Heart and Mind, Heart and Mind (title)
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Heart and Mind is a narrative 2D platformer about an elderly woman named Madeline experiencing memory loss and her journey inside her own head. The namesake characters, Heart and Mind, are reflections of Madeline's key personality traits and memories - her lover, her hobbies, her family, and more. Throughout the game, the player plays as both Heart and Mind, each with different abilities, to regain parts of Madeline's past.
Initial concepts
Refinement
This is my "vomit board" of everything that came to mind upon first reading the narrative behind our two main characters.
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From the beginning, we knew that our two main characters were to be simple, cute, and complete opposites from another while also appearing to be from the same family. The clashing dynamic between Heart and Mind had to be obvious from their designs.
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Some of the initial motifs we considered were those of royalty - the knight and the queen - as well as chess pieces, plushie toys, and animal heads.
By refinement, our narrative team had communicated that they wanted a royalty-like look with a setting in 1970s-80s Crown Heights Brooklyn. ​We liked the idea of a knight/queen duo from the initial concepts, as well as the soft, plushie aesthetic. Because the game was also set in the inner world of Madeline, an elderly African American woman in Brooklyn, we also decided that Heart would reflect both her younger self in the 70s and the playful spirit she passed down to her grandson (a crucial scene in the game). On the other hand, Mind symbolized Madeline in the present day. ​​
With this in mind, we also wanted Heart to be small, jumpy, and energetic: a little protector for Mind. Fortunately, 1970's Brooklyn was an era of beautiful disco styles in dress and music, so there was a plethora of inspiration for me to take from. Some key features taken from this time period were the afro puff, bell bottom leg and shoe shapes, and jumpsuits.
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On the side of royalty, I opted for a helmeted appearance and cape to create visual interest in the face while also keeping the design relatively simple.
On the other end, Mind needed to be Heart's complete opposite - she drags along the floor and rarely moves. Mind is Madeline's current, older, exhausted self, and her design consequently needed to reflect the look of an elderly woman. She still lives in Brooklyn, and retains parts of her personality that were so strong when she was young.
To portray this, I played around with long dresses and robes, as well as hair or hair covers that flowed downwards. I also liked the idea of a longer, slender figure, but we eventually scrapped that in our final design for more cohesion with Heart.
Extra assets
Sticker
Poster board for a game showcase. Background by Amber Qu