Hanging by A Thread

In the shimmering, infinite expanse of the boutique, the sun never rises or sets, and work never ends. You are a sinner tied to the boutique, tasked with moving divine garments down the production line to shave centuries off your sentence. But when Raji, a trembling newcomer, falters at the station beside you, the rhythmic safety of your labor is shattered.  Your values are put to the test through a reactive variable system. Will you help Raji and risk the Angels' wrath, or sabotage her to secure your own salvation?

IDN Principles

My design for Hanging by a Thread puts Janet Murray's agency  into practice by framing player choice through a "worker-horror" lens. Rather than providing purely aesthetic choices, the narrative utilizes procedurality to change the shape of the story based on the interactor's choices. By linking the sewing minigame's performance and the choices directly to variables (Angel Favor / Harmony), I force the player to navigate the tension between empathy and systemic survival. The harmony increase and angel favor increase also coincide with opposing choices, showing ludonarrative harmony.