Pitch Presentation Ideas
For the module XB2001 we were asked to work in groups to create a pitch presentation for an independent studio from a list given to us.
We decided to research into 2 of the companies each (I chose Media Molecule & Capybara Games) and to come up with a concept for each and we would compare the ideas and choose the best one to develop.
Here is the research and concepts I came up with for each company:
Media Molecule
Research - Guildford, London based studio whose games include Dreams (TBA), Tearaway Unfolded (Sept 2015), Tearaway (Nov 2013), Little Big Planet 2 (Jan 2011) and Little Big Planet (Oct 2008). Media Molecule create conceptual stylised games, winning awards for their design and direction as well as many for the handheld genre. All of their games have been critically acclaimed. Their games are imaginative, encouraging players to create experiences for themselves in an environment that facilitates imaginative play. Dreams focuses on letting players build their own dreams and explore the dreams of the developers. Tearaway is an adventure based platform game originally for the PlayStation Vita, with a later instalment of Tearaway Unfolded being designed for the PlayStation 4. Its art style is an exploration of papercraft, and in the original uses the Vita's camera to allow the player to take pictures to apply to their papercraft animal. Also utilises touch screen controls. The Little Big Planet games are puzzle based platformer games that are based on content generated by its players. They develop solely for Sony PlayStation.
Concept - Platform game based around buildable structures. Build objects to help a defined amount of creatures cross and progress on their journey, this could be by avoiding dangers by creating a bridge or creating a form of ladder to scale up an unreachable by jump height. Structures created have to be structurally sound, little creatures may fall or meet their death if the structures are not capable of supporting their weight. To succeed, a predetermined number of creatures must reach the safety point or the end objective. Possibly could utilise the mobile genre, seeing as Media Molecule have explored handheld consoles with their later games, and the handheld console market has been overtaken by the mobile market.
Capybara Games
Research - An independent games studio based in Toronto, Canada whose most famous games include: Super Time Force (May 2014), Superbrothers: Sword & Sorcery (Mar 2011) and Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes (Feb 2010). They have developed for many platforms including: Nintendo DS, Xbox 360 & One, PlayStation 3, 4 & Vita, Microsoft Windows, iOS and Android.Their games are very varied and don't follow a consistent pattern except they are all stylised games. Super Time Force is a side scroller action shooter game, it's main mechanic being used to rewind time. Superbrothers: Sword & Sorcery is a platformer style adventure game for mobile using accelerometer focused gameplay, with players being able to jump between worlds. Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes is an RPG style puzzle adventure game developed primarily for the Nintendo DS, and is a typical adventure RPG game. They have won awards for Might & Magic for their puzzle elements, and Superbrothers has won many for the handheld genre. As their games are so varied, I believe anything that has a stylised art style with an element of RPG or platformer would fit into the company ethos.
Concept - Platformer RPG style game based on sound pattern recognition. 8 bit sound and pixel art stylised game, playing as a hacker to collect sound bites or patterns as keys to unlock areas. Keyboard letters could all have a different musical note, players possibly having to experiment to find which key press matches the note or is given to them the letter the first time they encounter it. Difficulty would progress as longer patterns occurred and having to remember and identify which note corresponded to which key press. Different levels could have different musical instruments, adding to the challenge of having to remember and restart, for example, an ICT company could have a guitar, and a government building could have a piano. This would keep the player constantly learning. With simpler mechanics, for example, 10 different notes that could be used, it could be adapted into a mobile game to fit into the company style.
