Roguelike-Entropy

 

Team

Name: Kelvin Tsang

Nationality: Australian

Institution / Company: NWMN

 

Name: Patrick Tran

Nationality: Australian

Institution / Company: FMD Architects

 

-HONOURABLE MENTION of Videogame Architecture: 2 Drawings Competition

 

Human progress can be summed up as architectural accretion.

Hades, a roguelike videogame, showcases how gameplay, mechanics and narrative can be interwoven to deliver a world-immersive experience that explores the themes of death, memory and cumulative knowledge. 

The live-die-repeat structure of Hades is analogous to how human civilisations have progressed through a constant layering of knowledge passed on from one generation to the next. Whereas death is typically synonymous with failure, roguelike games encourage players to expect frequent deaths as progress markers.

Roguelike Entropy presents an extension of the Hades world that sees architectural knowledge, and human progress at large, as an unstable, heterogeneous cluster that is ever-evolving through a perpetual layering process that builds upon prior knowledge and memories. 

By this definition, architecture is inextricably linked with history and environmental conditions, so a Tabula Rasa approach is impossible, especially in our climate of increasing ecological decline. 

When applied in architectural practice and research, the video game-making process of world-building, the complex meshing of environmental design, storytelling and user experience could provide different curatorial perspectives in addressing the ecological crisis we face today. Architecture must not only present an aesthetic visual but respond to the environmental implications, historical fabric and user experience beyond the human form.

 

#Architectural accretion #Non-linear narrative #Speculative cyberpunk #New forms of societal organisation #Ecological crisis

 

Jury Comments

– Kuba Jekiel

“The work presents a triggering concept focusing on the building industry in times of environmental crisis. The project in an original way mixes the esthetics of science-fiction and (dark) fantasy.“