Drug Abuse Scene - crit

So the aim of this particular environment was to convey the themes of depression, hopelessness, impoverishment and drug dependence, and illustrate similar state of mind through the practical implementation of this critical framework.

Ambient Techniques Colour Lighting Materials/Textures Space Framing Geography Architecture	Narrative Techniques Player Created Scenes Scenes Events Vignettes
Props Artifacts Decals Effects Posters Graffiti	Navigational Techniques Beacon Signpost Trail

Ambient Techniques:

Colour:
All the colouring in this scene is kept fairly neutral. (see below). There are no really bright or bold colours, and the colour pallette is formed mainly of browns and dull muddy yellows. This is to reflect the mental state of mind of the character as they colours are unpleasant tones to look at and convey a sense of poverty and a tone of depression.

Lighting:
The lighting in this scene is kept predominantly dull (above) , with lots of soft, creeping shadows. This is to again enforce the idea of depression and to reflect the degenerative psychological state of the character as the lack of bright lighting implies a lack of joy or happiness in their life.

Materials/Textures:All of the textures in the scene have some manner of dirt or stains on them. This is to imply that the character is so far gone in their depression that they no longer care about the state of their surroundings, or that they are perhaps so hooked on drugs and constantly out of it so they don't really notice the deteriorating state of the environment, much like they wouldn't realise the deteriorating state of mind as a result of drug abuse.

Space/Framing:
There isn't much space in the flat. Everything is cramped into one room in the style of a bedsit. This helps to quickly convey a sense of poverty and implies that the flat is all the character can afford, and was selected for nessessity rather than choice.

Geography:The blinds are drawn on the flat windows so you don't get a sense of where it is or what's outside. This is deliberate in order to convey the trapped feeling the character will have as they are locked in a downward spiral of drug abuse.

Architecture:The small, cramped bedsit is typical of old fashioned homes which often had whole families living in the one room. Again this helps to quickly convey the idea of poverty.

Props;
Artifacts:The objects on the coffee table include a range of drug paraphernalia such as a bag of heroin, a hash pipe, a hash grinder with weed inside it, a spoon for melting the heroin, and an ashtray which appears to be full of ash and cigarettes. In addition there are also bottles of beer dotted about the table. All of these props point towards a drug problem, and a penchant for substance abuse.

Decals:Decals are "splatter textures" which are normally produced as a result of the players actions. As this project isn't an interactive one, there are no decals per say.

Effects:
There are no effects in the scene, as they are not required.

Posters:
While there are no posters in this scene, the "economy" branding of the food products could be considered as "poster" as the branding represents an institution. The institution in this case would be economy food ranges and this in turn helps to convey the idea of poverty and ties in with the depression state of mind.

Graffiti:
There is no graffiti in this scene.

Narrative Techniques.Player Created Scenes/ Events/ Vignettes:
Again, as this is not a spatial interactive project, these categories do not apply. The environment would be classed as a Scene in which there is evidence of an event/various events which the player was not witness to, these events in this case would be the progressive deterioration of the environment and the state of mind of the character.

Navigational Techniques

Beacon:
The main light sources act as beacons in this scene, drawing the eye to the kitchen area where there are countless stacked dirty dishes, and filthy work surfaces. The cooker is covered in stains and ground-in dirt, showing that it has long since been neglected. The TV set also acts as a beacon with it's light source, drawing the player's eye to other important details - the drug paraphernalia which lie on the coffee table.

Signpost:
As it is such a dark scene, the lighting here acts as a signpost. Not only as a directional beacon but to highlight areas/artifacts of particular importance.

Trails:
Smaller artifacts such as the props on the coffee table and the scattered dishes in the kitchen serve as a trail, all leading towards the sofabed and tv area as the main focal point of the room.