Game Log 4: Create

Pitch

The ocean is more than water — it is life, dignity, and our shared future. In this game, the ocean becomes the arena where two generations clash: the Old Generation, armed with oil spills and old power vs the New Generation fighting with buoys to clean the ocean. Every move is a dilemma. Do you repeat the destructive habits of the past, or do you fight for a cleaner tomorrow?

This game is culturally relevant, because it mirrors our reality. We demand clean water and human dignity, yet our collective actions continue to poison the very oceans we depend on. It also reveals inequality, since the Old Generation, backed by old money and corporate power, dominates in polluting, while the New Generation must find new strategies to resist.

By playing, people experience the tension between generations, values, and visions of the future. It sparks dialogue: How much of the ocean do we want to sacrifice? And whose responsibility is it to change? And when will it be too late? 

What is your game about, and what is its cultural relevance and potential? How is it a game through culture?

The game is about plastic soup and how different generations are looking at the problem. It mirrors our reality. We have rights to have clean water and to be treated equally. The player has to choose every move with dilemma’s. By playing the game, people experience the tension between generations, values, and visions of the future. 

The game-making process:

Game box front:

Playing cards:

After taking the old design and improving it we came to the following cards, sadly due to the short amount of time we couldn't add the visuals we wanted on some cards but tried to still make it look good without.

The dice cards:

Replacing a dice to keep the players more active during the game. In the dice deck are also the stormcards added to shake up the game a little.

The action cards:

The action cards are made as an extra step which you need to execute whenever you put a fiche on a polluted tile on the board.

Draw cards:

The draw cards are made to give the player an extra chance of removing the opponents fiches of the board. These cards two decks for each player a separate deck.

After illustrating them and finalizing we printed them out and made actual cards from them with the resources we had.

Manual

We’ve ask some feedback outside this class and we got the advice to make some visuals in the manual. Because the board we now have in not hight-fi already we choose only put the action cards extra in. 

Versie 3 

Versie 4

I’ve learned how to put storytelling together with information so you can play the game right. If the design looks like it belongs to the game by putting elements from the board and the cards. By choosing blue it looks more playful. By putting storytelling first the player gets drawn into the story and relates and cares about the sea. 

I’ve started with just making. Most of the time I begin with drawing but I was inspired to just begin with designing. By looking at other manuals I learned how they show information. I asked for feedback about storytelling so I can learn more about storytelling and information.

A summary of your pitch

This game uses the ocean as a metaphorical battlefield between the Old Generation, representing pollution and corporate power, and the New Generation, striving for a cleaner future. Through gameplay, it highlights tensions between past habits and future visions, exposing issues of inequality, responsibility, and urgency in protecting our oceans. It invites players to reflect on how much we are willing to sacrifice and who must lead the change before it’s too late.

Talk about the game prototype, the interplay of EU values, the cultural game jam theme.

The game works with 2 parties, the New and the Old Generation just like the real world. For example in the gameplay: the Old Generation has a benefit because they can put an oil spill on the sea before the game starts. This is because this generation has more money and power than the New Generation. Also humans have the right on clean water. That is what we are going to tell by playing the game.   

The Final result picture