dmlocapstoneproject

[dmlocapstoneproject]

final reflection

it's time for the final post of this! thank you to everyone who became part of this amazing journey :))

What were your thoughts about your research topic going into the first week of the semester?

originally, i had always just thought that it was a cool concept. i loved games like doki doki literature club and undertale, so i have always wondered what significance the use of forth walk breaking can be and how to utilize it.

What are your thoughts now about your research topic and your project/practicum?

that it is a much harder concept to actually pull off. breaking the forth effectively actually takes some time and build up. the act of breaking the forth wall is just part of the process. in order for it to be effective it has to be set up well.

What did you learn about yourself as a creative through this journey?

one of the biggest thing that i’ve learned is that i’m more capable than i think. there’s been a lot of medical and personal struggles while i was finishing my capstone. and this whole time i keep thinking to myself that i’m not going to be able to do it and that i’m not going yo pull it off. but i did it! despite it all i did it. and i did it with the revelation that i really enjoyed the process of making a game like this.

What did you learn about the creative and production process?

the biggest lesson was understanding just how much time and effort it takes to build a website in the image you had in your head. i’ve spent so much time learning how to build a website and how to make it customizable. it’s one thing to be able to think about a creative idea and have it outlined, but another thing to execute it in a way that both satisfy the creative vision while still having limited skill levels.

What advice would you give new senior capstone students?

it doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be yours. sometimes we focus so much on the need for it to be exactly how we envisioned it being that we lose sight of a lot of things. don’t overthink it, and when in doubt, always reach out to ask questions. 

Where to now?

now? to finish making the game the arg is based on/promoting :)

[dmlocapstoneproject]

update #7

hi welcome!

we're in the home stretch now! i honestly can't really believe how long it's been and how far we've come. the website is pretty much finished, there are still some polishing i need to do with the designs but, for the most part, it's pretty much done! i was able to finish up all the web pages and implement all the phases of the ARG. all that is left is to clean everything up and getting the feedback from my play testers and this journey is about to reach the end.

[dmlocapstoneproject]

update #6

hi welcome!

the website is coming along! since i wanted to see how the first phase is going, i have also decided to publish the website for others to see/interact already without it being complete. this is to allow my play testers to get a feel of the first phase of the ARG and give me feedback while i implement more as we go. so far, the play testers have given me some good feed back and helped greatly in helping me see what parts are engaging and what parts are not. if you would like to check it out, the website is nightowlsbulletin.com :)) i'm hoping that by the next update i will be able to have most of the pieces in place and all i needed to do after that was to clean up the website and make it a bit more aesthetic after that. wish me luck!

[dmlocapstoneproject]

update #5 (originally meant to be posted on 03/26)

hi welcome!

since the last update, i was able to get the website up and the first set up finished. i had decided to change from wix to wix studio and it was a game changer. i was able to create the base website design on figma and import it directly into wix studio, which was so much easier than trying to do everything manually. i have also gone ahead and designed a logo as well and everything is going well! the first part/phase of the ARG has also been implemented and i'm excited to add more details to it as well as move on to creating the rest of the website. for the next two weeks, i will be focusing on finalizing all the website materials.

[dmlocapstoneproject]

journal #2

so... it's been a while since i updated and i apologize.

turns out being in and out of the hospital for a while doesn't allow you much time to keep up with a lot lol

this is just a small heads up/timeline explanation as to why i will be posting a series of updates in the span of perhaps a day :') update #5 was supposed to be up the day after i posted update 4 (since that was posted late) but i didn't realize that i did not in fact, schedule it to post :'))

not long after my recovery took a turn and instead of getting better i got worse and was in and out of clinics to make sure that i don't end up with serious complications. so that was fun :DD i have been able to work on the project on and off but maintaining my updates on here was definitely something that kept slipping out of my mind. so i will be posting the long over due updates through out the day (thank god i documented my process on my phone ever so often) and yeah :')) thank you for coming along on this journey with me.

[dmlocapstoneproject]

update #4

whatʻs been happening over the past 2 weeks?

to no one's surprise, i did end up getting worse haha. through recovering, i've somehow gotten the flu and it messed up a lot of the things on my timeline, unfortunately. however, despite it, i was able to get a clearer vision of what i wanted the final project to be/look like.

a couple of things I was able to do: 1. start implementing the ARG into the website 2. completely change out the web design to make it much easier to navigate 3. worked a little on designs with the decided art direction there's much that needs to be done, but it's slowly but surely coming together.

whatʻs coming up for the next 2 weeks?

since i was able to get some writing done through my illness and spring break, i'm mainly going to start implementing everything into the website as i continue to work on the design part of it. hopefully have the website and ARG published by April 1st so i can have the first round of play testing done.

hiccups/Hurdles/AHA moment?

the website i chose to design on is a little tricky to navigate and i had a lot of trouble in the beginning with importing designs. there were also some instances where the level design of the ARG didn't make complete sense so i would have to go back and reevaluate, on top of understanding that i would have to cut some things down to make it a feasible project.

where you are on your timeline?

I am a little behind, but thankfully not anything i cannot take some extra time to catch up on.

[dmlocapstoneproject]

Update #3

what's been happening over the past two weeks?

I am still recovering so most of what I have been doing are just catching up with everything and trying to make sure that I am getting myself back on track. a couple of things I was able to do: 1. draft out all the levels for the ARG 2. re-design the website and make the necessary purchases for domains and have drafts of the website done 3. defined an art direction and started character designs and web designs with said art direction all to say there is still much that I need to do, and all I can do is hope that I am able to make something I am proud of in the end.

What's coming for the next two weeks?

more writing and drawing! I wanted to have all my assets created first before I proceed with the website this time. since I tried getting a website out before i finished all the planning and assets, it was hard for me to get things going. this time around I wanted to do all my assets first so once I get to the website design I can just input everything into place. hopefully by the end of the next two weeks I would have the website up and have the first round of play testing done :))

hiccups/hurdles/aha moments?

i think my biggest obstacle right now is my physical health. as mentioned in my prior updates, this project is something that means a lot to me so I really wanted to create something I can be proud and happy about. my physical health has been a big thing that's been pushing everything back and I am not recovering as smoothly as I had hoped.

that being said, there are a couple things I want to share!

the first blog post of the website is written and ready to publish! and I have done more character designs for the game as well, I still need to re-draw them in the decided art direction but I am excited!

[dmlocapstoneproject]

Tumblr Update #2

hi hello okay so this is long over due i am so sorry

I had gotten quite sick in the middle of febuary that put me out of commission for a good couple of weeks. long story short, i have a chronic illness and it isn't the most convenient thing to deal with and it does make it hard to just be sometimes. but multiple back and forth trips to the hospitals later, i am back!! well, i am still recovering but at the very least i am well enough to work on my project again.

at this point, i have created a notion site for my capstone project just so that it is easier for me to keep everything organized. I have also started writing out all the level designs for the ARG part of the website.

i have also scrapped my old website design as it was just not working out as I had hopped. I know this will push me back a lot but I wanted this project to really be something I can look back and love/be proud of.

that being said, there's still much to do but i am hopeful at the very least.

[dmlocapstoneproject]

update #1

hi welcome! this will be the first tumblr update of more to come! (i am so sorry this was meant to be up almost a week ago, but i am behind schedule and my og post did not want to leave the drafts so here we are) anyways, a couple of things I would like to address today! what's been happening since the start of the semester?

i was able to finalize the basic game design document for the press website! Since then, i have been mapping out what needs to be done and started working on getting the press website up and running.

what's coming up for the next 2 weeks?

In the next 2 weeks, I will be working on getting the initial press website published and get on writing out the finalized levels for the ARG. I will also be crafting more artworks and as needed.

hiccups/hurdles/aha moments?

it was rather difficult at first to get started. i have never written an ARG before and i didn't want to follow just any horror analogue games as that wasn't what i wanted. I've had to consult a couple professors about which direction i need to go and how i should go about the ARG. it was also hard to craft a timeline that seems feasible enough for me to do while still having the ability to produce the kind of quality i want.

any deliverable drafts to share?

ah yes, we all like little sneak peaks as to what to come. i have decided to share some of the artwork i've done for the characters as well as a screenshot of the game design document.

where are you on your timeline?

unfortunately, i believe i am more behind than i would've liked. i had initially wanted to get the website up and running by now but there were a lot of issues when it came to the design looking how i wanted to. still, it isn't something i am too worried about as it should be resolved soon. i am more in crunch time now but i hope this doesn't put me back too much.

[dmlocapstoneproject]

journal #1

hi welcome to journal 1! this is mostly just a little bit of house keeping stuff before I really go ahead and push forward with the project.

most of the journals from now on will just consist of small rants or word vomits about my process and what i'm doing behind the scenes. the bigger/actual updates will be posted as updates instead of journals so look out for those!! that being said, i was really struggling to come up with a way to organize everything and keep track of everything i need to do. that's when i discovered this brilliant website called milanote and it's a game changer for me. it really helped me organize my thoughts and put everything quite plainly out for me to see.

now tho, i have to actually get to work :')) i have a lot to do in so little time so fingers crossed i make it out of this okay. anyways, happy sunday everyone! and i hope you have a good up coming week!

[dmlocapstoneproject]

hi welcome!

my name is dylixon and this will be my little journal/blog that documents my progress for my senior project :))

the capstone project that caught my eye was by yazmine lacson-garrett. she created a game using roblox integration and demonstrated how to creatively make a portfolio using such method. I thought her project was extremely creative, well rounded, and intergraded her research well into her deliverables. additionally, I think it opened up new ways for others who are just starting their own game design journey to build their own creative portfolio.