Oasis aims to bring awareness to slow issues - problems that slowly build and creep along unnoticed until there is  a sudden shift. This concept of gradual change can be applied to many greater concepts, such as social change; the increase in society’s technological capacity or global warming. Global warming happens slowly over decades, too slowly for many people to notice. It was only when scientific studies started researching temperature trends and other environmental factors did it become apparent what was happening. Currently scientists predict “a temperature rise of 2.5 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit.” (Nasa, n.d.) over the next century. This gradual collapse is also seen in shorter-term events like sinkholes, flash floods, or landslides. These sudden natural disasters are often a result of a damage building up slowly out of sight, until something triggers the final collapse.

 

While making our game we used an iterative, prototyping process. We would design a mechanic, prototype the mechanic, and then either redesign the mechanic if it didn’t work or consider it for implementation if it did. We had a few core concepts that we kept in mind while making design decisions. These are:

• Creep needs to be subtle.

• Distractions from creep.

• Slow/unseen changes.

• Tension, not panic.

• Collapse and destruction influenced by player.

• There will be a point of no return, where the player can’t undo the consequences of their actions.