Introduction
Applying Minecraft in an urban game of the GameBook formula.
Under the framework of the UrbCultural Planning project, pupils of Gdańsk have participated in workshops where they have mapped the district of the Old Suburb (Stare Przedmieście), which is a part of the Lower Town (Dolne Miasto), into the game of Minecraft. The result of the workshops is the map of the district which will be applied in the structure of the Game of Gdansk. The Minecraft model of the district will be related to the game plot, referring to the history of the local space of the Old Suburb and everyday life of its inhabitants. While developing their projects of the game, including its visual aspects, the young people of Gdańsk will use the Minecraft map of the district and implement it into the narration they will create.
The list of examples how to use Minecraft elements in a game concept is provided below. The list can be helpful and inspiring to the young people during the process of developing the storyline for the Game of Gdansk.
Examples of using Minecraft elements in a game concept:
- introducing texts, such as memories and stories told by the inhabitants, newspaper announcements, with the use of the book writing function in the game of Minecraft;
- visualising a district map in a form of print screens and GIF animation;
- recording videos in the game of Minecraft and embedding them into the GameBook;
- using structures characteristic to Minecraft, such as collecting resources;
- using visual elements which are characteristic to the game of Minecraft, such as fonts, background, icons, button design;
- using Minecraft to design plots of the story:
- constructing objects which once existed in the space of the Old Suburb, such as, for example, the fountain at Embankment Square (Plac Wałowy);
- transforming objects which exist in the real world;
- intertwining the model of the district in the game of Minecraft with the real world, for example, under the influence of some supernatural powers, phenomena, time travelling.