Before Death, After Life
Behind the scenes!
The Concept Phase
The conceptual phase and planning phase of our storyline actually was fairly smooth running... Mostly.
​
Our first rendition of the game, the paper prototype, we featured a typical housecat with some typical house-cat-menacing. Options of knocking cups off tables and asking for cuddles. This was also during the time I had begun fleshing out the character of the Redeemer and the role they played in this universe.
During the playtesting of this phase, while the response from playtesters was consistent with the emotions we were attempting to evoke, the playstyle didn't feel all that punishing. It felt too linear with too little choices.
​
A favorite quote from this time was from a classmate, saying: "If this was my life, I'd be depressed. But maybe to a housecat, all you need to feel fulfilled is love..."
Preproduction... And Restarting
It was this point that we begun to do initial storyboards and finalizations of character art. The Redeemer was in their final phase of design and their little island of paradise had begun to be conceptualized.
​
Here, however, was where we changed courses with our main storyline. Rather than a cat, we changed courses for a farm dog instead. The storyline we opted for was a complete core memory (being born, adopted, brought home, and introduced to the farm life). The idea was that the player would be introduced to the idea of the full core memory from the Early Life Stage TM, rather than the animal's entire life.
​
However, at the midterm presentation, we came foreward with almost nothing to show. The week prior, we had over half the files wiped from the computers due to a software crash and computer failure.
​
After reflection on the story we had planned, as well as some personal reflection, we decided ultimately to return to our housecat, but with a twist.
The Revamp - Final Sprints
After our rework, we prototyped and playtested a new pyrimid-formatted storyline, with the goal of making your choices feel like they truly had consequences. This iteration of the game went extremely well over with the playtesters and thus, the final animation phase began.
​
The final animations, in the end, turned out incredible for the short duration of time we had. We reestablished roles during this time, with my partner focusing on enviornmental art and backgrounds, and me animating the characters. This flow worked significantly better for us and played with our strengths.
​
It was at this point that we were in the final crunch. We still needed a menu screen, a poster for the Student EXPO, as well as final touches.
The Final Result
At the end of it all, Before Death, After Life was showcased at the Miami University Student EXPO! We had over a dozen people play through and a variety of responses, experiences and comments. Now that the first of the project is completed, I'm not quite sure where the game will go. I'd like to say I'll continue working on this game, however, the thought of converting it into a proper animated short film has appealed to me some over the months. Before Death, After Life is by no means perfect either way, but it gave my partner and I a chance to really play into our strengths: storytelling and compelling illustration. And I would do it all again.
Open the video link in a new tab for the best experience!