University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Lake Minnewaska | uplifting a Black narrative in an underrepresented industry | exploring grief themes in a fishing video game

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Lake Minnewaska | uplifting a Black narrative in an underrepresented industry | exploring grief themes in a fishing video game

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Content Lake Minnewaska
UPLIFTING A BLACK NARRATIVE IN AN UNDERREPRESENTED INDUSTRY
EXPLORING GRIEF THEMES IN A FISHING VIDEO GAME
by
Lloyd Campbell III
A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC SCHOOL OF CINEMATIC ARTS
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF FINE ARTS
(INTERACTIVE MEDIA)
Copyright 2024 May 2024 Lloyd Campbell III

ii
Acknowledgments
Thank you to my friends and family for supporting and encouraging me to pursue my dreams.
Thank you to my fantastic team for making this project possible.
Thanks to the committee and my cohort for uplifting my voice.

iii
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments.........................................................................................................................ii
Table of Contents......................................................................................................................... iii
Table of Figures............................................................................................................................iv
Abstract .......................................................................................................................................v
Chapter One: Introduction............................................................................................................. 1
1.1. About the Lake............................................................................................................... 1
1.2. A Little About Grief......................................................................................................... 2
1.3. Black Representation in Fishing........................................................................................ 3
1.4. Underrepresented Voices in Fishing Games....................................................................... 4
Chapter Two: Project Overview...................................................................................................... 6
2.1. Experience Goal.................................................................................................................. 6
2.2. Player Goal ........................................................................................................................ 6
2.3. Parallel .............................................................................................................................. 7
Chapter Three: Gameplay Progression ............................................................................................ 9
Chapter Four: Narrative ...............................................................................................................10
4.1. Narrative Overview............................................................................................................10
4.2. Story ................................................................................................................................10
Chapter Five: What Have I Learned? ..............................................................................................14
5.1. Narrative is Paramount.......................................................................................................14
5.2. Reactions to a Black Fisherman ...........................................................................................15
5.3. Unrealistic to Fully Convey Grief..........................................................................................15
Chapter Six: Conclusion................................................................................................................17

iv
Table of Figures
Figure 1: Picture of Lake Minnewaska............................................................................................ 2
Figure 2: Stages of Grief.................................................................................................................. 3
Figure 3: Picture of Ebony Anglers fishing team............................................................................. 4
Figure 4: Screenshot from Firewatch.............................................................................................. 7
Figure 5: Screenshot from Pro Fishing Simulator........................................................................... 8
Figure 6: Screenshot from Sea of Thieves fishing minigame.......................................................... 8
Figure 7: Lake Minnewaska’s Core Gameplay Loop ....................................................................... 9
Figure 8: A screenshot of the journal in Lake Minnewaska............................................................ 9
Figure 9: A screenshot of Act 1’s environment in Lake Minnewaska........................................... 11
Figure 10: A screenshot of Act 2’s environment in Lake Minnewaska......................................... 12
Figure 11: A screenshot of Act 3’s environment in Lake Minnewaska......................................... 13

v
Abstract
Lake Minnewaska is a first-person adventure game that follows Sosa, a small-town
African-American angler whose life takes a turn when his daughter, Rue, dies. Sosa is out on the
lake, missing her funeral, fishing, hoping he can remove the guilt of being a neglectful father
during the time she was living. Azure, Rue’s imaginary friend, disrupts Sosa’s fishing journey to
make him accept his grief.
Players will venture through Lake Minnewaska, where the lines between reality and
imagination blur, and fish to complete Rue’s Fishlist. As they progress through the game, they
explore different stages of grief: denial, anger, acceptance, and depression. Sosa cannot undo
all the wrong he has done in the past for his daughter, who is full of sunshine, but he can
attempt to move on.

1
Chapter One: Introduction
Sitting on the boat, rocking with the waves hitting the hull, and the mind coming to
attention when the fishing line thrums through the lake’s plane are experiences shared by
cultures around the world. This collective experience of fishing directly connects the people
with Mother Nature. She brings life, and she brings death. This is a cycle that all must endure.
Everyone grieves differently but shares the same Earth and interacts with the same
atmosphere that gives life even through death. Lake Minnewaska is a project that explores grief
through an African-American fisherman, Sosa, who grapples with the loss of his daughter, Rue.
Through Sosa’s journey, the game explores some of the stages of grief, offering players an
immersive and emotional experience that delves into the complexities of the human condition.
The paper will examine the reasoning behind using fishing to express grief, discoveries during
development, and how we can apply these discoveries in future productions.
1.1. About the Lake
The actual Lake Minnewaska (Figure 1) is the 13th largest lake in Minnesota, attracting
people to the largest lake town, my home, Glenwood, Minnesota. The lake’s power over the
community is the main reason for directing a heavy narrative fishing game for my MFA thesis.
Glenwood thrives off the economy Lake Minnewaska brings in yearly: families take their boats
out for fishing and spend quality time away from the screens.

2
(Figure 1: Picture of Lake Minnewaska in Glenwood, MN)
My family and I are not avid fishermen, but we have gone out on the lake a few times,
and it is evident that the people who come to Glenwood come for the lake. Each time we go
fishing, I get lost in the lake’s waves, the birds chirping, and the rod’s vibrations. I wish I could
fish more. The sport can connect generations and cultures because we all share the clear water
and the blue skies. People love to fish and love using that time to share stories. The thesis
project, Lake Minnewaska, intends to transfer those emotions into the video game space with a
story about grief.
1.2. A Little About Grief
Grief is an emotion that is hard to explain or predict. Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross explains
that “the stages of grief were never intended to be a roadmap” (“Understanding Grief”) (Figure
2). It has no formula.

3
(Figure 2: Stages of Grief)
Lake Minnewaska is a linear progression, so it can only partially depict the realistic grief
experience. Still, it does allow the players to interact and interpret how they can visualize the
stages. Grief is complex, and I hope creatives can use my project to help future game
productions display grief.
1.3.Black Representation in Fishing
Fishing in Black communities across the United States does not attract the front pages of
major media outlets. In the commercial fishing industry, 91% is made up of men, 72% is white,
9% is made up of women, and only 2.9% is African American (“Fisherman Demographics and
Statistics [2022]: Number of Fishermans in the US”). The statistics are part of why I want to
share an underrepresented story about fishing. There are commercial anglers and professional
bassmasters who remind the public that fishing is not a profession solely belonging to white
people. Alfred Williams was the first African American to qualify for the Bassmaster Classic
1983 (“Ross Barnett Legend — Alfred Williams”). He is a trailblazer when it comes to
professional sport fishing. It was not until 2011 that Sabrina Thompson became the first woman

4
and African-American to compete in the Bassmaster Classic. (“DOPE PROS: Bass Fishing with Pro
Angler Torcia”)
The Ebony Anglers are a competitive women’s fishing team whose mission is to “impact
the sport of competitive women’s fishing through diversity and inclusion of female anglers of
color.” (“Black Female Fishing Team | Ebony Anglers | United States”) (Figure 3) They
understand the lack of diversity and representation and are working to bring more eyes and
invite more people to participate in fishing. My project is to continue representing African
Americans in the fishing world.
(Figure 3: Picture of the Ebony Anglers fishing team)
1.4. Underrepresented Voices in Fishing Games
Fishing video games struggle to highlight Black representation and the sport's impact on
the African-American community. At least 48 fishing mini-games have been released, from
Link’s Awakening (1993) to Yakuza 3 (2009) to Fire Emblem Engage (2023), and none of them
feature a Black fisherman (Skeithreviews et al.). The games industry unwittingly implies that
Black people do not fish. Many players are not offered the opportunity to play as Black
protagonists.

5
I am developing Lake Minnewaska to uplift an underrepresented story that I can
communicate. I want to show that Black people do fish and show a relatable experience all
humans go through.

6
Chapter Two: Project Overview
My MFA Thesis is about creating an interactive, engaging experience where an AfricanAmerican navigates both the lake waters and his personal grief. The project is my attempt to
uncover ways people deal with this challenging emotion.
I do not know how I deal with death. I do know that I am not the same person I am
today when family close to me has passed away. My worldview transforms every day I learn
something new. Grief is funny like that. I do not honestly believe I will ever predict how I will
react, but at least in this experience, I have control over the emotions I want to convey.
I want to use Lake Minnewaska to broadcast my assumptions where I can fulfill the
human desire to have control over their life.
2.1. Experience Goal
Players will embark on a journey that explores themes of grief and face the daunting
challenge of nature. But as they inch closer to survival, they will experience a sense of hope and
triumph when encountering the lake’s obstacles.
2.2. Player Goal
The player controls Sosa, a struggling angler who wants to catch all the fish on Rue’s
Fishlist. The Fishlist is a list of fish Rue wishes her father to fish out for her. However, Rue’s
imaginary friend interrupts the fishing trip to get the main character to confront his grief, return
to shore, and attend his daughter’s funeral. Players will fish through various fishing holes in
three different lake zones and learn what kind of fish there are to collect and how they relate to
Sosa and Rue.

7
2.3. Parallel
Lake Minnewaska is Firewatch meeting Pro Fishing Simulator, influenced by Ernest
Hemingway’s fisherman protagonist in The Old Man and the Sea (Hemingway). My project’s
mechanic eventually mimics the Sea of Thieves fishing minigame throughout development.
The Old Man and The Sea is one of the project’s more powerful narrative prior art. Like
my project, the community and the world rely on the fishing industry. The story resonates in
my thoughts every day as I develop this project. Hemingway’s novel is about a commercial
fisherman who struggles against a giant marlin far off the coast of Cuba. Sosa is closely related
to the book’s protagonist, Santiago, using the environment to progress as a character.
(Figure 4: Screenshot from Firewatch)
Firewatch (Figure 4) is an Indie game made in Unity that follows a fire lookout named
Henry. Henry rarely encounters another human face-to-face. Sosa does not interact with other
humans on his fishing trip; both characters rely on a voice through a radio or walkie-talkie.
Environmental storytelling is imperative to both experiences. Lake Minnewaska draws
inspiration from Firewatch’s color palette and art feel. The environment is a character itself,
representing emotions.

8
Pro Fishing Simulator (Figure 5) is the primary fishing game. It is a third-person and firstperson simulator in which players left-click to cast and right-click to reel. The game’s
procedures tell the players to choose their cast direction, charge their cast, strike within a
timed window, and reel in the fish. Similar controls are in Lake Minnewaska.
(Figure 5: Screenshot from Pro Fishing Simulator)
Sea of Thieves (Figure 6) fishing procedures and game feel have a strong, realized
influence on Lake Minnewaska. The first-person camera and fishing rod positioning are similar
in both experiences, as are the fish splashes representing the fish's stamina. Both games ask the
player to move the mouse in the opposite direction to tire out the fish.
(Figure 6: Screenshot from Sea of Thieves fishing minigame)

9
Chapter Three: Gameplay Progression
The player’s main objective is to follow Rue’s Fishlist and catch all the fish she recorded
in Sosa’s journal to progress the game. Each fishing hole has a section in the journal. The left
page of the fishing hole’s section includes a drawing of a fish, while the right page contains the
landmark to find the fish. The player can successfully catch the fish by casting their line at the
specified points of interest, fighting the fish after it is hooked, and reeling the fish towards the
boat. Then Sosa takes a Polaroid picture of the fish for the journal. When the image is placed in
the journal, Sosa takes notes and recounts a memory of Rue surrounding the fish.
(Figure 7: Lake Minnewaska’s Core Gameplay Loop)
Sosa is an African-American Angler who reconnects with his ailing daughter and catches
all the fish in Rue’s Fishlist. He is a distant father who feels guilty that he is not as close to his
daughter as she wants. He only hangs out with her in the boat and rarely outside of it. Sosa
loves his daughter dearly but fails to verbally communicate his emotions towards her, creating
distance. Fishing is the only way he knows how to express his love.
(Figure 8: A screenshot of the journal in Lake Minnewaska)

10
Chapter Four: Narrative
Lake Minnewaska is a heavy narrative game where I rely on my team’s story and visuals
to explore grief. Players do not know that Rue is dead and experience a thrilling tale that makes
Sosa come to terms with her death. Azure, Rue’s imaginary friend, acts as an agent to enforce
the realization onto Sosa.
4.1. Narrative Overview
At the start of the game, players are introduced to Sosa, who is on a quest to follow his
memories with his daughter, Rue. Sosa mentions that he is missing an important date. But he
fails to acknowledge that it is, in fact, his daughter’s funeral. Players will not know of her death
until the end of the game when Azure confronts Sosa to accept the reality. Rue is dead.
As Sosa fishes for his daughter, strange events happen: Sosa can hear Rue’s voice on the
radio, he catches strange, glowing fish, and Azure shakes the boat. By the end of the day, Sosa
manages to catch the angry Azure, which leads to the realization that his actions will not bring
his daughter back. He comes to appreciate the time he spent with his daughter and decorates
the entire cabin with memories of her.
Grief is not intended to be obvious to the player. The goal is for them to realize what
Sosa is experiencing near the end of the game. The environment and the dialogue reflect the
grief stage.
4.2. Story
I organize my attempt to explore grief by attaching a grief stage to each act. The entire
fishing trip encompasses one full day for Sosa. Each lake zone, or each act, is meant to

11
represent the different stages of grief. As I referenced earlier in the paper, people can
experience grief chaotically; people cannot predict how they feel from moment to moment.
Fishing is also unpredictable. The ones holding the rod never know what they are going to hook.
Players are not meant to predict or be told the exact emotion Sosa is feeling. They have to play
through the game and decipher the environment’s meanings themselves.
Act 1 - Denial
The game opens with a fishing line in the water, which abruptly moves as a fish is pulled
out of the lake. Here, players are introduced to Sosa. He notes that he is missing an important
event but emphasizes that the fishing he is doing will make up for it.
(Figure 9: A screenshot of Act 1’s environment in Lake Minnewaska)
Sosa is in denial of her death. The environment is pleasant, and nothing is out of the
ordinary. The fisherman acknowledges that Rue is not with him on the boat and wishes she is
joining him on the adventure. Her absence invites curiosity.
Sosa turns a few pages in the journal and finds Rue’s drawing of Azure, introducing the
conflict. He denies the imaginary friend’s existence, and Rue’s voice comes through the radio,
wishing she could be there with him.

12
Act 2 - Anger
As Sosa continues to fish for Rue, clues about Azure’s existence appear. Momentarily
harsh waves and low thunder grumbles are examples of the imaginary friend within the lake.
Any interactions with Azure during this act will stress Sosa's emotional state of anger. Harsher
lines and diagonals in the environment are shown to create unease in the player and directly
represent tension.
(Figure 10: A screenshot of Act 2’s environment in Lake Minnewaska)
Sosa is annoyed at the fishing and himself at this time of the story. The stages of grief do
not allow people to transition between emotions smoothly; they arise, and the affected person
needs to go through it. Azure matches the anger with her actions, such as giving more dramatic
and dangerous clues about her existence.
Azure confronts Sosa to accept Rue’s death. He starts to admit it but is still upset at the
reality. Azure is on Rue’s Fishlist, and Sosa wants to catch her. Fishing is the only way he can
show his love.
Act 3 - Acceptance
At this point, Sosa has been fishing for most of the day. He has caught all the fish in
Rue’s Fishlist except for Azure and decided to go after her next. Sosa enters her cave and can

13
reel her in after a brief battle. There is no obvious representation of acceptance visuals other
than clarity. It is clear to the player why Sosa is fishing and Rue’s reality.
(Figure 11: A screenshot of the Act 3 in Lake Minnewaska)
Sosa still realizes that his actions will not bring Rue back. He reels in Azure, but keeping
Rue’s imaginary friend will do nothing. Rue is gone. Sosa apologizes to Azure for reeling her in.
As she swims away, Sosa apologizes to Rue, who he believes is watching from above.
Afterward, he opens a box in the cabin and decorates it with memories of Rue.

14
Chapter Five: What Have I Learned?
Developing Lake Minnewaska teaches me the actions I must take to effectively
communicate such a complex emotion.
To successfully convey my story and effectively convey grief, I need to make narrative
the most critical aspect of the development process. Adding many intricate mechanics does not
aid with the experience. Players will get distracted when I ask them to learn a lot of different
procedures. We can determine how many mechanics can intertwine with the narrative if we
have more time and resources. A 20-minute experience can not take that liberty. I am going to
share some of the discoveries the usability team made.
5.1. Narrative is Paramount
Usability playtest sessions from the early stages of development showed that we
needed to achieve the experience goal of making players feel curious at the beginning of the
game with a grief undertone. Players focused more on driving the boat in the third person and
talking to fishermen in the first person. It took them, on average, 15 minutes to hook a fish. We
understood that mechanics were being flushed out, but we did not intend to distract the player
from the other mechanics. I wanted them to care about the story. A month into development,
we have yet to see player progress.
I added many features to the game because I was so caught up in making my fishing
game feel unique. I wanted players to transition between walking and fishing in the first person
and driving the boat in the third person, and that led to many technical challenges that took
away from my goal for players to focus on the narrative. Bait was also implemented at a point
of development. I thought a fishing game could only survive with bait. We got rid of what I call

15
eye candy in this situation: third-person camera, driving the boat, and other realistic fishing
procedures. These ideas looked excellent on paper, but they needed to be cut due to our
limited time and my goal of projecting grief.
5.2. Reactions to a Black Fisherman
I am fortunate to have received overwhelmingly positive feedback about Lake
Minnewaska and the representation I brought forth. A playtester shared they “loved that Sosa
and Rue were explicitly Black” because the game depicted their partner’s culture. More
playtesters picked up that Sosa and Rue are Black through the environment where we have a
pick comb on the dashboard and family pictures on the boat cabin walls. No playtesters are
expressing frustration or racism towards the game’s characters. They are enthralled with the
story and the game mechanics.
5.3. Unrealistic to Fully Convey Grief
Grief can not be explained and or effectively portrayed in a 20-minute experience. Sosa
is fishing from the morning through the evening, and he’s experiencing three stages of grief.
This flow may be realistic for some, but the complex emotion is unpredictable. Even in real life,
it’s rare to comprehend people experiencing grief within 20 minutes. I can not expect people to
fully immerse themselves in a grieving state. However, telling players to grieve from the
beginning might have yielded better results.
Lake Minnewaska’s narrative does not unveil that a character in the game died until the
end. During the experience, it is not explicit that Sosa is grieving. It is a tricky balance in a
creative project: make an engaging experience that keeps the audience on their toes or tells
them how to feel from the start. I am a creative person who likes to read between the lines and

16
enjoy interactive experiences that make me think and reevaluate how I express the art’s
emotion.

17
Chapter Six: Conclusion
I understand that the death of a loved one is not easy to endure, and there is no way to
tell which feelings come forth at any time. With this insight, I would allow players in a future
game iteration more agency. I would like more areas of the lake that hint at a few more
underlying grieving stages. Players decide where to travel on the lake. Then, they can choose
how long they wish to linger in that emotional and environmental space. It would be their life,
their mind, and their own grief journey. There will still be a fish they need to catch to continue
the narrative and even more fish for the players to collect.
Grief is an emotion people experience worldwide, but there is no right or wrong way to
express it. I am exploring it in an interactive project to actively control my imagination and
uplift my story. I do not talk about all the stages of grief. It is hard to decipher it all in a 20-
minute experience. Based on my home, Lake Minnewaska centers and conceptualizes my
emotions that I never thought I could have been able to depict. I am at peace with what is
presented to me, and I look forward to continuing to attempt to display complicated emotions
in an interactive medium.

18
Bibliography
“Black Female Fishing Team | Ebony Anglers | United States.” Ebony Anglers,
www.ebonyanglers.com/. Accessed 24 Mar. 2024.
“DOPE PROS: Bass Fishing with pro Angler Torcia.” Haitianbarbiek, 1 Dec. 2014,
haitianbarbiek.wordpress.com/2014/12/01/dope-pros-bass-fishing-with-pro-angler-torcia/.
Accessed 24 Mar. 2024.
Hemingway, Ernest. The Old Man and the Sea. 1952. New York, Spark Pub, 2002.
“Fisherman Demographics and Statistics [2022]: Number of Fishermans in the US.”
Www.zippia.com, 29 Jan. 2021, www.zippia.com/fisherman-jobs/demographics/.
“Ross Barnett Legend — Alfred Williams.” Bassmaster, 5 May 2017,
www.bassmaster.com/news/ross-barnett-legend-alfredwilliams/#:~:text=In%20the%201970s%20the%20locals. Accessed 24 Mar. 2024.
Skeithreviews et al. “A Deep Dive Look into Fishing Minigames.” The Story Arc, 3 Feb. 2023,
story-arc-blog.com/2023/02/03/a-deep-dive-look-into-fishing-minigames/.
“Understanding Grief: There Is No Step-by-Step Process.” Speaking Grief, speakinggrief.org/getbetter-at-grief/understanding-grief/no-step-by-step-process.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Campbell, Lloyd III (author)

Core Title Lake Minnewaska | uplifting a Black narrative in an underrepresented industry | exploring grief themes in a fishing video game

School School of Cinematic Arts

Degree Master of Fine Arts

Degree Program Interactive Media

Degree Conferral Date 2024-05

Publication Date 05/03/2024

Defense Date 05/01/2024

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

Tag Black narrative,Fishing,Grief,OAI-PMH Harvest,video game

Format theses (aat)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Bolas, Mark (committee member), Huntley, Jim (committee member), Lemarchand, Richard (committee member)

Creator Email lcampbell32014@gmail.com,lwcampbe@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC113920161

Unique identifier UC113920161

Identifier etd-CampbellLl-12888.pdf (filename)

Legacy Identifier etd-CampbellLl-12888

Document Type Thesis

Format theses (aat)

Rights Campbell, Lloyd III

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