Michael C Stewart

the audition

synopsis

gameplay

development process: the personalization of this game

The Audition is a game was made for a woman whom I’ve known since middle school. She has many dreams and hobbies, one that stands out above the rest is being in musicals. To be on stage, expressing herself and impacting hundreds of people, that is her dream. Before the development of The Audition this person put in her two weeks’ notice for her old job as a traffic coordinator. She expressed verbally that working at the same job for 5 years felt too stagnant and wanted to try something different. She wanted a job closer to her home town. Although, because this was such a sudden change, it was only natural for her to feel a bit nervous about the transition. This is what led to my development of her game 'The Audition'.  

The Audition is a rhythm based game where the player get to live out an individuals dream of being on Broadway. The game begins with a scene of someone sitting at her desk. The players start the game by entering a “daydream”. In this daydream, the woman is auditioning for her part in a famous musical. This level acts as the tutorial level and once the tutorial is complete, she awakes from her dream. However, she doesn’t awake back in her office. Instead she is in a showroom getting ready for her part in the musical. The finale of the game is the individual performing her favorite song Defying Gravity in front of hundreds of people. The intended message of the game was for to show that this person is capable of achieving anything she puts her heart into. Those daydreams of being in musicals do not have to stay daydreams.

The mechanics are similar to Dance Dance Revolution which was this persons favorite game type. The player would have directional symbols fall into an input zone. The player would hit the correct directional key at the same moment the note was inside this zone. Doing so would gain the player applause and create sparks of magic. The musical selections was also chosen from her favorite musical Wicked, one that she still loves to this day. 

When the individual played her game there was a unique sense of shock and amazement. All the worry about looking for a new job left her and, for a moment, she was the star. The game was specifically timed to shoot fireworks towards the end at the finale of the song. When this happens there is a synergy between the mechanics, sounds and artwork. Through this, an emotional experience takes place for the player. Tears of joy filled this woman's eyes as she said “Look! That’s me up there. I did it!"

For the privacy of the individuals involved in the game, there is not a public download link for the game.