Discipline
Game
Interaction Design

Major Studio1
@ PARSONS MFA DT (2018)
within 1 month

Tools
Unity 3D
Illustrator

“If you don’t do what I want you to do, you will suffer“ is the typical pattern of Emotional blackmail, which is very pervasive situation in our lives. Based on interview, 100% percent people have experienced emotional blackmail in different degree from very subtle to serious. I have personally involved or seen many my friends involved in. However, most people who involved in emotional blackmail are only noticed that there is something wrong in the relationship. Through understanding the concept of it, people can deal with the relationship better or they can at least recognize what’s going on in their relationship.

Research

Definition

“A person use fear, obligation, and guilt to manipulate you” from Susan Forward. 

Here are some examples:

• “I really thought you are a nice person and you will help me, and it turns out you are not”.

• “If you don’t go with me, I don’t think you love me”.

• “If you don’t show up in two mins, you don’t have to show up forever“

It is the typical method to threaten you in order to let you do the things they want you to do. In the process, they ignore why you don’t want to do, and makes you feel guilt or fear. You may want to maintain the relationship or ease the tension at the moment or not to be degraded comply the other.

Pattern of Emotional Blackmail

The crucial part between truly suggest things or tell you feelings to emotional blackmail is that they ignore your situation. They exaggerate the result if you don’t do what they want.

Identify who and why

People who easily be involved in emotional blackmail can be summed up as the person who don’t have enough confidence.

• The person who are too care others people feeling than himself/herself

• Always wanted to be a good person

• Habitual self-doubt

• I hope to be recognized by others.

People who don’t have enough confidence usually have a hard time to refuse other people because they are afraid the consequence of rejecting others. The reason why they are afraid the consequence of rejecting others is because they have issues to draw boundaries and unable to distinguish the responsibility.

• Learn to draw boundaries and recognize that what are unreasonable request

• Be able to distinguish what’s your responsibility and what’s not

  
  
  
  
  

Main Points

Victim being emotional blackmailed because they want to maintain relationship / not to be degraded / be a “nice” person. The reason victim knows they are in the bad place in a relationship but they don’t know how to avoid is they don’t know to reject the other. Victim don’t know how to reject the others usually because they are not confident enough. They are afraid the result of refusing others.

Concept

My intention is to let people have more awareness of emotional blackmail and encourage people to avoid being in the emotional blackmail situation. Based on my research, I want to design an experience that let them know it is better to refuse an unreasonable request for not only themselves but also a manipulator.

Ideation

How do I choose form?

1) In the first phase, I was thinking to build an installation to show the pattern of emotional blackmail and ask people to break it. Then, I realized by only see the pattern and break it visually is not really feeling this concept. 

2) I decide to make a game and write a story to make people engage in. The idea is to make people practice not to be manipulated. The game indicates that if you refuse the unreasonable request can actually lead to a healthier relationship.

3)I choose a digital platform because users can play alone in anytime.

I interviewed three people who told me they had involved in emotional blackmail before. I noted some of stories and how the manipulator phrased their words. Then I used some of words and stories to write a new story between couples.

At first, I used Twine as a tool to test my story. I got some feedback: 1) some users doesn’t recognize what’s wrong about being sacrificed for their partner. They think it’s ok to receive some unreasonable request sometimes. I learned from this attitude and I think that’s fine. My goal change a little bit. It is not for eliminating the manipulation. It’s telling them the pattern and they can decide what they want to deal with it. 2) Lacking of the story of how Alex and Katy become a couple, which makes them want to refuse everything to Alex. I added some stories about their good memory.

• Based on the user test, the interface might be confused sometimes. I will position the options on the one side, and the story line on the other side.

• Improve the interaction, such as adding some typing animation.