The lines I used in developing my idea of this game especially came from Letter Sycorax, and the two I adapted for examples were “Seh about muse” and “Not fe dem”. My idea behind the game was the adaptation of ‘normal’ English words in ‘prospero ling’ into Caliban’s speech. This way, the player of the game is in a way taking on the role of a cultural adaptor, and is, while playing the game, becoming Caliban as they aid him in normalizing the kind of third space of culture and language. The images accompanying the words are meant to prompt the correct combination of letters and add context to the end phrases. I liked the idea of using an image as a prompt as imagery and sensory observations seem to be something which Caliban feels comfortable expressing through language in The Tempest (as with the passage including “Be not afeard. The isle is full of noises” (3.2.135)). - Rebecca
For my project, I decided to create a game (more of a word app than a game like in the prompts), similar to an anagram type game. The idea is that it takes English words, and allows the player to use their letters and turn them into phrases in the language used by Caliban in Brathwaite’s Letter Sycorax. This sort of third language and culture that Brathwaite creates in Letter Sycorax is something I tried to capture with the game, with the combination of the traditional academic English language and Caliban’s more personalized ‘language’, creating a third space where the two merge together, a place where Caliban can reclaim himself through language in a way he is not allowed in The Tempest. This, I think, is one of the most brilliant and important parts of Letter Sycorax; Brathwaite gives Caliban a form of expression through language he formerly felt he did not have, as when he says “You taught me language, and my profit on’t / Is I know how to curse.” (Shakespeare 1.2.364-65). Whereas in The Tempest Caliban feels isolated, powerless, and very much out of his element with respect to his ability to express his thoughts through language and context, in Letter Sycorax, he has adjusted to his environment, and comfortably uses pop culture references — although through his own form of expression, a modified extension of the English language.
The lines I used in developing my idea of this game especially came from Letter Sycorax, and the two I adapted for examples were “Seh about muse” and “Not fe dem”. My idea behind the game was the adaptation of ‘normal’ English words in ‘prospero ling’ into Caliban’s speech. This way, the player of the game is in a way taking on the role of a cultural adaptor, and is, while playing the game, becoming Caliban as they aid him in normalizing the kind of third space of culture and language. The images accompanying the words are meant to prompt the correct combination of letters and add context to the end phrases. I liked the idea of using an image as a prompt as imagery and sensory observations seem to be something which Caliban feels comfortable expressing through language in The Tempest (as with the passage including “Be not afeard. The isle is full of noises” (3.2.135)). - Rebecca
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This video game features the player as Prospero, as he endeavors to manipulate everyone around him to get the results he wants. The style of this video game is a bit different, in that it's reliant on player choice within dialogue scenes rather than big, exciting, action scenes that make the player play them repeatedly. As Prospero advances throughout this game, he interacts with the different characters through conversations that, depending on success rate, dramatically shift what happens to him at the end of the game. For example, if Prospero in this game interacts with the characters exactly how he does in The Tempest, then his ending is exactly as it is in The Tempest, with seemingly everything going his way. However, say that Prospero treats Ariel far worse than how he does in The Tempest, or that Prospero is not subtle whatsoever when hinting that he wants Miranda and Ferdinand to get together. The ending of Prospero would be dramatically effected, as Ariel would team up with Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculo, defeating Prospero, collectively usurping him as ruler of the island. Or, if Prospero was too obvious, everything would go his way except for Miranda and Ferdinand getting together, as they would realize that they had no feelings for each other. Essentially, the actions the player makes dramatically effect where Prospero ends The Tempest, making the game really hone in on The Journey of Prospero.
Analysis: This game wasn't really born out of any specific lines, but rather the final act of The Tempest. In that final act, against all odds, everything seems to work out for Prospero in a way that is beneficial for him, from Miranda and Ferdinand getting back together, to Caliban becoming his slave once more, along with everything in between. This got me thinking, what if we as an audience could see what might happen to Prospero if things perhaps hadn't gone his way at all, or landed somewhere in the middle of the two extremes. From this, the idea of the video game was born, where the player would be able to control Prospero's every thought and action, resulting in the player obtaining a deeper understanding of Prospero as presented in the play. As the player would advance through the parts of the play with Prospero in them, with some cut-scenes to establish ideas and characters that might otherwise seem to come out of nowhere, the player would see things exclusively from Prospero's POV and as a result come to better understand him as a character. When choosing the image, I decided that I wanted to effectively convey the tone of the game, the struggle of the game, and how the island would look like in one image. For inspiration, I turned to Caliban's monologue in Act 3 Scene 2 where he describes the beauty of the island, and it was then I decided it had to be beautiful, mysterious and inviting all at the same time. This image captures all three, and conveys the player's reaction to Prospero all at the same time. Moving from right to left, the player is in the dark concerning Prospero, as reflected by the dark hillside, but as time goes by, the player sees the sun, and comes to understand him more. This sort of intertextual connection between the game and the image really helped me develop the game, as it allowed me to think about if what I wanted to accomplish was feasible to do through one summary, and seeing the intertextual connection I created really helped me cross the finish line, so to speak. Reading Week Creative Project
By Thomas Gosart For this project, I decided to design a video game concept. The game is called The Road to Eden, and the main character is Satan. Description: In this video game, the player plays as Satan, and his quest is to reach Eden and seduce Eve. Each level of the game represents a part of Satan’s trip to Eden. In the final level, Satan is already in Eden, and must seduce Eve. The game is one by successfully seducing Eve and convincing her to eat the fruit. There are many different levels and challenges in the game, such as exciting hell, entering Eden, and turning into a snake. I would use lines from Books two, four, and nine for the adaptation in this video game. Analytic Component: When thinking about creating a game, I wanted to create a quest or journey type of game. To me, it seemed that Satan had one of the most prominent journeys of any character we studied during last semester. There were not many specific lines that provided a starting point for me; I just thought of Satan’s journey as a whole and went from there. So for the game, I would use all the parts from our readings that discussed Satan’s journey to Eden. I thought that the best way to cover his journey would be through different levels, with each level covering a specific part of his journey covered in Paradise Lost. To incorporate more of Satan’s character in the game, I could include cut scenes or moments where Satan discusses what he is thinking in a particular part of the journey, once that part is reached. Thus, the player would gain a very new insight of Satan, and perhaps see his point of view in Paradise Lost a little better. The player gets to be Satan, and thus this may cast him in a new light. However, what will probably be lost in this adaptation of Satan is his sly and cunning character. It is true that he ends up seducing Eve in the end of the game, but throughout most of the game, he seems like more of a bold explorer, who has one final goal in mind, and who overcomes challenges. His slyness and cunningness are difficult to incorporate into such a game, and therefore the player does not perceive or feel these traits as much as he should while becoming Satan. Image source: http://www.exodusbooks.com/miltons-paradise-lost/8257/ I chose to adapt The Tempest as a video game.
The game’s hero is Caliban, who is portrayed as an anthropomorphic beast. The gameplay involves combat with enemies and puzzles. The goal of the game is to kill Prospero and to interfere with his larger plans as they develop in The Tempest. An event scene shows the entirety of act 1, with the events that have the least immediate relevance to Caliban, such as the shipwreck, abridged. Caliban is then seen on another part of the Island collecting wood, at the beginning of act 2, scene 2. Here, Caliban fights a group of Island spirits before meeting Stephano and Trinculo. Gameplay resumes after act 3, scene 2, when Caliban convinces Stephano and Trinculo to help him kill Prospero. The player is now tasked with defeating Prospero and restricting his control over other characters on the island. This is only accomplished by preventing Prospero’s manipulation of nobles, not through any direct interaction, allowing the central organization of the story to remain intact. The player controlling Caliban is required to advance Caliban’s goals while hindering Prospero’s. If both programs are successful, the player wins. Making Caliban hero of the game necessitated changes to the play’s original plot, but Caliban’s goals and attitudes in the game reflect the more prevalent aspects of his character in The Tempest. The passages that I used as a starting point for my adaption are suggestive of this aspect of Caliban. In act 4, Caliban shows that he wants to kill Prospero, above all else, chastising Stephano and Trinculo for “[doting] on such luggage,” imploring them to “do the murder first” (4.1.221-2). Later, in act 5, Caliban rejects this viewpoint, opting to “be wise. . . And seek for grace” (5.1.309-10). Taken together, these lines suggest that Caliban is driven to interfere with Prospero’s plans, and holds little interest in rebellion or his own freedom for his own sake. Caliban’s general attitude, as seen in these passages, inspired the conflict and resolution of the game. Placing Caliban in the universe of a video game, where victory is of primary importance helps to clarify and exaggerate his role in the play without it being overshadowed by the larger context of the original narrative. When adapting Caliban’s character, I chose to focus on his inhuman qualities, and had intended for his visual portrayal to seem mostly bestial (see image). Stripping Caliban of the humanity he has in The Tempest also diminishes his victimization, which is significant when reading the play in terms of race or colonialism. Reincarnating Caliban’s character in a video game also forces him to operate as a human, in some sense, irrespective of his portrayal. Incorporating puzzles in the game takes advantage of this connection between Caliban and the player, as Caliban is forced to interact with the (virtual) world as a human would. Thus, Caliban can become definitively human, at a mental level, as a video game character, since he directly inherits the reason of the controller. This relationship between the Caliban and the player also augments certain traits that Caliban has in the play. For example, Caliban’s insistence that he is similar to Prospero, and that Prospero’s books and magic are the only things separating them. The extent to which this similarity exists in the play is debatable, but the video game universe clearly places both characters on a similar level, and Caliban’s ability to manipulate others in the game is meant to exploit this. As a video game character, Caliban becomes and equal to Prospero, altering his original character. Although this evolved into more of a simulation experiment than a game design, above are two photos that, in substantially more animated/pixellated form, could represent the island well - the left photo during opening cinematics, the right as a rough guideline for a map of the island. I chose to adapt The Tempest into a game. A single player controls Caliban, whom one could consider to be the "hero." At the beginning of the game, the player is shown a series of scenes from Caliban’s memory for background to the story: Caliban inhabiting the island alone, Prospero arriving, their period of cooperation, Caliban attacking Miranda, and the storm causing the shipwreck. Play begins when Caliban is summoned to Prospero to gather wood, at which point the linear progression of The Tempest's storyline is dropped and Caliban is free to move around the island. Caliban may interact through a variety of predetermined phrases and movements, and the island’s other inhabitants will have programmed responses to Caliban's potential actions, such as Prospero sending spirits to torture a disobedient Caliban. Certain triggers exist in the game to further the storyline – should the player choose to have Caliban obey Prospero’s order to take wood into a clearing, for example, he or she will encounter Stephano and Trinculo in their drunken state, and they may begin to plot against Prospero’s life. As he or she is playing as Caliban, the player wins the game by achieving Caliban’s desire of freedom; this occurs with the elimination of Prospero’s magic or of Prospero himself.
The intent of this adaptation is to examine the constraints of Caliban’s position. The Tempest in is an abstract representation of power in its many forms, and arguably the sole factor preventing freedom on the island is fear of a more powerful character. The concept of power in The Tempest is physically manifested in magic and, abstractly, in politics. Caliban is enslaved to Prospero and cannot be free to “regain” sovereignty of the island until Prospero’s ability to torment him with magic is eliminated. Critical interpretations of Caliban primarily paint him as either a brutal savage or a victim of postcolonialism. I wanted to create an interactive game in order to explore Caliban's situation from a psychological viewpoint – to examine whether Caliban’s “savage” actions under Prospero’s control are a direct result of the institution, or whether Caliban could find another way out of his constraints. Key to this idea is Caliban’s line, “No, pray thee. / I must obey; his art is of such power / It would control my dam’s god Setebos / And make a vassal of him” (I.ii.372-5), which clearly identifies Caliban’s decision-making impacted by fear of Prospero, his higher power. The quote presents a Caliban who is perhaps a slave by circumstance, understanding the world to a surprising depth of sophistication as evidenced in his “isle is full of noises” monologue (III.ii.135-143). In this way, the ambiguity in Caliban's level of responsibility for his actions is seemingly dependent on whether he is a brutal monster, as shown when he attacks Miranda, or a victim of Prospero's institution. Both the major strength and major flaw of this game adaptation is that it assumes a certain element of humanity in Caliban’s character. Any person may pick up a controller and be placed inside the head of Caliban, instantly sympathizing with the creature trapped within the body of a “monster” and at the mercy of Prospero’s powers. With this assurance of humanity comes a degree of responsibility for his actions that, for Caliban within The Tempest, fall into a gray area. If a person is at the helm of the “new” Caliban, does morality become a concern – and is it a concern for Shakespeare’s Caliban? Moral values (perhaps even fear of an even higher power, such as Setebos) would place further limits on Caliban’s behavior. Adapting Caliban in this way does assure humanity in a way that cannot be assured in The Tempest, but this is accompanied by the need to reduce all other inhabitants of the island to “cutouts” of their characters, lacking in emotional depth. If Caliban is rational and sympathetic, it would logically follow that Prospero is cruel and one-sided in the simulation – in stark contrast to Prospero's loving treatment of Miranda and Caliban's attack. My intent in creating this game (or psychological simulation) was to consider whether Caliban’s actions and reactions are “justified” given his situation – that is, whether “rational” players would become frustrated by Prospero’s control over their character and resort to desperate measures such as a murder plot with Trinculo and Stephano in order to beat the game. I predict that they would. My only concrete conclusion, then, must be confirmation of the utter lack of black-and-white distinctions within The Tempest. Regardless of his level of humanity, Caliban is both a victim and Miranda’s attacker, just as Prospero is both a protagonist and Caliban’s tyrant. In this way, this game adaptation served to deepen the complexity I see in his character – regardless of his motivations and even who is controlling his mind, Caliban is still wholly open to interpretation. I have selected the text of “Paradise Lost”, and have chosen option 4: “Design a Game”.
The hero, or main character of the game will be The Devil. The player will directly control Satan both on the ground and in air, and in two forms; as the mighty fallen angel and the manipulative, cunning serpent. The style of the game will be a mix of role-playing quest elements, hack n’ slash fight gameplay, and puzzle-like obstacles for the player to overcome later in the game. There are 4 main areas where the game takes place; Heaven, Hell, the Gates of Hell, and the Garden of Eden, in chronological order respectively. The player begins the game fighting angels loyal to God in Heaven, before being defeated and falling down to Hell. A cinematic is cued as Satan falls, and several lines of text from the corresponding point in "Paradise Lost" are used. At this point, the player must find and exit through the Gates of Hell, cuing another cinematic with "Paradise Lost" text, and then embark on a dangerous journey to the Garden of Eden. (The main danger is risking falling into Oblivion; an even darker pit than Hell.) Once in Eden, the Player must lure Eve to the tree and trick her into eating the fruit from the Tree of Life. At this point, the Player has achieved victory and it is game over. The Devil has won. Here I include vistas of possible scenes for each area of the game, and specify which passages of text I will use in the following analytic paragraphs. As a conceptual starting point for the adaption of “Paradise Lost” into videogame digital form, I examined the story largely through the viewpoint of Satan, and identified several theaters of act, where most of his storyline took place. I wanted to bring his character to life in a lifelike, concrete manner that had never been attempted before, and to do that I needed powerful dialogue that encapsulated the way in which his character develops. I chose three main passages of text, the first from his fall into Hell: “Him the Almighty Power / Hurld headlong flaming from th' Ethereal Skie [ 45 ] / With hideous ruine and / combustion down / To bottomless perdition, there to dwell / In Adamantine Chains and penal Fire, / Who durst defie th' Omnipotent to Arms.” I chose this particular passage because it provides the relevant backstory to Satan’s character; how he ended up in Hell, and why. In continuing the storyline, I chose to include a passage relating to Satan’s plan of action as he relates it to his compatriots: “But first whom shall we send / In search of this new world, whom shall we find /Sufficient? who shall tempt with wandring feet / The dark unbottom'd infinite Abyss [ 405 ]… I abroad / Through all the Coasts of dark destruction seek /Deliverance for us all: this enterprize [ 465 ] /None shall partake with me”. After Satan passes through the Gates, I of course had to include the defining moment of Satan’s temptation, and the signal for a Player victory: “ was at first as other Beasts that graze / The trodden Herb, of abject thoughts and low, / As was my food, nor aught but food discern'd / Or Sex, and apprehended nothing high: / Till on a day roaving the field, I chanc'd [ 575 ] / A goodly Tree farr distant to behold / Loaden with fruit of fairest colours mixt,… / Shall that be shut to Man, which to the Beast / Is open? or will God incense his ire / For such a petty Trespass, and not praise / Rather your dauntless vertue”. Through this process, I gained significant insight into the Satan character. He lost his appearance of evil, and gained one of newfound respect. Imagining the challenges and hardship that he went through, the dedication and determination to rebel against the tyranny of far superior forces that he possessed almost drew me to sympathize with his cause. Yet, as always, the fact that he then preyed upon the innocent race of Man highlights the brutal and innately wicked character that he really is. To me, Satan became more corporeal, and more definite; while I cannot ally with him, I have a better understanding of his decisions and his reasons for making them. By delving into his world pictorially and digitally instead of purely through literature, I was able to realize his story in a different manner… through a brighter and more revealing light. -Britton Forsyth |
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