Task 3 - Creating Products for Audiences

The Last Of Us

Genre - The Last of Us is an action-adventure survival horror video game developed by Naughty Dog

The principal goal of a survival type computer and video games is to merely stay alive; defeating enemies or solving puzzles may be incidental. Some key elements include Resource conservation of health and ammunition and a hostile environment (typically post-apocalyptic or supernatural). The game is 3rd person allowing you to always peak over the shoulder of your main character Joel, allowing you to be aware at all times.

Content, Construction, Conventions & Common Codes - 
The title of the game is presented boldly but worn out, this is to show the indulgence of a world being worn out. Throughout the game exploring the environment created can be of much importance as your character (Joel) relys on survival items. These can include Ammo for weopons, health kits to gain health back and also craft weapons or medical items by combining items scavenged in the world. The game is set post-apocalyptic United States in 2033, where Joels main quest is to escort the young Ellie to a resistance group called the Fireflies, who believe Ellie may be the key to curing an infection that has ravaged the world. throughout this adventure the player defends characters against zombie-like creatures infected by a mutated strain of the Cordyceps fungus, as well as hostile humans such as bandits and cannibals, employing the use of firearms and stealth aided by capabilities such as a visual representation of sound in order to listen for locations of enemies. The soundtrack used in the game can be described as deppressive, scary and tense. This is because of the idea of a dull apocalyptic city. Marshall Law had taken place killing everyone until 20 years later where it seems an unsatisfied solution has taken place. Looking around the environment it feels as though nature has taken over. Cars, Buildings, roads and paths are covered in soil, dirt or even plants have grown over them. It feels as though there is no leisure, electricity, fuel and food to survive on. The game features very dark areas that are explorable. The city has adapted rules from history for example ration cards are used for food, these were also used during the World War. Travelling on the game can seem tense as you never know what is about to jump out the corner. The game has a very emotional theme as many close characters throughout the game may fall behind or much worse. The characters show a deep thought of being hopeless which makes the player almost seem the same wanting to drive towards the completion of the story. Other Characters as well as Joel may seem tired as though they never catch sleep throughout their story. This comes back to the point of a world which has now changed. People turn on each other it is survival of the fittest for anybody, if you are to shut your eyes for a second you never know what might happen. This gives the player awareness throughout the game, making use of Joels ability, which is a very useful mechanic in the game, helps locate the positions and movements of enemys. The game is very solitary, it was made for a player to play and enjoy rather than a group of people. Of course there is a multiplayer mode which the game features however that too features a strong theme of survival. You are limited by ammo, teammates can choose to gift you with items however it is still a very self reliable game mode. The Last Of Us has a rich emotional story. Some movies can be linked similar to the game for example "I Am Legend" or even "World War Z". Both films feature apocalyptic cities and the idea of zombies/infection taking over. 

Joel can interact with items or people in the game. Some areas in building may contain ammo items or food items stashed/hidden away in office desks or shelves. The game shows text based tutorials that are easy to follow and help you adapt to the game. The controls are simple and easy for any person to use and are very similar to NaughtyDogs (The development team) previous series Uncharted. Uncharted is an action adventure and could almost be assumed as a young Indiana Jones. Nathan Drake trying to explore, discover and uncover truth about ancient artifacts and lost treasures fascinated by history however at the same time facing many obstacles such as enemies trying to discover the same but for personal gain. Uncharted and The Last Of Us feature the same layout in cinematics and loading screens. This is probably due to the success of the Uncharted series.  Tutorials are featured at the beginning of the game mainly throughout the first missions preparing you for the story ahead. There are many situations where you may need to react fast. For example you are low on ammo and enemies are approaching you, your in control of Joel and you have the decision to either hide and then sneak past them or stealth kill them or maybe even switch to melee weopon and fight back. Sneaking around in the game can be really tense. The idea of sneaking is to be silent and you can do this by gently pushing the L stick while in crouch. If you are to make even an inch of sound then the Clickers (a name in game for a certain type of infected person) will come after you as it is attracted to sound. A lot of patience is involved while doing this. Conversations between characters assist gameplay for example the player may not know what to do and the companion character your with on that mission may tell Joel for example giving a boost to reach the edge of a ledge or wheither to take out an enemy on the left or right. Other convesations you can overhear between enemies in the game. This is really interesting as you start to think that these mercenaries your listening to are individuals, they are not all the same they have a weakness a soft spot. Only people who are interested in gaming or the industry could understand the amount of effort studios and teams go to in order to make gameplay as realistic as possible.

Just Dance

Just Dance 4 is a music video game, developed by Ubisoft as the fourth main installment of the Just Dance series of dance games. Announced at E3 2012 by Flo Rida and Aisha Tyler, it was released on the Wii, the Wii U, the PlayStation 3 (for PlayStation Move), and the Xbox 360 (for Kinect) on October 9, 2012 in North America, and was released in Europe and Australia on October 2, 2012. The Wii U version was released on November 18, 2012 in North America and was released on November 30, 2012 in Europe and Australia, alongside the system.

Gameplay remains similar to other previous Just Dance games, as players are judged on their ability to mimic on-screen dancers performing a routine to a chosen song. New features in Just Dance 4 includes dance battle routines, expansions to the game's Just Sweat mode, unlock able bonus routines for songs, and a "Puppet Master" mode exclusive to the Wii U version, which allows a player to use the Wii U's controller to serve as a "Master" to manipulate the routine and visuals. Previous additional modes (Simon Says Mode, Playlists, Medley, Speed-Shuffle, Just Create, and 8-Player) have been dropped. Additionally, the "On Fire" motive (from mostly Goods and Perfects in a row) and effort ratings have been removed, leaving only difficulty ratings.
Players have "Dance Quests", six missions for each song, that can be completed. Each quest nets the player Mojo points. Downloadable songs do not have dance quests. Wii, Wii U, and PlayStation players can also create "Dancer Cards", which can display their favorite songs, best scores, challenges, and more. Personal leader boards are also available for the Wii version of the game.
 
Just Dance won the 2013 Kid's Choice awards for favorite video game. This shows the type of audience the game applies to. Children, family friends anyone can play the game as it is multiplayer. The games text uses a sort of funky font almost to the point that we think that even the letters are dancing. Many attractive colors have used to obviously attract peoples attention also to appeal to children and others.













http://www.videogamesblogger.com/interstitial.html?return_url=http://www.videogamesblogger.com/2013/07/01/just-dance-2014-songs-list.htm
http://gimmegimmegames.com/2013/06/just-dance-2014-coming-this-october/
http://logos.wikia.com/wiki/File:The-last-of-us-logo.jpg
http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2013/02/the_last_of_us_clickers_make_the_most_terrifying_noises_ever