3D Models

The main model is Elvyria. She is the elven wizard protagonist of an RPG fantasy open-world game. The game centers around the power of curiosity and kindness. There will be moments of the game where these two traits become disadvantageous (Elvyria’s curiosity leads to taking dangerous risks and her kindness can be exploited). However, the advantages of these two traits will outweigh the disadvantages (curiosity leads to making important discoveries and kindness leads to valuable allies). I chose kindness as one of the traits to focus on, because it sometimes can be taken for granted or viewed as a weakness. Additionally, I took a fairytale class that told me female characters in fairytales are generally punished for curiosity (think Sleeping Beauty investigating a spindle and falling into slumber), so I wanted to portray a female character whose curiosity is beneficial overall.

The game is open-world in order to encourage exploration, emphasizing the theme of curiosity. It also involves helping NPCs with your magical expertise as you try to unravel the mystery behind magical disturbances that have occurred (from small ones like cattle growing strange fur to an entire village becoming sick by an unknown cause.) Helping NPCs and talking with them will give you new clues to the overarching mystery, emphasizing the virtuous cycle of kindness. However, helping NPCs is not required, to let players feel as though they are actually choosing kindness instead of being forced to be kind.

The game will begin with Elvyria outside. There are many butterflies, but one butterfly is unusually colored. The colors for this unusual butterfly are meant to feel ethereal, strange, and a little dark, because it is related to the magical disturbance. Elvyria follows it out of curiosity and it leads her to the first main magical disturbance. The butterfly will stick around Elvyria for the course of the game. The game purpose of the butterfly is to guide the player to the next destination or fly around points of interest. When not near anything of major importance, the butterfly will fly around Elvyria or rest on her head, to encourage exploring areas without following the butterfly all of the time.

Elvyria’s magical expertise is mostly around helping others, so she will be stronger in defensive magic. I think having less offensive magic supports the message of the game, though I do foresee that it could make Elvyria (especially as a female character) appear weak. In order to frame her as stronger and encourage creativity, the game would ideally reward intelligent or creative choices. For example, using defensive magic offensively (like using wind from afar to knock down enemies) can make the player feel unstoppable and clever, while also avoiding too much violence that goes against the message of kindness. As Elvyria levels up, players unlock more spells (like being able to transform her appearance).

Elvyria also has a teardrop-shaped emerald gemstone that can hold huge bursts of magic. Before setting out on a quest, the player can fill the stone with magic. When a quick, powerful spell is necessary, the player can use this store of magic. However, they can only use it once before needing to find a safe place to fill up the gemstone again. This gemstone will hopefully make Elvyria appear more powerful, while also encouraging more intelligent, conscious decisions in the spells that are used. Powerful spells can still be cast, but they will take a longer time to unleash. Elvyria has a little deeper skin coloring around the cheeks and ears to make her skin tone less uniform. The green of her clothes and the leaves in her hair connect her to nature, exploration, and curiosity. The pink and purple colors in her clothes and eyes suggest her magical connection. I also associate pink with kindness, perhaps due to My Little Pony’s physical representation of kindness as a pink element of harmony.