Academical is an NSF-funded research project that aims to create pedagogical experiences using a dynamic visual novel. Namely, it aims to teach researchers the ethics of performing research - what does it mean to perform "gift-authorship", what does it mean to have bad reviewer practices, and so on. While it plays in a straight-forward manner, there is complexity under the hood. The narrative system uses a variety of techniques depending on the version (there are currently 3) to dynamically sequence dialogue and ethical dilemmas.

Each iterative version of the system revealed more on what combination of pedagogy and entertainment formed the best environment for teaching. The first version of academical showed that dynamic dalogue was desired to make the experience more available. The second showed negative patterns of authoring that can occur (e.g. wheel-and-spoke systems, loops) but also revealed the importance of inserting humor and subversive options for players to explore. The current version combines all of these lessons into a more expansive and fleshed out game, one that combines textured characters with interesting narrative systems.

While I contributed in an auxilliary capacity to systems design, my focus was on content creation and how to create tooling to aid authorship. This involved the testing of experimental asset production techniques as well as the co-running of a writer's room. I also implemented much of the final UI/UX, research/data platform, save system, and sound design.

There are two older versions of Academical you can try out, each with different implementation and authoring strategies. Find them here: Version 1, Version 2