Finding Light in The Distortion
Video Game Production,Creative Direction, Development
Personal Project
2022
Award Winning Project
Summary
VR game-experience that seeks to represent an awareness of the energy crisis. It is an immersive VR game experience to raise awareness of the imminent danger. Inviting the viewer to experience a dystopian future where if humans do not move, the only way out will be a total disconnection from the present It aims to awaken a feeling of urgency embodied in an artificial intelligence that, as it consumes energy, dies by decomposing visually and sonically
The game’s narrative consists of a supposed artificial intelligence (AI) becoming aware of its existence, the classic sci-fi theme of machine emancipation/self-awareness. The player will put himself in the shoes of the AI, the reverse path is taken: if the AI tries to reach a degree of consciousness similar to the human, here we, as humans, will try to put ourselves in the skin (circuits) of the machine. As a result of self-awareness the aim of the AI-player will be to ensure its own survival.
We can’t forget the goal of the game is to raise awareness of the energy crisis. For that I took the decision to create a feeling of urgency. The best way to achieve this emotion is by adapting the typical “survive before the counter gets to 0” game into our narrative.
Details
Genre: VR Art Game
Subgenre: Hidden object game
Players: single player
Rating: +16
Platforms: Oculus Quest and Quest 2
Release date
September 2022
What I've done
1. Game Vision and Concept Development
2. Story and Worldbuilding
3. Artistic Direction
4. Gameplay Experience Design
5. Development
6. Sound and Music
This is a Bonze Laus awarded video game experience
Gameplay
The player is trapped inside the body of the AI. The AI needs to be fed with energy to survive. For this, the player has to find some energy balls scattered throughout the data center.
The moment the player passes through an energy halo for the first time, a 20-second counter is started. In this way the player has 20 seconds to find the next halo. As time passes, the screen darkens simulating the life of the AI runs out.
If the player finds the next halo within 20 seconds, the counter is set to 0 again, so the player can continue searching for them
In the event that it fails to find the halo, the screen will go completely black and the player will be sent to a game over screen.
The game consists of several levels. In each level there is a finite number of energy halos that can be consumed. When the player is able to find all the halos, he will not be sent to the next level, but will be left at the level where he is, with the counter running. As an analogy of energy resources has ran out . When the counter reaches zero, the player will die and be taken to the game over screen.
The only way to win the game is by not consuming the first halo of energy and remaining forever in the state of dormancy that the AI has chosen to embrace. Deciding to continue consuming energy as humans did before is the player’s doom. You cannot win in the energy crisis
As the player dies, the game will evolve by deconstructing itself through image and sound.
using the glitch not only to represent that but as a metaphor for human failure, and an explicit indicator of the failure of a GPU, in this case the failure of artificial intelligence. The sum of having to look for energy plus the deconstruction of space, make the player despair. And so generates an emotion of urgency.
Style
Rejoice in the critical transmedia aesthetic of glitch artifacts. Using glitches to push any medium into a critical state of hypertrophy, in order to subse- quently criticize its inherent politics. Not only as a metaphor for human failure, I have used the glitch as the style of this project, but also as an explicit indicator of the failure of a GPU, in this case the failur of artificial intelligence.
