Designs

Originality and creativity of the idea

The narrative of the game is an original story written by both authors. Although mechanically, the game is inspired by another detective game, The Return of Obra Dinn, it offers its own original interpretation of how to put the player in the shoes of an investigator who, through interactive revelations, gradually begins to piece together the story of the game.

Definition of the problem and the relevance of the applied solutions

The problem — how to create a game where the detective experience is not just an aesthetic choice but also generates the appropriate emotional states in the player:
Intrigue, methodical research, revelation, feeling smart.
intrigu, metodisku izpēti, atklāsmi, jušanos gudram.

The game dealt with this by scattering pieces of evidence across the scenario in a non-linear form and forcing the player to put this evidence together into a coherent story, which is impossible without reconstructing the narrative’s events.

Co-creation, stakeholder involvement and cooperation during the realisation process

The Ukrainian composer Kyle Misko was involved in the creation of the game. His creative vision was manifested in the game's music track to create an original and appropriate accompaniment to the game's atmosphere.

Functionality and technological solutions

The in-game experience is built by presenting the game's story in 12 scenarios where the player has to solve a mysterious death within each scenario.

To solve the scenario, the player has to explore the time-static place of death and locations close to it, collect evidence and add them to a text with missing phrases.

The game is developed using the Godot engine, an open-source engine in 2D execution.

Aesthetics and other experiential dimensions

The game's visual style is designer Ernests Kļaviņš's interpretation of pixel art stylisation, featuring grotesque characters inspired by 18th-century artists Doré and Hogarth. The choice of pixel art was justified to evoke a sense of retro nostalgia for fans of the nineties-era adventure games.

Economic significance, sustainability and circularity

The game has sold around 40 thousand units at the time of application, and the forecast is that its 5-year sales figures will be three times higher. This means potentially around 330 thousand Euros of income for the Latvian company, primarily from foreign buyers, thus promoting Latvian export.

The game is distributed only in digital format, not generating the consumption of physical resources during production. The game takes up little space (about 200 MB) and can be played on fairly slow computers.

The game is developed in the open-source Godot engine.

Social relevance, inclusion, availability and accessibility

The game's narrative explores a story set in a fictional England, turning from a family saga into a political power grab thriller. Accordingly, the game features the theme of how the main character's desire for an ideal world degrades into a totalitarian anti-utopia, which, according to the author, still amounts to substantial commentary even in the contemporary world.

The game works on slow computer systems; since it is static, it does not require a quick reaction to play. Learning the game takes place within it and does not require knowledge of other game genres, making it accessible even to a non-gamer.

Link to video or other link