CorporateAn interactive simulation of corporate
lifestyle
Sruthi Padala
Real World System
• What is complicated? Factors and combination of factors that help attain success at a highly-demanding job without compromising family relationships
• Causal Patterns - more work means more money but less time for family
- more time for family means less time for work and so
less money
- black and white?
Real World System
• Why does it call for replay? Learn to balance the various duties and responsibilities in order to achieve success at work and at home
• How does the simulation interpret real world
system? Corporate lifestyle is a daily struggle to perform well at work, be a caring spouse and a responsible parent
Similar Artifact: Courier Similarities
• Text based decision making game
• Simulation about trade-offs in balancing responsibilities
Differences
• Choices outcomes are less transparent
• More possible outcomes
Similar Artifact: Ayiti Similarities
• Social values reinforced
• Managing activities of characters
• Complicated strategy
Differences
• No negative feedback loop
• Fewer characters
Abstract Model Key Elements• Boss’s mood – employee duties
• Wife’s mood – husband duties
• Child’s mood – parent duties
• Money - success at work
• Time - progress in the game
Values• No single factor can account for
success• Importance of family• Money does not equate to
happiness
Interaction Pattern
• What can be done? The interactor decides what action to be done in each scenario
• How is this indicated? At the beginning of each time step a prompt is displayed, describing the task that needs to be accomplished a set of choices of actions
Interaction Pattern Visibility• Meters change with every
decision step
State• Time indicates progress in the
game• Money indicates resources
available
Feedback• Textual : prompts• Visual : background images• Result screens
Get firedGet
Divorced
Shopping
Task 1
Task 2
Task 3
Shopping
Everyone happy
Accused of being bad
father by child
Hire Nanny
Blackberry
Buy Gifts
Money>5000
Money>10000
Money>15000
Abstract Flowchart:
Start
Broke
Task 1: Negotiate settlement
Wife calls
Paid a bonus of $10000
Pick up son from school
Lost little time, paid only $5000
Ask a friend to pick up your son
Late for meeting , lose $5000
Pick up son
Wife happyChild happyBoss upsetChild upset
Boss happy wife upsetChild upset
Shopping
AnswerIgnore
Ignore
AnswerCalls again
Task 2: Dinner with in-laws
See Boss
Lose $5000
Stay longer to score a client
Neutral choice
Joined family late
Paid a bonus of $5000
Win a client
Wife upset,Boss happy
Wife happyBoss upset
Boss upset wife happy
Shopping
Carry on with dinner
Go over
Boss calls
Ignore
Stay
Leave
Go over
Task 3: Organize Son’s Birthday party
Which task first?
Took more time because of traffic
Finished documents and attended party
Documents unfinished. Lose
$5000
Paid a bonus of $5000
child upset,Boss happy
Boss upsetchild happy
End
Pick up cake
Got caught up in work.
Time for party
Finish documents
Prepare documents for merger deal
nanny availabl
e
Send nanny to pick up cake
Leaveimmediately
no
Stay
Stay at party
Skip
Motivating Replay
• Learn and discover by exploring
- Hire a nanny to delegate responsibilities
- Buying blackberry upsets wife
• Multiple ways to win or lose the game , make
players want to explore all the ways.
• Emotional affinity to see characters happy
Future Improvements
• Satirical tone
• More user choices:
- wife working or not working
- the kind of job they have
• More characters that influence decisions
- colleagues
- friends
Walkthrough: failure
Choose Ignore
Choose Answer
Choose ‘Ask a friend to pick up your son’
Buy ‘Gifts for Family’ and click on ‘Enough’
Click on ‘Go’
Choose ‘Decline politely’
Choose ‘Next Task’
Choose ‘Enough’
Choose ‘Pick up cake’
Choose ‘A kid turns 10 only once’
Walkthrough: success
Choose ‘Answer’
Choose ‘pick up son’
Choose ‘Next Task’
Choose ‘Enough’
Choose ‘Go over and say hello’
Choose ‘Stay for some more time’
Choose ‘Next Task’
Choose ‘Enough’
Choose ‘Prepare documents’
Choose ‘Leave immediately’
Success !