Game Information
| Title | A House in California |
| Presenter(s) | Jake Elliott |
| Session | Conference Reception, Game Exhibition, and Poster Session |
| Time | Thursday, October 21, 7:00p-9:00p |
| Location | East Lansing Technology Innovation Center |
| Format | Game Exhibition |
| Description | 'A House in California' is a surreal, narrative game about four characters who bring a house to life. These four characters are based on relatives of mine (two grandmothers and two great-grandmothers). Within the game, the player guides the four characters to engage with environments and activities drawn from a combination of memory, research, poetry, and fantasy.
Aesthetically, the game draws inspiration from 'Mystery House', developed in 1980 by Roberta and Ken Williams. 'Mystery House' is a murder mystery that drives its characters progressively deeper into the titular house by offering the player material verbs such as "go", "open", and "take". 'A House in California' inverts these qualities of materiality and violent murder into a peaceful but surreal character study which draws the player into the inner lives of its four characters through verbs like "remember", "learn" and "play". |