Final choice
I have decided to produce and develop my initial idea of a hypothetical “perfect” city that you are unable to leave. This was the idea I gravitated towards the most and I believe has the best opportunity to express creative freedom in order to produce a succesful product. In addition, this approach fits my production style and intentions much better which in turn should result in a more polished and professional story. Below is my initial description and overview of the story;
Description:
“You are a part of Project Jovial*, the perfect city experience. Money is no longer an issue and everything is how you want it. What you will eventually find out is this is not the case and you’ve already made enemies and there is no winning”
This description would be shown to players before they play/interact with this story to give them an insight into what they’re about to experience. Its purpose is to give them a little teaser of the main idea, but also remain mysterious as to what’s about to happen.
Overview of experience:
The player is guided through videos and images that will change depending on their choices. The main character is under the impression they have ‘free will’ within this perfect city however they are unknowingly stuck in a controlled paradox. The player can’t beat the paradox, but their choices will determine how quick they reach a conclusion. For example, if they are mean to their peers, they will turn quicker and the story will end sooner. If they are nice, they will have a better experience but they will still end the story the same way.
Structure
As previously mentioned, my chosen story doesn’t necessarily have a positive ending which goes against a lot of the stereotypes regarding storytelling. There is no resolution as such for the main character, however there is an end to the story where the character ends their journey. Below I have detailed two elements of structure that my story aligns with and have included brief points of the story where these changes happen.
Comparing to ‘Todorovs Narrative Theory’, my story can follow his 5 main aspects.
Equilibrium: My character starts his new journey he has chosen in the perfect city – all seems normal
Disruption: The neighbours begin to act strange and things don’t seem right.
Recognition of disruption: The main character notices that his neighbours are seemingly out to get him and don’t want him there.
Attempt to repair disruption: The main character tries to understand their issues and solve them and if this doesn’t work then they will fight to keep their place.
New equilibrium: The main character loses the battle and is removed from the project, this is the end of their story and life.
Furthermore, the story structure can also be compared to Dan Harmon’s Story Circle which I have annotated using the storyline of my project.
Main Character
Below is a character fact file and overview which details their interests, occupation as well as relationship status and age. This gives a general idea of who the main character is that the user controls throughout the story.
My chosen character for Project Jovial, Pablo Anfar, certainly has their own characteristics going into the story, however their ongoing reputation and choices fall in the hands of the user. Depending on choices made inside the interactive story, the main character will develop and their personality will alter. This in turn will feed directly into the story and be shown through the reactions and responses of the other characters. Like previously mentioned, if the user decides they want to take a hostile approach to the story, their personality shown towards the other characters will be met with a negative response.
Side Characters
Narrator – Dr Ruble – Happy and cheerful, has a strong voice
Neighbour 1 – David Best – Mysterious but welcoming with a calm voice
Neighbour 2 – Jackie Best – Cheerful but easily angered
Neighbour 3 – Alfred Smith – Old and grumpy, likes being alone
As for the side characters which include the neighbours and the narrator, they all share the same characteristics due to the nature of the story. Since this is a ‘controlled project’ where you will always lose, everyone has the same mission and therefore the same characteristics and attitude towards your character. They will all act somewhat friendly and welcoming at the start but as soon as you start to see through their act, they will begin to turn against you and want you out of the project. These would be shown through their tone of voice and subtle comments they think you won’t notice.
Setting
For Project Jovial, the general setting is a 1950’s style suburb with modern characteristics. Due to the nature of the ‘project’ there is no real date that the city is set in. Although the city is based around the 50’s, the people and technology inside does not reflect this in any way. The setting and visual themes within the story will mainly be shown through individual images such as singular houses or items.
This approach also allows anyone interacting with the story the opportunity to imagine their own version of the city by using the singular images and comments as inspiration.
Below is my initial inspiration for the aesthetics and theme of the city however as previously stated, the style is up for interpretation and is not exclusive to the general aesthetic in these images;
References
Swim, A. (2020) Dan Harmon’s Story Circle | Rick and Morty | adult swim. YouTube. Available online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RG4WcRAgm7Y&ab_channel=AdultSwim [Accessed 13 Nov. 2022].
Unknown (2022) Shorpy Historical Picture Archive :: Suburban Buick: 1957 high-resolution photo. Shorpy.com. Available online: https://www.shorpy.com/node/21568?size=_original#caption [Accessed 13 Nov. 2022].
Niedermeyer, P. (2016) Vintage Color Snapshots From The 1950s. Curbside Classic. Available online: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/nostalgia/vintage-color-snapshots-from-the-1950s/ [Accessed 13 Nov. 2022].
Pella (2018) How to Pick a Paint Color Combination for Your Home’s Exterior. Pellabranch.com. Available online: https://www.pellabranch.com/blog/global-blogs/how-to-pick-a-paint-color-combo-for-your-homes-exterior/ [Accessed 13 Nov. 2022].
