FMP research section

1. Research
Your Name

2. Content Research

3. Over the initial stages of pre-production, the team were also
very much against the idea of a complete overhaul as they
didn’t want to loose any of the main appeal. It seems as
though they didn’t want the appeal and satisfaction present
in all the games to be muddied and lost in the translation to a
new design philosophy.
Instead the team opted for a change in philosophical values
by picking away at the main tenants of the game and what
makes it so special. They had realised it was difficult to
actually describe what Animal Crossing is even about, so they
decided to look at how they would describe it and expand on
what is then established as essential elements that comprise
of what is—at its core—an Animal Crossing game.
Content Research #1:
Animal Crossing GDC pane (1/3)
Introduction:
This panel was very informative on philosophies of Animal Crossing
New Leaf’s development and informed me on the key design
aspects that were introduced and changed going forward when
working on the game that molded it into the unique and satisfying
experience it is, even still today.
Franchise Changes
A few changes were made to the core principles of Animal Crossing
as a whole. A lot of the familiar aspects of Animal Crossing games
had lost their appeal to a lot of fans, especially long term ones, and
it seemed apparent to the dev team that their fear of not expanding
on the games features was getting the better of them, and was not
drawing in new audience members. So they went back to the
drawing board.
Devs decided to look at the very beginning
of the game, and decided to tweak the
introduction the player is given to the
games world and also change the context.
In previous titles, the player has always
been a new villager moving to a
procedurally generated town, that is then
allowed to choose from 1 of 4 randomly
placed empty houses that they can then
move into, and must pay off their mortgage
by working for Tom Nook for the majority of
the game. The devs decided to change focus
to it being more freeing, where instead of
being a simple villager you are now Mayor
of the town, you now also choose exactly
where your house is and can build addition
rooms instead of just a ground floor,
basement and attic.

4. Content Research #1:
Animal Crossing GDC panel (2/3)
In this period of deconstructing the basics, the developers found a
way to describe Animal Crossing as whole, and used this description
as a means to improve and expand the series. They deemed Animal
Crossing as a “Communication Tool” that can improve real life bonds
with other people and improve their mood and attitude in life, by
giving them a simpler, happier version of what mirrors that of their
own life. They wanted to create a real life community and based
around the game, to bring everyone closer together, to turn the
game into a bonding tool between friends and family. An example of
the developers definition of this, is the sense of pride &
accomplishment most players experience after they’ve spent hours
upon hours, day after day, expanding and decorating their homes
and then showing them off to friends and family. Developers found
this sense of praise motivated most players to keep going, to keep on
experimenting with their designs and to keep on expanding, and
making their towns and houses more reflective of themselves.
Developers also made sure to preserve and
improve details that mirrored that of real life,
especially the instance of buying another player a
gift in-game for their birthday. Developers
believed that the circumstances of buying a
present for another player was as satisfying and
pleasing as it is in real life, and made sure to
include more tools for the player that would
encourage more situations that would mirror real
life to occur. Devs also stated something
noteworthy about the birthday present interaction
in particular; because the in-game money holds
no real world value and is strictly fiction, they
found most players would spend high amounts of
money when buying other players gifts for their
birthdays. This meaning players felt even more
satisfied when gift shopping, as although it
mirrors real life it has the added bonus of there
being no monetary issues when it comes down to
purchasing another person a gift in the world of
Animal Crossing.
Thoughts so far
I love the approach that was taken with New Leaf, and I feel as
though this answers a lot of my questions as to why I am so
fond of the game as well. This also gives me lots of ideas of how
I can relate the game to Team Fortress 2, as I can draw
comparison between the sense of community that surrounds
both games, and the “baked in” sense of satisfaction felt by a
lot of things present in the game (even if most of the
satisfaction in Animal Crossing is due to it mirroring real life,
therefore making it inherently satisfying by nature).

5. Content Research #1:
Animal Crossing GDC panel (3/3)
Improvements made due to hardware:
The WiFi capabilities were greatly increased with the new hardware
present in the 3DS (albeit not as good as other platforms available
within the same console generation) which was an improvement
over the lackluster online connectivity present in the Wii, meaning
this time there were more options made available to the player, such
as Tortimer Island having a random player feature where you could
play mini-games with 3 other players from across the globe and
make new friends and of course the “Best Friend” feature as spoken
about by the devs. This feature allowed players to favorite other
players that have visited their town as a “Best Friend”, which meant
that when the player was connected to WiFi, they could receive
alerts for when their friend was online and playing the game, and
could even send direct messages to them, or broadcast one message
to everyone who is online.
Developers also implemented dedicated online
servers that stored the information of different
players towns when uploaded to the Dream Suite
that players could choose to upload to. This
feature ties into the core value that Animal
Crossing is a game to be shared with people and
enjoyed socially. As well as this, they added a new
option for people who created custom designs in
the game, the ability to create QR codes that
could be screenshot and shared online to
countless other people, who could then use the
camera on the 3DS system to add that design to
their game. Lastly, Mrs. Kyogoku discussed the
implementation of the 3DS’s Streetpass system
that was included in the game. If the player had
their 3DS in standby mode as they walked around
with Streetpass enabled, they could receive the
data of other player’s houses and inspect them,
and even order select furniture from them to
expand their collection. This feature also helped
to maintain a constant presence of other players
the devs wanted players to feel.
“Harmonizing real world relationships”
Mrs. Kyogoku also made a point of the impact they hoped the
game would have on players stating that it can be nerve wracking
to ask someone you’re unfamiliar with to visit their house in real
life, but the exact same situation in the context of Animal Crossing
is a lot simpler and a more tempting offer, as showing off your
collection and decorating skills is one of the key aspects of
satisfaction players derive from the game. I think a lot of what is
mirrored in real life in Animal Crossing is what makes it so
pleasant, as it isn’t a cut and dry life simulator and more-so an
imitation of real life with its own quirks and charm.

6. Content Research #2:
Team Fortress 2 Mod to
Published Title (1/3)
Introduction:
Over the course of 9 years of the games development, Team Fortress 2 has
had several different iterations since its beginning as a simple mod for the
original Quake. For my research gathered from listening to the Developer
commentary tracks present in earlier builds of TF2, coupled with some extra
context on the progression timeline of mod to officially published Valve title,
I’m going to see if I can create a collection of developer thoughts and
philosophies when creating TF2 and find what their goals were and what
they used to hook players in as there isn’t any real explicit collection of
information behind the development period that transpired from 1999 to
2007.
Quake Mod to Team Fortress Classic
The original Quake published and developed by id Software in 1996 was a huge success in the infancy stages of PC
gaming, with its face paced action and impressive graphics for the time, it was more than enough to hook a large
audience in for an experience they’d keep with them for the rest of their lives. Like most PC games however (much
like today) a modding community was formed around the game as id Software was very much for the hackers ethic,
and when they had seen people were wanting to modify the game for custom game modes, level editing etc, they
created a whole programming language just for Quake and later a level editor. One game mode that was incredibly
popular was one titled Team Fortress, a team based game mode with classes, where most maps were two forward
facing bases with capture the flag like objective based gameplay, mixing offense and defense into one big sprawling
battle. This mod gained so much traction, in the later years of Quakes lifespan it had encompassed 50% of all
custom servers, with them all running the Team Fortress mod. Team Fortress’s small group of modders formed a
studio known simply as “Team Fortress Software” and went on to develop Team Fortress Classic, published under
Valve after they approached the developers expressing interest in their work. Valve were working on the original
Half-Life in their Source engine, and let the team develop TF Classic in its updated engine. The team consisted of
the original mod developers, Robin Walker, John Cook & Ian Caughley. Team Fortress Classic initially released as a
free mod for Half-Life’s multiplayer, then after a substantial content update it released as a standalone title (which
is still available to purchase from 2003 on Steam).

7. Content Research #2:
Team Fortress 2 Mod to
Published Title (2/3)
Team Fortress 2: Brotherhood of Arms
Valve being impressed by the success of TF Classic’s continued popularity
began to work on the sequel, tentatively titled “Team Fortress 2:
Brotherhood of Arms”. The direction for this game would be more so geared
towards a realistic representation of WW2/Vietnam era combat, with
paratrooper combat scenarios and the addition of vehicles like tanks and
helicopters. With TF2 Brotherhood of Arms Valve wanted to push the
boundaries of the source engines graphical capabilities as well by inventing
new ways to maintain good performance whilst not having to sacrifice too
much visually. This change was also due to the expansion in the PC
marketing, meaning high end hardware was becoming more and more
common, meaning scaling back on graphical fidelity was becoming less of an
issue that had to be taken into account, thus giving developers more
freedom.
This direction the heads at Valve had sent the development team down gained a decent bit of traction, with some
impressive technology being crafted under the games banner for the time, such as a polygonal scaling based on
distance from a player, meaning if an enemy player model was on the far end of a players view distance, the game
would pull back on the percentage of polygons displayed, going from as low as 12% of the full poly count all the way
to 100% when a player was right in front of them.
The game also planned to include a system dubbed “parametric animation”, which would dynamically change the
animation of a character depending on what happens to the player. For example, if someone where to die in-game
whilst jumping, they would slump over in the air and dive forward/backwards in pain. This was of course made
obsolete in later years with the inclusion of ragdoll physics.
Here is an example of the polygon
scaling technology, as well as the
more “realistic” design choice they
decided on.

8. Content Research #2:
Team Fortress 2 Mod to
Published Title (3/3)
Team Fortress 2: Invasion Leak
During the games development cycle there was a giant media blackout for quite some
time post the reveal of Brotherhood of Arms. From what we can gather because a leak
that occurred during this period, the higher ups and Valve were no longer satisfied with
the idea of another realistic shooter under their belt, as Day of Defeat had no occupied
this space, and the oversaturation of military shooters was becoming overwhelming, so
they decided to take a different approach later on. From what we know of this iteration of
TF2 subtitled “Invasion”, it was in essence going to be a humans versus aliens version of
the original concept of Team Fortress, with the same forward facing twin bases and with
the edition of new play made buildings and even vehicles. A lot of weapons and player
models used were carried over from Half Life as place holder, which did initially lead the
leakers to believe this was to be a part of the Half Life universe of games, along with the
existence of “Striders” being present in the games concept and code, which are tall tripod
enemies from the alien faction present in Half Life. These are now more commonly
believed to have been simply place holders for new, original designs.
Thoughts so far:
Valve always try to push whatever medium, genre or technology they’re working with
and I have to admire their high standards to keep pushing forward instead of settling on
an already tired and out dated looking design, which then eventually lead them to make
something as timeless as TF2 as it is today. I do however find it difficult on what stance to
take towards their lack of transparency, on one hand they had officially revealed TF2 in
1997, and then it took a leak in 2003 to occur for fans to have any understanding of what
was actually happening. On the other hand, the blackout allowed for no outside
interference and for Valve to continue chipping away at the seemingly unbreakable wall
of how to approach the sequel’s design, which absolutely paid off after 9 assumedly very
stressful years of trial and error.

9. Content Research #3:
Team Fortress 2 Developer
commentary: Gravel Pit
Design overview
The dev team made sure to consider all matters of traversal and scenarios
when designing each map, especially when it came to designing for final
points with lots of flank routes, such as Gravel Pit which has a large spire
with multiple levels as its final point when both A and B have been
secured. The developers also noted that they favor the geometry and
layout of a map over the aesthetics, function over fashion.
Gravel Pit commentary:
• Lots of aspects for each of the classes
were taken into account
• The Sniper’s rifle chargers over a short
period of time to mitigate skilled players
killing enemies with one hit flick fire
• The Heavy is built for players with not as
precise aiming because of his spread fire,
the trade off is they have to anticipate
combat by revving up the gun, and also
think more strategically because of his
movement speed decrease when winding
his gun up
• The player freeze kill cam intentionally
exists to motivate the player into taking
revenge upon a play that has killed them a
few times. This works in tandem with the
nemesis system, that shows on the
scoreboard and in game what enemy
player is dominating you (meaning they’ve
secured more than 3 kills on you whilst
you haven’t killed them)
Key Quote from Robin Walker (the games director)
“We first showed Team Fortress 2 at E3 in 1999 and here we are in 2007. So what took us so
long? The short answer is it took us this long to make something we were happy with. The
long answer requires a look at our development process; at it’s core we don’t really know
ahead of time what will be fun. We know what’s been fun in the past but if we’ve got 3
ideas on the table--we really can’t say for sure which one is fun when before we’re done. So
we focused on developing a repeatable process that would find out. It’s based on a cycle of
constant iteration with the evaluation being done by watching as many people play the
game as possible. In developing TF2 we tried out many different features (few of which
made it into the final product but most of which were cut).
For example, our initial versions of TF2 were trying to build a game around a concept of a
‘Commander’ a single player who had a real time strategy view of the battlefield. He would
be responsible for implementing a unifying strategy for their team—but—there were
significant design challenges involved. For instance, how do we design the game so that the
Commander can have fun and ensure that at the same time the players down on the ground
can have fun? How do we ensure that the commands value the outputs of each other? How
do we ensure the game is still fun if the team has a terrible commander, adversely if you’re
a great commander with a terrible team? We spent many months working on these issues,
and never really reached a point where we were satisfied. In addition, our game had
become overly complex due to our attempts to deepen our strategy layer to warrant the
commander in the first place. In the end, we made the hard decision to remove him from
the game and moved on.”
• Demo was treated with the intention of him being
the most versatile class with high offensive damage
as well as area denial defense, as well as mobility
options present through sticky bomb jumping.

10. Existing Products & Research
Analysis

11. Existing Product #1: Sequelitis analysis
The exaggerated sense of
“thinking out loud” then
smash cut into something
more so on topic creates a
silly and engaging flow to
the video
On screen flavor text to
accentuate what is being
said during these moments
is important as it adds to
the comedic effect of the
segment
When dialogue becomes
very expressive, there’s
moments in which an
animated character shows
up to display movement
that can add to the dialogue
by including gestures for
comedic effect as well as
faces
When asking a significant
question the pacing of the
video slows down
significantly, this can be
dictated by how dialogue is
delivered as well as adding
a few more seconds to each
transition, enough to call
more attention to it but not
enough to make it too
jarring
If making a comparison,
look at what worked
previously and discuss
different ways that could’ve
improved an element of the
game

12. Existing Product #2: Empire Magazine
White blue and
black colour scheme,
colours from the image for
page colour scheme
Predominately
picture based/image
based
Title "in cinemas"
is photoshopped into
the image
List of people who
were involved in making
the movie is included,
shows there's an attention
to detail in all aspects
Several Graphical
elements (arrows pointing
to text)
Look is favoured over the
text itself, more about
looking stylish and
appealing than the actual
written word
Multi-media links on
the bottom of the page
Photograph used has the
lead actors of the film
present, this star power
draws more attention to
the page itself

13. Research Analysis
Features in common in my research
Common features found in my research are ways in which I can deconstruct both games I am discussing
by using all available and relevant information behind both of the games development as well as using
my own experiences with each. I also want to use lots of techniques found in other videos that have
inspired me, my research of course helping me take a part the elements that work together to help in the
production of my video portion. These techniques can also help me when devising the graphics portion
of my project as well as I can apply similar methods that can be then translated into a print media, such
as smash cuts being different splashes of text that could cover different portions of the page in an
organised but seemingly intrusive fashion.
Aspects that will appear in the final product
Most if not all of my research will appear in my final product. I know I will use most of the research
gathered for Animal Crossing and TF2 especially when it comes to drawing comparisons between the two
and discussing the backgrounds of design elements applied to each game that have improved or
hindered the success of both titles. This information will also let me create parallels between the similar
emotions that the player would experience despite them stemming from completely different actions in
totally different contexts, for example the satisfaction of landing a headshot as a Sniper versus the
satisfaction of checking your flower garden and finding there’s been a cross breed.

14. Audience Research

15. Secondary Audience research: Nintendo
nce:
Nintendo’s brand is exceptionally recognizable but mostly only in name. Lots of
people closely associate their brand with the idea of “The company that make Mario
games” and not much else, people who are more attuned to media relating to video
games will have more of a better understanding of who Nintendo are and what they
represent, as well as an idea of their other titles. My audience however will be more
so inclined to people who play video games and are aware of the medium more-so
than just an onlooker who has a passing interesting in games. My product will in part
appeal to Nintendo fans, as Animal Crossing is also considered one of the tent-pole
franchises of the company, as it occupies the space for “life simulator” represented
under the Nintendo banner (e.g. EA’s life simulator is the Sim’s franchise”.

16. Secondary Audience research: Valve
Valve is the company behind Steam, the most popular game launcher on PC is
unsurprisingly not as well recognized as not many people know of the
association it has with Steam itself, which has transcended into its own
recognizable brand despite being a creation of Valve’s. Most people who are
aware of Valve’s existence are mostly PC gamers, as they will be aware of how
Steam operates etc, etc. Most of these audience members will either have
played TF2 or know of it.

17. Primary Audience research #1: Team Fortress 2 Interview #1 (1-4)
Interview 1 with Liam:
1. What about this game is so appealing to you?
The main appeal of TF2 for me is how is accommodates such a wide variety of players. Different players can go into the game with
completely different goals and still find something to enjoy. If someone wants a casual experience with no significant commiments
then they can find that. If someone wants a more serious and competitive game then that's available too. Regardless of how you want
to play there's something to enjoy.
2. When playing TF2, do you get that there's a sense of community behind the game?
The way TF2 is designed means it inherently encourages players to become familiar with others with similar interests. When repeatedly
playing a certain game mode you will often encounter the same players multiple times and come to recognise them. It actively
encourages players to interact with each other on at least a simple level during matches. 3:My favourite classes are the Scout and
Demoman. The Scout is my favourite class to play when I want to do things by myself without going out of my way to cooperate with
my team or focus on objectives. The Demoman is still fun but is more fun to play when he has an objective to focus on. He also has
more pronounced gameplay weaknesses that rely on his teammates to cover at times. 4: I believe that Valve's way of functioning as a
game development studio is unhealthy when regarding the creation of innovative and creative new games. It inherently encourages
employees to take the path of least resistance when developing games or software as they have no obligation to work on something
that doesn't interest them. However, this also means that nobody is working on something they are disinterested in and so may have a
better work ethic.
3. Which class is your favourite?
3:My favourite classes are the Scout and Demoman. The Scout is my favourite class to play when I want to do things by myelf without
going out of my way to cooperate with my team or focus on objectives. The demoman is still fun but is more fun to play when he has
an objective to focus on. He also has more pronounced gameplay weaknesses that rely on his teammates to cover at times.
4. What is your opinion on Valve as a company?
4: I believe that Valve's way of functioning as a game development studio is unhealthy when regarding the creation of innovative and
creative new games. It inherently encourages employees to take the path of least resistance when developing games or software as
they have no obligation to work on something that doesnt interest them. However, this also means that nobody is working on
something they are disinterested in and so may have a better work ethic

18. Primary Audience research #1: Team Fortress 2 Interview #1 (5-9)
Interview 1 with Liam:
5. If you were a dev working on TF2, what would you add or change about the game as it stands
today?
I would be a lot more involved with the TF2 community and the people who have made fan content for the game.
They have done significant amounts of work for no payment whatsoever and deserve to have their creations
acknowledged. This would mean
6. Do you think there should be a 3rd installment?
No I don't believe there should be a Team Fortress 3. TF2 is a game that has shaped the gaming industry to this day.
For example, Overwatch owes a lot of its core mechanics and other elements to TF2, who pioneered them. TF2 is a
product of its time that would be virtually impossible to top, so I think a sequel would not achieve anything
substantial.
7. What was your first experience with the game like, or the closest to the first you can recall?
One of my earliest memories in TF2 was playing the Heavy and standing on one of the battlements on a king of the hill map. I was
shooting at enemies from a distance with my minigun when another player approached me. They were also playing heavy though they
had cosmetic items. They typed in text chat telling me "You, baby, fight like man!". At the time I though this person was just being
mean to me, though now I realise that scenario was actually pretty funny.
8. What's your favorite memory you have associated with the game?
TF2 was the reason I was able to meet a new group of friends due to a mutual interest. I asked if I could join the
game of someone I knew through social media and then was added to their discord server to voice chat. We talked
and everyone got introduced while we were playing the game. Ever since then we've kept playing TF2 and become
good friends.
9. What does TF2 mean to you?
To me TF2 is familiarity. It's a game I can always rely on to be there if I want it. It's easy to enjoy with other people either as a focused
effort to play the map objective, or to simply play as background noise while talking with people. I can't think of many other games I've
played that have stood the test of time in this way like TF2 has. Brief interests have come on gone in other games, but I've always
gravitated back towards TF2 in the end.

19. 1. What about this game is so appealing to you?
Partly nostalgia, partly the community I've made w/ friends, partly the team-based nature of the game.
2. When playing TF2, do you get that there's a sense of community behind the game?
Compared to other games, yes. I think it can be put down to the game being so old, which has
brought the community together even more.
3. Which class is your favourite?
Soldier to play. Scout as a character.
4. What is your opinion on Valve as a company?
I like their games (many people do) but I dislike how their focus has shifted away from developing games and
more towards profit
5. If you were a dev working on TF2, what would you add or change about the game as it
stands today?
There's not really anything I would like to be added to TF2, but I would like certain areas of the game to be updated. For example;
hit reg and graphical bugs which have existed for years.
6. Do you think there should be a 3rd installment?
I would enjoy a TF3. But, I cannot say if there is enough interest in the franchise these days for another sequel to be worthwhile.
7. What was your first experience with the game like, or the closest to the first you can recall?
What was your first experience with the game like, or the closest to the first you can recall? Playing on Dustbowl in 2012, being
very confused but having a great time.
8. What's your favorite memory you have associated with the game?
Befriending a confused new player and teaching him what I knew.
9. What does TF2 mean to you?
TF2 is by far the game I have invested the most time into. For me, the game proves that the gaming industry has many passing
fads, if your game was made with passion and love (like TF2 was) people will recognise it for what it is and for a long time to
come.
Primary Audience research #1: Team Fortress 2 Interview #2
Interview 2 with Devon:

20. 1. What about the game is so appealing to you?
I really like how relaxing it can be, and how it's so easy to revisit daily or after a long break.
2. Do you feel there's a sense of community behind the game?
Yeah, I think there's a nice community surrounding the game especially when it comes to discussing the future of the franchise or
preferences on villagers.
3. Favourite villager and why? (Associated memory with them etc)
Melba, I always thought she was cute and I have good memories of visiting her house.
4. What are your thoughts on Nintendo as a company?
I think in comparison to other companies Nintendo can be seen as the most underdog-type, but they're just as strong as any other
company such as Sony or Microsoft, with the same morals in audience and marketing. I'm more unopinionated on the company
itself compared to the games they produce.
5. If you were a dev working on the new Animal Crossing, what would you add or change to the formula?
I'd like to add character customisation, and also the ability to rearrange some parts of the town further down the line within the
game.
6. What was your first exposure to the series like?
For the series itself, I first played Wild World when I was around 7/8 years old, and spent hours on it for multiple years. I bought
New Leaf a little while after it was released.
7. What was your first experience with the game like, or the closest you can recall?
I do remember when I first got the game, and experiencing the new plotline and dynamics for the first time was fun.
8. Favourite memory associated with the game?
The quieter in-game moments where you're fishing or catching bugs are my favourite, but I specifically enjoyed waking up at
certain times just to catch a rare animal.
9. What does Animal Crossing as a whole mean to you?
I think it's just a cute game and a great way to pass time or relax, especially if you're stressed by things in the real world. It's easy
to pick up at any time as there's always something to do due to the real-time mechanic.
Primary Audience research #2: Animal Crossing interview #1
Interview 1 with Felix:

21. 1. It's less of a game and more of an escape. It's made to give you a purpose, helping you relax by using an in game clock that mirrors the real world and forcing you to
perform somewhat arbitrary chores that help towards an overall goal which only exists because you set it yourself. I have spent days wondering around a tropical
island that you can explore the entire of in 10 seconds looking to catch expensive bugs I can sell to pay my house loan. It sounds boring, boring as hell but when the
music kicks in, the sense of adventure, the sense of purpose you're given it's hard to put the game down. You don't have to buy a bigger house, pay to decorate and
expand it but the community behind this game and the multiplayer aspect of wanting to impress people you know can drive you to lose your life in a game about
talking animals, and yet I wouldn't call it addicting. I would call it addicting if every second gave me a small dopamine rush and I dropped it after a month. I don't get
that. I'm happy when I see a goal that I have set myself, that has taken a lot of work come to completion and that's why it kept me coming back nearly every day for
years. You care about the talking animals, you give them your own characteristics like the evil Tom Nook who constantly wants your money and the chill K K Slider
who performs as a DJ nightly in a club but on Saturdays sets a more sombre tone by sitting alone on a stage with a guitar and taking song requests. There are
hundreds are combinations of unique villagers that can live in your town, with a maximum of 10, that each have their own clothing and housing design styles. You
grow to love and hate them. Cheer when the ugly ones say they'll soon be moving out and frantically do anything to convince your favourite villager to stay if they
have doubts about remaining. It's really just a better version of real life and that's why it's so magical and few other games have pulled it off.
2. There are two different types of community that are created from the game. There's your friends and there's the dedicated players. Some of my best experiences around
Animal Crossing have been with friends, whether it was when I played the second instalment (Wild World) when I was around 8 and spent days pulling off a mock
wedding with a couple of girls that over years I have now grown apart from or spending hours in the newest game (New Leaf) perfecting my town flower and path
arrangements for when friends come to visit and then creating strict rules such as that they aren't allowed to run in my orchards. Animal Crossing is 90% single player
and yet without that 10% I don't know if I would've kept playing for more than a few months. The dedicated fanbase, on the other hand, in my opinion takes the
game to a level that isn't fun. They will cheat in money through glitches and sweat over trading for their favourite coloured flower. The game is meant to be an
escape and I think making your goal to be perfect in all ways creates another parallel to real life; it's unachievable because the game is endless and you set your own
goals. Unlike most games, perfection in Animal Crossing is subjective and so the dedicated community, however nice they are, will never win.
3. My favourite villager is a small, green wiry looking squirrel called Mint. She's snobby. That's what her wiki page says but to me she represents a childhood. Everyone has
the cute villager they had in their first town that they end up treasuring for the rest of their lives, even when they move on to a new town or a new game. Mint was
mine. She was in my first town on Wild World in 2007 when I got the game. I named that town 'The Zoo' simply because naming your village was pretty complicated
for a 7 year old who hadn't played the game before. A cat would pop up and ask you where you would like to go. In my naive state i simply replied 'The Zoo' and that
ended up being the name of my town for 4 years, the town where I met Mint. Every time a friend would visit my town and told me Mint was cute I would say I know
and proudly state she was my girlfriend. When they released cards a couple years ago where you could collect villagers from Animal Crossing I jumped for joy when
getting the one with Mint on it, even though it was almost a decade since I'd first met her. I say her yet she is just some code, ones and zeros. That's why Animal
Crossing was perfect. I had felt as a child I had made a friend, a friend that at the time I thought would last a life time, a friend when I had needed it most.
4. I have had many arguments with friends about why Nintendo is the best group of game and console developers out there. They prioritise fun and that's what most of the
arguments boil down to. Though over the years they have made serious mistakes, my favourite gaming moments, nearly all of them, have been given to me by
Nintendo. They were my first and most recent console. They were my first and most recent game. They were my favourite and least favourite gaming experiences.
Some would associate the games they make with a younger audience and say their graphics are less impressive which I don't doubt but when they come up with
some ground breaking ideas like the Nintendo Switch and Wii it's hard to ignore them. People aren't stupid for lapping up every game with a major IP they produce.
Consumers do so because of the iron reputation that Nintendo has.
9. Animal Crossing Wild World wasn't my first game ever. That crown goes to Mario Kart DS, Pac-Man or Snake, I'm unsure. Wild World stood out mainly cause of the
multiplayer options it gave me, to interact with friends in an alternate life like never before. Animal New Leaf however is my favourite game. I've logged the most
time in new Leaf than any other game by about a 200 hour lead. The series has lead to many years of pain and anguish at a lack of announcements of a new
instalment and when it finally got announce at the end of 2018, it gave me one of the happiest moments of my life. I won't claim the series is the best set o games
ever, but I will claim that getting up each day to check on my animals, getting up each day top check for updates on the new iteration has been a pillar of my life for a
long time, and I hope a long time to come.
Primary Audience research #2: Animal Crossing interview #2
Interview 1 with Josh:

22. Practical Research

23. Practical Research #1: Chroma Key Test
For my first test I decided to use a green screen created by one of my key influences, Jerma. I
converted the video he uploaded of all of his different templates into a short clip and imported
it into Premiere Pro, then I found some placeholder background footage of space with no audio
which I also imported. I then unlinked both of the audio tracks, as although the space footage
had no audio YouTube still counts the empty track as a sound file. I then opened the effects
panel and searched for “ultra key” and applied it to the green screen footage, and opened all of
the drop downs in the controls panels. As seen in the screenshot, I tuned all of the different
settings to try and mitigate all of the white blurs around Jerma’s edges, as well as any trace of
green that might have reflected onto his skin by tuning the saturation. The space footage I had
used also went over by a 10 or so extra seconds, so I made sure to resize the sequence timeline
and so I could accurately razor the clip so that both clips end together, and as so not to leave
even a split second of darkness for the background.

24. Practical Research #2: Graphical test
Result of test
Snapshot of process
I decided to experiment with some ideas for what could be applied to my graphics
portion and decided to use a portrait of the Scout, my most played class in TF2 as a
basis. I used a Photoshop tutorial and some included templates to create this image,
selecting different portions of his head and then layer via cutting each selected
segment. The original was selected with a quick selection tool and then selected and
masked, then I changed the background overlay to red so I could smoothen out the
edges. Afterwards I used the Rectangular Marquee tool too segment Scouts’ hat, his
eyes and nose and finally his shoulders and chest. Each segment was layered differently
and moved slightly off center to give the impression of it being pushed by the fingers I
then added from another image sourced online.
Original image

25. Bibliography

26. Bibliography
• . Fandom Wiki. (2013). Animal Crossing: New Leaf. Available: https://animalcrossing.fandom.com/wiki/Animal_Crossing:_New_Leaf.
Last accessed 29th Mar 2019.
•
• 2. Robin Walker. (2007). Robin Walker (game designer). Available: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Walker_(game_designer). Last
accessed 29th Mar 2019.
•
• 3. Valve. (2007). Official Team Fortress 2 Wiki. Available: https://wiki.teamfortress.com/. Last accessed 29th Mar 2019.
•
• 4. GDC. (2014). How to Turn a New Leaf at the Animal Crossing. Available: https://www.gdcvault.com/play/1020808/How-to-Turn-a-
New. Last accessed 27th Mar 2019.
•
• 5. JonTron. (2010). JonTronShow. Available: https://www.youtube.com/user/JonTronShow/featured?disable_polymer=1. Last accessed
29th Mar 2019.
•
• 6. Lazy Purple. (2010). LazyPurple's YouTube channel. Available: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdfj8hli-xBL93bfQvce88A. Last
accessed 29th Mar 2019.
•
• 7. Matthewmatosis. (2011). Matthewmatosis's YouTube channel.Available:
https://www.youtube.com/user/Matthewmatosis/featured?disable_polymer=1. Last accessed 29th Mar 2019.
•
• 8. Arin Hanson. (2006). Egoraptor. Available: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0gEw6pgNkLkkzMwzX4UtHA. Last accessed 29th
Mar 2019.
•
• 9. Jeremy Harrington. (2011). Jerma985. Available: https://www.youtube.com/user/Jerma985/about?disable_polymer=1. Last
accessed 29th Mar 2019.
•
• 10. Aya Kyogoku. (2003). Aya Kyogoku's Wikipedia profile. Available: https://nintendo.fandom.com/wiki/Aya_Kyogoku. Last accessed
27th Mar 2019.