1. Research
William Thirlaway

2. Existing Product - Minecraft
• Minecraft is a first person survival game
which gives the player the freedom to
explore the world and use it’s resources to
create shelters, structures, or anything else
they can put their mind to. The game
features monsters and creatures which will
attack the player at night, creating a
challenge for the player to survive the night,
which can be particularly difficult to
overcome if you are lacking in resources.
• The game uses simplistic and cartoony 16 bit
graphics.
• The music in the game is calm and peaceful
which gives the player a sense of relaxation
and allows them to focus on the creative side
of the game, rather than the threats posed to
the player.

3. Existing Product – Don’t Starve
• Don’t Starve is a top down survival game which
puts the player on a bleak baron island and where
they have to scavenge for resources and craft
items in order to survive. The game uses a day
system to show how long you’ve lasted in the
game. You also are provided with a hunger, sanity,
and health meter which you must maintain in
order to survive, as well as fighting monsters
which appear during the night and get
progressively more difficult as the days progress.
• The graphics are done in a 2D, hand drawn,
cartoon style which takes away from any realism
of the game which would otherwise make the
game very dark and would likely raise the age
rating.
• Throughout the gameplay there is very little
music, with only the sound effects of the things
going on in game. This creates tension for the
player and adds more of a horror vibe to the
game.

4. Existing Product - DayZ
• DayZ is an first/third person open world
zombie survival game. It started as a mod
for Arma II and was later developed into a
stand alone game for PC. The gameplay
has the player surviving from hordes of
zombies (as well as sometimes other
players) and building defenses and using
weapons in order to do so.
• The graphics are full 3D graphics done in a
realistic style. This brings the player into
the world and make them feel like they are
in the game, which adds to the tension
and the stakes of the gameplay.
• There is no music in the game and the only
sound is the sound effects coming from
the environment and the actions your
character is doing which helps to increase
the tension and unsettle the player.

5. Existing Product – Dying Light
• Dying Light is an open world survival
horror game which makes the player use
weapons and in game parkour in order to
avoid zombies and make their way to
different safe zones.
• The graphics are realistic full 3D graphics in
order to make the game immersive for the
player, which is also enforced by the first
person perspective that you play in
throughout.
• The soundtrack is very cinematic and uses
mostly strings and other orchestral
instruments. This makes the game feel
more like a movie. The music however isn't
playing all the time, and it is often is just
the noises from the game during gameplay
outside of missions and interactions with
NPCs.

6. Research Analysis
• What common features do the researched products
have?
– All of the games require that you search for items and
resources throughout the world in order to survive.
– They are all open world games.
• What aspects of the research will you include within
your on work?
– I will use both of the previously mentioned aspects in my
game.
– I will also use a shooter like mechanic in my game against
NPC enemies.

7. Interviews

8. Interview 1
• What aspects do you enjoy about survival games?
The aspect I most enjoy is the challenge of surviving and having to work things out
rather than just following clear objective based instructions.
• Do you prefer a multiplayer or solo survival
experience and why?
I prefer multiplayer personally as I am not a massive gamer but if I do game I enjoy the
social aspect of doing something with my mates and interacting with real people at
the same time.
• Do you enjoy shooter aspects of survival games
or do you prefer games without and why?
I prefer kind of a mixture where the game is not solely just shooting but also a mixture
of having to escape with resources rather than just killing enemies as there are plenty
of games where all you do is shoot.

9. Interview 1
• Observation:
The person enjoyed Multiplayer over Single player.
• What this says about my audience:
This suggests that players prefer to play together and use games as a
social platform for them to spend time with their friends.
• How will your product appeal to this audience:
My product will appeal to this audience because as well as a single
player mode it would include a co-op mode where multiple players can
play with each other and help each other throughout the game.

10. Interview 2
• What aspects do you enjoy about survival games?
I personally love that its you and only you and you can really test yourself as a gamer
on how well the use your skills to play the game.
• Do you prefer a multiplayer or solo survival
experience and why?
I personally love the multiplayer experience simply because I like to play other players
from around the world and really begin to test myself as a gamer, competing against
some of the best.
• Do you enjoy shooter aspects of survival games
or do you prefer games without and why?
I prefer the shooter aspect just because it makes a more exciting game and some insane
things can be achieved whilst playing.

11. Interview 2
• Observation:
The person enjoys the shooter aspect of video games.
• What this says about my audience:
This suggests that the audience would like a sense of combat
and defence in their games, in order to add a bit of a
challenge.
• How will your product appeal to this audience:
My product will appeal to the audience because it not only
allows the player to create their own base, but defend it as
well with different weapons and traps.

12. Bibliography

13. Bibliography
1. Interviewees, Name. (2018) Target Audience Interviews (conducted on
DATE)
2. Interviewees, Name. (2018) Target Audience Interviews (conducted on
DATE)