There are 5 Areas of Interests I have chosen, or 5 topics that interests me enough to potentially explore for this module. In this post I will go through each of them to explore what research opportunities they allow. After I have come up with 5, I will use the Lotus Flower method to extract themes from them.
They are:
- Animation
- 2D Animation
- Roguelikes
- Action Roguelikes
- Roguelites
- The environment
- Solarpunk
- Sustainable Fashion
- Fashion
- Outfits
- Playstyle changes
- Cats
2D Animation
Why it’s interesting as a research topic
As a child I watched cartoons, mainly on Cartoon Network. This summer I’ve been rewatching some of those as well as shows from US sister network Adult Swim, and I’ve found them to be more enjoyable than when I first experienced them as a kid. I think the main draws to animation for me are the use of colourful appealing imagery as well as the humour present in many of these shows.
There are some games that use forms of 2D animation, like Cuphead, but I’m interested to see what types of 2D animation exists in other games, how I could produce a work of 2D animation and how I could incorporate it into my game.
Research opportunities
- Watching relevant TV shows and movies
- Studying 2D animation
- Reading relevant books
Roguelikes
Why it’s interesting as a research topic
Roguelikes are a genre I’ve been fascinated about for some time. The first one I really got into was Cult of the Lamb in 2023. Roguelikes mainly feature 2 distinct features, random content generation and permanent death. This year I’ve been slowly but surely playing more roguelike games, such as Rogue Legacy 2, Roboquest, and Splatoon 3: Side Quest.
There’s also the roguelite subgenres, which feature permanent player upgrades which gradually make the games more accessible over time, as well as other subgenres like action roguelikes and roguelike deck builders. For the interest of saving time, I will not be researching roguelike deckbuilders for the purposes of this module. However, I will be researching action roguelikes and roguelites.
Research opportunities
- Playing roguelike games
- Reading books/articles
The Environment
Why it’s interesting as a research topic
I believe in the importance of video games as an art tool, to imagine better worlds than the ones we live in, to create new oasis of opportunities for a more sustainable future. I feel that as a Game Maker I have a responsibility to create a version of the world I would ideally want to live in, and this includes creating a world where the environment is taken care of and not exploited for oil and profit, where renewable energy is cheap, affordable and is the main way that the world powers itself and that the wellbeing of people and animals are front-and-center.
One of the ways I can do this is to include the environment as one of my research themes, and to create a game with a pro-environmental message. One of the themes of fantasy that includes elements of environmental care and responsibility is the Solarpunk genre. This is a genre I am interested in researching.
Research opportunities
- Playing games with environmental themes
- Reading books/articles
Fashion
Why it’s interesting as a research topic
I’ve been interested in fashion as a topic since 2024. However, I’m also interested in fashion that has interesting elements in games. Take Splatoon 3 for example, in that game you can change your outfit and each item of clothing has different abilities for the player to mix and match. I’m interested in researching other games that have a similar dynamic, which can change the play style just within a few button taps.
However, given fashions large environmental impact driven in part by the rise of fast fashion driving trend cycles and overall lower quality clothing, it’s important that I make sure that the fashion messages I include into the game incorporates some elements of sustainability.
Research opportunities
- Visual Research (Pinterest or similar)
- Documentaries
Cats
Why it’s interesting as a research topic
Cats are a peculiar animal, they’re a playful animal but they’re also mischievous and often mysterious. They make great subjects for a YouTube video on surprising lovers of these curious creatures, but as demonstrated in the last couple of years, cats also make great protagonists, for example Stray or Little Kitty Big City. Cats also appear in the aptly named Nintendogs + Cats, which allows you to take care of kittens as well as puppies, which was a good casual draw for the Nintendo 3DS.
I do not own a cat myself sadly but there are other ways to research cat behaviour, for example playing games with cats in them or visiting a cat café.
Research opportunities
- Playing games with cats
- Visiting a cat café
Themes
After laying out these 4 Areas of Interests. I spent a bit of time making Lotus Flowers using them as a base for potential themes. I then generated these 4 research themes: