of discovered items. Completing a level unlocks the next one. Sharing with friends, and contributing with content (uploading real photos of places and objects) adds to the fun and replayability!
During the seminar we realized that this game could also be used as a marketing tool from third parties (museums, chocolate or toy factories, etc) that have a story to tell. Not just for promoting products but also for strengthening their brand name by exposing their course through history.
Below are some mock-ups done during the seminar. We also implemented some basic interactions using the unity engine.
Almost all 2D assets and sounds were downloaded from sites with free content.
UPDATE!
Finally! Here is a small demo of the game. You can now try out a 3d level, the Japanese Tea Garden. It's a very early demo experimenting with the idea. The Library button doesn't work for now (there are no entries so not much to learn yet). Also, no sound effects (just a generic soundtrack) and I am still working on some secondary animations and lighting. If you lose, the level restarts and if you win, the game menu pops-up (sorry for not congratulating you!). You can also access the game menu from the Home button.
I used Unity3D, Photoshop, 3dsMax and a lot of research for building this demo.
Please let me know if you encounter any bugs or if you found the riddles too difficult or too easy. Answering them shouldn't require previous knowledge since you are supposed to learn by playing.
HOW-TO-PLAY
Read the "riddle" and try to figure out the object or place that corresponds to it (there's usually some short of hint inside the riddle) .
Left Click: clicks on an object
Right Click (Hold): rotates the camera
Scroll-Wheel: Zooms in and out
I used Unity3D, Photoshop, 3dsMax and a lot of research for building this demo.
Please let me know if you encounter any bugs or if you found the riddles too difficult or too easy. Answering them shouldn't require previous knowledge since you are supposed to learn by playing.
HOW-TO-PLAY
Read the "riddle" and try to figure out the object or place that corresponds to it (there's usually some short of hint inside the riddle) .
Left Click: clicks on an object
Right Click (Hold): rotates the camera
Scroll-Wheel: Zooms in and out
Would you play this game? Is there a particular level or feature you would like to see in the game? Don't forget to leave a comment!
Comment Form is loading comments...
