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Reflection – Hayley Smart

The task itself seemed straight forward, create a swede and portray core mechanics for a chosen game. There were written components along with the production though I anticipated the work would be easy enough to manage dispersed between a few people. Choosing a group was easy enough, I had previously worked with Rachel and Bonnie on separate assignments last year so I knew I worked well with them. Jex came into the group later which was welcome as more people could take on more work. Between Bonnie and Rachael, they swayed towards analysing Animal crossing, I hadn’t played it before but a quick look at some YouTube videos and it was easy to grasp the concept of the game so I was happy for the group to choose it.

The first team meet up we delegated jobs, this was based on our individual strengths and the work load we already had. It was easy enough to organise, Bonnie did the storyboard, Jex wrote the script and Rachael and I made props. Considering I hadn’t played Animal crossing this was probably best as the props I had to make could be easily googled and replicated, if I had taken on a different task I likely would have struggled to portray the game accurately without playing it.

The storyboard was completed first so Jex could start on the writing, while Bonnie and Jex managed that Rachael made some fish, a present and bells for the props and I took care of the three animal masks and villager masks, some leaves which we didn’t end up needing and sourced a fishing rod off gumtree. While the props were straightforward I had to make sure that the animal masks used were true to the game. I triple checked that the characters I was using were in fact the ones from Animal crossing – New leaf and not from another.

We all came together on Sunday to film; the process went smoothly and quickly. Jex used her camera and Bonnie edited everything afterwards. Watching the game being dissected to film it helped identify the mechanics and fundamental aesthetics of the game. After filming it was easier to write about the aesthetics of Animal crossing although I hadn’t played it. Initially I was a little worried about how it would all come together and whether we would accurately portray the game and if it would get the message across but I feel the game was captured well and identifies some core mechanics such as collecting objects to trade for bells and the occasional annoyance of dealing with the animals in the town.

The actual filming process, while still quick took longer than expected mainly because it took a while to get the right sort of footage and time it properly with the script. We decided last minute to add subtitles instead of having our voices dubbed over so we could replace it with Animalese for a truer representation of the game. We ended up having a team member that wasn’t being filmed reading the script as the others acted it out so subtitles could be timed properly. I’m glad the call was made to add subtitles instead, I feel as though it played an integral part in explaining and portraying the game. Jex had the idea initially.

After filming we sat down and watched it, Jex had volunteered to edit but Bonnie ended up taking over it, in hindsight Bonnie took on the bulk of the work with the editing and storyboarding. Working with Bonnie previously I know how much she enjoys the visual artistic side of game design and she tends to take on a lot of work and manage well so I’m sure the storyboard wouldn’t have been much work for her but I think with our respective roles we could have collaborated more to lessen the load or even to just make it more of a group effort instead of having our separate roles. In saying that I think what made the group run as smoothly as it did was partly attributed to going our separate ways and getting our jobs done. Unfortunately this left us a little in the dark about what each group member was doing.

Throughout the process the group communicated well and consistently. The four of us seem to get along well and I think we all felt comfortable voicing our opinions or concerns. I’m glad I got to work with the three of them, they all seem to care about the standard of work they produce and have been reliable team members. I hope I get to work with them again in the future.

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Animal Crossing Analysis

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Feng Shui (風水) in Animal Crossing

Feng Shui (風水) isn’t thoroughly explored in the film, however it is an old Chinese philosophical system of harmonizing everyone within the surrounding environment. It is an ancient art that was developed over 3,000 years ago in China. Feng shui is widely used within Animal Crossing amongst players arranging their furniture. Furniture and items are arranged in a certain way within the house to increase positive energy throughout a house. This enables to bring players good health, luck and fortune. 

In the Animal Crossing games, the guidelines of feng shui is pretty easy. Furniture of different categories, colour and properties contribute to feng shui. Items must be positioned properly in the room based on the same colour. In the game there are a few lucky items that contribute to feng Shui without requiring any specific placement, however the location on where the item is placed is still very important. 

Within the Animal Crossing Swede short film scene 2 features the player visiting the cat villager’s house. Any items placed within the room contributes to feng shui. However within scene 2 of the Cat’s house the placement of items in the room isn’t balanced. This is due to items such as sea basses scattered within the room. Too many items cluttered within the room without the right placement contributes to bad feng shui. Bad feng shui brings bad luck and misfortune. 

Reference:

 Tchi, Rodika. "What Is Feng Shui And How Can It Help You". The Spruce. N.p., 2016. Web. 30 May 2017. 

Link: https://www.thespruce.com/what-is-feng-shui-1275060

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Reflection - Bonnie

Upon receiving the task our mission objective is to create a short film that captures the game play essence of the chosen game ‘Animal Crossing New Leaf’. I was pretty enthusiastic as everyone agreed on the chosen game. Hayley was the only person in the group who has never played ‘Animal Crossing New Leaf’, therefore we all insisted her to buy the game. To start off the project, I decided to assign each team member a role which they are good at. Jex was assigned with the role of script writing, whereas Hayley and Rachael created the props. I took on the role of storyboarding and making sure what to include for each shots within a scene. I’m glad that everyone was great at their respective roles, as I am quite terrible at making props and script writing. While creating the story board I made sure to explain what is happening within a shot, as well as adding dialogue and an estimated time for each shot. I made sure to add in all the important game play mechanics within each scene to show the game play essence. The mechanics incudes making friends, catching bugs, fishing, running errands and selling items. I tried to create an interesting storyboard that introduces the game to audiences who don’t know the game, furthermore dramatized some scenes in order to create a clear picture of what the game play is like within the game. After completing the storyboard, I sent it in to my teammates, and from there onwards Jex devised a script out of it. Jex has made sure to capture the way each character talks within the game as she wrote the script. I’m pretty happy with that, as it makes our film more like the game. After the script is completed, Rachael and Hayley had completed the props to a high standard. I wasn’t expecting a nice printed out and digital drawn images, but after seeing the props it made me very excited to move towards the filming stage. Hayley also bought a fishing rod off gumtree and I thank her very much for that, as it served as one of the most important props within a scene. Filming day has come as we all decided to meet at QCA café on a Sunday morning at 10am. After everyone has assembled at the meeting place we commenced on the filming. I enjoyed the filming process all thanks to Jex’s nice camera, as well as the beautiful props made and provided by Racheal and Hayley.

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Aesthetics in Animal Crossing – New leaf

Animal Crossing – New Leaf employs a few core aesthetics; Fellowship, expression, exploration and abnegation. The Game has been defined as a social simulation game comparable to the Sims but also has a strong exploration aspect. The appeal can be unclear at first but as you play through, the character development and depth becomes apparent and the exploration is engaging as you play through in real time accomplishing predictable tasks as an all-powerful mayor.

Fellowship is felt between the characters of the town whose personalities are well developed and convincing. Expression is felt in an overall sense towards the game as you build and develop your town to your preference while the characters and town adapts to your style. Exploration is a strong aesthetic as much of the game is built around exploration and surprise with timed minigames and new development in your town over time such as new shops and a plaza that allows the player to visit other towns across the world. Abnegation being the final aesthetic mentioned as the game is relaxing and at times a bit of a grind. It’s a game the player can easily zone out of as much of the game is a repetition of collecting things from bugs to bananas to sell for bells which is the currency of animal crossing. Bells can be spent on clothes, items, furnishings, donated in the name of town development, saved or used to pay off a home loan so it makes sense that the player will spend a decent amount of time fishing or otherwise doing somewhat mundane tasks. While the everyday tasks of this game seem bland the small-town life is engaging and players quickly become invested in developing their town the way they see fit.

References: (2017). Retrieved 30 May 2017, from https://www.cs.northwestern.edu/~hunicke/MDA.pdf Animal Crossing: New Leaf Review. (2017). GameSpot. Retrieved 30 May 2017, from https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/animal-crossing-new-leaf-review/1900-6409125/ Stanton, R. (2017). Animal Crossing: New Leaf – review. the Guardian. Retrieved 30 May 2017, from https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2013/jun/17/animal-crossing-new-leaf-video-game-review Towell, J. (2017). Animal Crossing: New Leaf review. gamesradar. Retrieved 30 May 2017, from http://www.gamesradar.com/animal-crossing-new-leaf-review/

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Animal Crossing Swede video

The 'Animal Crossing' game acted out by university students with the purpose of capturing the game play essence.

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User Interface in Animal Crossing

While not fully explored in the swede, the user interface (UI) in the Animal Crossing franchise (specifically Animal Crossing New Leaf) follows many traditional UI systems since its first appearance on the Game Cube in 2001 (Japan, 2002 Globally). As such, following the definitions provided in Fagerholt and Lorentzon’s report, the game primarily employs a non-diegetic UI with some screens possibly using a fictional UI system (the player’s bag and map for example).

The only element of the UI we explored for the swede was the dialogue text boxes that appear when the player speaks to any of the NPCs in the game (or an interactable object). These text boxes have the sole purpose of translating what the NPC is saying, as they speak in what the game calls Animalese  -  a language akin to a babbling sound. As these text boxes don’t exist in the game world or the game’s narrative, they are non-diegetic – like most of the UI elements in the game.

References:

Fagerholt, E., & Lorentzon, M. (2009). Beyond the HUD: User Interfaces for Increased Player Immersion in FPS Games. Göteborg, Sweden: Chalmers University of Technology. Retrieved from http://publications.lib.chalmers.se/records/fulltext/111921.pdf

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Reflection - Rachael

When we first received the task I had some trouble determining the difference between what would make the final video a swede rather than a parody of the game, but the first few days I believe that I now understand what the difference is now.

Our group consists of Bonnie, Hailey Jex and myself and we very quickly chose to do Animal Crossing – a game which only Hailey hasn’t played. I was rather excited to work on a swede about this game as it was one of the first games I ever played on the DS and remains one of my favourites. We quickly established roles based on our strengths and prior experience: Bonnie worked on the storyboards and editing, Jex worked on the script and both myself and Hailey worked on the props. Of course, we all helped with the filming – a process which was made much easier with Jex’s camera.

My primary role in the group was the construction of props, and then the role of the cat in the actual film. As such I feel like I may not have contributed enough, however that may be due to previous group assignments where I have had to do more of the work. Hailey also created some of the props, creating the masks and sourcing a fishing rod to use for the swede.

I began the props by creating the bag of ‘bells’ (the currency used in the games). Initially I planned to do so by enlarging an image of the game sprite to A4 size and then printing it – unfortunately the largest image size that I could find was less than 100 x 100 pixels, including the background, meaning that I had to think of another plan. As such, I ended up drawing one that resembled the position and lighting of the game sprite in Paint Tool Sai and then printing it out to an A4 size, which was surprisingly effective. Following this I worked on the fish props and elected to create a total of 14 – the maximum a player would be able to carry in New Leaf with a bug net and fishing rod. For added humour I made them all Sea Bass, which is one of the most common, and hence one of the cheapest, fish in the game. The plan for these was the same as the original plan for the bag of bells, but this was much more successful as the sprite images were much larger.

The final prop I created was the present, which unlike the others was constructed on top of a small box. While the in-game present for the interaction we would be portraying has a green ribbon, the red present is much more iconic to the game - as such, the present was made with a red ribbon. This was perhaps the easiest, but most time consuming, to make as cutting the paper to go on top took some time. I am the most proud of this prop, perhaps due to the fact it took so long to create.

As I mentioned above, my other role was acting the cat – which also involved assisting with the other aspects of filming when the cat wasn’t in the scene. This was rather fun to do, however, the masks we wore had no holes for the eyes which made it rather confusing and disorienting when acting out the roles.

Overall I am happy with how the group project has been so far, and excited to see what the final video looks like (as of writing this I have not yet seen it). This has certainly been the smoothest group project I have worked on during my time at university, and can only hope that all my future ones will run as smoothly.

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Reflection - Jex

For our assignment, the game we chose to do was Animal Crossing: New Leaf. Our team members are Hayley, Bonnie, Rachael and myself, Jex.

We started the process by working out our strengths and delegating what jobs should be done by who. This was surprisingly smooth and fast for us, because we all recognised that we each had particular strengths in all crucial areas. We decided that Bonnie would storyboard and edit, Rachael would create the props, I would write the script and film the footage and Hayley would source whatever else we needed and helped all of us together. 

Bonnie started the project by creating a really detailed and amazing storyboard. It was fantastically executed and made the rest of the assignment so smooth and easy for us all. Once we had the storyboard from Bonnie, I began writing the script. Since our characters were technically going to be overdubbed with the conversation sound effect found in the game and accompanied by subtitles, the script served as a guide to help us understand how long the footage should go for and what would be included in the subtitles. While I was writing this, Rachael was working hard at creating the props we needed. These included masks of the characters, a present, a bag of 'Bells' (the currency used in Animal Crossing), Multiple leaves (which represent furniture but didn't really feature in the footage a lot) and fish as well. Rachael really nailed it with this. The props were fantastic and worked exactly how they were designed to. Hayley also contributed the fishing rod which was used in one of our main scenes.

When we filmed the footage we decided to film it at uni because it was somewhere that had all the necessary locations for us to film. We went to South Bank to film our "outside" scenes, and filmed the "inside" scenes across different areas of uni. This choice was good for all of us because it was easy to get to.

In our video, all of us play a different character. Bonnie played the part of the Player. Rachael played the part of the cat, Hayley played Tom Nook, and I played the Hippo. Over the course of filming we referenced Bonnie's storyboard actively, crossing off different shots as we filmed them. This really made the process easy. We did the same thing with the script as each scene was completed.

We decided to show of some of the most recognisable mechanics from the game in our video. Fishing, Catching Bugs, Visiting NPCs, Delivering things for NPCs and trading/paying off loans. These are the most common mechanics that appear in Animal Crossing.

Once we finished filming we all sat together and watched the footage we had taken and it was decided that Bonnie was going to edit it. I was originally going to edit it, but Bonnie felt that she would be able to execute it to a higher standard and I agreed.  

In terms of working together, I have to say that this is the smoothest group assignment I've had at uni so far. We were all fully engaged, our roles were clear and defined and everybody absolutely 100% delivered on what they were delegated. I really enjoyed working with Bonnie, Hayley and Rachael. They are efficient workers and care about our work. I'm proud of us.

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Mechanics of Animal Crossing

The Mechanics section of the assignment

Mechanics in Animal Crossing: New Leaf

 Fishing

 In this activity, the player uses their fishing rod to cast out and catch fish. The fish that are caught can then be traded for currency, used to furnish houses, or given to other residents of the town.

  The player is seen here catching a tuna.

 Running Errands

 Occasionally the NPCs will ask the player to run an errand for them. This errand, or typically what would be known as a quest, is often to fetch an item for them, pass on something to another NPC or deliver a message.

  Here the player is delivering a package to one of the NPCs, given to them by another NPC.

  Visiting

 When the player has established a relationship with one of the NPCs, occasionally they will ask the player to visit them in their home. If the player arrives on time, the NPC will invite them in to show them their house. Occasionally they will offer to sell some of their furniture to the player.

  In this shot, the player can be seen visiting a resident NPC’s home and having a conversation. The NPC is showing the player where they live.

  Catching Bugs

 Much like fishing, this activity involves the player catching bugs with a net. The bugs are then sold, used as furnishings, or given as gifts. Occasionally there will be special competitions that the player can participate in.

The player showing off a beetle they’ve caught.

  Trading

 Many Animal Crossing mechanics are centered on making money to purchase items and pay off the player’s home loan. Every collectible has retail value and can be sold to earn Bells. These are then used for multiple purchases, but mostly towards upgrading and purchasing furniture for your home. Once your loan is paid off, you can request a new one to extend or add things to your house.

  The player discussing their loan with the shady Tom Nook, with their current Bells in the right hand corner.

  In our assignment, we decided to focus on these particular mechanics because they demonstrate the core gameplay of Animal Crossing: New Leaf.

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Animal masks, leaves and fishing rod.

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The first few props made. There are 14 fish total (10 big, 4 small).

edit: added the present prop (which was finished the next day).

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PROPS LIST

  So here are the props we need to make/get:

 ·      A fishing rod

·      A bug net

·      A bag of Bells

·      Furniture leaf

·      Animal masks (3 – Cat, Hippo and Tom Nook)

·      Package/Present

·      Multiple fish

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ANIMAL CROSSING SWEDE

 SCRIPT

  CHARACTERS: VILLAGER, CAT, HIPPO, TOM NOOK

  SCENE 1

 VILLAGER

 I just moved to this new town and now I’m the MAYOR! I can do whatever I want here, it’ll be great! I can’t wait to get started!

 SCENE 2

 CAT

 Hi [villager’s name], fancy seeing you here! How are you today?

 VILLAGER

 I’m good! Just catching some bugs, doing some fishing, living the life.

 CAT

 Wow! Hey, do you want to come over to my house later? I’m free after twelve o’clock.

 VILLAGER

 Yeah, that’ll be great! I’d love to see your house!

   SCENE 2

 VILLAGER, AS A NARRATION:

 Finally, the time has come. I get to see all that nice furniture!

 CAT

 Hi again, [villager’s name]! You’ve arrived right on time, just like I knew you would! Come in, I’ve made some tea for you.

 VILLAGER

 Thanks! What a lovely home you have!

 CAT

 Thank you. I recently redecorated. Do you want to buy any of my furniture?

 VILLAGER

 Sure! I’ll have a look around.

 CAT

 Please do!

 CAT walks around mindlessly, VILLAGER interacts with everything.

 CAT

 You want to buy my [PROP]?

 VILLAGER

 YES!

 CAT

 Okay! I’ll sell it to you for 10 Bells!

 The transaction is made.

 CAT

 So what do you think of my house?

 VILLAGER

 It’s very nice!

 CAT

 Thanks, [villager’s name]! I’m glad you liked it! Come play again sometime!

   SCENE 3

 VILLAGER

 With all these bugs, I am gonna make so much money and pay off my entire house to that Tom Nook dude. I’ll buy everything in this little town. Actually, I’m pretty surprised at how much these people will pay for stuff that’s just lying around.

 Enter HIPPO

HIPPO [IN THE DISTANCE]

 Hey!

 HIPPO [LOUDER AND CLOSER]

 Hey! Can you do my errands?

 VILLAGER

 Um, actually, I’m kinda busy right now, catching bugs-

 HIPPO AGGRESSIVELY SHOVES A PACKAGE INTO VILLAGER’S ARMS

 HIPPO

 Thanks! Make sure you get this delivered to Cat by the end of the day, okay? I just don’t have time. You’re a lifesaver!

 VILLAGER

 Sighs deeply, grinds teeth.

 You’re welcome.

 SCENE 4

 VILLAGER, AS A NARRATION

 I’m gonna catch so many fish today. Then, I’ll sell them to that Raccoon, Tom Nook…He’ll give me so many Bells. Yeah, I’ll be swimming in Bells by tonight.

 VILLAGER

 Catches a fish.

 Oh, nice! A sea bass! See? Bass! (chuckles). Now I have enough to sell to Tom Nook!

 Villager goes to Tom Nook.

 VILLAGER

 Hey Tom Nook! I wanna sell you all these fish!

 TOM NOOK

 Well alright, show me what you’ve caught today, hm?

 VILLAGER

 I want to sell all of these fish!

 TOM NOOK

 That sure is a lot of fish, are you sure?

 VILLAGER

 Yeah Tom, I’m sure!

 TOM NOOK

 Okay, that comes to 20,000 Bells! Thank you for your faithful patronage!

 Tom Nook rubs his hands together greedily.

 VILLAGER

 Now I want to pay off my house loan!

 TOM NOOK

 Conveniently, that’ll be 20,000 Bells, yes yes?  You can also choose your new roof colour! So what’ll it be, hm?

 VILLAGER

 Blue roof!

 TOM NOOK

 So you’d like a blue roof, hm?

 VILLAGER

 Yes, yes!

 TOM NOOK

 Yes, yes. I got it. I’ll make sure your house is ready to go by tomorrow morning.

 VILLAGER

 Thanks Tom! Mayor out!

 VILLAGER LEAVES.

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Animal Crossing Swede: Storyboard

Note: click images for a crisp view