Wednesday, 15 April 2020

LEARNING AGREEMENT

L E A R N I N G    A G R E E M E N T
Project Proposal                      
Name
Vernon Wroe
MA Course
Games Design
Date
15/04/20
Version Number
1
Project Title / Research Question
Remastering Silent Hill 1
Proposed study / What?                                                                                                          (100 word limit)
This semester I’m going to remaster a portion of Silent Hill 1. I’m going to remake a small section of the game from scratch, primarily the first 5 – 10 minutes’ worth of gameplay. This will include several areas, many 3D assets, programming and much in-editor work such as cinematics.
Rationale / Why?                                                                                                                    (100 word limit)
There are many reasons why this project was chosen for this semester.

It ties-in with my previous work in that it’s another remaster. Unlike my last project, this remake is something many fans have wanted and is one of the few rare games yet to be officially remastered[1]. It also demonstrates a need for modernisation, archival purposes and to become relevant to a modern demographic.
It shows a good comparison to this studio’s previously failed remasters (SH 2&3)[2] and how they should have been done.

Finally, it also addresses the direct competition rival Resident Evil[3] series have received recently.
Aim & Objectives                                                                                                                   (200 word limit)
This project is to solely demonstrate that a quality remake / remaster is not only relevant in the industry but a necessity.

There are a lot of objectives associated with this project, in order to help maintain the deadline I will need to plan my progression slightly better this semester. To do this I plan to do the follow:

I need to begin by carefully deciding how much I want to re-create with leeway to scale areas back to meet the deadline. A few other fan projects have simply recreated the Café scene[4], I intend to end on this as it marks a pivotal point in the game. And the events leading up to it set the vibe perfectly[5].
Once this is done, I can then start looking into what Silent Hill is; what its mechanics are, what makes it unique etc. I can then use this to create a list of things (such as assets) needed for the whole project.

Then it’s a matter of creating everything and combining it all. After which I can share it to see what people think as use this feedback for next semester.
Plan / How?                                                                                                                            (250 word limit)
Some of the times listed below will be carried out at the same time as other tasks, as the overall timescale can't exceed 4 months. That and many aspects are constantly under review to ensure they're the best I can deliver.
  • Select areas to recreate (1 DAY)
    • Silent Hill Town
    • Alleyways
      • A
      • A (Hell)
      • B (Hell)
    • Café
  • Research / Breakdown Silent Hill 1 (FEW DAYS)
    • Mechanics needed
    • Visual effects
    • Interfaces
    • Cinematography
  • Evaluate research (FEW DAYS)
    • What can directly translate to a remake
    • Mechanics needing redesign
      • Control System (1 WEEK)
      • Interface
  • List in-game assets needed (COUPLE DAYS)
  • Gather original source assets (1 DAY)
    • Models
    • Textures
    • Sounds and Music
  • Deconstruct assets for improving (2 MONTHS+)
    • This section will be continuous throughout development
    • Re-create models based on source material (2 MONTHS)
    • Fix / Upscale more complex assets such as characters (COUPLE OF WEEKS)
  • Create game engine (3 MONTHS+)
    • This section will be continuous throughout development
    • Create base game for asset testing (FEW DAYS)
    • Implement core mechanics
      • Movement (2 WEEKS)
      • Item interacting (3 WEEKS)
      • Menu System (1 WEEKS)
    • Re-create visual effects (1 WEEK)
      • Snow, fog, rain
    • Gradually add new assets (FULL SEMESTER)
  • Done.
Intended Outcomes of Project / What - solution?                                                                     (100 word limit)
The main outcome is to demonstrate that: If one person can accurately re-create a portion of a game to a professional standard, then why can't a much larger studio? And I also hope that this project positively conveys that re-makes/masters are feasible to studios.

This project should complement my previous work perfectly; it’s the same scenario, but much better. Better overall quality and much better game choice (The original game has been needing a remake for over 20 years[7][8]), one that is widely recognisable as needing a remake / remaster.
References                                                                                                                           
[1] Bolt, N. (2019, 01 31). It's Time for the Original 'Silent Hill' to Receive a True Remake. Retrieved 14 04, 2020, from Bloody-disgusting: https://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3544363/silenthill-20-original-silent-hill-deserves-true-remake/

 [2] Leadbetter, R. (2012, 04 10). What Went Wrong with Silent Hill HD? Retrieved 04 15, 2020, from Eurogamer: https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-what-went-wrong-with-silent-hill-hd

 [3] Dutton, F. (2012, 03 23). Original Silent Hill developer disappointed at “poor” HD re-release Retrieved 04 15, 2020, from Eurogamer: https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-03-23-original-silent-hill-developer-disappointed-at-poor-hd-re-release

 [4] Strickland, D. (2020, 04 13). Capcom's Resident Evil 2 remake has now sold more than the PlayStation original. Retrieved 04 15, 2020, from TweakTown: https://www.tweaktown.com/news/71778/resident-evil-3-remake-is-success-with-2-million-sales-in-five-days/index.html

 [5] Melendez, C. (2020, 01 8). Fan Remakes Cafe From Silent Hill in Unreal Engine. Retrieved 04 15, 2020, from Rely on Horror: https://www.relyonhorror.com/latest-news/fan-remakes-cafe-from-silent-hill-in-unreal-engine

 [6] McGee, M. (2015, 03 23). How Silent Hill's opening captured the series' tone. Retrieved 04 15, 2020, from Games Radar: https://www.gamesradar.com/uk/silent-hill-opening/

[7] Jackson, L. (2019,12 18). PEOPLE ARE PETITIONING KONAMI FOR A FULL REMAKE OF SILENT HILL. Retrieved 17 04 2020, from GameByte: https://www.gamebyte.com/people-are-petitioning-konami-for-a-full-remake-of-silent-hill/

 [8] Harris, J. (2020, 01 01). Remake Silent hill like Capcom is remaking Resident Evil games! Retrieved 17 04 2020, from Change: https://www.change.org/p/konami-remake-silent-hill-like-capcom-is-remaking-resident-evil-games?

Student signature:
Vernon Wroe


at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)