PhD Oral Exam - Elise Trinh, Humanities (Fine Arts)

When studying for a doctoral degree (PhD), candidates submit a thesis that provides a critical review of the current state of knowledge of the thesis subject as well as the student’s own contributions to the subject. The distinguishing criterion of doctoral graduate research is a significant and original contribution to knowledge.

Once accepted, the candidate presents the thesis orally. This oral exam is open to the public.

Abstract

Narrative design as a practice is often misunderstood or hard to comprehend for an external audience. As a craft that is concerned with feelings, emotions, and storytelling, it also poses unique challenges to game scholars and game developers alike. What are the biases, assumptions, and practices that can limit the affective potential of interactive digital narratives? How can we widen the range of feelings and emotions that can be experienced and expressed in narrative-driven video games? Playfully Mundane is a collection of three bite-sized prototypes about what could be told, designed and played differently. These “vignettes” tell stories of ordinary yet emotionally charged moments, such as romantic rejection, falling in and out of love, or the awkwardness of striking up a conversation with a stranger. By analyzing the creative and decisional processes involved in the making of these prototypes, this dissertation provides a rare perspective on the art of designing interactive narratives. With case examples and detailed accounts of how and why things came to be, it also offers unconventional techniques and heuristics that can help to design emotionally charged micro-interactions in short format narrative-driven games.