Project Civilia Grant
Responsibilities:
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Pitched and Developed grant/game idea.
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Researching This War of Mine and relevant historical information.
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Owning the Level design and Environment art.
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Led a small team of 4 to develop an Unreal Engine 5 prototype with a 2 week deadline.
Project Civilia is a game made as part of a research grant, from Miami University titled "Understanding the Bosnian War through Gamification". The deliverables for the grant included a research paper into the subject and a vertical slice of a game as a case study on 11 bit studios "This War of Mine". The result is a stealth walking simulator with the objective of scavenging for supplies in a 1990's occupied city.
Through mechanics, I wanted to make players feel connected to the character. Forcing the players into a desperate scenario where they have to search for resources in the radius of soldiers.
Given the scope of the project we opted to make the playtime relatively short. To counter this we made the design decision to favor the soldier AI, which did 2 things.
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1. Killing the player more. This may seem counter intuitive but in my research one of the most empathic things that TWOM does is remind you that much like the real victims of war, your character is vulnerable.
2. Opening up for replayability. While initially saddened by the abrupt death. Most playtester's did try at least one more attempt of gameplay.
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My visual design goal was to use a muted almost monochromatic color palette to portray the bleakness of war, especially in a modern setting.
A War Torn Atmoshpere
Encapsulating the experience of war specifically from a civilian point of view is essential for broadening the scope of narrative and emotional engagement within the field of game development. It provides educational and empathetic insights that can foster greater societal understanding and compassion. Such games not only enrich the field of game design but also contribute to a more informed, empathetic, and resilient society. It also provides a respite from many video games that falsely glorify war. Especially at a time where many civilians live in war torn realities across the globe.
The importance of anti-war games
At the end of the 2 week development time I was invited to present at the Fall US Scholars forum. The research question that I seek to answer is how can a video game encapsulate the experience of war from a civilian point of view?
Presenting findings in a research setting.
