After confirming that it was based on the plague, I looked up some information about the plague.
｜The influence of the Middle Ages
In order to ensure historical accuracy, I researched whether people in the Middle Ages truly demonized the plague and viewed it as divine punishment.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3c4KZKarKL4
NOTE: I don’t know why I can’t upload the video directly, so I’ve included a link instead.
After reviewing the video, I confirmed the narrative content that could be created. Following this, I began researching the symptoms of the Black Death (plague), which appeared as clues in the game, representing real symptoms and records.
I found information about the symptoms of plague on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. (2024) Plague is divided into three types with different symptoms.
- Bubonic plague: Patients develop fever, headache, chills, and weakness and one or more swollen, painful lymph nodes (called buboes).
- Septicemic plague: Patients develop fever, chills, extreme weakness, abdominal pain, shock, and possibly bleeding into the skin and other organs. Skin and other tissues may turn black and die, especially on fingers, toes, and the nose.
- Pneumonic plague: Patients develop fever, headache, weakness, and a rapidly developing pneumonia with shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, and sometimes bloody or watery mucous.
Based on these symptoms, I decided to use black spots, fever, and headache as clues.
｜Reference list
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2024) Signs and Symptoms of Plague. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/plague/signs-symptoms/?CDC_AAref_Val=https://www.cdc.gov/plague/symptoms/index.html
Dp7 (2015) BBC Documentary THE BLACK DEATH. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3c4KZKarKL4