For my project, I hope to create a game that conveys the idea of escaping from the rat race. Too often we live deadline to deadline, oh I shall invest more time in relationships when I get that promotion and other seemingly well-intentioned statements that hold true until the next deadline or “level” inevitably strikes.

To demonstrate this idea, I will design the game as a platform-style race between the player and two other characters, represented by boxes. The background will begin as gray. The idea will be to have the box sprites moving parallel to each other at varying speeds alongside the player who is racing them. As they race, they also can collect objects (represented by ellipses) that will increase their scores and eventually levels. At times, the player will appear to be winning to create an uncertainty of outcome, but I hope to make evident that advancing levels is pointless and ceaseless. Rather, the game’s objective is one that I hope to reveal slowly. In addition to the ellipses, there will be flowers (drawn out of ellipses), but these will be in inconvenient locations where the player will have to go out of their way to collect them, to stop and smell the roses as the saying goes. With each flower collected, there is another background color added to the platform race to convey living a colorful life escaping from the rat race. I’m still trying to figure out if the game should have an “end,” such as ending when someone has reached 20 colors, etc. In short, with several rounds of playtesting, I think the outcome will come together.