A couple days away from the Jam end date, and I finally figure out what to share in a Devlog! As you can see, I am very new to this. So hello! My name is Jade. I also go by Lucca. I am a non-binary cartoonist/illustrator whose experience working in games previously was as the lead artist for an indie visual novel developed by Girls Make Games. This is my first game jam, and my first game that I'm making on my own! It's called...
Oblivion Congee
What is it?
A Twine adventure that combines text with my background in comics to tell a visual story about congee, memory, and reincarnation. The game is loosely based on the Chinese mythological figure of Meng Po, who brews a tea/soup that causes souls to forget their past life so that they can be ready for reincarnation. My story follows a genderqueer version of the character who operates a congee shop in a train station for spirits. The player character isn't revealed until the ending and changes depending on your choices made in conversation with Meng--whose own hangups are slowly revealed and can lead to a secret ending on a second play-through (we'll see if I actually get to implement this in time).
Why congee?
Congee is a food that embodies sense-memories of warmth, comfort, and healing. It's at once simple, yet infinitely variable and creative. Cooking congee doesn't require any intricate skills, but it does demand time and care. I wanted congee to serve as a symbolic vehicle for a painstaking process that evokes strong feelings and memories, but in this story's context, it is made for one diametrically opposite purpose: to forget those attachments entirely.
Liminal Memories:
I want to convey a somewhat pedestrian sense of loss and fading memories as players progress through the game. One method I have explored is in using fade-in and fade-out effects for various segments of text while reading. My intention is to create a visual and symbolic process emulating losing various 'pieces' that end up transforming a 'whole'.
Coming from a cartooning background, I very much approach scenes like a comic page layout. I enjoy the breathing room Twine affords me, but it's been somewhat challenging getting an accurate pulse on pacing. With more time I would love to incorporate some environmental animations in the artwork: dust specks floating in the light, congee steam wafting from the pot, etc. As it stands, I will be fortunate to have a playable full-game with just sketch artwork at the end of the jam!
Wish me luck!
~Jade.