CORE PRINCIPLES OF GAME DESIGN
INITIAL TASK -> TASK 1 -> TASK 2
Player-wise, Splatoon 3 has a younger demographic, targeted towards children and young teens. It is a multiplayer game with varying objectives depending on the game mode, but the one it is most famous for, Turf War, has two opposing teams fighting for the most territory on a map for 3 minutes. The team with the most turf inked by the end wins. Boundaries are put in place by suspending the playable map over a Killzone in which if the player were to fall into, they would immediately die, respawning at base. Challenges include the storymode, a single-player experience with many different stages with varying levels of difficulty, and the multiplayer experience which can be difficult depending on your opponent and team.
Gameplay-wise, you play as an Inkling/Octoling, and shoot ink with your chosen weapon that represents the colour of your team. You can shoot at opposing players and the environment, with the objective of covering as much of it as possible before the time is up. Additionally, you can make your character transform into a Squid/Octopus whenever you want, which enables the player to swim through ink of their team's respective colour, significantly increasing movement speed and making them much more difficult to spot.
The narrative, which almost entirely takes place in the single-player story mode, revolves around an Inkling fighting for a secret organisation in order to save their world from a bear. The story in the DLC is slightly different, and instead revolves around an Octoling fighting with an Idol Group in order to prevent their world from turning into a simulation. If the player dies at certain parts of the story during boss battles, they will be shown a short, alternative cutscene which shows their home city being destroyed.
Various Gameplay features and screenshots from Splatoon 3
Screenshots from Detroit: Become Human
Detroit: Become Human is a game with a more mature age rating (M) and is targeted towards a specific audience with an interest in urban social issues and interactive story telling. The objective of the game revolves around making choices that can significantly impact the narrative and outcomes. Challenges in the game revolve around the player making choices, some of which can be detrimental, so it is important to analyse the environment and collect as many clues as possible to help make a calculated decision. There are also certain parts in the game that are QTE-based, which require a very fast reaction time in order to get desired outcomes or avoid others.
The game revolves through the perspective of three different androids that have gained sentience; Connor, Marcus and Kara. The player is tasked with making all the decisions from their point of view, shaping their story however they want. When not making decisions, the player will often be given control over the character, being able to walk around a confined area to investigate or interact with various objects or people. This can lead to learning new information which could be crucial later on. While moving or interacting within a space, a player won't be able to move outside the designated area due to invisible walls, with a message informing the player that their objective isn't that way.
Due to being an interactive story, there are a significant amount of available outcomes and endings depending on what the player decided and did during their playthrough. Although there are 85 endings, many of these overlap, leading to a more accurate count of around 40. The game focuses on the aforementioned androids: Connor, Marcus and Kara, who are part of a revolution against the oppressive system of servitude. Their journey is an exploration of what it means to be human in a society where androids are integral to daily life.
UNIT 1- INITIAL TASK
UNIT 1: TASK 1
FRANCHISE COMPARISON- PERSONA
PERSONA 3 PORTABLE- A SUMMARY
Originally released in Japan in 2009 and 2011 in the UK, Persona 3 Portable, also known as P3P, was an enhanced remake of Persona 3 published by ATLUS which released for the PlayStation Portable, but was also playable on the PlayStation Vita and PlayStation TV due to backwards compatibility.
The game allows the player to choose the gender of the protagonist, which leads to new routes and scenarios in the story: the first Persona gained by the protagonist, Orpheus, has a different appearance and Igor's Velvet Room assistant, Elizabeth, can be replaced with the male equivalent named Theodore. The gender choice also alters some aspects of the social link stories. Additionally, there are two new difficulty levels available alongside the original game and FES's.
While some critics such as IGN criticized P3P for 'losing some of it's polish', it was just as acclaimed as FES, receiving an 89 out of 100 from Metacritic, making it the third best reviewed PSP game on the website. Persona 3 Portable sold over 158,000 copies within it's first moth of release in Japan. It's high sales likely due to the new content and the popularity of the PSP in Japan at the time.
DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
P3P is primarily targeted towards young adults, with a focus on those who are familiar with the JRPG genre and series. The game's themes and morals are considered safe for young adults, making it suitable for a wide range of players. Although it has an M rating, the content is generally family-friendly, with some minor points such as sexual harassment. The game's setting and story are made to appeal to fans of the Persona series and those who appreciate the themes of bonds, self-acceptance and death.
THEMES
The theme of the game revolves around the butterfly effect, reflecting the changes that happen should the player pursue the path of one protagonist over the other, and the Latin phrase Memento Mori, translating to 'Remember you will Die', which has served a major role in the thematics since the original Persona 3.
PLAY TIME
As a single-player game, the playtime for the game varies depending on the playstyle of the person playing. Completing the main story takes approximately 64-66 hours depending on pace, but engaging fully with side quests and content can increase the total playtime to around 100 hours.
ART STYLE
The 2D character art is drawn by Shigenori Soejima, who has famously produced many works for the Persona series. Persona 3 is depicted by the colour blue, which is present in most UI in the game, but in Persona 3 Portable specifically, choosing the female protagonist changes every UI that would typically be blue to pink, to reflect the protagonist's personality and linking back to the idea of the butterfly effect and change. The 3D side of the game is generally made up from a more dull palette, with vibrant pops of colour often present to add focus onto certain elements. The drearier colours contribute to the darker narrative the game has to offer, with lighter scenes feeling more special and peaceful in contrast.
CORE PILLARS
Due to Persona 3 Portable's original release being on the PSP, storage was a major concern. The solution the developers came up with was removing 3D environments from the social life aspect of the game, in turn, navigating was transformed into the likes of a point-and-click game. However, exploration in combat areas had 3D environments due to the ambush feature. Additionally, P3P introduced the ability to take control over party members rather than forced to be used the AI targeting, which was mandatory in the original P3.
UNIQUE SELLING POINTS
Being able to choose the main character's gender was the core selling point for the game to differentiate it from it's previous iterations. The new female main character, commonly referred to as Kotone Shiomi by the fanbase and ATLUS, introduces new scenarios and interactions in the narrative. One of the core features for the original P3 game, Social Links, gives the player the opportunity to interact and grow bonds with a set list of characters. In Portable, choosing to play as Kotone changes some of the Social Links you can form bonds with, adding a new perspective to their character.
DIFFICULTY CURVE
When starting the game, the player can choose from five difficulty levels, ranging from Beginner to Maniac. Beginner is designed for those who want a more relaxed experience, while Maniac provides a challenging and rewarding experience for more seasoned players. The game also includes a Normal difficulty, which is the default setting, offering a balance of both challenge and enjoyment. In addition to difficulty levels, the game also offers numerous optional challenging fights, such as The Reaper, The Abyss of Time and The Monad found through Heaven's Door.
REPLAYABILITY
Persona 3 Portable has the New Game Plus feature once you beat the game. The function carries over most items from your pervious run, retains Social Stat values and any weapons you previously obtained. Due to the retained Social Stats, the player will be able to unlock certain Social Links much faster, as well as opening up new dialogue options in certain scenes. Additionally, another new addition is the ability to choose who the protagonist spends their last moments of the game with, however, only members of SEES with a MAX Social Link can be selected.
CORE MECHANICS
In P3P, the core mechanics revolve around the social sim and dungeon-crawling elements, where players manage daily life and school as a student, and then explore procedurally generated floors in Tartarus during the Dark Hour.
REWARDS
Rewards in the game range from items like powerful weapons, money, and fusion spells to character costumes, achievements, and stat boosts for the protagonist. These can be obtained through various activities, including completing requests for Elizabeth/Theodore, defeating the Reaper, maxing out social links, and completing the Vision Quest.
COLLECTING
One of the core mechanics of the game revolves around fusing personas for battle, or in this case, obtaining as many new ones as you can to complete the Compendium. In total, there are around 170 different personas in P3P, each with unique designs and abilities. A number of these are only obtainable through completing social links or requests. Additionally, some personas require very specific fusion combinations, such as Messiah, which is only fusible after reaching player level 91, and fusing Orpheus & Thanatos.
PROBLEM SOLVING OR STRATEGIZING
Due to Portable being a turn-based RPG, choosing which characters or abilities to use in your party becomes a huge part of the game. Whether it's attacking, defending, buffing, debuffing, or healing, every playthrough is different, especially when you factor in things such as HP/MP, Critical Hits, and items.
During the social sim aspect of the game, the player needs to manage their time and plan around the in-game calendar system. The story takes place over a year, and every month, there will be a boss that the player needs to challenge, so staying prepared while also levelling up social links is a key part of the experience. During certain days while in school, there will be tests or questions that can level up social stats and reward the player with rare items if answered correctly.
UNIT 1: TASK 1
FRANCHISE COMPARISON- PERSONA
PERSONA 5 ROYAL- A SUMMARY
Persona 5 Royal (P5R) is an enhanced version of the original game featuring new content, originally released for PlayStation 4 in Japan in October 2019, with a worldwide release in March 2020. The game also received a Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 & Steam release in October 2022, as part of a multi-platform re-release.
The game adds significant content, including a new story arc and third semester, two new confidants, the city district of Kichijoji with new activities, and gameplay enhancements such as the grappling hook, and Will Seeds for collection. Royal also adds new music tracks, animated cutscenes, and the implementation of 'Thieves Den'.
While the original version of the game, released in 2017, Persona 5 had already achieved a Metacritic score of 93, and had since sold over 3.2 million copies, Persona 5 Royal's enhancements did not go underappreciated, and sits at a Metacritic score of 95, and has sold over 7.5 million copies worldwide as of August 2025.
Persona 5 Royal's success can be attributed to mass online media coverage, including people singing praises for its visual presentation, gameplay, story, and music. The game's recieved coverage by large content creators on YouTube such as JohneAwesome's playthrough of both the original and the Royal version, adding to over 5.6 million views just for the first episodes combined, or the game's music reaching views of over 10 million on YouTube, with the highest being Life Will Change with 31 million views, or Last Surprise with 61 million plays on Spotify.
DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
P3P is primarily targeted towards young adults, with a focus on those who are familiar with the JRPG genre and series.
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THEMES
The theme of the game revolves around the butterfly effect, reflecting the changes that happen should the player pursue the path of one protagonist over the other, and the Latin phrase Memento Mori, translating to 'Remember you will Die', which has served a major role in the thematics since the original Persona 3.
PLAY TIME
As a single-player game, the playtime for the game varies depending on the playstyle of the person playing. Completing the main story takes approximately 64-66 hours depending on pace, but engaging fully with side quests and content can increase the total playtime to around 100 hours.
ART STYLE
The 2D character art is drawn by Shigenori Soejima, who has famously produced many works for the Persona series. Persona 3 is depicted by the colour blue, which is present in most UI in the game, but in Persona 3 Portable specifically, choosing the female protagonist changes every UI that would typically be blue to pink, to reflect the protagonist's personality and linking back to the idea of the butterfly effect and change. The 3D side of the game is generally made up from a more dull palette, with vibrant pops of colour often present to add focus onto certain elements. The drearier colours contribute to the darker narrative the game has to offer, with lighter scenes feeling more special and peaceful in contrast.
CORE PILLARS
Due to Persona 3 Portable's original release being on the PSP, storage was a major concern. The solution the developers came up with was removing 3D environments from the social life aspect of the game, in turn, navigating was transformed into the likes of a point-and-click game. However, exploration in combat areas had 3D environments due to the ambush feature. Additionally, P3P introduced the ability to take control over party members rather than forced to be used the AI targeting, which was mandatory in the original P3.
UNIQUE SELLING POINTS
Being able to choose the main character's gender was the core selling point for the game to differentiate it from it's previous iterations. The new female main character, commonly referred to as Kotone Shiomi by the fanbase and ATLUS, introduces new scenarios and interactions in the narrative. One of the core features for the original P3 game, Social Links, gives the player the opportunity to interact and grow bonds with a set list of characters. In Portable, choosing to play as Kotone changes some of the Social Links you can form bonds with, adding a new perspective to their character.
DIFFICULTY CURVE
When starting the game, the player can choose from five difficulty levels, ranging from Beginner to Maniac. Beginner is designed for those who want a more relaxed experience, while Maniac provides a challenging and rewarding experience for more seasoned players. The game also includes a Normal difficulty, which is the default setting, offering a balance of both challenge and enjoyment. In addition to difficulty levels, the game also offers numerous optional challenging fights, such as The Reaper, The Abyss of Time and The Monad found through Heaven's Door.
REPLAYABILITY
Persona 3 Portable has the New Game Plus feature once you beat the game. The function carries over most items from your pervious run, retains Social Stat values and any weapons you previously obtained. Due to the retained Social Stats, the player will be able to unlock certain Social Links much faster, as well as opening up new dialogue options in certain scenes. Additionally, another new addition is the ability to choose who the protagonist spends their last moments of the game with, however, only members of SEES with a MAX Social Link can be selected.
THEMES
The theme of the game revolves around the butterfly effect, reflecting the changes that happen should the player pursue the path of one protagonist over the other, and the Latin phrase Memento Mori, translating to 'Remember you will Die', which has served a major role in the thematics since the original Persona 3.
PLAY TIME
As a single-player game, the playtime for the game varies depending on the playstyle of the person playing. Completing the main story takes approximately 64-66 hours depending on pace, but engaging fully with side quests and content can increase the total playtime to around 100 hours.
ART STYLE
The 2D character art is drawn by Shigenori Soejima, who has famously produced many works for the Persona series. Persona 3 is depicted by the colour blue, which is present in most UI in the game, but in Persona 3 Portable specifically, choosing the female protagonist changes every UI that would typically be blue to pink, to reflect the protagonist's personality and linking back to the idea of the butterfly effect and change. The 3D side of the game is generally made up from a more dull palette, with vibrant pops of colour often present to add focus onto certain elements. The drearier colours contribute to the darker narrative the game has to offer, with lighter scenes feeling more special and peaceful in contrast.
CORE PILLARS
Due to Persona 3 Portable's original release being on the PSP, storage was a major concern. The solution the developers came up with was removing 3D environments from the social life aspect of the game, in turn, navigating was transformed into the likes of a point-and-click game. However, exploration in combat areas had 3D environments due to the ambush feature. Additionally, P3P introduced the ability to take control over party members rather than forced to be used the AI targeting, which was mandatory in the original P3.
UNIT 1: TASK 2
DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
Conducting a survey allows me to obtain a general idea of what kind of games people are into, and what specific aspects they enjoy. Using the information I gathered, I can ascertain and compare these factors to the Persona series, and come to a summary and calculated prediction about each.
I first ask the recipient's age and gender identity. Since the primary demographic for the Persona series is young adults, at least 30.8% of the people that responded perfectly fit with the intended target audience, with a further 61.5% highly likely to fit the demographic.
Additionally, as of 2025, 55% of people that play video games are male, with a significant portion of this being aged 18-34.
Survey taken in-class with 13 participants
When asked what their most played game genre was, Action received 69.2% of the total votes, with Adventure (53.8%) & RPGs (46.2%) receiving 2nd and 3rd place for votes respectively. Mainline Persona games fall into the RPG & Adventure genre, while certain spinoffs in the series such as Persona 5: Strikers, Persona 4 Arena or Persona 4 Arena Ultimax fall into categories under the Action genre.
Additionally, when asked about the most important aspect of a game to them, a strong story/narrative won with 69.2%, while customization and combat mechanics tied at 2nd place with 53.8% each. In the Persona series, the story is one of the most important parts that makes the games what they are.
A central form of customization in Persona revolves around choosing which Personas to fuse, what moves to give them, and what builds to use. On the other hand, while most of the games follow a classic turn-based JRPG combat format, games such as Persona 5 Royal, Persona 5: Strikers & Persona 4 Arena+ Arena Ultimax offer either completely different combat gameplay or revitalize the classic format with fresh, unique mechanics.
A question on the survey asked whether people played multiplayer or single-player games the most. Multiplayer won with 61.5%, and while majority of the Persona series is single-player, multiplayer fighting games such as the Persona 4 Arena+ Arena Ultimax duology, or guilds/ranked systems in Persona 5: The Phantom X mean there are still options for those who prefer playing with friends.
Finally, I asked about the participants' average playtime per week. 53.8% said 4-7 hours, while an even amount of 23.1% sit in either 8-12 or 13+ hours. I asked this because, many Persona games have a lengthy playtime, so averaging only a couple hours a week can mean taking much longer to finish the game. In the lengthiest case, Persona 5 Royal takes around 101 hours to complete the main story, while completing side content and collecting achievements can garner an additional 50 hours of gameplay. Although, the playtime can be subjective depending on the player's reading speed, and how they choose to pace themselves throughout the game.
EDUCATION
BA NHTV University of Applied Sciences
BSc in International Game Architecture and Design
SKILLS
Advanced: Photoshop, Unity 3D, Unreal Engine
Proficient: Maya, SketchUp, Audacity, VR/AR Development.
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