Inspiration
Our inspiration comes from the Japanese film "Even if This Love Disappears Tonight," where the female lead suffers from anterograde amnesia after a car accident. As a result, she cannot form new memories and wakes up each day with no recollection of what happened before. She documents her daily life in a journal, but with no memory of her past entries. With the theme of impermanence in mind, we wanted to explore how memories can fade, shift, or disappear.
What it does
Our solution is an interactive web narrative game where the player wakes up each day with memory instability. As days progress, dialogue choices disappear, journal entries are rewritten, some interactions become locked, and a memory stability bar gradually decreases. When memory reaches zero, the game resets to Day 1. Players begin to realize they cannot fully trust what they remember, emphasizing the impermanence of daily experiences.
How we built it
We built the game using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. HTML created the structure of the web page, CSS styled the game's visuals, and JavaScript formed many unique elements like a memory bar, timer, clock, and interactive elements (such as clickable objects in the room, like the mystery games where you uncover clues). For the visuals, we used the Pixel Brush app to hand-draw all the scenes and their variations. This choice was driven by our desire to create a cohesive look that would stand out from typical online images or AI-generated art.
Challenges we ran into
One of the first hurdles we encountered was finding cohesive, high-quality graphics. We avoided the use of AI to generate art in order to maintain a personalized feeling, so our only option was to hand-draw the graphics, which was a steep learning curve.
Another challenge we ran into was implementing more advanced effects on the webpage, such as adding audio, fading transitions, and complex interactions. As beginner coders, we had to learn on the fly, which limited our capabilities.
Moreover, we had a relatively small group, so each person had to handle many tasks. One person worked mainly on the coding, while the other person worked on the graphics, scriptwriting, and presentation.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We are proud of our unique visual style (we're proud of the hand-drawn pixel art that gives the game a distinct look and feel), game mechanics (to create an immersive experience), and learning experience (despite being beginners, we were able to develop a functional and engaging web game, expanding our skills in coding, design, and storytelling).
What we learned
Working on this project helped us gain a deeper understanding of the fragile and fleeting nature of memory. While we often forget specific details, the emotions and behaviours associated with certain objects or places may persist. We also learnt the basics of JavaScript and how to draw in a pixelated format.
What's next for Error: Memory Not Found
If we were to fully develop this game, we would hire professional designers/artists to design 3D-style scenes (the graphics were fully hand-drawn on a phone). This would enhance the visual experience and make the game more immersive. We would also expand the storyline to include more days and add more elements, such as audio elements and effects to help convey a gloomy, uncertain atmosphere. Futhermore, we would add multiple endings and pathway variations to increase replayability. Players could experience different variations of the game, uncovering new details and surprises each time. Finally, we would incorporate a reflection page, where players can share their thoughts on their experiences with memory and reality (or the absence thereof). This would allow players to connect with one another and reflect on their perceptions of how memory shapes their understanding of the world.
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