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[oliviafrostnuamasters]

this was an image i found online showing the Jungian archetypes in film/tv shows-this further shows me how a character can be more than one archetype and how within films/tv shows or even in video games you don’t necessarily have to have all of the archetypes present 

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

this was an image i found online which shows the different archetypes in Jungian theory and states what their characteristics are and challenged they may face-all of these are really common within video games, some having a bigger role to play than others, but this can depend on the video games storyline-some of these can also be played by more than one character-for example the hero could also be the sage, the lover could also be the caregiver-its not uncommon in video games for characters to be more than one archetype-these archetypes are also used in film and theatre

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

Essay/Research Report Structure

 What Defines An RPG Video Game?

introduce my question: how i plan to go about answering it-eg. in this essay i will talk about the history of RPG games, key features of RPG games, give examples of past and modern RPG games

The history of RPG games: talk about RPG board games and how they influence modern day RPG video games, examples being Dungeons and Dragons-how key gameplay features, setting and themes are still used as bases for modern day RPG games

Characteristics Of RPG games: talk about key characteristics seen in many RPG games give examples of modern day and past games and say how each of these characteristics define RPG games

Story & Setting In RPG Games: talk about how story and setting vary greatly but how there are common elements, talk about cutscenes and how they help to define RPG games and how they immerse the player more give examples of modern and past RPG games

Exploration & Quests: talk about how the types of quests vary and how exploration is a key part to RPG games give examples of modern and past RPG games, talk about how these can also define RPG games and make them differ from other video game genres

Conclusion: refer back previous paragraphs as to what helps define RPG video games from other genres in the video game industry

How Does The Persona Game Series Use Jungian Psychology?

Introduce my question: how i plan to answer my question-i plan to look into the persona game series and its history, look into what  jungian psychology is and how it is present in the persona games-in particular how its a key theme to the story ad is part of character development

The history of persona games: what the persona games involve in terms of gameplay and story, where they began and how they have developed today

What is jungian theory: to explain what jungian theory is and how it is used in modern day-key parts being the collective conscious/unconscious, the shadow, the persona, etc.

Persona and the persona: talk about how the game persona produces and uses carl jungs theory of persona in its gameplay-use examples of characters within the game

Persona & Shadows: talk about the games enemy ‘shadows’ and how the creation of these creatures and what they represent in the game is linked to carl  jungs theory-use examples of characters within the game

Persona & The Collective unconscious: talk about how the game uses the collective unconscious and how it forms in the game-use examples of characters within the game/dungeon setting etc.-ie. the velvet room

Archetypes within persona: how archetypes are common in the persona games examples of them in the game

Conclusion: how persona uses jungian psychology in its gameplay-referring back to all paragraphs above ad how its a key part to the gameplay/themes and is what makes the game unique

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

15 Types Of Archetypes In Video Games

The Cool Cat:  This party member never really feels threatened by the impending doom your team is repeatedly facing. They always seem to show up at just the right time, solving your particular crisis with barely any effort and acting like it was no big deal. Rarely do they feel a need to raise their voice

The Noble: The Noble always conveys a sense of importance and gravitas. Their clothing is the cutting edge of virtual fashion, and they do everything with a sense of proud (arrogant, even) conviction. Some are friendly; others seem cold and distant. But at all times, The Noble is driven by their own motivation--a personal goal that they hope to accomplish on the way towards helping you defeat evil once and for all. This goal can be the righting of a personal wrong done by or to them, or the exorcism of a personal tragedy that has haunted them for years.

The Gentle Giant: Appearances can be deceiving, The Gentle Giant, who's constantly getting misjudged for their colossal stature and intimidating physique. In truth, The Gentle Giant loves peace above all things, and prefers a simple life to all the bloodshed inherent to most RPG adventures. They tend to be more of the strong, silent type, offering a few key words of wisdom to the conversation when you least expect it. On the other side of the spectrum is The Gentle Giant that talks a big game about how tough they are, in a thinly veiled attempt to hide their soft side.

The Irritable Punk: They'll help you, sure, but they don't seem particularly happy about it--because they don't owe you anything. Like The Cool Cat, you can always count on The Irritable Punk in a fight--but outside of combat, they're incredibly antagonistic, questioning your every action like they know better. When you first try to pry into the deeper layers of their personality, The Irritable Punk will vehemently resist--but keep at it, and you'll soon uncover the good-natured comrade underneath all the unnecessary attitude.

The Compassionate Mystic: Putting others before one's self is what The Compassionate Mystic is all about, and they'd gladly sacrifice their well-being if it meant sparing another party member harm. The Compassionate Mystic is often the last of a great lineage, or burdened with a great supernatural power--but they'd only think to use this power in the quest to help others. They're the voice of reason and empathy when other party members demand aggression, acting as a soft-spoken mediator between party members. 

The Adorable Cutie: The Adorable Cutie seems too delightful to exist. They maintain a cheery, upbeat attitude all night and day. Upon meeting them, you'll immediately discount their combat abilities. The Adorable Cutie's cuteness conceals expert combat skills or a propensity to cause chaos, knowingly or not. 

The Boring One: The Boring One you cant seem to remember their name, backstory, abilities, or motivations. But as it stands, nothing about them seems all that memorable, and your other party members are so much more interesting by comparison.

The Raging Flirt: Every other sentence out of their mouth is either a pick-up line or some form of innuendo--the kind that would typically be grounds for mandatory sexual harassment seminars. Maybe The Raging Flirt is constantly overwhelmed by lust; maybe they're just romantics who think they're God's gift to the present company. Usually, The Raging Flirt's incessant advances get them absolutely nowhere, but that certainly won't stop them from trying. 

The Outlier: The Outlier hails from a race quite unlike the rest of the party, and though they're not ostracised for their differences, they always stand out in your party's group photos. Sometimes The Outlier has defected from the opposing side; other times, they're the last of a rare lineage. 

The Rebellious Royal: They come from a place of power, wealth, and prestige, yet they've felt helpless their whole lives for how little control they have over their own destiny. The Rebellious Royal is often related to a primary force of evil, by blood or duty--but they've since renounced the ways they grew up with as wrong and unjust. Now, with the help of you and your fellow party members, The Rebellious Royal can finally show their ancestors their newfound independence and ideology.

The Mercenary: Greed is what motivates these types when you first meet them. Joining you on a righteous quest is  fine, but The Mercenary always puts profits before the greater good. As an adventurer for hire, they're constantly reminding you of the mercenary profession's self-centred ways, and the eventual payoff they expect to receive at your journey's end. But somewhere along the way, The Mercenary gets over their obsession with money, experiencing a revelation when they realise that there's more to life than coins and bills. 

The Unwitting Bigot: The Unwitting Bigot is often racist. Skin colour typically isn't the determining factor--it's a more a species thing where concerned. When they first join your party, The Unwitting Bigot will make you and all your allies extremely uncomfortable with their rampant intolerance and discrimination. But after a while The Unwitting Bigot will inevitably snap out of their prejudice-filled ways after something drastic happens. 

The Grizzled Veteran:  The Grizzled Veteran is often offered one last chance at redemption before they succumb to death and/or disease. They can be a mentor, father figure, or reluctant curmudgeon, but they always have some wisdom to impart when your party needs it most. The Grizzled Veteran has seen what evil can do to the world, and they're pretty keen on making sure that you don't repeat their mistakes. 

The Staunch Optimist: Nothing gets The Staunch Optimist down. As the upbeat member of your party, they always chime in with compliments and reassurances, even when things look grim. For some players, this constant reassurance will be a comfort. The Staunch Optimist usually fills the role of your protagonist's best friend, or the party's comic relief. They seem to wear a smile at all times--but as the plot progresses, you might learn that it's all a front to forget a dark past. Or maybe they really are just that happy.

The Bench Warmer: The Bench Warmer, whenever they open their mouths, you either yawn or groan, they probably have a lot going on in their virtual lives, but you can't be bothered to find out what that may be, exactly. At best, you'll forget that they even exist, since you never speak with them or take them into battle. 

all these can be relevant to what i am thinking of producing for the practical side of this project-i am thinking of creating characters of my own design which define the clear archetypes within the jungian theory and are used regularly within video games

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

an article has useful information about what defines and RPG and how they differentiate from one another/talks about subgenres within RPG games, the article is also written by someone who works in the industry and shares their perspective of things which i also find interesting, i noted down some key parts which i thought to be of use for my research 

Since the term "RPG" is used so loosely, for most people, every RPG game just belongs to the same big pool. They are all simply "RPGs." This is both true and false at the same time; while they are indeed all RPGs, two RPG games can sometimes have a completely different drive for the player.

Different RPG Subgenres

The Narrative RPG

the player is driven almost completely by the narration; he wants to enjoy the story, the setting, and the characters. Even for his own character, it is important that he evolves narratively

In a Narrative RPG, immersion is critical; everything from combat to navigation, level design, and art direction, should always keep that word in mind: Immersion.

Characters should be three dimensional; you should feel like they all have a story to tell and that they are unique in some way -- even if that's simply because they talk in a weird way or have a huge scar on the face.

Every location should tell a story; this should be a strong focus on the level design side. Why are those monsters here? Why is it shaped like this? Why is it decorated like this? Ask yourself plenty of questions. Even if you don't always give the answer to the player, just defining those answers will help you create immersion.

Even itemization should help immersion -- Why does that guy drop that sword? Where does it come from?

Your combat mechanics and the powers displayed should feel coherent with your universe. Ideally, make use of some of the character's powers in dialog and cutscenes.

Almost everything should feel like it is evolving narratively: the main character, the sidekick characters, the areas the player travels through, the secondary character, and even the "bad guys."

Your dialog must have multiple answers; avoid doing too much linear dialog, leave the opportunity to the player to create the personality and morality of his character. 

Narrative and immersion are your keywords; never forget them. 

The Sandbox RPG

One of the most complex and costly subtypes, and thus pretty rare 

Here, the player is driven by the fact that she can do what she wants, kill what she wants, be what she wants -- and do it all when she wants.

Deep character creation, customisation and evolution; remember, the player wants to be what she wants. If she decides she wants to be a thief-mage fighting with a two-handed axe, she should be able to do so. 

Almost everything that the player would like to do should be doable, even if it is useless or potentially detrimental to her.

Navigation should not feel restricted; yes, that means jumping, and no invisible walls. The player experience is freedom-based; not allowing her to jump would more or less consciously reduce that feeling massively. 

A vast world to explore. The strength is in the details. Your world should feel alive; it should feel like it lived before and will live after the player's arrival.

Non-linear progression. This should be obvious, but the player should feel free at all times to go where she wants, and never feel restricted by the story.

Freedom is your keyword; never forget it.

The Dungeon Crawler

The main thing driving the player here is, by far, character progression (through statistics, new abilities, or loot). Evolving your character from level 1 to, well, a lot, finding always more powerful loot, acquiring more and more powerful powers -- to kill stronger monsters that will drop better loot, and so on.

They trace their roots in your typical old school Dungeons & Dragons game, where the plot was simply a pretext and context to kill monsters and loot their stuff. Decent graphics and immersion is expected, but above all, the main focus of the production and features should be: loot, combat, a statistics system, an evolution system, a class system, etc. Anything that can make the evolution of the character more thrilling and granular should be considered a priority.

Complex loot system. Your random loot generator will be generating most of your "breadcrumbs" ; it should be your top priority.

Customising this loot is also important -- slots for runes, gems, enchanting, and those kinds of things are always nice to have.

Deep character evolution. A class system, stats system, skills, feats. That's the main reason the player is playing

Deep and detailed lore and universe -- that's your context, not your narrative itself. Having interesting lore, remarkable characters, and varied environments will go a long way into creating a comfortable place for your player to grind through all those monsters

Your enemies must respawn, even the bosses! That's critical. Your player will want to keep farming those guys for more loot, experience points, runes, gold, or whatever. That's the whole point of the thing, and while it is detrimental to a narrative RPG, it is completely mandatory for a good dungeon crawler. 

Character Progression is your keyword; never forget it.

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

an article talking about how persona 4 creates and develops its characters as well as the story arcs, the article doesnt go into as much detail as i had hoped and is quite brief in its descriptions and analysis i noted down some points i thought would maybe useful for my research but there wasnt much i could use from the article

When you watch enough anime and play enough JRPGs, you tend to notice a pattern to how characters develop in those stories. First, they're introduced as an archetype. Second, the writers start peeling back the layers to this character to help them evolve into something beyond a simple archetype. And third, these characters move past the flaw and come out the other side a new person. 

Event flags are often instrumental in developing characters, and usually indicate a point of no return for the character.

The cheat is the very concept of a Persona. Unlike Persona 3 or Persona 5, where you simply have the potential or you have to ignite your "rebellious spirit" to summon a Persona, in Persona 4, you have to truly understand and embrace yourself to obtain a Persona. In other words, to obtain a new party member, they have to have already gone through the first and second stage of a character arc before they can assist you in battle

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

an article that i found that talks about the gameplay of persona 4, in particular the high school setting as well as the psychology within that setting. I took some notes that i thought may be useful later on for my research report

The idea being, whatever truths about yourself you deny become part of that unconscious whole that is a shadow. It should be noted though, that a shadow is not necessarily evil. The developers of Persona 4 seemed to agree with the aforementioned statement.

A more fantastical theory in Jungian psychology is that if a person can learn to accept all facets of their unconscious mind, they would elevate themselves to the next level in human evolution. Persona 4 runs with this idea, as accepting one's shadow and thus what the character’s dislike about themselves leads to them gaining the power of a Persona

The underlying idea being we all have a ‘dark side’, and denying powerful emotions can potentially lead to dangerous outbursts

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

An article which talks about how the new persona 5 differs from its predecessors in how it uses Jungian theory and the story deals with it in a different way. I also took some notes from the article which may be useful to me later

Persona 5 appears to represent a complete break with that philosophy. Where Persona 3 uses these "true selves" as a means to understand and fulfill obligation, and Persona 4 suggests handling that personal baggage with care, Persona 5 says to dance and dine with the devil himself.

"I knew [the shadow] wasn't lying… But I was so ashamed I didn't want to admit it." "A side of me I couldn't forgive. That I tried to ignore." "You're a part of me, but I kept refusing to admit that you existed."

Persona 5 urges the characters (and players) to have the courage to embrace their fury and use it to fight back

In many ways Persona 5 disagrees with Persona 3 and Persona 4's themes of the self.

While Persona has kept its traditional RPG mechanics, its views of the self have greatly changed with each installment. The evolution of thought through the Persona games has been fascinating, flowing from an acceptance of the uncontrollable to a call for full-on revolution

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

another article i found online talking about persona and its use of Jungian theory, this one particularly focuses on his theory of individuation. I wrote down some notes that would be useful for my essay

The Velvet Room and the Unconscious Mind

We have Jung to thank for the very concept of personas and shadows, which form the basis of the whole Persona mythos

Persona 4 went a step further with dungeons that are physical manifestations of characters psyches, exaggerations of their unconscious selves, be explored, challenged, and reconciled - a fantastical adaptation of the process of individuation

At the most basic level, you can think of the Velvet Room as a representation of the protagonist’s unconscious mind.n the words of the room’s attendees, it's a place that exists “between dreams and reality”

The metaphor is most obvious in Persona 5, where the Velvet Room takes the form of a prison. It's thematically appropriate for a game about rebellion and vigilante justice, but more importantly, it's a place where we see the Joker’s true feelings. He feels imprisoned by a society where he's labeled an outcast, and where seniority seems to matter more than truth or justice. 

The Collective Unconscious and Individuation

According to Jung, individuation is the process the conscious and the various aspects of the unconscious into one whole, unified being. That means understanding and accepting our shadows (itself a key theme in Persona 4 as a whole), the personas that we wear, and so on.

The “archetypes” Jung refers to are images, motifs, ideas, events, instincts, and intuitions that are shared universally, but only subjectively become conscious based on one’s environment. They repeat across history and across different cultures in things like art, mythology, religion, and dreams. (In Persona, these archetypal images form the basis for the numerous different personas and shadows you encounter.)

he Midnight Channel in Persona 4 is the collective unconscious, and each character’s dungeon is their personal unconscious. 

In the games, personas are spirit-like beings that can be collected, summoned, and fused to create new ones. They’re also manifestations of religious and mythological imagery upon which Jung’s archetypes are heavily based. They’re fragments of the collective unconscious brought to the surface, to form some part of the protagonist’s being.

With the Velvet Room, Persona takes that a few steps further with by employing Jungian motifs. The whole process of persona management is symbolic of the integration of the conscious and the unconscious playing out in the protagonist’s psyche. Archetypal images, born of the collective unconscious, are integrated into the player character’s personal unconscious as necessary, only to be forgotten (but never lost) as the character grows and environmental needs change. 

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

another article i found which talks about the psychology behind the persona games, this one focuses on the more recent game persona 5, i noted down a few things which would be useful information for my research report

Persona

Persona games mirror the work of Carl Jung, and use his theories as a foundation for exploring psychological issues

Jung says that everyone has a persona — it is not something you summon as a source of power. In fact, he says that over-identification with the Persona is dangerous: “a man cannot get rid of himself in favour of an artificial personality without punishment.”

It would be tempting then, to describe the depiction of the persona in the games as a corruption of Jung’s thought, but something else is going on here. In Persona 5 the appearance of a persona signals the moment that a character commits to rejecting the role in which they have been cast, and embraces their true selves

Makoto, for example. She initially suppresses her instincts about what is right and wrong to behave as authority figures in her school tell her, with the goal of meeting the expectations her older sister has for her to become a success in life. The awakening of her persona coincides with her resolving to stop blindly doing as she is told against her better judgement, and follow her own principles.

Rather than corrupting Jung’s idea of the persona, the games are inverting it. Both Jung and the games are dealing with a false image that we present to society, and the reconciliation with the true personality that hides behind it.

Shadow

Shadows are the enemies that you fight in the Persona games. Within the fiction, they are born of negative human emotions. The most significant shadows are those that manifest as shadow versions of “real” characters. These shadow versions represent or amplify the worst tendencies of the character they are spawned from and serve as the games’ bosses.

“By shadow,” Jung says, “I mean the ‘negative’ side of the personality, the sum of all those unpleasant qualities we like to hide.”

The most straightforward depiction of the shadow-as-described-by-Jung is to be found in Persona 4. In that game, each of the allies that make up your party must confront a shadow version of themselves, born of aspects of their personality that they refuse to acknowledge

Chie represses feelings of jealousy towards her popular friend Yukiko, giving birth to a shadow that mocks her for her inferiority.

Jung will tell you that these characters’ refusal to acknowledge the shadow is dangerous for the psyche, because the less the shadow “is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it is.” So it proves to be as each characters’ rejection of their shadow image grants it the power it needs to become a threat and leads to a boss battle

he confrontation with the shadow always ends with the character acknowledging the shadow as part of themselves and coming to terms with what they had been trying to repress

Jung’s conception of the shadow, its potential danger, and the way in which “the shadow can to some extent be assimilated into the conscious personality” as a part of positive psychological development

The Collective Unconscious

Each Persona game has an alternate dimension where your battles with shadows take place and psychological disturbances and distortions are represented through enemies and architecture – the Dark Hour in Persona 3, the Midnight Channel in Persona 4- These clearly represent the unconscious, the place where the shadow resides in Jungian psychology

the collective unconscious. Jung describes the concept thus: “the collective unconscious is a part of the psyche which can be negatively distinguished from a personal unconscious by the fact that it does not, like the latter, owe its existence to personal experience and consequently is not a personal acquisition.” 

The “Palaces” that you visit in Persona 5 represent the personal unconscious. These are the places where the twisted desires of corrupt adults are displayed in their most vulgar and unfiltered form, represented by their shadow and the palace it has built around it. They are unique to an individual, linked to their own personal history, and conjured by their own delusions and obsessions

Then there is Mementos, an alternate dimension that appears as a dark labyrinthine version of the Tokyo subway and isn’t linked to one individual. It is described in-game by Morgana as “a kind of collective unconscious”

Jung’s conception of the collective unconscious is often misunderstood as a mystical one due to the way that he talks about it being shared, as is the case in Persona where the collective unconscious is connected to everyone

Archetypes

Jung’s collective unconscious is an attempt to account for common symbols and motifs that emerge across time and space. He calls these motifs and symbols Archetypes. They not only appear in our dreams, but as recurring character types in mythology, religion, and fiction: the Wise Old Man, the Trickster, the Mother, and one that we’ve already encountered, the Shadow.

A character that acts as a kind of guardian figure in the early Persona games is named Philemon. This is another reference: Jung wrote of his encounters with a guru-like archetype that he also called Philemon

Then there is Igor, the proprietor of the Velvet Room, who helps guide you in your journey in the Persona games. He has the look of a wizened professor, talks of helping you fulfil your potential, has magical associations, possesses mystical knowledge beyond your understanding, and comes from a place that is Other – all common traits of the Wise Old Man archetype

When you first meet Igor in Persona 5, he says “Trickster…Welcome to my Velvet Room”. The Trickster is another archetypal figure that Jung wrote about extensively and if you consider the parallels between the Trickster archetype and the protagonist’s role in the story. The Trickster is a transgressive figure with a contempt for authority, a rule breaker that disrupts the order of society and tries to re-establish it in a new form. This, of course, is the method and goal of the protagonist and the Phantom Thieves. They embrace a criminal identity to steal the hearts of corrupt authority figures, with the goal of creating a more just society.

You can also spot the influence of Jung’s thinking on archetypes in the Social Link system. Each character you can build a social link with has an archetypal figure associated with them that tends to reflect their personality

Jung argued that the Tarot are representations of archetypes.

Jung advocated something called Individuation, a process of integrating the disparate unconscious elements of a person’s personality through encounters with archetypes to become whole

Each link you build in Persona is depicted as being a source of power, something that adds an extra skill or element to your group to make it more complete. In this sense you can read the Persona games as being about the process of Individuation: the blank-slate protagonist on which you are meant to project yourself serves as the ego, and the relationships you build with each character are then analogous to integrating the archetypes that each one represents

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

an article i found online which talks about how persona uses  psychology to define its character within the game as well as using as a theme for gameplay, it particularly mentions the use of the Jungian theory and ‘masks’ i decided to note down some key points to the article which are useful to my research report

Persona & Shadows

The entire namesake of the franchise is a nod to Carl Jung’s theory of persona and shadows. The latin word personae means ‘mask’, as it was used to describe the masks worn in ancient Greek plays.

A persona is exactly that – a mental mask that someone wears depending on what situation they are placed in and how they feel they need to act to deal with it.

Although it’s described as a mask, by no means is donning a persona considered to be hiding from the truth.

A persona takes an important aspect of that person’s true identity and then blends it with a social identity to fit in.

People tend to naturally become slightly different people based on their surroundings.

Persona 4 goes the extra step to make things a little more clear, picturing demons instead of different personalities. Not only that, if you think of the persona in the way Jung does, you can see the demons as visual representations of the coping strategies of all the characters.

They only have one persona. For example, Naoto has a cool, suave persona to go with the persona she uses when dealing with the police. She identifies as more of a controlled person than a moody schoolgirl. Likewise, Chie’s persona is incredibly strong and masculine to show her protective side without the jealous, controlling nature that was so evident in her shadow

Basically – you can do a lot of character analysis by just looking at their persona.

Yu ( the character you play as within the game) is a very special case. He has a huge number of persona at his disposal, and he can switch between them at will. What does this say about his character? With each person he helps and gets closer to, he understands both their persona and their shadow. Looking at it from the video game side of things, it’s a perfect move to have the main character be so malleable.

Shadows

The opposite of the persona – the shadow – represents every thought or feeling in our heads that we simply do not want to accept. All of this directly opposes the persona, which is more like our ideal self. We reject the shadow because these thoughts take us farther away from this ideal self. Yosuke wants to be a morally just person, so he tries to deny his thoughts about enjoying the change of pace despite having innocent people die.

Carl Jung called it shadow purposely to represent the duality of the shadow and persona, to hint at the darkness it brings, and to show that the shadow will always exist. You can’t have light with shadows.

Carl Jung says you just have to accept your shadow…therefore, accept your darkest thoughts. This is exactly what everyone in Persona 4 does – and they become better people as a result of it. They’re happier, they live fuller lives, and their personality is more balanced.

The Collective Unconscious & Complex

The collective unconscious is most likely the TV World within the game. 

The personal unconscious is said to be made up of one’s perceptions, thoughts and feelings. Every experience you’ve had is stored here, and usually stays in a dormant state unless the memory is specifically retrieved.

 The key point about the personal unconscious that is related to persona is the idea of complexes, which reside in the personal unconscious, a sort of trauma or misconstrue concept about something.

It’s specifically stated in the game with ‘complex’ in bold text that Kanji has a complex about trying to be masculine. This complex represents the dungeon that is created when each person is thrown into the TV. Continuing to use Kanji as an example, because he has a complex about being called ‘gay’ for showing his feminine interests, his dungeon is a flamboyant sauna. His complex is so powerful that it has overtaken his personal unconscious and changes the way he thinks about everything, without him realizing it. His dungeon is a direct manifestation of whatever complex he has- the same can be said for the other characters. 

Jung states that the complex “appears to be an autonomous development intruding upon consciousness.” meaning that this irrational way of seeing the world can actually act as if it were a totally different person. 

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

Analytical Psychology

also known as Jungian Psychology 

it emphasises the importance of the individual psyche and the importance of the personal quest for wholeness

important concept in the system are individuation, symbols, the personal unconscious, the collective conscious, archetypes, complexes, the persona , the shadow the anima and animas and the self

this is something I am thinking of looking into more as it is a running theme in the persona game series and i am interested in finding out how they use Jungian theory to get the theme for the game

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

Classical Mythology/Greco-Roman Mythology

is both the body of and the study of myths from ancient greeks and romans as they are used or transformed by cultural reception

along with philosophy and political thought, mythology represents one of the major survivals of classic antiquity throughout later Western culture

classical mythology has provided subject matter for all forms of visual, musical, and literary art in the west, including poetry, drama, painting, sculpture, operas, and ballet as well as forms of popular culture such as Hollywood movies, televisions series, comic books and video games

i decided research into what greco-roman mythology was as it is a common theme and source of inspiration for character design and story theme in the persona series, researching into this has provided me with a better understanding of what the subject is and allows me to understand and see better how it has influenced the persona series

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

Persona 4 Gameplay

blends traditional RPG gameplay with simulation elements

players control games protagonist

gameplay is divided between the real world of Inaba , where the protagonist carries out his daily life and the mysterious ‘TV World’ where various dungeons filled with monsters known as ‘shadows’ await

with the exception of scripted events, such as plot progression or special events, players can choose to spend their day how they like, be it participating in various real world activities such as joining school clubs, taking part time jobs or reading books, or exploring the TV worlds dungeons to gain experience and items

certain activities are limited depending on the time of day, day of the week, weather, with most activities being unavailable if the player visits the TV world that day

some activities and dialogue choices may be limited by the protagonists 5 attributes: understanding, diligence, courage, knowledge and expressions, which can be increased by performing certain activities to build them

as the game progresses the protagonist forms friendships with other characters known as ‘social links’ which are each represented by one of the major arcana

the games murder mystery plot was greatly inspired by novelists such as Sir Arthur Conon Doyle, Agatha Christie and Seishi Yokomizo

upon researching this game i plan to also look into how the social links game affect gameplay and character development,  as well as how the novels inspired the murder mystery plot 

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

Revelations:Persona

is an RPG game developed by Atlus

the first entry in the persona series

was the first into the persona series to be released in the West

originally released on PS1 in 1996 in Japan and North America

story focused on a group of high school students as they are confronted by a series of supernatural incidents

gameplay revolves around the characters navigating environments around their town and fighting enemies using their personas

the game began development after the release of Shin Megami Tensei If... with the idea of creating a sub-series around the positively received high school setting of If...

multiple aspects of the story, including personas and the character Philemon were taken from Jungian Psychology. While Kazuma Kaneko character designs were based on both staff members, celebrities and fictional characters of the time

the script took over a year to write

the main concept behind persona was a Megumi Tensei game that could be enjoyed by people new to the series

In researching into the first game in the persona series i realise how early on the common theme of high school setting and using high school students as the main characters was established as well as the idea of using Jungian Psychology to set the story

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

Persona

also known as Shin Megami Tensei : Persona

video game franchise developed and published by Atlus

focused around a series of role playing video games 

persona is a spin off of the series Megani Tensei

the first entry in the series was Revelations:Persona released in 1996

the series takes its title from beings summoned by character battle. manifesting from their personality

trademarks features include a high school setting, a group of students as the protagonists, a silent protagonist and combat using personas

Since Person 3 in 2006 the series has used a social simulation function called social links which then links directly to how personas evolve

the overall theme is exploration of the human psyche and how characters find their true selves

the series’s recurring concepts and design elements draw on Jungian Psychology and archetypes along with multiple world mythologies and popular literature

since the release of the first persona game the series has now sold over 7 million units world wide

there have been numerous adaptations, including anime TV & theatrical series, novelisation, manga, stage plays and musical concerts

Common Gameplay Elements

revolves around combat against various enemy types: demons, shadows and personas. Main combat takes place during dungeon crawling segments within various between random encounters or running into models representing enemy groups

battles are governed by a turn-based system, where player party and enemies each attack the opposing side

actions in battle include standard physical attacks, using short-range melee or long-range projectile weapons, magical attacks, using items, guarding, and under certain conditions escaping from battles

starting with persona 3, landing a critical hit on an enemy grants the character an extra turn. If all enemies are knocked down by critical hits, the party can perform an ‘all out attack’ with all party members attacking at once and dealing high damage

each persona game has its unique elements, in persona battles take place on a grid-based battlefield, with characters and enemies movements dictated by their placement on the battlefield. This system was abandoned in persona 2-the party now had free movement across the battlefield, and has assigned set moves which can be changed during and in between battles. In persona 3 a lunar phase was introduced and tied to time progression and plot-in persona 4 this was changed to a weather based system where changes in weather keyed to the story and effected every behaviour 

Personas

defining aspect of the series is the personas, manifestations of a personas psyche

many personas in persona 3 are inspired by Graeco-Roman mythology-in persona 4 they were based on Japanese deities-person 5 uses characters inspired by popular fictional and historical outlaws

the way personas are summoned varies throughout the series, in early games parties gains the ability to summon through a short ritual, in persona 3 they fire a gun-like device called an Evoker at their head, in persona 4 they use Tarot cards, in person 5 they are summoned using their masks

Social Links & Negotiation

was introduced in Persona 3 

is a form of character interaction tied to the growth of personas

during time outside battle, the main character can interact with and grow particular social link, which acts as an independent character growth system tied to a persona family or Arcanum

as the main characters social link grows its rank is raised and more powerful personas related to the social links assigned Arcanum can be summoned and fused

attributes related to the main characters social life can also be used to improve their persona abilities, such as academic abilities and social aptitude

Setting And Themes

takes place in modern day Japan and almost always focuses on a group of high school students

the setting has been described as urban fantasy with extraordinary events happening in otherwise normal locations

central concept for the series is the collective unconscious a place generated by the hearts of humanity and from which personas are born

according to the official person club P3 book, the collective unconscious was generated by the primitive life on Earth as means of containing the spiritual essence of Nyx a space born being whose presence would cause the death of all life on Earth. Her body was damaged by the impact and became the moon, while her psyche was left on the surface. The fragments left known as ‘shadows’ are both a threat and crucial part of humanities existence

the major dungeon locations in each game are generated by the latent wishes or anxieties of humans, and are generally used by another force for their own ends

the central theme of the persona series is exploration of the human psyche and the main characters discovering their true selves. The stories generally focus on the main casts interpersonal relationships and psychologies. There is also an underlying focus on the ‘human soul’

a recurring motif are the ‘masks’ people wear during everyday life, which ties back to their personas

each game also includes specific themes & motifs-Persona 2 focused on the effect of rumours on the fabric of reality, Persona 3 employs themes involving depression and the darkness within people, Persona 4 focuses on how gossip and the media influences peoples views of others, Persona 5 shows the main characters pursue personal freedom in a restrictive modern society

Development

decided to create a dedicated sub-series focusing on the inner struggles of young adults

the focus on high school life was decided on by the creators due to their own experiences-according to them everyone experiences being a student at some point in their lives, it was something everyone could relate to, representing a time of both learning and freedom. This view helped players accept the series themes and the variety of ideas included in each title

after researching into this game i am really intrigued about how they based the games and theme of personas on jungian psychology , i am now thinking of doing my research report on this and how the games uses jungian psychology, all the above bullet points highlighted in bold are areas which i plan to research into further, i also plan to look at the original versions of the game and the latest release and see how they differ

[oliviafrostnuamasters]

Final Fantasy VII

is a role playing video game developed by Square Enix for PS1 released in 1997

development on FFVII began in 1994 for super NES. After delays and technical difficulties from experimenting on several platforms, it was moved to PS1 due to advantages of the CD-ROM format

the title was the first series to use full motion video and 3D computer graphics, with most scenes using characters models superimposed over pre-rendered backgrounds

although the gameplay systems remained mostly unchanged from previous entries. FFVII featured science fiction elements with a more realistic presentation

the scale of development was unprecedented at the time, with a combined development and marketing budget of over $80 million and over 100 staff

the game is still widely regarded as a landmark title and one of the greatest games of all time

game was acknowledged for boosting sales in PS1 and popularising Japanese tole playing games worldwide, with praise given to its graphics, gameplay, music and story

Gameplay

the game features 3 modes of play: the world map, the field and the battle screen

the world is full of representations of areas for the player to enter, including towns, environments and ruins. Natural barriers such as mountains, deserts and bodies of water block access by foot to some areas-as the game progresses the player receives vehicles to get over those objects

in field mode the player navigates fully scaled versions of the areas represented on the world map- this was represented in a 3D space for the first time

the player can explore the environment, talk with characters, advance the story and initiate event games in this mode (field mode)-these are short mini games that are special contest functions and are often lead by the story

while in field mode the player can also interact with shops and inns-these shops provide opportunity to buy and sell items that can aid the player & their party such as weapons, armour, and accessories

the battle screen places the player characters on one side, the enemies on the other and employs ‘active time battle’ (ATB) system in which the characters exchange moves until one side is defeated

commands in the game include attacking, casting magic, using items & summoning monsters

when all enemies are defeated then the battle ends and the player may be rewarded with money, items and experience points, if the player is defeated then its game over

Development

initial concept talks for FFVII began in 1994 following completion of FFVI

FFVII was initially planned as a 2D game for the SNES system which would have been the safe path given the imminent release of consoles capable of rendering 3D graphics

a 2D prototype of FFVII was created but development was postponed to help finish Chrono Trigger

in 1995 the team decided to take the riskier option and make a 3D game on new generation hardware, but they had yet to decide between releasing the game on cartridges or CD-ROM. The decision was influenced by two things:a tech demo based on FFVI created using the new Soft image 3D software and the escalating price of cartridge-based games, which was limiting their audience

tests were made for a N64 version of the game but this was scrapped during early testing as 2000 polygons put too much strain on the N64 causing a low frame rate

they had both technical and economical issues with nintendo’s current hardware and were impressed by the storage capacity of the CD-ROM when compared to the N64 cartridge-its because of this development of FFVII and all future planned projects were shifted to sony’s playstation

an initial decision was for battles to feature shifting camera angles

battle areas had a lower polygon count that field areas which made picking out distinct the features for each one more difficult

the summon sequences benefited greatly from the switch to the cinematic style as the team has struggled to portray their scale sing 2D graphics

the Materia system was introduced in this version of the game, this system provided more character customisation and battles no longer revolved around characters with innate skills & roles in battle, as Materia could be reconfigured between battles

Art Design

games art director was Yusuke Naora

with switch into 3D Naora realised he had to teach himself to draw again as 3D visuals required a different approach than 2D

Naora due to the scale of the project requested a development team devoted entirely to the games visual design

the departments duties included illustration, modelling of 3D characters, texturing, creation of environments, visual effects and animation

the main characters Cloud and Sephiroth influenced their rivalry from the legendary animosity between Miyamoyo Musashi and Sasaki Kojiro

Graphics

first project in the series to use 3D graphics

developers initially considered to overlaying 2D sprites on 3D backgrounds, but decided to change from pixel art to favour polygonal models

CD-ROM had slower access speed, delaying some actions during the game so the team needed to overcome the issue, they did this by using certain tricks to conceal load times, such as offering animations to keep players from getting bored

3D polygonal models were used instead of sprites because could better express emotion

for field navigation deformed models were used and also were used for real time event scenes for better expression of emotion, where realistic proportioned models were used in battles

the team purchased high end Softimage 3D and Power Animator software and more powerful hardware to handle the 3D graphics

the transition from 2D graphics to 3D environments overlaid on pre-rendered backgrounds was accompanied by a focus on a more realistic presentation

in previous entries the sizes for characters and environments were fixed and the layer saw things from a scrolling perspective. in FFVII this changed, environments shifted with camera angles and character models sizes shifted depending on both their place in the environment and their distance from the camera, giving a sense of scale

the choice of highly cinematic style of storytelling contrasted with Square Enix’s previous games It was a style influenced by Kitase who had an passion for films and an interest in the parallels between film and video game narrative

Motion specialists were brought in for the games battle animations

some of the real-time effects such as explosions were hand-drawn rather than computer animated

one major event in development was when the real-time graphics were synchronised to computer-generated full motion video (FMV) cutscenes for some story sequences. The most notable was when Cloud jumps onto an FMV rendered moving train-the backgrounds were created by overlaying two 2D graphic layers and changing the motion speed of each to simulate depth perception

the biggest issue with the 3D graphics was the large memory storage gap between the development hardware and the console. The team had to figure out how to shrink the amount of data while preserving desired effects as the tech demo was developed on a machine with 400 megabytes while the PS1 only had 2 megabytes

FFVII featured two types of cutscenes real time cutscenes featuring polygon models on pre-rendered backgrounds, and FMV cutscenes

people who worked on FMV scenes included artists and staff who worked on Star Wars, Jurassic Park and Terminator 2

the CGI FMV sequences total around 40 minutes of footage, something only possible due to the PS1 extra memory space and graphical power at the time

after researching this game i can see why this game is a milestone in the industry. the game introduced new technology and ideas which then in turn helped to produce the games seen today. I find it very interesting how they use similar techniques in storytelling from films and applied it to the cutscenes within the game, i am thinking of researching into links between film techniques and how they are used in video games, in particular video games of the RPG and open world genre which commonly feature cutscenes, in some cases there are games which are like playing a movie -see if there are games that actually play out like movies