Small, Far Away : A game concept inspired by a Father Ted sketch.
Inspiration for a game design can come from anywhere. And it’s always best when it doesn’t come from… another game. This particular concept is inspired by perhaps one of the most brief yet well known exchanges from Father Ted, in which Ted attempts to explain the nature of depth perception to Dougal using a pair of toy cows.
“These cows are small, but the ones out there are far away…”
I love the fact that in so few words, less than 10 seconds, the viewer has been given enough information to fill in as many blanks as they like to compound humour. Because, undeniably, there is a bizarre shred of logic behind Dougal’s confusion.
With that sketch in mind, I’m sure many of you will get the gist of this concept long before the magic happens. Here’s a compilation video of demonstrations and set pieces. Enjoy!
Small Far Concept Sketch from Chicknstu on Vimeo.
I come up with a lot of concepts, most of which get left abandoned and unfinished on my hard drive. This one, I’m particularly happy with, but I’m still trying to make up my mind if there’s much mileage in the idea. Is it just an interactive optical illusion, or is there more to explore? This is why I’m sharing it with everyone. If you have any suggestions or thoughts for further directions, I’d love to hear them.
Thanks for watching. Please share if it makes you smile.
Stu xxx
That was very cute
A whole game based around the idea of perspective would possible be a little boring, but with some more fun optical illusions and depth based trickery, could get very very fun!
Looks good!
Hmmm, could mirrors work with this?
Good idea! Although it would break the illusion if you zapped a box ‘small’ next to a mirror, you’d suddenly see it appear.
True, I hadn’t thought of looking at things from that angle, I was more concerned with getting ‘far away’ items from around corners.