Influencing Emotions Task | The Last of Us

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EMOTIONS ENGINEERING TASK

INFLUENCING EMOTIONS TASK:

In a group of 3, we were given a task to play a PS4 game which we have never played before. The next task is to research these two models: Yerkes-Dodson Law and Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow Model.

And explain through the use of the models on how the game has successfully helped to increase our performance, whether it was able to create a state of flow and to what extent did it damage our performance while playing the game.

GROUP MEMBERS:

1. Nur Afiqah binti Haji Awang Tengah

2. Rabiatul Adawiyah binti Mudim Haji Amran

3. Rozita binti Razalli

SELECTED GAME:

The Last of Us (Remastered)

GAME GENRE:

Action-Adventure Survival Horror Video Game

GAME MODE:

Single-Player

DIVISION OF TASK:

A) From the task given, we divided our work scope accordingly. All of us researched on the 2 models mentioned in the task before we start playing the game: “The Last of Us”.

B) In a total of 1 and half hours of playing the game, we take turns playing it while the other two will observe on the progression of the game.

1. The first 30 mins are played by Afiqah.

2. The mid 30 mins are played by Rabiatul.

3. The last 30 mins are played by Rozita.

C) After we are done playing the game, we discuss our findings and experiences around the idea of the 2 models and compile them.

Below is the picture taken during Rabiatul's turn playing during the mid 30 minutes of The Last of Us.

DESCRIPTIONS OF THE 2 MODELS

Below are the descriptions of the Yerkes-Dodson Law and Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow Model.

THE LAST OF US

STORYLINE

“The Last of Us takes place in the year 2033, twenty years after a fungal-based, brain-altering pandemic has spread and infected over 60% of the world’s population. Since the outbreak, the world has gone into a state of panic and frenzy as officials try to fix and keep the situation under control. When the World Health Organisation’s attempts to procure a vaccine fail, the United States government does away with the minister in power and the establishment of civilian government. The country is turned into a police state under the control of homeland security and the military, and cities across the nation are placed under martial law one by one. Survivors of the pandemic are assigned to designated quarantine zones that are supposed to separate them from the infected and keep them safe.

Sometime within the twenty years leading up to the main events of the game, a paramilitary group calling themselves the Fireflies is established, with their main goal being the restoration of lawful government in the United States, as well as finding and producing a vaccine for the Cordyceps Brain Infection. The Fireflies attack the military on occasion and encourage uprisings.

Set in the post-apocalyptic United States, the game tells the story of survivors, Joel and Ellie, as they work together to survive their westward journey across what remains of the country to find a possible cure for the pandemic that has nearly decimated the entire human race.” (The Last of Us Wiki, 2017)

Reference: The Last of Us Wiki. (2017). The Last of Us. [online] Available at: http://thelastofus.wikia.com/wiki/The_Last_of_Us [Accessed 13 Sep. 2017]

THEME

The Last of Us is an action-adventure survival horror video game. Creative director, Neil Druckmann, was inspired to include ‘Infected’ as a main feature of the game after discovering the Cordyceps fungi. A vast number of civilization are destroyed within the twenty years since the outbreak starts, exploring the possibility of human being infected by the fungi.

SOUND EFFECTS

The Last of Us Original Soundtrack was composed by Gustavo Santaolalla. The music is described as “organic-instrumentation, minimalist, dissonance, and resonance with the sound”. They created the sounds from a naturalistic point-of-view and took the minimalist approach. By doing so, they found out that it added feelings of tension, loss, and hope, and without this approach, the game appeared to be a typical “action-game”.

GAMEPLAY

“The Last of Us is a third-person Survival-Action game that utilizes choices in gameplay action to develop the game storyline, as well as the relationship between the two main characters, Joel and Ellie.

The game features a combination of combat, exploration, stealth and platforming game mechanics. Although Joel and Ellie are both residents of a post-apocalyptic world, they have had different experiences that affect the way they see the world around them and feel about what they see and do. Joel had a life before the pandemic, while the world of the pandemic is all that Ellie has ever known.

As part of Joel’s job to smuggle Ellie out of the quarantine zone, players have to make choices in how they deal with enemies, which include, roving gangs of human scavengers not unlike themselves, military elements and infected civilians. Player also have the opportunity to together interact with elements of the world around them, which helps to build the bond between Joel and Ellie. Resources in the game are scarce, making overwhelming use of firepower unlikely and unwise in conflicts, and resource gathering missions. In addition, most other residents of the ruined world that are encountered are just trying to survive – blurring the line between good guys and bad guys. Finally, game AI reacts differently depending on the specifics of the player’s actions, making choice in gameplay a major consideration.” (Havok, 2017)

Reference: Havok. (2017). The Last of Us. [online] Available at: https://www.havok.com/the-last-of-us/ [Accessed 16 Sep. 2017].

GAME CHARACTERS

The following are list and descriptions of game characters that we met during the gameplay.

GAME EXPERIENCE AND DISCUSSION ACCORDING TO YERKES-DODSON LAW

How did the game increase or decrease our game performance?

First 30 mins:

In the beginning, our arousal levels are very low. This is simply because we only had to see and move Sarah around and begin searching for clues by using the analogue stick.

Our arousal level starts to increase when Sarah and Joel are told to run away from the zombies in the city. They had to hit and run a lot of citizens while trying to focus on Tommy (Joel's brother) who led the way. Several other obstacles on the way made us feel frustrated e.g. car explosions, dead human bodies on the floor and zombies encounter. But the fear of getting caught by the zombies made our urge to make the characters run faster.

The run continues in the forest whereby the sound of the zombie seems to get closer. Our arousal levels reach the optimum and Fiqah had to turn the character around and end up bitten by the zombie. That particular scene had to be restarted again.

Mid 30 mins:

As the game progresses, our arousal levels return back from to low level. This is because of the story is subtly introducing the game world and make us engage to know more about what happened. This is because of the way the game keeps the player consumed into the story and by subtly introducing the game controls while still keeping us engage to know more about what happened. Our arousal levels start to increase as more gameplay and controls are introduced in the game to actually involved in action-combat and shooting.

Our arousal almost exceeds to the optimum mainly due to we haven't got the hang of the gameplay control to get ready for combat. And Rabiatul has the curiosity that gets in her way of thinking on how the game will be affected if none or all of the enemies are killed.

Last 30 mins:

Then the game return back our arousal level to low as we have to follow one of the characters (fireflies) to her “hiding” place. Then the level increases when we have to pass through some enemies where we were supposed to just “sneak” pass them but at some point, we have to do some killing as well. Our arousal levels have reached the optimum again when we have to escape the scene by running away under the rain and avoid being caught by the spotlight. Unfortunately, the arousal gets too much for Rozita as she gets so nervous and then the characters died.

GAME EXPERIENCE AND DISCUSSION ACCORDING TO CSIKSZENTMIHALYI'S FLOW MODEL

How was the game able to create a state of flow?

First 30 mins:

Fiqah only managed to reach arousal emotional state instead of flow. She got immersed when the apocalypse occurs. Observing the citizens running on the road while sitting in the car, running away from the zombies and trying to reach a safe destination without stopping.

Mid 30 mins:

For Rabiatul, her emotional state was mostly in arousal as well due to the challenge of having to kill enemies without killing the characters with just newly acquired skill level makes her keep engaged with the game. Her emotional state then changes to being in control of the game as her experience during combat earlier make her feel she can overcome the upcoming challenges.

Last 30 mins:

While for Rozita, most of the time, her emotional state was worry/anxiety. This is because she never plays this kind of game before. Therefore, her skills in playing are low. And since she didn't practice on the action-combat beforehand, her game skill is quietly low for having to deal with high challenges in the game. She managed to reach a state of flow where she gets immersed into the game when she focuses and thinks of ways on how to sneak out away from the “enemies”.