University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

544

(USC Thesis Other)

544

PDF

Download a page range

Download transcript

Copy asset link

Request this asset

Transcript (if available)

Content Page 1 of 15

544

A Thesis submitted in fulfillment/partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
INTERACTIVE MEDIA, May 2015
at
The University of Southern California
By
Alexa Kim

Page 2 of 15

Contents
1. The Premise of 544
1) Overview ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 3
2) The Laboratory ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 3
3) The Characters ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 4
2. The Ideation
1) Origin of the Story ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 5
2) Relevant Work ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 6
3. Design Goals of the Project and Its Execution
1) Flexibility between Narrative and Mechanical Gameplay ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 8
2) Multiple Perspective Storytelling ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 9
4. Production Reflections
1) A Good Start: Having a Concrete and Cohesive Idea of the Game ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 12
2) Fall Mid-Semester Open House: The Advantage of Concentric Design ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 12
3) Winter Show: Scoping Down Length and Cutting out Excess Mechanics ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 13
5. The Outcome ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 14
Notes ∙ ∙ ∙ Page 1 5

Page 3 of 15

1. The Premise of 544
1) Overview
544 is a 3D, first-person, survival-escape game that involves two siblings controlled by a single
player. The player’s objective is to lead the two characters through a labyrinthine mansion while
avoiding getting caught by an enemy with artificial-intelligence, or AI. Each of the player’s character has
their unique physical attributes as well as abilities that complement the other’s flaws. The game is
designed so that players need to use both characters in tandem, in order to progress through blocked
passageways and threats.
544 takes place in a Japanese laboratory hidden in Korea during World War II. The player starts
with no knowledge of the unit or the identity of the siblings, Jin and Nami. At first glance, the pseudo-
Victorian guise of the laboratory makes it seem like a wealthy family’s home. The story begins with Jin
and Nami questioning the disappearance of their ‘Mother,’ revealing that she always keeps the children
locked in until morning, but has not returned to them that day. After realizing that everyone has gone
missing, the siblings decide to break out and look around for help. Then they are met by a vicious,
mutated intruder that is inferred as the cause of the laboratory’s distress. In the process of the siblings’
escape from this intruder, they learn that they are the brainwashed subjects of an extensive research in
biological warfare.
2) The Laboratory
The laboratory in the game is that of Unit 544, a fictional subsidiary to the actual Japanese
laboratory, Unit 731. Unit 731 was a human experimentation lab founded by the Japanese army during
WWII, in order to research the efficiency of biological and chemical weapons. It was situated in the
Pingfang district of China, taking civilian and military captives of the Japanese army as expendable
subjects to test lethal weaponry.
1
In the game, Unit 544 is established when two subjects from Unit 731,
Page 4 of 15

Jin and Nami, start developing supernatural senses. The researchers of Unit 544 take in the young
siblings as their subjects, providing them a stable environment with nutrition and controlled education.
For the lab, the siblings are no longer expendables; they are now the most valuable specimens that they
must observe and replicate.
3) The Characters
The main protagonists, Jin and Nami are young civilian captives that were sent to Unit 731 with
their biological mother. Their mother died shortly after their captivity, but the siblings were spared
when Jin’s ability to see through objects started to develop. Soon after their arrival at the new lab,
Nami’s exceptional hearing was observed. Nami is too young to remember life outside the lab of Unit
544, but Jin – being 10 years older than Nami – has faint recollections of it that are largely
incomprehensible after years of brainwashing by their appointed researchers, Dr. Lee and Dr. Kurosawa.
Dr. Lee was born under Korean parents who pledged their allegiance to Japan. She moved to
Japan at an early age to devote herself to the study of biology. Discrimination and self-inflicted shame
involving her Korean roots has made her a rather cynical workaholic. She is called as ‘Mother’ by the
siblings but prides herself in having no emotional attachment to her subjects whatsoever. In the
opposite end of the spectrum is Dr. Kurosawa. The reluctant Japanese doctor’s reason to join the lab
was entirely because of his grandfather, who appointed his young grandson to work under him in Unit
731. As the appointed doctor of the siblings, he was moved to Unit 544 where the extended time
allowed for his now non-expendable subjects has resulted in building compassion towards them. These
two doctors portray contrasting extremes of the stances that the researchers had regarding the research.
When the war ended with Japan’s defeat, the lab was forced to eliminate their subjects. Subsequently,
Kurosawa had gone missing, taking some of the lab’s prototype serums. A few weeks after this event is
when the game takes place. The game hints that the doctor’s disappearance is likely to be related to the
appearance of the beastly intruder.
Page 5 of 15

Figure 1 Starting Screen of the Game

2. The Ideation
1) Origin of the Story
The original idea of 544 came from two stories – the history of Unit 731 and a Korean folktale
called ‘The Sun and the Moon.’
2
In ‘The Sun and the Moon,’ two siblings are left home while their
mother is out for work. She is met with a tiger (oftentimes the antagonist in Korean folklore), who eats
her and comes home to eat the siblings also. The siblings manage to escape the beast using their
cunning and help from the sky. The story of 544 opens up similarly, with the siblings wondering about
the disappearance of ‘Mother,’ followed by the intrusion of a beastly antagonist. The widely known
folktale is also incorporated into the game when Nami mentions that ‘Mother’ has told it to her
countless times – sans the happy ending – so that she would be afraid of the Tiger and the outside world.
This also prompts Nami to believe that the intruder is the Tiger, calling it thereof. This folktale also
birthed the idea of making 544 into a stealth escape game, as the process in which the siblings exit the
house and eventually climb up into the heavens seemed like a natural fit for a video game with
Page 6 of 15

progressive objectives. The entire gameplay timeline of 544 had initially been designed as a parallel
metaphor of the folktale, but eventually it was cut back to allow more freedom in storytelling.
The history of Unit 731 is a tragic past for many countries that opposed Japan in WWII. 544 was
written to introduce it to players, in the context of Korean history and culture. While Korea was under
the Japanese rule, many Korean independence fighters were sent to Unit 731. It is one of Japan’s biggest
war crimes that were dismissed, with the researchers of the unit granted immunity by the U.S.
government in exchange for the research data.
3
While the story of 544 is still an alternate history that is
entirely fictional, it stands as an allegory that portrays the brutality that the author believes worthy of
stating. Concerns from brought about in the feedback from faculty including committee members that
the fantastical aspect of the characters having ‘superpowers’ and the world being based on alternate
history may bring up notions that the game is exploiting a dark history that has yet to be resolved,
merely for entertainment. Careful deliberation has been put into the tone of the story so that it focuses
on the siblings’ emotions in coping through their traumatic findings about the laboratory. Furthermore,
a conscious choice was made to avoid gratuitous gore found in popular science-fiction or fantasy media.
2) Relevant Work
544 draws inspiration countless pieces of games and documentaries. The stealth gameplay takes
its roots from that of Siren: Blood Curse is a great balance of strategy and action, especially when the
game denies the player any form of weapon. In Siren, the player can yell or run to attract the attention
of the enemies, or set objects such as cooking timers to cause a delayed distraction. The use of sound
detection in an AI enemy is a popular double-edged mechanic, in that not only is it an obstacle for the
player to overcome but also a way to send off the enemy with a distraction. Similar to Siren, 544 lets the
character produce the sound or trigger an object in the environment to do the same. One added layer in
544 is that because the player may switch between two characters, a character can act as that source of
Page 7 of 15

distraction while the other can be used to take other actions. In this case of course, the risk of the
character producing the distraction being caught by the enemy requires strategic planning.
Storytelling in 544 is all diegetic, meaning all information given to the players comes from within
the world of the game. It is mostly done through environmental storytelling; through looking and
reading objects in the character’s perspective and displaying their thoughts. Therefore, most of the story
that is told is done as recollections from the character’s memories. The author had a similar approach in
her prior game, Anamnesis. In it, the story is told by delivering bits of audio and visual recollections of
the character regarding the object that is seen. The number or the order of objects seen by the player
does not dictate the narrative greatly. However, key objects that provide the most crucial information
will trigger events that progress the narrative into the next section. The same has been brought over to
the storytelling of 544, adding in triggered real-time dialogue between Jin and Nami to reinforce
important beats in the story. Another great example for this kind of storytelling is Fullbright’s critically
acclaimed video game Gone Home. By finding things around the house to read and listen to, player
unlocks more and more about the mystery behind the disappearance of the player character’s sister.
Jin and Nami have different personalities and awareness of the situation which produces two
different sets of thoughts for each object seen by the player. This method of multiple perspective
storytelling in gameplay first caught the author’s attention in Quantic Dream’s Indigo Prophecy, in a
scene where the player can switch between two investigators in a crime scene to gather a more
voluptuous understanding of each piece of evidence. In the author’s prior work, Anamnesis, this was
done by having the player character use a special set of goggles to read the memories of multiple
characters. In 544, the perspectives presented are not limited to Jin and Nami. Even the characters that
are only present through static artifacts present their thoughts through many different forms such as
notes, voice recordings, and their possessions. The details of how this was incorporated into 544 will be
further explained in a later section of this writing.
Page 8 of 15

3. Design Goals of the Project and Its Execution
1) Flexibility between Narrative and Mechanical Gameplay
The early prototypes of 544 demanded more of the players’ virtual motor skills. There were
fewer objects to use to distract the enemy, and the player often had to make quick reactive maneuvers.
The user research done concluded that there was a very strong positive correlation between the player’s
proficiency in 3D action games and their performance in the prototype of 544.
Figure 2 Scatter Plot Showing the Correlation between TAS and TPS

The above figure is a scatter plot of six testers illustrating this correlation. The Target Audience Score
was calculated from a quantitative survey of the tester’s past experience in 3D action games. The Total
Performance Score was calculated from the time it took for testers to complete the objectives of the
544 prototype.
The target audience for this game had already been determined as ‘core gamers’ – gamers that
have wider breadth of experience in video games than casual gamers. However, not all core gamers
prefer games that require quick reaction, and a way to include this diversity in taste was desired. The
answer to this was creating flexibility between narrative and mechanical gameplay. With this, both
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5
450 550 650 750 850 950 1050
Target Audience Score
Total Performance Score
Total Performance Score
Page 9 of 15

narrative focused players and action focused players will find the game adequately difficult and
engaging. Objectives in the game can be achieved in multiple ways. For example, the final objective of
Level 1 is diverting the enemy’s attention to bypass him towards the exit. The player can:
A) Set the alarm clock in the next room to ring. Moving both characters, bypass the enemy when he
is investigating it.
B) Using both characters, bypass the enemy by stealth walking towards the exit, reaching one room
at a time. There is only a small window of timing for this method to work.
Method A) is hinted in multiple pieces of notes found around the rooms. These notes are there primarily
there to build the story, but they also mention that the nearby researchers have been complaining
about the loud noise the clock makes every morning. Method A) is also the safest method of escape
because it is at the direct opposite of the exit; once the enemy is investigating the clock, the player has
ample time to move both characters to the exit point. This method is for players that like taking time to
read and listen to things around them. Method B) is entirely dependent on the player’s quick judgment
and controls. It does not require any knowledge of other usable objects. It is risky, but as long as the
player is comfortable with their skills in controlling the characters, this method will work. There are
other methods that are a mixture of the two approaches, but the essence of this design is that the more
narrative items you read, the easier it is to escape the enemy. The lesser you read, the more quick
actions you will need to make in order to achieve the same objective. This gives the player freedom to
choose how they wish to experience the game, depending on their preference in gameplay.
2) Multiple Perspective Storytelling
Marcus Hartner defines multiple perspective storytelling, or multiperspectivity, as “a mode of
storytelling in which multiple and often discrepant viewpoints are employed for the presentation and
evaluation of a story and its storyworld.”
4
This method of storytelling is certainly not new. To use
Hartner’s examples, Pierre Choderlos de Laclos’ Les Liaisons dangereuses (1782) tells the story through
Page 10 of 15

letters from multiple characters with conflicting motives. A more recent work is Orhan Pamuk’s My
Name Is Red (1998), a novel about a murder narrated by many voices, some of which are from
inanimate objects such as a coin or a corpse. As explained earlier in this writing, 544 is not the author’s
first work to use multiple perspectives in game narrative. Coming from a monoracial society of Korea
into the melting pot of Los Angeles, the author’s focus in narrative has since been on layering different
facets of viewpoints to build a dynamic yet cohesive world. As such, the same approach in storytelling
has been incorporated into that of 544.
Jin and Nami’s differences in perspective come from three main aspects: their difference in
heightened senses, knowledge, and personality. These aspects are oftentimes connected by causality
with one another. Jin and Nami’s differing abilities in perceiving space (Jin’s vision and Nami’s hearing)
has shaped how they experience the world. In the game, Jin’s thoughts will note on what he has seen, as
opposed to Nami, who will focus on what she has heard.
Figure 3-1 Example of Jin’s Point of View and Thoughts

Page 11 of 15

Figure 3-2 Same Object Seen in Nami’s Point of View.

Moreover, Jin’s vision has enabled him to witness more than Nami, whether or not he
understood all of what he has seen. That gives Jin certain knowledge and awareness of the situation, in
addition to a higher level of understanding due to his older age. Of course, Nami has heard more things
than Jin, but that has given her a different set of knowledge from that of Jin’s, thus creating the
discrepancy. Jin’s knowledge also comes from his faint memories of Unit 731, whereas Nami was too
young to remember. All of this, plus their innate traits, has resulted in the siblings having two very
different personalities. Jin is partially aware of their captivity, and has always had a strong distrust in the
lab and its researchers. He accepts his fate because it is forced upon him, but believes Nami is too young
to handle the same emotional burden. He has kept these things a secret from Nami. Nami is less critical
of her situation and her naiveté, coupled with her lower level of vocabulary will affect the information
she is able to gather. When the player happens upon documents disclosing the identity of the siblings,
Nami will ask Jin what they mean and Jin will dismiss them as ‘boring medical records.’ However, if the
player looks through the same documents in Jin’s point of view, his thoughts will reveal that he
Page 12 of 15

understands more than he lets out. Nami’s growing suspicions over Jin withholding information from
her will build up tension between the characters.

4. Production Reflections
1) A Good Start: Having a Concrete and Cohesive Idea of the Game
The ideation of 544 first came up in 2009. The production never took off, but countless
iterations of game design documents and reimagining over the years has made the design goals very
clear to the author. When the actual production started in 2014, the game design document had already
been through rigorous editing. The development team could follow detailed instructions that have gone
through trial and error in pre-production phase. Any design issues that arose after each prototyping and
testing was addressed with the best play experience in mind, but since the design goals were concrete,
the designers had a solid guideline to follow in their deliberations.
2) Fall Mid-Semester Open House: The Advantage of Concentric Design
544 was developed by following the principle that is known as ‘concentric design.’ Gameplay
mechanics of the project were implemented one at a time, after testing and iterating it with the
previously added components. For 544, the initial component was the player motor function. Then, their
abilities were added and with the environment. Next, the enemy was added, with its vision added first
and then his hearing. When everything regarding the dynamic characters and objects had been done,
the scripted events and static narrative components were added in. Because new mechanics were
introduced one by one, the cause of problems that arose was easy to find. More importantly, this was
also critical in addressing feedback from playtests by adding or taking out mechanics.
The main feedback from the Fall Open house playtest was that Nami’s hearing did not provide
enough directionality to be reliable on a stereo sound setting. This was when Nami did not have her
Page 13 of 15

echolocation and Jin was the one that could see in the dark. Nami’s ability was reported by players to be
relatively insignificant compared to Jin. To address this, Jin’s night vision was given to Nami in a
visualized form of echolocation. As a result, players were now using Jin to scout for bright areas that
provided them a goal point; then they navigated to it by using Nami’s echolocation through dark areas.
Figure 4 Nami’s Echolocation Revealing a Passageway In Darkness

3) Winter Show: Scoping Down Length and Cutting out Excess Mechanics
The original scope of the project was considerably large. The game had an approximate playtime
of 5 hours. Due to the size of the team, budget and time limit, it was decided that this yearlong thesis
production would complete the first chapter of the game. This was sought to be 5 levels and
approximately 60 minutes of playtime. But by the time Winter Show happened, only the first level had
been completed. Enemy hearing and the follow mode for the unselected character was yet to be
implemented. Feedback comments from Winter Show were generally positive. Players followed the
tutorial and complete the level successfully within an average of 15 to 20 minutes. They picked up the
core mechanic of character switching with ease. However, the issue was that content development was
severely behind schedule. A decision was made to down scope both length and mechanics, in order to
Page 14 of 15

keep the essence of the experience – in other words, the two design goals explained in section 3 – and
better refine it. The final scope was changed to completing two full levels and one additional room that
would narratively conclude the chapter and provide rewarding closure. Some game mechanics were
dropped as well. In the initial design document, the player characters had a panic gauge which would
increase and interfere with their abilities unless they used consumable items such as food or drinks.
These items were to be found across the map, and could be tracked down by deploying Nami’s pet rat.
The pet rat worked well with Nami’s ability to detect and follow soft sounds, but was thought to be not
crucial to the experience and possibly redundant alongside Jin’s role as a scouter. Therefore this
mechanic was completely dropped from the game.

5. The Outcome
In comparison to its original scope, this version of 544 leaves more to be desired. There are
shortcomings such as the small number of levels or narrative flair that could not be addressed in the
time given. However, it does capture the core emotion of the thriller piece it was written to be. Players
find it a challenging game, yet are encouraged to try again when caught by the enemy. The flexibility of
the game system that allows players to test out multiple strategies keep them engaged. Overall, the
author believes that it is a solid piece that demonstrates the design successfully. In the month of
production that is left, extensive user testing, bug fixing, and cosmetic additions to content will be
completed so that players at the final Thesis Show may have a smooth, consistent experience.

Page 15 of 15

Notes

1
General facts on Unit 731 can be found at:
http://www.unit731.org

2
A short, English version can be found at:
http://asianfolktales.unescoapceiu.org/folktales/read/korea_2.htm

3
Documents supporting this can be read here:
http://japanfocus.org/-Christopher-Reed/2177

4
Hartner, Marcus: "Multiperspectivity", Paragraph 2. In: Hühn, Peter et al. (eds.): the living handbook of
narratology. Hamburg: Hamburg University Press.
http://wikis.sub.uni-hamburg.de/lhn/index.php/Multiperspectivity

Abstract (if available)

Linked assets

University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Conceptually similar

PDF

Manjusaka

PDF

Aesthetic driven design of Space Maestro

PDF

GSML: Game System Modeling Language—spatializing play structures and interaction flow

PDF

Dissonance

PDF

Ardum: a project about the player-designer relationship

PDF

On the shoulders of giants

PDF

Bardcore!

PDF

Feel the force

PDF

Quicksilver: infinite story: procedurally generated episodic narratives for gameplay

PDF

Bottles

PDF

Exploring empathy through negotiation

PDF

Ahistoric

PDF

Super Opera Squad

PDF

Your presence is present enough: a thesis project postpartum

PDF

FRKN WKND and video game mixtapes: developing talent and experience through video game mixtapes

PDF

Light at the End of the Tunnels: level design and its relationship to a spectrum of fear

PDF

Historicity and sociality in game design: adventures in ludic archaeology

PDF

Emetic Labs: simulator sickness in videogame players

PDF

The Distance: a cooperative communication game to long-distance players

PDF

Shepherds - cooperating from divergent path: a design exploration

Asset Metadata

Creator Kim, Bona (author)

Core Title 544

School School of Cinematic Arts

Degree Master of Fine Arts

Degree Program Interactive Media

Publication Date 05/12/2015

Defense Date 03/17/2015

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag alternate history,OAI-PMH Harvest,Storytelling,video game

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Wixon, Dennis (committee chair), Brinson, Peter (committee member), Kang, Danny (committee member)

Creator Email bonakim@usc.edu,mokiban@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c3-567988

Unique identifier UC11298832

Identifier etd-KimBona-3446.pdf (filename),usctheses-c3-567988 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-KimBona-3446.pdf

Dmrecord 567988

Document Type Thesis

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Kim, Bona

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA