What follows is a brief presentation of my work in progress I made to IxD Lab2 2009 students on Friday 16th January.
Download the presentation (PDF | 900KB)
The concept development is going on: there is still a lot of work to do but at the moment one of my biggest worries are visualization and graphics. Comments are very welcome!
From the final crit of the IxD Lab1. More info in my portfolio page.
The final week of the IxD Lab1 studio has been very tough, as usual. Due to this overload I really slowed down my work on the thesis. After a few weeks thinking about a theme for my game, my very first idea of changing Venice into a cursed forest is consolidating. The physical Scrubble and the neighbourhood management ideas have been left behind.
In the last 4 weeks I’ve been trying to understand what is more important to take into consideration: I need a simple game that has an interesting interaction. I brought a lot of considerations but it seems as the minimal game element is still a bit weak. I think I had an interesting idea for the graphics mood.
Therefore the next steps suggested during the last revision of my work concern finding a good balance between the amount of active involvement and its reward, developing a ‘look and feel’ proposal and thinking on the “on site” visual context.
Sharing my recent thoughts also highlighted to me the need for a better investigation of the physical space and activities of the territory in which the game will be developed and a brief study of ideal players.
I’m trying to make a research on the graphic style and still thinking about the biological dynamics of an invasive vegetation.
I don’t really like birthdays but I thought I could try something different this year…
For my birthday, Sunday 7th December, 9 pm, I would like to invite everybody to a brainstorming session in my flat.
It’s not a party! But if you come you’ll still get a good coffee, pastries and maybe some strong drinks. We’ll chat for a couple of hours about my thesis project. We’ll make drawings, we’ll sketch ideas, stick millions of post its on the wall. I need to listen to your crazy ideas and I want people to criticize my thoughts.
RSVP!! Either by adding comments here or on my mobile/skype/email.
Thanks for your wonderful present!
Venice is a unique town. It is a completely pedestrian urban area built on water. At first glance the urban fabric seems like any other in the world; until one gets lost in its labyrinths or he/she doesn’t realize that crossing a bridge means walking into one of the many unperceived small islands which give shape to the “sestrieri”. A town where, during high tides, the lagoon overwhelms the walkways giving this dizzy feeling of living over a buoyant creature.
Venetian nights are even more fascinating: the crowded and colorful touristic town turns into a ghostly set of desert “calli”. One often walks alone in the narrow and silent lanes, in a town that has no precise time reference and it’s completely pervaded by a magic atmosphere.
So why shouldn’t such a weird place have a real magic?? I want to see the dark “campi” invaded by living creatures. I want the town which was built on water -but without any trees- to finally bloom from its desert. I want to put a curse on Venice…
In the next five months, I will design a pervasive game based in Venice. My aim is to create an outdoors ludic experience based on a set of activities that will mix digital and virtual elements with real world issues. Mobile devices will be the main medium with possible physical computing interventions.
I owe a great deal to the Situationist interventions for my early thoughts: the game will focus on the use of reality as a game space and it will try to enrich the desert but safe Venetian nights -a magic and everchanging period of time that is part of a particular dimension the town lives into-
Here is a first draft of my timetable (PDF | 270KB).
After a research period, I’m now brainstorming more ideas for a convincing concept. I will try to give biweekly updates of my progress on this blog…
My internship at Area/code is over.
I had a great time in these two months. I was really dipped into cross-media games and I had the chance to work with some of the smartest designers I’ve ever met. A plus both for my life and my thesis! The plan now is to work on pervasive gaming for my final project. Obviously Area/code was the best place to get the most inspiring hints.
Thanks to everybody there and especially to Kevin Slavin that made this happen!
I just moved in New York for a couple of months. I’ll spend my time in a small apartment in the Lower East Side of Manhattan (catch a train that stops on the 2Av to come here!). I should research, read, write, talk, walk, and miss you all -sure-, whising you were here to experience one of the most incredible cities in the world! See you soon…
The 10 weeks studio course with Daniel Eatock will run from the end of April until July…
It will surely be an interesting path with a clever and open minded designer…
>>>Studio course site
