Upon searching for an opera to
transform into a video game, there were certain aspects that I specifically
looked for. I didn’t want to have a stagnant game, so I made sure that the main
character was some sort of traveler. I also wanted the characters to be easily
distinguished, so I looked for an opera with a unique variety of characters.
Whether it was their cultures or habits, they all needed to bring something new
to the table. Lastly, I found it crucial for the story to be somewhat
outrageous and unrealistic. I found all of these characteristics within the
opera[CT1]
“Sadko”. It is a Russian opera composed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, created in
1896. As I systematically break down the game that I have created with the
influence of opera, one can see that I had quite a bit to work with.
First[CT2]
it is important to establish the general map or area of the game, or the setting
if you will. “Sadko” takes place in Novgorod, which is a medieval Russian
state. The area is near the Baltic Sea, which gives the game a[CT3]
lot of possibilities to transition from land to water at ease. The opera itself
contains an ocean heavy plot as well, so I used that to my advantage for the
game. There are also mountains off in the distance, which are not crucial to
the plot but are a nice touch to the scenery of the game. The architecture
consists of many castle-like buildings with steeples, predominantly made of
brick and somewhat run down. As I imagined the game in my head, traveling
through levels, I envisioned a dreamy and foggy scene throughout the game, with
a dreary grey colored sky. During the land scenes I foresee a look that
resembles the clouds having fallen on the ground, and the characters having to
walk through them. The ocean is calm in the beginning, but as we explore the
scenes you will see the tides and currents eventually ripping[CT4] .
One
obviously cannot create a game without one of the most critical components, the
characters. My appearances[CT5]
of the characters are very exaggerative, after having seen what the game
producers have been able to depict recently. The characters are all very
different so I will run down the line explaining some of their attributes and
habits. Both the game and the opera revolve around the main character Sadko. He
is an adventurous merchant, and very music oriented[CT6] .
Not only did he sing but he also was known for playing the gusli, which is
essentially a harp-like instrument. He will carry this instrument on his back
for virtually the entire game, sort of creating a staple of his appearance. He
is a white man with blonde flowing hair and dawns[CT7]
a powder blue silk cloak. His attire shimmers throughout the game as he walks
with pep in his step, bouncing from point A to point B. He is married to a
woman named Lubava, who in the game appears to be in a distressed state
throughout almost the entire plot line. For the sake of the game, we’ll[CT8]
make her just under five feet tall, being legally classified as a dwarf. Moving
on to another character in the game, we can address a man who accompanies Sadko
throughout many scenes. He is a merchant as well, who joins Sadko’s crew. He is
a Viking from overseas and has the appearance of a stereotypical Viking with
the horned hat, long brown hair and even armor. The Viking is a very large man,
standing around 6’8 and weighing well over 250 pounds. There are two other men
in Sadko’s crew, an Indian and a Venetian. The Indian is a very fragile man
with spectacles. In the game he walks extremely fast and wears all purple. The
Venetian man wears a fur hat and has an extremely well groomed beard. He walks
slowly, just slightly lagging behind the others while rubbing his beard periodically
in deep thought. These are the constant characters throughout all the scenes,
but more will be described as I explain the plot.
The
plot of the video game moves very quickly. It starts by the sea where Sadko
joins another man in song. They also play their guslis, or harps if you will.
Other men join the crowd, while Sadko’s goal is to convince them that they
would make money if the lake they were by[CT9]
was joined to the ocean. This is impossible to do in the game, but foreshadows
the act of persuasion that the player must constantly exercise throughout all
levels. Disgruntled, the player must walk around the lake finding and
collecting vocal notes. When three vocal notes are collected, Sadko will sing
and attract three swans. Sadko has to wade in the water without drowning (which
requires a careful squeeze to the triggers of the controller) in order to talk
to the largest swan. This swan then transforms into Volkhova, a beautiful Sea
Princess whose clothes are made of sea horses and brain coral. She wants to
marry a mortal. She lays out an explanation to Sadko that he must catch three
golden fish in order to acquire a large fortune after[CT10] setting sail for a long time. She tells
him she will wait for him, and then returns to the water in swan form.
After
this, Sadko has a long journey ahead of him, so he must use the gained
information to his advantage. Before doing so, he has to dodge a bear in the
woods to return to his wife and inform her of his intentions to leave for a
while. One of the most interesting parts of the game happens directly after
that. He has to return to shore and place a bet with other merchants that he
can catch three golden fish. Nobody believes him, so they accept. Once you
catch the golden fish, you win the ships of these merchants, along with a
copper plated elephant tusk that the most arrogant merchant treasures heavily.
However, it’s not quite that simple. The catching of the fish is an arduous
task. You have[CT11] to first build a platform of driftwood so
that you can see the lake from an aerial view. Once that is complete, you must
locate the fish (which only surface for the slightest second) and time the jump
in order to land on them. This process is repeated until all three fish are
caught, with the last attempt being the most difficult. Victorious at last,
Sadko and his unorthodox crew set sail with the other merchants’ ships towards
Venice.
This
game is ironic, because finding the treasure is actually quite easy. It[CT12] is the process of getting the treasure
home that is difficult. Once you have acquired the gold with the crew, the
winds die down. You must work hard with the controller to toggle with the sails
and toss money overboard in hopes of winning a favor from the Sea King.
However, no matter how hard you try, Sadko is tossed overboard, into the depths
of the Sea King’s territory. If the player hasn’t already used the three vocal
notes that Sadko acquired earlier to bail them out of a situation, then they
can use these to impress the King and Queen of the Sea. If they are all out,
then the mission becomes nearly impossible. This shows that management of the
three vocal notes throughout the game is essential. That being said, Sadko has
to perform at a great rate with his gusli (harp) and vocals to win the hand of
Volkhova, who is the Sea Princess from earlier. The player must hang on to her
hand while weathering the submerged storm created by the wedding celebration.
The underground territory that was once filled with silver soft-shelled
turtles, 7-foot man of war jellyfish and dolphin-women is now caught in a rip
tide of destruction. Sadko needs to dodge the jellyfish and latch on to one of
the singing conch shells in order to ride a tsunami-sized tide back to shore.
After
all of these stages are complete, the screen goes black, eventually fading into
the slowly opening eyelids of Sadko, who is lying on the shore looking at his
dwarf[CT13] sized wife. He wonders where the Princess
went, but then sees that she transformed herself into a river, joining his
hometown lake with the ocean. The aura that the end of the game gives off is a
feeling that it may have been a dream. As the view pans out and becomes aerial,
we see that Sadko’s newly obtained ships and treasures are all around him,
along with his crew who actually survived the rough sea.
While
the game is somewhat short, the two main levels are the catching of the three
golden fish and the survival of the underwater tides. I feel that through
heavily detailed scenes and minimal tweaking of the opera’s plot, I was able to
somewhat successfully transform Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s Russian opera into a
video game. While many aspects of the game would be outrageous, it certainly
teaches the value and lessons of managing certain acquired gifts and the reward
we can receive by doing so and working hard for things. Ultimately though, it
is just a game after all, full of tortoises, dolphin-women and jellyfish.
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