The Master’s thesis I chose for this task is from University of Zagreb – School of Designs and it was written by Nikola Heged. The title of this Master Thesis is “TERAPINO — System for Advancing Therapeutic Techniques“.

1. Level of design

The design of this thesis follows the guidelines set by the university. While there is no freedom in designing the format itself, small adjustments to the layout of elements are allowed. In my opinion, the format used is quite interesting; it is rather large and horizontally oriented, which gives it a sense of importance and formality. The author skillfully utilized the given format to create a cohesive and harmonious whole.

2. Degree of innovation

I consider this project to be innovative because it connects the physical and digital aspects of therapy for children. The system fundamentally functions as a digital application with an extension in an analog form, depending on the specific needs of the therapeutic process, patients, and/or therapists. The system covers the process during therapy but also enables individual therapeutic activities that the child can complete independently at home or with parents. In this way, the overall therapeutic process is rounded out and enhanced, extending beyond the therapist’s office to the home environment.

3. Independence

The author collaborated extensively with the Polyclinic for Children and Youth of the City of Zagreb, and this project is based on their professional work. From this, I conclude that a great deal of effort and independence was invested in collecting, summarizing, and conceptualizing the project — under the mentorship of professors, of course.

4. Outline and structure

I find that the structure is clearly laid out, starting with an analysis of the area of interest, followed by creative research methods, which further guides the author towards defining the target group and designing the project. The flow of this thesis makes sense to me, and the sections are well-connected. In its outline, the topic appears to be well-focused and not overly broad, addressing only what is necessary for the final outcome.

5. Degree of communication

The degree of communication in this thesis is clear and effective. The author does a good job of keeping a consistent tone while explaining complex ideas in a simple way. The structure helps with communication by moving logically from one section to the next, so each point builds on the last one. The use of visuals and examples makes it easier to understand, which helps a wider audience follow along. This focus on communication adds to the overall clarity and effectiveness of the project.

6. Scope of the work

The scope of the work is well-defined and focused. The author clearly outlines the main goals and objectives, making it easy to understand what the project aims to achieve. He saw the clear pain points of the topic, and without going off track or including unnecessary information, worked his way to the solution. Overall, the scope of the project is appropriate and supports the main thesis effectively

7. Orthography and accuracy

The thesis is well organized, clearly divided into logical chapters and subchapters, also the author uses footnotes for citations the right way. However, the thesis does contain some spelling errors, which could have been avoided with a more thorough review of the entire work.

8. Literature

I believe that a sufficient number of works have been used for the literature review, all of them seem relevant and credible sources, which I consider very important for this topic. Additionally, the literature is divided into books, scientific articles, and online sources, which I appreciated as it makes it easier to review.

_{*This blog post was created with the help of ChatGPT, used for summarizing thoughts and translating them into English}

Animated Short Film: How to Become a Knight (Kratki animiran film: Kako postati vitez) by Kaja Kregar, dipl. obl. vizual. kom. (UN)

The master thesis I chose researches the topic of animation and creating a story with an environmental message. It is divided into two parts, the theoretical and the practical. In the theoretical part the author writes about animation, types of animation, modern environmental issues and how they affect our way of life. Her research questions are:

• How to present the issue of pollution creatively with the media of animation?
• Is art important for fixing said issues and how can it influence the viewer?

The author defines the meaning of used symbols and allegories and how they represent real modern day social issues. Specifically how they represent issues in ecology and how climate change effects the younger generation. The author explains her use of fairy tale themes and knights as well as touch upon pre-existing animated works with similar messages.

The practical part of her thesis consists of the animation process, from the inspirations to sketches, narrative and the storyboard. The author how they used the principles of animation to communicate the story and atmosphere, what digital programs they used and the analysis of the used colors and textures in the animation (the symbolical and allegorical meaning). They also talk/write about the use of music and sound effects for the animation.

1. Level of Design

The master’s thesis was created according to the faculty’s regulations, giving it the standard design of a master’s thesis. However, the thesis has a very good structure. The table of contents clearly shows how the author divided the individual chapters and systematically organized them. I appreciate that it starts with ecological issues and only later moves on to what animation is, and finally to the animation process. The appendix also includes all illustrations and sketches, which I find great, as it’s an excellent way to display individual parts of the animation in the book. The research question is clearly visible; unfortunately, a clear conclusion from the research is missing, as well as the methodology.

2. Degree of innovation

The topic the author addresses is not new; it’s a subject that many media designers engage with. The innovative part of the thesis is the connection between ecological issues and animation, as well as research on the theme and role of the knight in stories. The author explores how animation has been used throughout history and how certain animations have already included this theme. Her mentioned examples of animations are globally recognized animated films. The author discusses basic animation techniques and does not delve into new areas of animation. As mentioned earlier, the author speaks very little about the research itself and mainly describes how the practical work was created.

3. Independence

The thesis shows the student’s strong ability to work by herself, taking initiative and managing the research process with little outside help. The author also created an original animation by herself, showing both skill and creativity. This project adds a practical element to her research and highlights her commitment to bringing her ideas to life on her own.

4. Outline and structure

The master’s thesis is very well-structured, dividing into a theoretical and practical section. The author first discusses ecological issues in today’s society in general (from waste and recycling issues, corporate responsibility, habitat endangerment, to the consequent rising sea levels and how these impact young people), also providing an example of Mount Everest. After researching and writing about ecological issues, the author delves into the topic of animation, explaining what animation is and its basics. She also addresses social and historical issues of fairy tales, the influence of Walt Disney in the 20th century, and the significance of the knight in modern storytelling. The knight is the main character in the author’s animation. The last chapter of the theoretical part of the thesis is a study on how to create an animated film with an environmental message, where the author explores what animation as a medium can achieve and performs a comparative analysis of existing examples (Wall-E, Princess Mononoke).

In the practical section, the author begins by researching the target audience and then moves on to the analysis of story structure, sketches, and design (covering character design, environment, and a guidebook) and creating a storyboard. She then discusses her animation process, the animation technique used, the application of animation principles, software, visual analysis, editing, and post-production. The author has included the entire storyboard, character design, and background design as an appendix, so all work is visible in one place.

While I think the thesis is very well-structured, it seems to me that everything is somewhat superficially researched, and the author should delve deeper into certain topics. The research methodology is not clear in the thesis; I assume it is experimental since the author does not address it. In the conclusion, the author notes that she only supported her research theoretically.

5. Degree of communication

The author clearly explains various concepts and goes into specific areas of research. She describes the process of creating her work in detail, adding various technical details. Each step in creating her practical work has its own subchapter, where she professionally describes the process. The author also uses many examples to illustrate different areas of the thesis and includes images to facilitate understanding of individual topics.

6. Scope of work

The author explores the topic rather superficially, but places significant detail on the practical work. Although she writes about current ecological issues, provides examples, and discusses animation in general, this remains only a rough outline of individual subchapters, with the theoretical part covering only a third of the printed work. The rest of the thesis is dedicated to describing the animation creation process. The thesis lacks “research” where the author could present findings (if she has any) related to the stated question.

7. Orthography and acuracy

The thesis is well structured, it being divided into logical chapters and subchapters. It also includes an introduction, body, and conclusion, along with sources and an appendix with all the illustrations. The author also uses footnotes for citations and correctly lists sources in the bibliography. However, the thesis does contain spelling errors. The first spelling mistakes already appear in the abstract and in the English translation.

8. Literature

Considering the length of the thesis, it seems that very little literature was used. Many things are cited from the same source, so the thesis lacks comparative analysis. Altogether, 26 sources were used, half of which are online sources. Additionally, I was surprised to see how many of the sources were news articles, which were barely related to the topic.

Author: Eva Jenčuráková
Title: Handwriting of the Author in the Artists Book of Poetry (Rukopis autora v autorskej knihe básní)
Institution: Technical University of Košice, Faculty of Arts, Department of Design (Fakulta umení Technickej univerzity v Košiciach, katedra dizajnu)
Study programme: Design (dizajn)
Language: Slovak (slovenský)

This thesis explores the integration of visual art and poetry to create a deeply personal and expressive work. The author investigates how handwritten text, illustrations, and poetry can combine in an artist’s book to convey thoughts and emotions authentically. The output of the thesis was printed book of poems consisting of 120 pages of authors poetry utilizing their personal handwriting and illustrations, and 120 empty pages, where author invites the reader to reflect on their own thoughts and experiences.

1. Level of Design

The design of the thesis is contains well-integrated multifaceted elements. Combining poems, handwritten texts, and illustrations creates a cohesive and balanced layout that aligns with the subject matter. The author originally intended to create a script font based in their handwriting for this project, however after further experimentation and contemplation decided against it – part for their inexperience with font creations, but mainly for authenticity, which is inevitably diminished in any such attempts.

2. Degree of Innovation

This work introduces an innovative approach by merging visual arts with poetry in an artist’s book format with personal approach. The author also included audio recording of a self-narrated audio, which further distinguishes the project, providing a multi-sensory experience.

3. Independence

The project demonstrates a strong capacity for independent work. The author has clearly led the creative process, developing both the theoretical and artistic aspects with minimal external guidance, which reflects well on their self-direction and commitment. The author was working with their own personal creative output since the beginning – their poetry, and they have build the rest on this basis.

4. Outline and Structure

The structure of the thesis well-organized. Each section builds logically on the last, guiding the reader through both the research and the creative process seamlessly. However there is no notable subdivision of bigger part into chapters, which might have provided better overview of the content.

5. Degree of Communication

The concepts were communicated in a way that is easy to follow. The work is highly personal and as such at times the texts are perhaps unnecessarily long. The author possess certain poetic flair in their written expression, which could have been on occasion toned down and reduced, given the academic context of the thesis.

6. Scope of the Work

The thesis addresses a broad range of relevant ideas, from the creative process to the study of interdisciplinary trends among young poets and artists. Research was conducted meticulously and included multiple methods, such as for example interviews of other poets ( young people with work yet unpublished) and deep analysis of relevant already published works. All this gives the work depth while keeping it focused on the main artistic goals.

7. Orthography and Accuracy

The text shows attention to spelling and grammar, with no significant errors. Author is obviously well versed in writing. The careful editing contributes to the professional quality of the work.

8. Literature

The literature used is relevant and thoughtfully chosen. The author based their work in relevant bibliography, only occasionally reaching for internet sources, when appropriate.

1. Dive into Research: I’m starting by digging into research on gamification and design thinking. I’ll comb through articles and case studies to understand the latest insights.
2. Mini Experiments:
   • Online Simulations: Instead of big workshops, I’ll organize bite-sized online simulations. Think interactive challenges that participants can tackle from the comfort of their own screens.
   • Weekly Creativity Checks: I’ll conduct weekly creativity check-ins with a small group of participants. We’ll explore different gamified techniques and track how they influence creativity over time.
   • Virtual Brainstorming: Harnessing the power of technology, I’ll host virtual brainstorming sessions with gamified elements. It’s like bringing the fun of gamification to our design discussions, minus the logistical headache!
3. Measure What Matters:
   • Creative Output: I’ll develop simple creativity assessments to measure the quality and originality of ideas generated during our experiments.
   • Engagement Surveys: Quick surveys will help me gauge participant engagement and satisfaction with the gamified activities.
   • Process Observations: I’ll keep a close eye on the design thinking process during our experiments, noting any changes in approach or problem-solving strategies.
4. Simplicity is Key: Keeping it simple is my motto. I’ll focus on small-scale experiments that don’t require a big budget or logistical gymnastics.
5. Share the Knowledge: Once I’ve collected some insights, I’ll share them with the world. Whether through blog posts, social media updates, or informal chats with classmates, I’ll spread the word about what I’ve learned.

So, that’s my plan to explore gamification in design thinking, one manageable experiment at a time. It’s all about curiosity, creativity, and making the most of the resources we have as students. Let’s dive in and see where this journey takes us! ✨🎮🚀

Compositional Methods

Before addressing the composition for each scene individually, it is essential to ensure that the game’s soundtrack feels cohesive. A unified musical experience maintains player immersion while balancing it with unique characteristics for each scene to keep the experience interesting. To achieve this, I plan to use common instrumentation across various tracks, incorporating unique elements for each scene.

The soundtrack will blend orchestral and electronic elements. The orchestral components, controlled by MIDI instruments, align with the game’s historical theme and match the not-so-high fidelity of the game’s visuals. This mix of virtual acoustic and electronic instruments enhances the fantasy world of Mechanical God Saga. Matching the music’s fidelity with the visuals is deliberate; it creates a coherent experience and can positively impact the game, although sometimes not matching the music to the fidelity of the visuals can also work. This discrepancy can be used to have a positive effect on the game, uplifting it. This is sometimes used in cases where the games are developed for smaller devices without so much computer power, which is not the case for our game.

For composing specific scenarios, it is crucial to convey the appropriate emotions for each scene, such as peacefulness, relief, or stress. Understanding the scene’s context and potential events is key to achieve this. Triggers for musical changes can happen at any time, necessitating quick synchronization with gameplay. It is imperative to identify every possible moment in the music where a change might be needed and adjust accordingly to maintain immersion.

For example, in the forest scene, different musical changes are applied depending on which section of the song is playing when enemies appear. Figure 1 illustrates the initial mapping to achieve a state of tension for this scenario. Other music themes will require multiple states of tension, depending on the evolving situations. However, for the initial forest scene, only a single state of tension is necessary.

By carefully mapping out these musical changes and ensuring quick adaptation to gameplay triggers, the soundtrack will enhance the overall experience of Mechanical God Saga, creating a seamless and immersive journey for players.

The music structure goes as following:

Intro > Segment A > Segment B > Segment C

And for each section there is a need of mapping the changes, as the next table shows, regarding a first state of tension that we want to portray. Synthesized sounds with a metallic aspect are being considered to be associated with the enemy soldiers as for their metallic vests and its connection to the mystery of the nuclear event. As the structure is not linear, the structure mentioned above refers to the way it was composed. Different sections will be looped depending on gameplay, which doesn’t include the intro.

INTRO	SegMent A	Segment b	Segment C
Always the same, only plays once.	Increased cutoff frequency for the bass.	Replace instrumentation to more synthesized/metallic sounds, pumping effect.	Increased cutoff frequency for the bass.
–	Replace flutes with synthesized trumpets.	Change in the melody.	Replace flutes and violins with detuned synthesized sounds.

Fig.1 Adaptive process for a first state of tension.

As the intro starts during an introductory dialogue, it is not possible to get to the enemies while it is playing, therefore there is no need to map changes to this initial part of the music. The other sections have defined changes that are designed to increase a state of alertness and a sense of danger.

Technical Implementation

Creating adaptive music for Mechanical God Saga requires audio middleware to connect the music to the game, reacting to triggers from the game engine. For this project, we will use FMOD, which can be integrated with RPG Maker, the game’s programming software. While there is no official connection between FMOD and RPG Maker, additional programming through JavaScript will be necessary to establish a functional link. Daniel Malhadas, the game’s creator and programmer, is currently researching and developing this connection.

Within the adaptive system, there are branching and layering needs. As a starting point to understand these systems, the next figure shows a simple system designed for the first forest theme, as there is only one trigger happening, related to a state of tension. The red segments represent the altered music for the state of tension.

Fig. 2 Adaptive mapping system for the initial forest theme.

All transitions and overlay triggers need to be quantized to the BPM of the source cue and have meter and quantization grid setup. All starts and stops should have adjustable fade in and fade out lengths. This will ensure a smooth and quick transition between segments.

For the layering approach, instead of exporting individual layers, I exported each version as a full mix and will blend between them when a trigger occurs. This method addresses the need for continuous changes, such as increasing the bass filter’s cutoff frequency to achieve tension. Ideally, these adjustments would be controlled within the audio engine, but due to software limitations with the virtual instruments used, this is not possible. This approach offers a practical solution to those limitations. FMOD’s built-in parameters, such as equalization curves, pitch, reverb, and delay, will be used to create effects like dulling the music when the player is injured, enhancing immersion with equalization curves and possibly stereo field reduction.

As mentioned before, control knobs—either continuous or stepped— are planned to adjust the music based on the scene’s tension, the protagonist’s position, and the health or success rate during battles. If the game’s programmer can access this knob system, applying the necessary changes will be much easier, simplifying communication between the music and game sections.

How to adapt the music to specific situations of the game is a key element of the research, as well as considering all possible scenarios in order to succeed in supporting every possible situation. In this paper there will be an explanation of the current process, from scene and emotional description to the mapping of adaptive needs and the subsequent changes in the music. This methods are tailored for Mechanical God Saga’s game but can also be applied to other games with similar nature.

Firstly we are gonna analyze the scenes of the game’s first episode, which includes Iridir Forest and Iridir Prison. Story telling should be part of the music as well or support the narrative, therefore it is very relevant to understand what is happening in each of the scenes.

Iridir Forest

• Scene Description 

This is the first scene of the game where the player has to infiltrate the prison to “set god free” or in other words, execute him. In this scene we encounter ourselves in a forest with a lake. The atmosphere is calm and peaceful until the soldiers appear for a first fight.

• Story and Gameplay

Our character has the possibility to wander freely in the forest until he is approached by three soldiers who claim that he killed various soldiers of their squad. He had swore allegiance to them at the time, they are part of the “empire”. Then there is the first fight against them. After the battle there will be more soldiers walking around, and there is always the possibility to fight them individually (although sometimes then there appear more soldiers in the fight) if the player chooses to, earning points and getting stronger in case of winning. Later there will be another fight with a so called “beast”, which is stronger than the common soldiers.

• Music Soundtrack

For this scene I thought appropriate to have two musical pieces, excluding the fighting music, so that the player doesn’t stay on each one for too much time as it can take some time to trigger the next piece.

What should the music portray?

First Song (forest wandering): Peacefulness; sense of having to conquer something; the start of a new journey; fantasy.

Second Song (after winning the fight): Relief; sense of victory; positive feeling;

• Triggers

First Song

1. When the first three soldiers appear. Add tension.

Second Song

1. Transitioning to the prison side. Subtle hint of progress, add instrumentation.

2. Getting to the “rug” that leads to the prison, when the first beast figure appears. It should get more tense. But be careful as there seems to exist a possibility of leaving.

3. In case of winning the battle, get back to a less tense and more relaxed version. This segment will end quickly as we transition to the next scene inside the prison.

Iridir Prison

• Scene Description 

The goal of this location is to rescue an old friend who is inprisioned. It is an underground location, illuminated by old fire lamps. There should be an eerie sense of danger and challenge as it is a location controlled by the empire and anything can happen at any moment. Metal is a relevant element that might be used in the composition as it represents the jails.

• Story and Gameplay

The inprisioned friend was caught robbing the city’s medicine cabinet to save his mother. He was also being watched as it was claimed that he started a union of workers and incited strikes, which is true. 

At first, when entering the prison, there is the possibility to read a book called “Destructionism and the will to live”, which claims that demons are “man-made” and it reflects on their will to live. Then the prisoner can be found in the next room, and to release him the player has to find a switch in the room to unlock the prison, by solving a small “puzzle”. After this, the prison lock opens and two beasts appear to fight shortly after. This fight is more advanced in terms of strategy, there is more complexity and use of nature elements. 

After the fight there is the possibility of carrying on to other zones, with several more enemies to possibly fight and treasure chests with important items to be collected. There are 5 different zones, and from the last one it is possible to get to the Warden Chambers, where the final beast will be. Here there will be the final “boss” fight of this scene and the music should be different, more complex and perhaps using uncommon time measures. The battle can take until approximately 10 minutes. After the fight there will be another music piece and it should become very triumphant when using the travel circle at the end!

• Music Soundtrack

For this scene there will be two musical pieces, excluding the fighting music. The first will accompany the player throughout the quest and the other one will represent the success of having accomplished the desired goals.

What should the music portray?

First Song: Eeriness, danger, challenge, use metallic elements to represent the jails.

Second Song: Sense of victory; triumphant, conclusion of an important chapter.

• Triggers

First song:

1. Entering Iridir Prison F1 room, as a subtle sign of progress.
2. Switching the switch that opens the prison. Friend is released. Coloration change, refreshment, higher frequencies.
3. Beasts appearing after friend is released. More tension.
4. Entering the second F1 zone. Various fights will happen here, transmit more tension.
5. Entering Iridir F2, subtle sign of progress.
6. Entering Iridir F3, subtle sign of progress.
7. Entering Iridir F4, subtle sign of progress.
8. Opening the golden chest, subtle sign of progress.
9. Entering F5 zone, subtle sign of progress.
10. Entering the Warden Chambers where the final beast is located. Peak of tension, epic.

Notes:

Getting back to previous zones is a necessary step in order to progress within this scene, so there shouldn’t be a musical regression when going back to a previous room. Second song is shorter and has no necessary triggers, aside the one to start it. It should be triggered when getting to the travel circle. Getting to the forest again represents the end of this first episode.

Adaptive Elements

The adaptive elements are triggered depending on control signals from the game. Typical controls signals are mentioned below.

• Position of the protagonist;
• Position or distance from the antagonist;
• Environment: weather/time of the day;
• Game status (tension/relaxation);
• Emotional state of the player;
• Health status of the protagonist;
• Interaction with Non Playable Characters (NPC’s).

For Mechanical God Saga, the most relevant musical adaptations are linked to the game status and player’s position. These aspects are crucial due to the game’s inherent contrast between tense battle scenes and more relaxed exploratory moments. The music will change as the player moves between different rooms, subtly guiding and marking progress. Additionally, the health status and success of the protagonist in battles will influence the musical adaptation during combat.

Musical elements such as structure, tempo, melodic contour, harmony, and loudness can convey a wide range of emotions to support various gameplay scenarios. To evoke tension, common techniques include increasing tempo, changing time signatures, adding low percussion elements, raising the cutoff frequency of filters, incorporating horn instruments, and using tremolo effects. For instance, Age of Empires enhances tension with low percussion and tremolo strings, while Corrupted Dungeons increases percussion and uses horns when enemies appear.

During battles, injury is often portrayed by a decrease in sensors, which can be represented by dulling the sound, typically using a low-pass filter to make audio elements less distinct. Enhanced breathing and heartbeat sounds can also indicate exhaustion, although these techniques are more effective in a 3D first-person environment and may not be suitable for Mechanical God Saga. Another interesting technique is the reduction of the stereo field as used in Nier: Automata, which will be tested in our game.

For technical implementation, control knobs are planned to adjust the music based on the scene’s tension and the protagonist’s position and also health or success rate during battles. The specific implementation details will be explored in the technical chapter.

Regarding battle outcomes, different musical endings will be triggered depending on whether the player wins or loses. Drawing inspiration from Final Fantasy VII, a victory will be marked by an energetic and triumphant arrangement, while a loss will have a dramatic tone that shifts to a hopeful piece, encouraging the player to try again. This principle will be integrated into our game, as players have the opportunity to instantly retry battles.