Abstract

Wayfinding is always a crucial part in the 3D game area. In many games the usability of wayfinding techniques is always favoured. However some wayfinding aids do not compliment the whole design aesthetic of a game, resulting immersion breaking. Under the impression of immersion and wayfinding are in a mutually beneficial relationship, this thesis aims to create different design approaches to combine immersion with wayfinding, in order to find the optimal formula that make games provide the ultimate immersive game experience. Various of wayfinding aids are analyzed and an alternative design for each aid is proposed to help building an immersive game experience. The trade-off between convenience and immersion will be then discussed. Furthermore, the Dark Souls series is chosen to be evaluated under the immersive wayfinding standard due to its celebrated captivating game world. Despite lack of direct guidance like maps or path guidance, Dark Souls still manage to succeed in mastering the indirect guidance. The well-done indirect guidance together with several mechanics that are unique to Dark Souls and also the archaeology alike storytelling all serve the purpose of building one of the most immersive lifelike game world in current game industry. The results suggest that games do not need to have all the design approaches proposed to provide players with the ultimate immersive game experience. How to balance the trade-off between fun factor, convenience and immersion is what a designer should always keep in mind. There will likely never be a perfect solution for how to make a game immersive as possible.

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