Stonality is a puzzle video game that takes musical input and plays like a music matching game, but also gives the player freedom to create their own melodic sequences for strategic play.
Ever since the initial release of Beatmania back in 1999, rhythm games have been dominated by a standardized experience design known as the “note highway” where notes move across the screen towards the player, cueing the player to click buttons at a predetermined rhythmic interval as if playing an instrument. After the success of popular titles such as Guitar Hero and Rock Band, many educators saw potential in this design and developed music training applications that play like a conventional rhythm game. However, this type of interaction is purely music-matching-based, involving no creativity and freedom that is essential to the expressive nature of music. Research in game-based learning suggests that too little or too much freedom are both unideal for the player, so a balance between clear instructions and room for interpretation is crucial for maintaining a comfortable learning environment.
I propose to incorporate both music-matching and music-making interactions in a seamless gameplay experience, giving the player a set of musical tasks while also opening up opportunities for improvisation and creativity. Stonality is a music puzzle game where the player plays a match-three puzzle game while going through a musical performance-like experience. The number keys 1-5 on the keyboard match 5 different colors and 5 different musical pitches, clicking a number will generate a colored block and generate the colors corresponding tone as if playing an instrument. The game generates different sets of color combinations that tasks the player to play corresponding notes at a specific timing, just like a conventional rhythm game, but the game also leaves blank spots for the player to fill in their own preferred notes. The game further enhances the learning process of these explorative phases in the game by giving clear and definitive rules to evaluate these player chosen notes, adding more significance to these choices as opposed to relying purely on the players musical aesthetic preference.
Tags:#Music#Gameplay#Education