Introduction:
This conceptual video game captures the essence of flying, discovery, historical unraveling, and the sheer beauty of the world around us. The project encompasses a functioning website landing page concept, meticulously crafted interface designs, and a captivating branding identity.
Genesis of the Dream:
The inception of “What Happened Here” stems from a dream that felt more real than most others, and which was a beautiful example of what happens when our minds flow, and creativity assist the making process most organically.
This dream included a vivid vision of flight reminiscent of an old flying simulator from childhood, the feeling of total freedom, of flying over waters toward an island. Adventure through abandoned villages and forests, fueling curiosity and a pure sense of calm.
This dream served as a starting point, exploring what this project could look like if it was an actual video game; creating a brand identity, interface and landing website concept. Allowing me to utilize my skills in a fun project, learning new things along the way, and connecting with sense of an adventure of its own in the process.
Embarking on Exploration:
The project was never intended to be an actual real life game, however considering the possibilities and of story and world-building at an immense scale, was exciting, because there was no expectation, deadlines or meetings about deliverables. I was completely free to do what I wanted. But it was also daunting, as it made me realize the vast amount of considerations that have to be made in such a project.
In it’s simplest form, the game was an exploration game on planet earth, deserted for an unknown reason, with the freedom to move and fly around, learn about world history and slowly uncover what happened which caused humans to leave.
In its most complex form, I saw possibilities to showcase the beauty of earth, mostly untouched, with some resemblance of civilization left behind. An opportunity to tell some of the story of humanity, what actually happened to get us to where we are today, and blend in science fiction, to consider technology, space travel and maybe even magic?
Demo Website
It might sound backwards, but the first thing I worked on was the landing page demo. Not as an informative page to explain the concept game, but in an attempt to create an experience in itself.
This allowed me to play around with beautiful visuals sourced from Unsplash and Nasa. And creating movement on the page by experimenting with Elementor features which I usually would not incorperate, for the simple fact they tend to slow down a website, which was not an important factor in this project.
User Interface
Secondly, I saw this project as an opportunity to tap into another passion of mine. For years I’ve been an avid gamer, in particular World of Warcraft. One of my favorite things to do in this game, is curating my user interface, to make it look clean and functional.
My main inspiration combined both the beautiful and futuristic technology interface design from the Netflix show “Black Mirror.”, and the simple and modern interface design from the game Overwatch.
Afterwards I attempted to take the interface design and incorporate it over a video edit, but this turned out to be just beyond my reach at the time, and I had to abandon it, but it might be something to revisit in the future.
AI Generated Characters
The positives of long term, open, projects, is that I can pick them back up whenever I feel inspired, or want to test out new techniques and technologies. As was the case in 2023.
Fueled by creative inspiration from A.I. generated art, which had been the dominant talking point in art and design in 2023, I created A.I. Generated characters for “What Happened Here”. This way I could build on the project, have a creative outlet for new ideas, and try out this new tech.
Combining both free tools and Adobe Photo’s generative capabilities, I was able to create both a male and female character fairly easily. It might take a few prompts, and manual adjustments, but the technology is bound to be groundbreaking, and therefor even more fitting to use within this project..
Inspiration:
The creativity of “What Happened Here” was inspired across a broad spectrum. Elements of “Black Mirror,” “Cosmos: A Space Odyssey,” the nostalgia of an old flight simulator game, the artistic fervor of “Overwatch,” and the gorgeous style from the TV show “Fringe”. The project also draws strength from platforms like “thisisnotporn,” the artistic treasury of Unsplash, and the kinetic energy of Chrome plugin Momentum.
Dreams, imagination, and creativity:
“What Happened Here” stands as a testament to the power of dreams, imagination, and unbound creativity. This ongoing odyssey into a realm of flying, exploration, and history, became a personal journey, igniting their sense of wonder and imagination.
As the project continues to evolve and unfold, because I still sporadically work out details and ideas, its potential remains limitless, as it has become an endless joy in pursuit of a creativity and a dream.
