Forester: The Game
Introduction
We were interested in creating a narrative which brings to light the problems faced by the Western Ghats such as soil erosion and flooding due to excessive mining. We also wanted to present the loss of flora and fauna due to the destructive nature of these activities.
To make the narrative more interactive we decided to make a game. Through the experiences of the characters in the game we can teach the players about empathy towards biodiversity and its role in these regions.
Synopsis
An Indian clerk from a Mining Corporation is suddenly thrown into uncharted territory in the Western Ghats. Will he come to terms with the destruction his work has caused to the region’s soil?
“Forester” is a 2D exploratory platformer where the player interacts and learns about the various flora and fauna in the Western Ghats and preserve the Biodiversity of the region.
Target audience
It’s a game for all ages. Focused on educating city dwelling folk on the importance of nature conservation.
Character Briefs
Main Character:
Backstory: A fussy 20+ year old clerk who works at a mining facility. Due to a boating accident he ends up lost in the forests of the Western Ghats.
Motivation: In the beginning he is pretty disinterested in his surroundings and the task the Masked Guide has bestowed upon him, but soon grows to be concerned about the problems the Western Ghats and its natives face. He is shown to have grown bolder, more compassionate, and mentally stronger towards the end of the game so as to tackle the flood event.
Important NPC’s
The Masked Guide - mysterious, omnipresent, presents the themes of the game to the MC
Villager Chief - MC gains his trust by helping him gather medicinal herbs to treat his/her sick son
Chief's son - sick kid, who looks up to his father, cares about the environment
Healer - Old witch-doctor woman who helps brewing herbs.
Village Idiot - MC can talk to them for really bad jokes.
Environment Briefs
About the village
Roughly based on native tribes living in the western ghats. They have lived for generations in the forests and are in perfect harmony with their environment. This balance was disrupted by the mining corp.’s activities in the region; after the corporation extracted what they needed, they left behind a vulnerable ecosystem which could be lost forever.
About the corporation
An apathetic resource hungry machine composed of disinterested employees.
Story Structure
A clerk is hopelessly lost in the Western Ghats when he comes across a mysterious stranger that offers to lead him to the closest village and help him get back home. On his journey he discovers the symbiotic relationship between the endemic wildlife and the flora in the region and the importance of conserving it.
Cultural/Scientific Context
The biological hotspots in the western ghats are home to a wide variety of endemic flora and fauna, some of which haven’t even been discovered. It is important to make people of all ages aware of the extent of what’s at risk when these hotspots are threatened.
Soil erosion due to deforestation has been the cause of lots of disasters such as floods and landslides. This has caused immense damage to settlements in the western ghats and displaced the endemic wildlife.
Treatment (Inspired By)
Lisa, the Painful, Hollow Knight, Sperlunky, Celeste, Warioland, Braid, Ori and the Blind Forest, Super Metroid, Super Mario
Intent/Potential
To educate players about the value of biodiversity especially in the hotspot regions of the Western Ghats and a sense of the elaborate relationships that hold our ecosystems together and to cultivate empathy and compassion for the endangered native flora and fauna.
Tutorial
The Main Character is lost in the forest. He comes across the Masked Forest Guardian who says he can help the character get back to civilization in exchange for helping him plant a few trees in the area. The Main Character agrees and after helping the Masked Forest Guardian out, is led to a nearby Village.
Mechanics in Play
Rosewood Trees to climb
The level’s main goal is to teach the player the basic controls and give them an idea on how these controls can be used in tandem. The Rosewood Trees allows the character to climb up for various purposes, get enough height to clear jumps that ordinarily he wouldn’t be able to make.
Midnight Herb Collection
The MC is tasked with collecting herbs for the sick village child. The MFG reveals the location of the herb deep in the ghats, in an area populated by a leopard, the player will have to sneak through the area, without drawing too much attention from the aggressive animals and make his way to the herb.
Mechanics in play:
Stealth
Leopards/Wayanad Laughing Thrush as the ‘patrols’
Grow your own bushes to hide/ grow trees to climb up on to escape
Most of the level will be a singular leopard’s territory, who paces up and down in the area on the hunt for food. The MC has to avoid it by hiding in bushes whenever it comes near and wait it out. The complication is that some of the bushes or low hanging leafy branches have a Wayanad Laughing Thrush hiding in them. If the player rustles the bush/branches by hiding in them or even touching the bush, the birds in there are put on high alert and begin to screech loudly. Whenever they do the leopard is alerted to the presence of intruders and runs in the noise’s direction to investigate the area. The leopard generally has a sedate walking pace, with occasional stops, but when suspicious of activity in the area, at full speed the leopard is faster than the MC, and can jump up trees. If the leopard ever catches the MC, the screen fades to black and the level is reset.
Mining Area
The Masked Forest Guardian leads the Main Character to the mined area to show him how the area has been destroyed. The Masked Forest Guardians tells the Main Character that if such kinds of environmental destruction continues to take place unabated, there will be harsh consequences like a future flooding and pollution of water bodies
Mechanics in Play:
Dry crumbling ground, prone to collapse
Deep Pits
Hard to climb slopes
All the mechanics in this level are based around the ill effects of mining on the immediate area; the deep pits dug into the ground, the lack of roots in the soils makes the soils loose and hard to traverse, making the land prone to landslides and such. All the challenge failures will have the consequence of having areas that are inconvenient to get through to make progress to the next part of the level.
Forest
The MC traverses the forest in an attempt to help reduce the destruction that floods will cause to the place, collecting seeds and compost to grow as many plants as he can to prevent soil erosion.
Mechanics in Play
Tall climbable trees
Branch to branch hopping
Vines that can be grabbed to jump from branch to branch
Alternative routes
The main idea behind this level is to open up the player to exploring upwards rather than just from left to right, jumping from tree branch to tree branch to get hidden away seeds and compost. Vines and creepers will be present all around as climbable objects for an added challenge of longer jumps. If the player falls, they’ll have to climb all the way back up again.
