NMC Portfolio - Relion Us

- Relion Us -

Description of Project

This project was similar to Beatboxers, where HKU brought in an external company for us to do a mock client-developer project. Our group decided to pair up with TNO (The Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research) to make a prototype based on their needs and requests.

TNO told us they wated a game that would help players realize the problems and nuances in communication that a government and its citizens sometimes face. More specifically, they wanted a game that would contextualize frustrations often felt by citizens when they feel their requests to the government aren't being taken seriously, even if the government is trying to fulfill them.

My main role for this project was designing the core mechanics and point system. The original concept wasn't mine, but as the designer, I was responsible for developing the points and communication systems that shaped how the two teams interacted to reach a mutual goal, as well as defining the win condition for both sides.

Gameplay Concept

Relion Us is a multiplayer game for 2-6 players that centers around cooperation and communication to develop a town around a mountain. One player takes on the role of the Lion (which represents the government, since the logo for the Dutch government resembles a lion), while the others play as the Crowd (representing citizens), which is a collection of little minions. Every Crowd player then controls 8 small creatures.

At the start of each round, each Crowd player selects a location on the map and recieves a short list of tasks, aiming to get the Lion to place a specific object (bench, house, wind turbine, etc.) in a designated area. However, their methods of communication are severely limited: they have the option of performing an emote, arranging the members of the crowd into a shape of their choosing, or throwing tomatoes at the Lion.

The Lion, meanwhile, walks around the map. They are the only one that can place an item, and their goal is to try and interpret the Crowd's cues to place it correctly. If the Lion places the wrong object or puts it in the wrong location, everyone loses a point. If it is correct in both type and placement, the group gains a point.

The game is played in timed rounds. At the end, the total score determines how much a tree in the middle of the map has grown, symbolizing the shared progress of the collaborative effort between the Lion and the Crowd.

Short Design Document

Major Learnings

For the most part, communication in the team went well, but there were a few instances where it became clear that the developers did not quite get what I was trying to explain. That pushed me to rethink how I communicated ideas and made me more aware of how important it is to speak everyone's "language" when working in a group. I did this by creating a short design document that aimed to put people on the same page about how the mechanics would function.

We hit some unexpected bumps along the way, which forced us to rethink part of the game. In the end, many of the changes improved the game and served as a good reminder that things do not always have to go perfectly to work out well, and that a concept can evolve into something even better through iteration and teamwork.

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