Crap! I’m Broke: Out of Pocket is a hectic life management game set in a Cubist-style world. Do mini-game style jobs and craft your career as a burger flipper, a human statue, a club bouncer and any other odd job you stumble upon – whatever it takes to avoid eviction and keep starvation at bay!
What makes my game unique?
GAMEPLAY & MECHANICS]
The gameplay of Crap! I’m Broke has been carefully designed to reflect the theme of the game (that is, being broke) in a meaningful way. For example, the mini-games have been seamlessly contextualised into the world. (We had not yet seen the mini game genre used quite in this way before.) Video game conventions are challenged further with the way player’s gamer achievements are treated in Crap! I’m Broke. Gamer trophies, normally a permanent reward in games, can be sold (and permanently lost) in order to maintain progress within the game when the player is unable to pay their bills. This is another design choice we have not seen in games before and confronts the player with the feeling of loss when valuables have to be sold in order to make ends meet.
[ART STYLE]
The art style of Crap! I'm Broke is influenced by the Cubist art movement with a hint of Art Deco. These art movements are heavily associated with money and big business. Companies will buy Picassos to show off their financial power, for example. The empire state building (an Art Deco icon) is heavily associated with business. Using art movements with these connotations in a game about the every-man trying to get by in an economy fuelled, day-to-day existence we felt was apt and perhaps a touch ironic.
[THEMES]
Crap! I'm Broke is not about becoming a millionaire or head of a company. You are just trying to get by and pay the bills, something many of us can relate to. We wanted to create a game that is not about one person’s struggles, but rather an abstract representation of the concept of being broke.
Why could my game win an award?
Since its launch on October 2016, Crap! I'm Broke has been described as “Anti-Escapist” and “The Millennial Simulator”. We feel we have succeeded in our pursuit to create a game that conveys an abstract and global representation of being broke. The themes of Crap! I’m Broke has captured the imagination of many all over the world: from 20-somethings who feel their lives reflect in the game, to CEOs of big companies who remember what it was like to be in the same situation. Creating a game about this (unfortunately much too relatable) scenario is a time stamp of the lives of many modern young people. We consider Crap! I’m Broke a piece of contemporary art and has value beyond being a fun and engaging video game to play.
