Newsletter #4

Our Design Direction

After our first five pitches and some follow-up questions for our client, we learned that what our client would most like is a web or app-based game that creates visibility for the resort among new guests and that appeals to mainstream audiences. We did more brainstorming around apps and ways to use them to attract attention to the resort’s offerings.

Successful games for the iPhone tend to have a simple mechanic, are easy to pick up and put down, and are highly repeatable. We also felt it was important that our game sound fun just from the description of it, as this word of mouth would be part of what would make people want to try it. We needed a game people would want to share, so that they would share Seven Springs in the process.

Our game is a side-scroller where Seven–the springer spaniel mascot of Seven Springs–is stuck on a large snowball rolling down and over various slopes. As the snowball rolls over obstacles, he has to keep his balance.

The levels that Seven travels through will be themed to the Seven Springs resort. Some possibilities include putting Seven on an outdoor slope or having him roll through the interior of a building, passing shops and other attractions on the way.

The game will be a free download that contains ads bringing attention to the wide variety of activities that the resort has to offer.

When we pitched this idea to Mr. Moser on Wednesday, we could instantly see in his eyes how excited he was. He told us we had hit the nail on the head and he complimented us on how well we had listened to his feedback and used this to find something that would really complement the resort.

Seven Springs Adventure Module

On Friday we joined the new ETC students on their Adventure Module to Seven Springs. Skiing, snowtubing, great food, team photos, and a chance to touch base again with our client all added up to a full and rewarding day. We had a wonderful time and got our first proper taste of what it is like to be a guest at the resort.

Since the environments for our game are likely to be inspired by the look and feel of Seven Springs, we made sure to take a lot of reference photography while at the resort, both of the indoors and outdoors. These photos will be very helpful as we find an evocative art style for the game.