Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University proudly showcases the work of undergraduate honors students by sharing this collection exclusively with the ASU community.
Barrett accepts high performing, academically engaged undergraduate students and works with them in collaboration with all of the other academic units at Arizona State University. All Barrett students complete a thesis or creative project which is an opportunity to explore an intellectual interest and produce an original piece of scholarly research. The thesis or creative project is supervised and defended in front of a faculty committee. Students are able to engage with professors who are nationally recognized in their fields and committed to working with honors students. Completing a Barrett thesis or creative project is an opportunity for undergraduate honors students to contribute to the ASU academic community in a meaningful way.
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Game Design
- Creators: Computer Science and Engineering Program
for my thesis, is an action-platformer, with the intent of metroidvania-style progression
and an interconnected world map.
The current version of Helix is a turn based role-playing game, with the intent of roguelike
gameplay and a dark fantasy theme. We will first be exploring the challenges that came
with programming my own game - not quite from scratch, but also without a prebuilt
engine - then transition into game design and how Helix has evolved from its original form
to what we see today.
For my Spring 2022-23 Barrett Honors College creative project, I designed and created my own analog game. The created game is a tile-management game for 2-4 players called Plash. Players collect tiles and manipulate the board to complete goals and win the game. The paper for this project details the inspirations and research done for the game’s design, the game's design journey, and detailed instructions on how to play.
This creative honors thesis explores game design by going through the game design experience to produce a prototype of an original board game. From being a casual board game designer to creating one herself, here is a re-account of the experiences it took to design Descent into the Deep. The game design process involved intensive research of game mechanics, learning design tool skills for prototyping, and playtesting to create a playable original board game. Descent into the Deep is a hand management/path game that has players balance their resources to stay alive while considering the opportunity costs of their decisions to earn the most research points. Descent into the Deep has players push their luck and brains to collect research cards for points or offense and defense attacks against other players. The documentation includes the game's rule book, design process, and journal.
For my creative project thesis, I have designed and developed a video game called Amity Academy. Amity Academy is a strategic resource management simulator that aims to subvert genre expectations and challenge generally accepted definitions of success and leadership both in-game and in the real world. It does so by moving the focus away from amassing large amounts of in-game currencies and becoming politically or militarily dominant towards caring for the denizens of the social unit the player controls. The player acts as an administrator at a school where they must make decisions on how to best run the institution. Although they are allowed to lead the school however they see fit, the emphasis is on prioritizing strong interpersonal and intracommunity relationships and connections and the wellbeing and happiness of those under their ward. Amity Academy is also part of the newly-emerging “wholesome” or “comfy” game genre. Unlike serious strategy games that can be stressful, Amity Academy presents a self-paced, low-stakes situation. This mood is further encouraged by calming environmental noises and music, a gentle color palette, and a charming art style. The game feels domestic and quaint, almost reminiscent of a Jane Wooster Scott or Mary Singleton painting. You can download and play Amity Academy here: https://mvaughn8.itch.io/amity-academy