Norwich University Students Mental Health Games Showcase

Posted: 4 May 2023

In January 2023, Norwich University of the Arts game students were given an extended live brief in collaboration with Safe In Our World linked to the positive impact that nature has on well-being.

The students ranging across specialisms including game development, concept art, and asset design created original content based on a brief set by Games Course Leader Steven Coltart influenced/ inspired by the music track ‘With Nature’.

This is a continuation from our collaboration in 2022 with the University of Hertfordshire, where we worked alongside Steven to brief students for a music showcase, which you can listen to here.

Oli Paul

Game Development

Dog Walking Simulator – Made in Unreal Engine

Matthew Wright

Game Development

Quintessence – Made in Unreal Engine 5

I wanted to make a game to help people; offering a fun and tranquil experience giving a sense of freedom that is an extended metaphor for each of our journeys. A key theme I want my game to grant a player is serenity.

Megan Griib

“I decided to take inspiration from woods in my local area and the positive effects of walking in nature for mental health. Around March/April time, a particular area of woods where I walk become blanketed by beautiful bluebells and the sunlight dappled through the trees creates sparkles in the air – it really feels like a sanctuary.

When listening to ‘With Nature’, these are the things that came to mind, particularly in the soft twinkly sounds and strings, so my goal was to capture this feeling in a snapshot of an environment. I think that being in nature is like escapism from the everyday, and so I wanted to take a fantasy approach in the art style, which is why I took inspiration from games like ‘Tearaway’, to make the entire scene as though it was made out of paper. This scene was presented and rendered in UE5.”

Salene Tarling

Concept Art

“The story behind the scene is that the two characters have returned from a perilous quest, a final battle, and as they reach the outskirts of their home city, it snows for the first time since everything has ended. They take a moment to sit in the flower field and appreciate”.