Most title screens are very similar in how they display themselves. They typically Have the name of the game, bold and centre, and then the clickable options centred below in a similar fault. This is proved to be effective as it created an easily accessible and clear format. In the background a simple artwork displaying either the games background or essence accompanies the writing.

Some title screens slightly stray from this format such as portal. This one presents with the title and options on the side with an actual gameplay screenshot in the background. Personally I don't like this format as although its simple, it makes the options harder to see because they are smaller and the background asserts dominance over the screen

Other games replace the directive buttons with a character or object to amplify the game vibe rather than muddy the screen with words, forming a more immersive experience. As in the one displayed above, they have places options and extras in the corner so that its still there but less pronounced

There are plenty of games that opt to use a unique format for their title screens such as ‘Amanda the Adventurer’. Displayed above, is the title screen where the game logo is shown on the TV that is an integral part of the game. Alongside that, the options are arranged as names on video tapes. This creates an immersive insight into the feel of the game without any compromise on accessibility or clarity.

The title screen for my game is going to need the title of the game, and a start button. Due to the time frame we have to make the game, its unlikely we’ll have time to incorporate an options menu for the player to change their preferences. Additionally we plan the game will last around 45 mins so a save/ new game option wont be necessary.

To decide on what I want mine to look like I need to consider the background first. The components of the game include:

The Environment- The bedroom
The Main Characters- The entity, the missing girl and the player
The Lore- The cult, the missing friend

Out of all of those options, the bedroom would make the best background as it is a prominent part of the game. The entity is more of a surprise for later on in the game as you learn what happened to the girl so making that the background would ruin the mystery. I could make the background a character like the private investigator or the missing girl but the image of these people will only appear in either a cutscene of photos. The lore in the game serves as a way for the story to progress deeper so having it as the starting image of the game would partially negate its purpose.

Above I have created a basic idea sketch of what the final product will look like. I chose to display the title and the start button on a computer screen the help immerse it into the background. Around the screen, I added parts of the environment into the game like the vase of dead flowers where the player will use the water to create clay in one of the puzzles. The idea that the flowers are dead and the pencil pot is knocked over provides a sort of eerie feel, demonstrating that something went wrong in the environment.