LO1- Game analysis: Sneak

I will be looking at aspects of the game Sneak such as gameplay, characterisation and the target audience to analyse how Made in me Ltd have used these categories to create what they believe is an innovative gaming experience.
It is a game for young children that fits into the interactive genre as it uses a sound sensor to listen out for your movements. There are strategic aspects within it as the kid must plan how to move to the phone without alerting the ‘monster’. There is an end goal and different difficulty levels for the player to conform to. In comparison to other titles it has less of a definitive end as it high a high replayability factor like many iOS games. It doesn’t fit quite so simply into any one genre so is quite difficult to compare to others such as the 7 second challenge.

You play as somebody that needs to hide from a monster and can only win by sneaking towards your phone and pressing the screen to take a picture of the monster. Because you are hiding the game requires you to move quietly, if you don’t the phone will hear your movement and you will be caught. To young children, as it is a monster they are hiding from they will feel cautious and listen closely to the narrative voice to instruct them. The story is simplistic for children to follow and imaginative.

This game was produced by Made in me Ltd via storyboarding and then eventual creation on their own engine. The sound sensors enhance the gameplay by making it harder for players as they are physically hiding. Voiceovers and childish music made the gameplay more interesting as it adds to the childish style. Sneak’s gameplay is infinite because of the difficulty settings, completing one difficulty makes it feel like you have progressed. There are other typical mechanics such as being interactive to the player which makes it both stylistic and unique.

The characters are playful and colourful. The cuddly monsters are described as being a friend for the child playing, appealing to the players as they are playing the game alone and will wish for a companion. Their approachablility makes them easy to interact with, thus matching the conventions of the genre, it gives a more inviting and fun approach to the game. However, the characters within the game are very simplistic and the narrator is restricted to certain phrases. Whilst they may appeal to children they are not particularly strong when compared to other figures.

The challenge of the game is to take a picture of the monster without it hearing you. This requires the child to be very sneaky and focus on the game, the unique stylings and quirky animations on screen attract the attention of children. The sound receptors are vital to the games success. Sneak stands out as you really are hiding from a monster, it isn’t a character on the screen! The fact that you physically need to participate to engage with the game to complete levels will keep children interested. You are instructed on your movement by the quirky narrative voice, the voice makes you a part of the story. There are three different difficulty modes, once you have completed one players can move onto another and will want to complete it to feel a sense of achievement.

The target audience are young children, you can tell as the game is relatively easy and follows a simple story so that they can follow what’s happening. It has a colourful style and cartoonesque characters that will appeal to young children as it makes it eye-catching. Also, the volatile narrative voice is amusing and explains the mechanics as well as offering help to the player so that young children understand the game. The rating of Sneak is age 5 and under, other games such as Super Mario (Nintendo wii/DS) or the popular game Minecraft (multiple platforms) have the same age rating and target their audience in a similar manner with bright, interesting settings and a simple/no storyline. It’s different to these games in the sense that it doesn’t require you to press buttons and instead you are the one interacting.

Sneak is available solely on iOS. It’s really only suited for this platform as it needs to be able to listen to your movement and react accordingly; although it could be moved to other platforms such as android providing they have the same capabilities.