The ‘Digital Narrative Games’ Assignment:

Part 1: Games Played and Reflection:

1. Professional Games:

Bury me, my love: link (Bury me, my love)

“Bury Me, Love Me” is a very sad game that takes place in Syria. From the beginning, it puts the player inside a story where every choice can change what happens to the characters and even affect whether they survive or not. This shows that the player’s decisions are important. The game talks about the bombing in Syria, where many people were injured or killed. To be honest, the first five minutes were a little boring for me because Nour and Majd were only talking. But when the bombing started, the story became much more interesting. During the bombing, many people were hurt or died, including the baker in a new restaurant and Nawal, who is Nour’s sister, and also other people in the hospital. This shows how bombings can destroy people’s lives and made Nour think about leaving for the US or Europe. While I was playing, I felt very sad for the Syrian people who were always in danger. I also learned to understand their suffering better and not make jokes about them. The game shows that some things, like bombings, are not in your control, and this limits what the player can do. It made me think about real risks in life. My only small comment is that, like Spent, the design of the game could be improved. Compared to Project Honduras, which has better graphics and clearer choices, Bury Me, Love Me looks simpler, but it is still very emotional and powerful.

Project Honduras: link (Project Honduras)

Project Honduras is better than Bury Me, Love Me in some aspects because it gives the player more decisions to take, and you have to choose which tasks are more important during natural disasters. Every decision can change if people survive or not, which made me feel responsible while playing and showed me that player choices really matter. I like that the game is simple, but at the same time, it has a strong message. The game taught me that during disasters, people should support and help each other. It also shows that global warming is one of the main reasons for these disasters. In the game, there are three main disasters: floods, droughts, and hurricanes. One thing that could be improved is the length of the game because it only took me around three minutes to finish it, which is much shorter than Bury Me, Love Me. Also, if the game added more background stories about the characters, the decisions would feel more personal and emotional, like in Bury Me, Love Me.

2. Student Games:

Among us English teacher: link (Among Us for teaching English)

This game is like learning English in an “Among Us” style. For example, if I choose the wrong answer, I die in the game, but if I choose the correct answer, I can continue to the next task. This system of consequences made me feel nervous in a good way and pushed me to read carefully. It clearly shows that the player’s choices affect the learning results. In my opinion, it is a fun and interactive game, and honestly, it is one of the best ways to learn English, especially for Gen Z and Gen Alpha students. I really liked how the slides are organized and connected, which made the game feel smooth and easy to follow. However, one suggestion to improve the game is to add more visuals, because this would increase immersion and make the experience more engaging.

Student Experience of Proctoring: link (Student experience of proctoring)

This game is about a student who does not want to take the exam using the new proctoring system. In the end, he wastes a lot of time trying to log in to the exam because he did not attend the proctoring session before. In my opinion, the game was not very interactive. I felt confused many times and did not clearly understand the context. I spent more time trying to figure out what was happening instead of enjoying and exploring the game itself, even though the idea is interesting. This shows that when the choices are not clear, it can reduce the player’s control and learning, which is very important in narrative games. Overall, I think this is the weakest game among the professional and student games I tried. However, I learned something useful from it, which is that I should always take the mock exam early before the real exam to understand how it works. The game also shows that for a narrative game to be successful, players need to clearly understand their goals and the results of their decisions.

3. The two core games:

Spent: link (Spent)

Spent is actually a very interesting game, and I really enjoyed playing it. Before I started, I felt confident because I usually manage my money well. But after I finished the month with no money left, I felt stressed and disappointed. I realized how one small bad event can quickly make someone fall into serious poverty. The game has a very simple design, and this makes the player focus more on the decisions instead of the graphics. Before playing, I was excited, and after finishing, I was even more interested because I enjoy games that depend on decision-making. During the game, I had to make many decisions. What I learned is that I should try to put myself in other people’s places, especially poor people who are trying to improve their lives. I also learned that parents should sometimes care more about their children than themselves, because life can be uncertain. One weakness of the game is that the consequences are mostly about money only. There are no clear effects on health or social life. If the game added more types of consequences, like health problems or social issues, it would feel more realistic and give the player a stronger sense of responsibility. When I compare it to the Syrian refugee game, I think the Syrian game has a more interactive and emotional decision-making style. Spent is simpler in design. It is mostly a black screen with a short description and two choices, but it is still powerful in its message.

Syrian Refugee: link (BBC Syrian Refugees)

Before I pressed “Start,” I felt a little curious but also disconnected. I already knew about the Syrian crisis from the news, but I did not expect that a simple game could make me feel how serious it is. At first, I thought I could win easily by choosing the smart answers. However, after playing the game two times, my feelings changed a lot. I felt stressed and a bit sad. I understood that in this situation, there are no really “good” choices, only risky and dangerous ones. It made me more sympathetic and thankful for my own safety. I realized that life-or-death decisions are much harder than they seem on a screen. While playing, I felt as if I were the father of the family. This role-playing made me think deeply about responsibility and the moral side of every decision. For example, if I had to choose between going to Turkey or Egypt, what would I do? I learned that one wrong decision could lead to being arrested and deported back to Syria. The game connects every choice to clear and serious results, which makes the consequences feel real and emotional. One suggestion for improvement would be to add more sound effects or a background soundtrack to make the dangerous moments feel even more intense and realistic. When I compare this game to Spent, besides what I mentioned earlier, I think the decisions here are much more difficult. In this game, one single choice can lead to a complete disaster, which makes it more intense and stressful than Spent.

4. The Game We Played in Class 

The Empathy Toy (No links as it is a classroom game)

The empathy toy was one of the most enjoyable games I have ever played. I liked it because it was challenging, especially when we had to communicate with the blindfolded person. It was not easy to explain things clearly without using vision. It was also fun to use objects that did not look related at first, but in the end, they were connected. For example, we had six different pieces, and we managed to build something like a rocket from them. We also tried to be creative when choosing the shape. We wanted to pick something original, but at the same time easy to rebuild. This made the activity more interesting and required teamwork and good communication. However, the game was very short. It only took us around ten minutes to finish it. Even so, among all the games we played in class, I think this one was the best because it was fun, creative, and different from the others.

Reflection Across All Games

After playing the seven games, I understood that different digital narrative games use different ways to affect the player. In terms of storytelling and narrative impact, Bury Me, My Love was the most successful for me because the chat format made me feel emotionally connected to the character, like I was really talking to her. However, for educational value, I think Spent and the BBC Syrian Refugee game were more effective. These two games were more stressful and challenging, and this helped me understand real-life problems like poverty and forced migration better than just reading about them in the news. On the other hand, the student-made games, such as the Proctoring game, were not as professional in design, but they were very close to my real life as a student. When I compare all the games, I realize that the best ones are those that combine clear choices with serious consequences. If the decisions are too simple or the story is not deep enough, the player will not learn much. From this comparison, I learned that if I want to create my own successful game, I need to build a story where the player’s choices truly have strong meaning and impact.

Part 2: Game Design

1. The Ikigai diagram

– What do I love?

I love strategic games and competitive environments that require planning, analysis, and long-term thinking. I also enjoy collaborating and spending time with friends.

– What are you good at?

I am strong in strategic thinking, analytical reasoning, and understanding complex systems. I also enjoy learning about global economic and political dynamics.

– What can you be paid for? Or what can you get credit for in your course?

I get credit for finance-related topics, statistical modelling, presentations, and group projects.

– What does the World need?

The world needs sustainable and inclusive systems that address climate change,

2. The VIA character strengths survey

The VIA pdf link: https://heyzine.com/flip-book/5f666e766e.html

Using the VIA, I discovered that my five main strengths are: Hope, Judgment, Perseverance, Curiosity, and Creativity.After reviewing the AI suggestions and looking at my VIA strengths (Judgment and Perseverance), I have ideas for three narrative games.

Proposed Digital Narrative Game Ideas

Game Idea 1: The Emerging Market Reformer

The concept: you are a finance minister of a country like Egypt, and the players make decisions about inflation, FX crisis, subsidy reform, youth unemployment, and political stability.

This game is a choose-your-own-pathway game where the player is the Minister of Finance in a developing country. Instead of just numbers, it is a story. For example, you have to choose between subsidizing bread to help the poor or investing in green energy for the future. Each choice leads to a different narrative outcome, like living in a peaceful country or having a social protest. This matches my interest in finance and my ‘Judgment’ strength because every decision has a serious consequence.

Game Idea 2: Climate Sovereign: The Policy Architect

The concept: you are the economic advisor of a developing country facing a debt crisis, climate shocks, political pressure, and social inequality

This is a narrative game where the player acts as the Chief Economic Advisor to a President in a developing country. The story starts with a national crisis: the country is facing massive debt and a sudden climate disaster, such as a flood or drought. In this choose-your-own-pathway game, you must advise the President to take a high-interest loan from a foreign bank to fix the climate damage, or do you advise him to cut spending on schools and hospitals to pay the debt? The “narrative” part of the game will show the social consequences, like protests in the streets or the collapse of the education system. This connects to my VIA strength of Judgment, as the player must think critically about the long-term survival of a nation.

Game Idea 3: The Ethical Hedge Fund

The concept: You run a hedge fund that must balance profit, ESG responsibility, political risk, and reputation.

This game puts the player in the role of a Hedge Fund Manager who must balance making money with being a good “global citizen.” It is a narrative about high-stakes finance. You are pressured by your investors to make a huge profit, but you find out that your most profitable investment is in a company that is damaging the environment or using unfair labor practices. The player must choose between maximizing profit to keep their job and reputation in the finance world or withdrawing the money to help the environment, but losing their investors’ trust. The story will change based on these choices, leading to different endings like becoming a “Financial Hero” or “The Most Hated Man on Wall Street.” This game relates to my Ikigai of finding a balance between what the world needs and what pays well.

Here is the link for the AI interaction with ChatGPT: https://chatgpt.com/share/69a049c8-ad50-8003-8306-9c1da00c0aa3?utm_source=chatgpt.com

The above three games are the most appealing to me because they require strong strategy and deep thinking. In these types of games, even a small mistake can lead to a very big problem, like bankrupting a company or even affecting the whole economy. This makes the player more careful and focused on every decision. Out of the three options, I believe the first and second games are the most exciting and enjoyable. They seem more interesting to design and can attract a wider range of players with different backgrounds and interests, when compared to the third option. They help build a specific way of thinking, especially for someone who wants to work in finance or ESG. These games train the player to analyze risks, think long-term, and understand the consequences of financial decisions.