Just Take 5 – #1 – Thinking about the concept and looking for a style

So Friday I decided what my next little project would be to get something made that is a bit more bite-sized instead of starting this grand project that, let’s be honest, will never be finished. Yesterday I went for a little walk to think a bit more about the concept and to take some pictures along the way. Some of the photos are later used as references within what I am going to design and in this post just a random selection of the kinds of photos I took. To be honest I was mostly thinking about how I could overcome the technical limitations of the Quest 2 to make sure that it feels right and if it would be wise to use Unreal Engine 5 as it is far from usable for some of the features I would need.

Other aspects crossed my mind during this little walk. What kind of music should it have. Should it have music or only ambient sound? Should I include a little breathing exercise or should it be just the sheer experience of what I tried to describe in my post of yesterday?

I thought by myself what other games or experiences I have played recently where I liked the style. Yesterday and this morning I started with The Artful Escape. Not going to tell what the story is about, but really liked the atmosphere that was there at the beginning of the game and recorded a little bit of that. The music in the background is always present, but that you can forget while doing something else. I am not sure yet if I like the game mechanics themselves, but it is at least a style I want to investigate further for my short experience. Will be playing this game today way more to see if I can find some elements that I want to incorporate as well. Not stealing, but just trying to nail it down.

Another game I thought of, and from the same publisher Annapurna Interactive, was Last Stop. The game itself was fun enough for a rainy Sunday on the couch, but not something I would recommend to anyone else in particular as a must-play. It did however made one thing that I thought was amazing. The menus were amazingly designed, but still functional enough that you couldn’t find anything that you were looking for.

Lastly Playne. Not really a game, but a meditation application with some game elements-ish? That is why I thought about the little breathing exercises. For me something I want to get into, but mostly just forget to do it in the morning after a run, or I just don’t find the time for it, but I do enjoy it when I do it. Maybe I should come back more often to Playne. The reason I thought about it is that I would like to include a breathing exercise that calms you down for just one minute. Not copying the exercises from Playne, but just having the ability per experience to do this little calming thing that clears your head, if you are open to it, in five minutes.

Enough to think about and maybe I just should start making some assets in the coming week to see if it helps to visualize the final product or thing it will create. Today I most likely just dive deeper in my thoughts and try to get some ideas along the way.

Most of the photos are shot with a Canon 600D. While not the most expensive camera I am using this one for years now and am still satisfied with everything that comes out of it after touching it with Lightroom. Knowing that it doesn’t break the bank when it drops just makes you throw it in your bag whatever you are going to do that day (even if you don’t know beforehand). Most of the photos that I made between 2010-2019 were already made with this camera.

Some of my photos and animations you can buy on Pond5 (20% off when clicking this link) or Adobe Stock with different kinds of license options.