To begin my analysis on Stardew Valley, I looked to interviews with the sole creator of the game, Eric Barone, in which he reflects on his own struggle to build a fulfilling, survivable life in a capitalistic society. When he failed to find any job in which he could utilize his talents to support himself, he turned to video game programming as both a practical reallocation of his computer science skills and to purge these criticisms of industry. Many of his lamentations about the rise-and-grind structure of the current market translated into the fundamental concept of the game. Since the game is a type of criticism in and of itself, I have decided to critique how Stardew Valley emphasizes the downfalls of a capitalist market by somewhat forcing you to participate in it on a small scale, while also highlighting the benefits of participating in a communal life, by rewarding the player for donations to the museum and community center. My desired audience would optimally be comprised of people who are not critical of capitalism. To create my criticism video, I will only need my laptop, as it has a high quality mic and video-editing capabilities. I still have much work to do on the project and intend to dedicate my weekend to filming and polishing the video. I anticipate facing obstacles in my video editing, as I am not adept in this area, but I’m sure I will be able to craft a quality project using the tools available on both the class website and the Alabama website. For now, my main questions for my Game Master are simply whether the scope of this project is too broad or if I am really accomplishing the goals of the prompt through this idea.
OUTLINE
- Introduction: Explain the general concept of the game
- character creation
- character beginnings
- working at Joja Corporation
- receiving letter from grandpa and moving to inherited farm
- daily purpose
- clean and cultivate farmland
- meet new people in town
- further mechanics
- mines, fishing, artifacts
- fixing the community center
- exploring town
- Core Engagements
- Submission
- chores
- what if you didn’t do the mindless tasks?
- Expression
- character creation, naming of animals, design of house, organization of crops, interactions with townspeople
- you can date whomever you want!
- what if you didn’t express yourself upon the town?
- character creation, naming of animals, design of house, organization of crops, interactions with townspeople
- Discovery
- unlocking new areas of the map; learning more about the lore of the town; uncovering townsfolk’s likes, dislikes, and backstories
- what if you didn’t seek out anything new?
- Challenge
- battling new enemies, finishing chores before 2 A.M. (cutoff time), acquiring the materials necessary to progress storylines
- what if you didn’t engage with anything difficult?
- Submission
- Critique of meaning of the game
- short synopsis on Eric Barone and origins of the game
- capitalism as a mechanic
- character beginning in Joja Corporation (all work no play)
- new beginnings in Stardew Valley
- committing a “great refusal”
- inherited property
- daily grueling chores
- must earn money to progress in life
- monotonous tasks drain energy
- only after spending enough money to unlock the bus does there become a casino, for “pleasure”
- Joja mart
- membership-based (hierarchy)
- tries to run small business owner out of business
- communism as a mechanic
- meeting and listening to townsfolk to progress the narrative
- rewarded for donations
- other townsfolk
- museum
- community center
- overgrown and neglected
- everyone is busy with their own lives
- a community of junimos driven to live in darkness in the condemned community center
- work together to update rooms using the gifts you give them
- reward you by restoring new parts of the town to unlock new areas
- overgrown and neglected
- ultimately, the whole farm can become completely automated
- end goal of communism
- no more labor, only pleasure
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